Page 3944 – Capsule Computers

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March 1, 2014

STAR LORDS HITS NEXT MILESTONE WITH NEW ALPHA UPDATE ON STEAM EARLY ACCESS

New Features Include Shinier Graphics, New UI, Fleshed Out Domestic Policies, and More; Plus, New Screenshots

Haarlem, The Netherlands – February 28, 2014 – Development of Iceberg Interactive’s upcoming 4X space-strategy game Star Lords is progressing apace, as Arkavi Studios has provided a huge new update for its growing fan base. The new build offers gamers a streamlined, user-friendly UI, a more stable build, a more active and fleshed out domestic policies mechanic, an overall graphics update, a change in currency that encourages more exploration, and much more.

Details for the 16.0 Updated Build Include:

Streamlined UI (game creation screen): Players now have a single menu with three tabs: Race Selection, Galaxy Settings and Game Settings. Each of these tabs has been greatly improved from the previous menus, with less cluttered and better organized information.
Stability Improvement: a new series of experimental fixes will fix most (if not all) stability issues. Regretfully, some of these experimental fixes involve temporarily removing the weapon and armor ship parts from the game. These will be reinstated in a later build. It’s very important for Arkavi Studios to know if these fixes are working on a variety of PC configurations, so any feedback on whether or not the game still crashes for you is very important.
Domestic Policies: The domestic policies mechanic has been fleshed out and further balanced, with various random events having an impact on the population’s approval of certain policies. Now, an event message box will pop up when the majority of the population disagrees with one of your policies.
Bug Fixes: Among them, most (if not all) of the full-screen issues (such as the screen only displaying a part of the UI for example) should be fixed, the tutorial text is no longer out of bounds and the crashes on loading a game should be gone once and for all.
Balancing: Some general balancing has been done, most importantly, every player now starts with 5000 BC, to make the early game more challenging, and exploration more rewarding, with valuable space debris having a bigger impact than before.
Graphics Update: Improved backgrounds and updated the ship models for the Krifith Empire. More improvements in this aspect will be introduced incrementally.

In Star Lords, players take command of one race to join the struggle for supremacy in the galaxy. As the leader of an empire, players are tasked with exploring the stars, colonizing new worlds, managing an empire, and conquering whoever dares to oppose them. Within a framework of turn-based strategy and turn-based combat, Star Lords endeavours to differentiate itself by enabling players to beat their opponents by using generals, diplomacy, intelligence, trading, or plotting the downfall of enemies by financing wars against them or aiming to cause anarchy.

Star Lords is currently in the Alpha stage and available on the Steam Early Access program at $19.99. store.steampowered.com/app/246940/

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ABOUT ARKAVI STUDIOS
Arkavi Studios is an independent game development company, founded in 2013 in Leiria, Portugal. We are really passionate about what we do, putting our heart and soul into every game we make, and making the games we would like to play.

ABOUT ICEBERG INTERACTIVE
Iceberg Interactive is an independent video game publisher founded in 2009 by an international group of games industry veterans and is located in Haarlem, The Netherlands. While keeping its roots in the European retail games market, Iceberg has rapidly increased its focus towards the global digital games market, by building strong direct relationships with dozens of Game Portals. Staffed with avid gamers, Iceberg works closely with an international assembly of game developers, both midsize and indie. With a distinct focus on the strategy, action, simulation and adventure game genres, the company has garnered attention with acclaimed releases including Killing Floor, Wings of Prey, APB Reloaded and Endless Space among its 70+ game arsenal – with more promising games in the pipeline.

Play it cool!

Sniper Elite: Nazi Zombie Army series hits half a Million sales

Press Releases

Philip Federico

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March 1, 2014

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Sniper Elite: Nazi Zombie Army series hits half a Million sales

Rebellion marks series’ first birthday with huge sale, announces console entry also in development.

February 28^th 2014, Oxford – Independent UK developer Rebellion today announced that the hugely successful Sniper Elite: Nazi Zombie Army series has reached over half a million sales across Steam, retail, and the Rebellion Gamestore.

To celebrate the series’ first birthday the studio has released a bundle pack including both games and launched a 75% sale on both Steam (ending March 3^rd) and the Rebellion Gamestore (ending March 7^th).

That means gamers can pick up the entire series for just £4.49 / $6.25 or download either game on their own for just £2.49 / $3.75.

Console entry now in development

Released a year ago today, the series made its debut with Sniper Elite: Nazi Zombie Army – a horror spin-off from 2012’s award winning Sniper Elite V2.

But the intense four-player co-op and great value price point quickly proved so popular that a dedicated team began to work on a sequel, eventually launching seven months later during Halloween 2013.

Both games were only available on PC, and having teased the possibilities in previous statements Rebellion’s CEO and Creative Director Jason Kingsley can now finally confirm that a console entry is in development.

“We can’t say much yet but it won’t just be a re-package of the first two games – there will be plenty of new content to get stuck into.”

“Like many independent developers, we’re still learning the ropes and having a lot of conversations with the platform holders. We’re not at the stage where we can confirm the platforms right now, but we’re fortunate to have experience already from self-publishing on Steam and mobile, so we’re confident it’ll go smoothly.”

Links and keyfacts:

Sniper Elite: Nazi Zombie Army 1 & 2 together have sold over half a million units world-wide through digital platforms and retail in just one year.
Both games and a new ‘Bundle’ pack are 75% off on Steam and the Rebellion Gamestore for a limited time. Gamers can get both games together for just £4.49 / $6.25
A console entry for the series is now in development – platforms are as yet unannounced.

About Rebellion

Rebellion® is the studio behind worldwide number one hit games such as Sniper Elite V2 and Aliens vs. Predator. One of Europe’s leading independent video games developers and comic book publishers, Rebellion is privately owned company based in Oxford, United Kingdom, and prides itself on its unique and innovative approach to IP development and stewardship. It has been responsible for a diverse portfolio of publisher-owned and internally developed IPs, including Star Wars BattleFront, Judge Dredd: Dredd vs. Death, The Simpsons Game and Sniper Elite.

Rebellion’s publishing portfolio includes multi award-winning British science fiction comic 2000 AD, the 2000 AD Graphic Novel line, the internationally-acclaimed fantasy, science fiction and horror imprint Solaris Books, and shared-world pulp imprint Abaddon Books.

For more information please visit: http://www.rebellion.co.uk/

Like Rebellion on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RebellionDevelopments

Follow Rebellion on Twitter: https://twitter.com/Rebellion

New Matrix Trilogy to Explore Pre-Neo Era?

Zac Elawar

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March 1, 2014

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New Matrix Trilogy to Explore Pre-Neo Era?

That’s right, another Matrix rumor has started. Only this time, it comes from the frequently accurate (but not always) Latino Review, who state that a new Matrix trilogy is in the works and that the Wachowskis have already turned in early treatments and outlines to Warner Bros.

The source also claims that one of the budding concepts revolves around exploring the birth of the Matrix itself, and given how the Architect referred to Neo as not being the only ‘One’, I’d say there is a lot of potential in the idea. With that said, it is noted that the story direction is very fluid at this stage, and nothing is guaranteed; well, that’s the nature of a rumor, anyway. I’ve been clamouring for more entries in the series, which is amongst my favourites of any medium. I’ve also been telling anyone who will listen that this was inevitable for the same exact reasons LR stated; Warner Bros. needs a big franchise to compete with the upcoming Avatar and Star Wars sequels in 2015 and beyond, and the siblings’ post Matrix outings – Speed Racer and Cloud Atlas – bombed at the box office. And I’m sorry to say, but their forthcoming movie Jupiter Ascending may not fair much better (it could be another John Carter, but I hope I’m wrong).

How do you guys feel about this rumor? Are you exciting about the prospect of a prequel trilogy for The Matrix? Maybe you’d rather a sequel, or no new flick at all? Let us know in the comments below!

Nagi no Asukara Episode 20 Impressions

Sergei Lazarev

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March 1, 2014

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Nagi no Asukara
Episode 20 – The Sleeping Beauty

What an apt title for this episode. After a brief sidestep in the previous episode, the focus is back on the sleeping Manaka following her rescue in episode 18. As the third and final member of the Sea Village friends awakens (more on that later), I’d like to bring attention to something way more important – Miuna with her hair down is a goddess.

With Manaka still fast asleep everyone is doing their best to find a way to wake her up, especially Hikari. One proposed method is to play her the song of the Boatdrift Ceremony. The idea is to stimulate her sense and hopefully make her respond in some way. The second half of this anime is really centered around Miuna I find since a lot of this episode is based around her inner conflict.

Without even realising it, she inherently doesn’t want Manaka to wake up and steal Hikari again despite her good nature. For the first time we see Hikari get angry at her after she lets slip a possibility that Manaka might not wake up.

Hikari himself is slowly becoming tormented by that possibility. We see a really creepy hallucination where Manaka appears leaning over him, blaming herself for the world freezing over.

An interesting scene between the two friends Miuna and Sayu plays out as they pore over books in the library for ideas on waking Manaka. Miuna tells Sayu she is wasting time by reading irrelevant books like Snow White. But Sayu suggests it’s actually Miuna who isn’t trying hard enough and is instead content with half-hearted ideas. At this stage Miuna questions whether she actually wants Manaka to wake up.

As Hikari vainly continues trying to wake her up he begins to hallucinate. Seeing Miuna with her hair down in the hallway he mistakes her for Manaka before collapsing due to a fever. The next day at school we finally see some long-overdue interaction between Kaname and Sayu as he offers to help her take notes for the absent Hikari and Miuna, who decided to stay back and look after him.

However, the most curious character interaction in this episode is between Tsumugu and Miuna since I don’t think the two have ever had a scene together in the series yet. Tsumugu calls her to explain that the appearance of her ena is linked to a the awakening of latent abilities when the human body is put in a life threatening situation. After she randomly starts crying over the phone he requests to meet up.

He starts the conversation by admitting he’s a block of wood when it comes to expressing emotions and he seems envious of the people from Shioshishio who are always “overflowing with emotions”. Tsumugu says she is like the others too, but Miuna denies it by saying she’s different from Hikari and his friends. She’s guilty for feeling differently towards Manaka and making Hikari upset.

Tsumugu connects with her by saying he was like that too, thinking it’d be better if the Sea Village friends never woke up and he would be left with Chisaki alone. But he felt happy when they did and Miuna wants to be happy as well. Thus with the help of Tsumugu she finally reconciles with her thoughts.

Hikari is well again and is looking over Manaka when Miuna walks in. She suggests what Sayu originally suggested after reading fairytales; to kiss. The way the Japanese language works is that you don’t have to specify “who” when the subject matter is obvious but Hikari gets confused and thinks she means between him and herself! After this awkward misunderstanding not even a correction can settle the mood.

It’s at this point that Manaka finally wakes up, lecturing Hikari not to yell at girls. This abrupt awakening was handled so smoothly and it was just a perfect way to finally close the issue. I can’t wait to see what she has to say in the next episode.

Check out more Nagi no Asukara impressions HERE.

Ranma 1/2 Omnibus manga to debut in March with first 2-in-1 volume

Travis Bruno

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March 1, 2014

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You may remember that Viz Media had announced that they were planning on not only re-releasing the Ranma 1/2 anime on Blu-ray, but they were also planning to re-release Rumiko Takahashi’s classic manga series in a newly re-mastered 2-in-1 omnibus format.

Well today Viz Media has announced that the first omnibus will be released on March 11th, marking the first time that the Ranma 1/2 manga has been available in its original right to left reading style.

Each omnibus will cost $14.99 U.S. / $16.99 CAN and for those who don’t know, the manga follows the story of Ranma Saotome, a martial artist who was cursed at the Chinese training ground in Junsenkyo causing him to turn into a young woman anytime he is splashed with cold water.

Although he can turn back into a boy with hot water, that is the least of his worries as he soon finds himself chased by both men and women looking for a fight and also for love.

Golden Time Episode 16 Impressions

James Mapley

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March 1, 2014

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Golden Time
Episode 16 – Wakeup Call

In this life there is a never-ending list of things that can catch you completely off guard, but few compare to the enormity of a car crash. Not only is there the damage to the car to consider, but there is your passengers, the people around you, and sometimes worst of all, your confidence. Last episode, Kouko put all of her friends in danger by falling asleep at the wheel resulting in Chinami getting injured and 2D-kun’s car taking a pretty hefty blow. Her confidence left in tatters, she locked herself away, leaving Banri and the rest of her friends worried sick about her. A natural reaction, but how would they pick her back up now that her foundation has been shaken to the core?

The crowning moment of the episode definitely came when Banri confronted Kouko about her running away from her problems. It was another example of just how amazingly true to life this show can be, displayed by the raw emotion oozing from every second of beautifully written dialogue. Huddled under her covers in a pitch black room, Kouko begged Banri to go away because she was too ashamed by how childish she was. She described herself as a child playing dressup with makeup and adult clothes which, while it may have been true at the beginning of the series, is no longer the case. Kouko may not be perfect, but who is? At least she is always trying to better herself, something that could not be said of her when she was still pining over Mitsuo at the very start. As she poured her heart out to Banri, Kouko finally became a character that no one can possibly say is the same loud, superficial airhead we met in episode 1. It may not be a change of the sort of magnitude of Taiga in Toradora, but it is a believable change – one that could actually happen to a real person.

Unfortunately, the insight into Banri was one that was met with mixed feelings. Kouko’s accusation that he was a hypocrite for lecturing her about running away from her feelings was apt and brought up a very interesting point, but Banri’s reaction was less impressive. Skirting around the issue, he ended up promising not to run anymore, but is that really something he can do? Amnesia isn’t as simple an issue as Kouko wanting to put the crash out of her mind. Banri never wanted to leave his friends and family consciously and that is clearly expressed in the thoughts of his ghost, but when you wake up with no memories of all the people that care about you, what do you do? All of a sudden you have a hoarde of people all expecting you to be the same person you were before, but you’re no longer that person. He ran because he wanted a fresh start, but Linda’s appearance meant that he could never truly get away. Should he try to make amends with all of those that he left? Maybe. But there is no easy answer and so in a rare lapse of writing he tried to avoid the issue.

On a slightly less serious note, Kouko’s dad may have gone from my least favourite anime dad of all time, to my favourite all in one 20 minute episode. When he slapped Kouko to the ground in front of all of her friends and Banri, I was fuming! Not only was it completely out of the blue, but it was such overkill! You don’t slap a girl like that, even if they are your daughter! Needless to say, he wasn’t in my good books, that is until the end of the episode when Kouko was making up with Banri and he stood in the doorway asking Banri to make instant ramen for him. What a guy! Not only was he listening in on his daughter’s conversation with her beloved, but he had the nerve to ask Banri to cook for him! The breaking point though was when the cat followed her dad into the room and the chime of its collar let Kouko know he was there. Bewlidered by her father’s appearance, Banri lied and said he wasn’t there, but then he took the opportunity to try and one up Banri by calling him a liar! “He lied to you! I told the truth, remember that!” This guy has some unimaginable stones, but I would expect no less from someone who could raise a daughter like Kouko.

What is next for Golden Time? We’re approaching the end of the series now and with only 8 episodes left to cover everything, the pacing needs to pick up very soon. It is time to start tying up loose ends and coming to resolutions. Will Banri stay true to his word and stop running from his past? Only time will tell. Until next time.

Golden Time is currently simulcasting on Crunchyroll where new episodes can be found each week and watched on mobile devices, consoles, smart TVs and of course on PC.

For more impressions of winter’s best and worst, head over to our Anime Impressions page.

Check out more Golden Time impressions HERE.

Tecmo Koei gives Atelier Escha & Logy some love with a launch trailer

Travis Bruno

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March 1, 2014

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Compared to most of Tecmo Koei‘s games, there exists a somewhat recently acquired franchise which is often given very little publicity and that happens to be the Atelier series of games. But it seems that since Atelier Escha & Logy: Alchemists of the Dusk Sky is set to be released in a few weeks, the company has decided to release a launch trailer to show off the various highlights of the game as well as most of the characters players will meet..

The trailer can be found below and as you may have noticed, this is the first in a long time that there have been two playable protagonists in an Atelier game. Currently Atelier Escha & Logy is set to be released on March 11th in North America and March 7th in Europe.

Xbox Newsbeat: Feb 24 – Feb 28

Andrew Day

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March 1, 2014

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Time to hit those power buttons, tell your Xbox One to “Xbox: Go Home,” and get ready for another chock-a-block edition of Xbox Newsbeat, the number one stop for all the news regarding Microsoft’s gaming platforms. This week we have 7 hard-hitting news bites with 6 of them regarding Xbox One, and the final one for the still-awesome 360 (sorry again Windows Phone. Maybe next time). So since we have so much news from Microsoft HQ, we’d best get to it!

Introducing A Truly Next-Gen Twitch Experience on Xbox One

TwitchTV is the internet’s most popular video streaming service, and it is finally making its way to Xbox One! With the simple voice command of “Xbox: Broadcast!” those who have downloaded and set-up a Twitch account will immediately have their gameplay video sent out onto the world wide web for Twitch’s 45million+ subscribers to watch. Twitch will be available from March 11th, just in time for Titanfall.

Multiplayer and Party Updates for Xbox One Coming in March

We spoke last week about the new invite-only beta test for the new multiplayer and party features that will be coming to Xbox One in the near future. Well now we can officially tell you that these updates will begin rolling out over the next few weeks. The update will being some enhancements and updates to the multiplayer and party systems of the console, but will also have some behind the scenes stuff that will help developers make their games a reality, as well as improvements to the Kinect Voice Commands.

Chaos Rises with a Gang of New Content in Third Dead Rising 3 DLC Episode

The third chapter in Dead Rising 3’s slick DLC campaign is now here with “The Untold Stories of Los Peridos – Chaos Rising.” This new chapter puts you in the role of a renegade biker; Hunter Thibodeux who must escape from prison, seek revenge and fight for control of his gang. This new side story features a new mission, zombie-slaying weapons, over-the-top vehicles and more – all of which carry back to the main game.

Chaos rises is available stand-alone for $13.45, or as part of the season pass for $39.99. Check out our review of Dead Rising 3, as well as our review for the last DLC; Fallen Angel.

“Ryse: Son of Rome” Developer Talks Mars’ Chosen Pack and Game Updates

Microsoft Studios and Crytek have opened the gates of the Colosseum once again and handed players one hell of a reason to take up arms again in Ryse: Son of Rome. Available now through Xbox Live is the most ambitious add-on to date; the Mars Chosen Pack. Available for $11.95 or as part of the Season Pass, “Mars’ Chosen Pack” adds new maps, a character skin and a brand-new cooperative gameplay type called Survival Mode. You will also get 5 new maps (with two being made specifically for Survival mode) and a new character skin; The Legionary.

“Zoo Tycoon” Receives Association of Zoos & Aquariums Stamp of Approval

The developers of Zoo Tycoon intended for their game to not only be fun, but also to teach players the responsibilities of running a zoo. To this end, they reached out to the Association of Zoos & Aquariums (AZA) to provide expert advice on animal behaviour, what animals need from their enclosures and how they need to be cared for in real zoos – all in order to make the most authentic and educational experience possible while still being enjoyable.

However, the collaboration didn’t end once the game was shipped out. The AZA Tiger SSP’s Tiger Conservation Campaign was chosen as the first Community Challenge non-profit organisation and will receive a $10,000 donation from Microsoft in support of efforts to reduce the number of Sumatran tigers killed, displaced or caught in snares after the “Zoo Tycoon” community reaches its goal to collectively release 1,000 Sumatran tigers into the wild in the game. So seriously guys, start freeing those tigers!

New Developers Sign On to ID@Xbox

ID@Xbox is a program designed to make it easier for independent developers to get their games made, and available on the Xbox One platform. Since its launch, more than 200 independent game developers have signed on, and are using Xbox One dev kits to make their dreams into a reality. The first lot of games are already at Microsoft for certification and will hopefully be available on the Xbox Games Store in the coming weeks.

Red Bull TV Bring Heart-Pounding Action to Xbox 360

Time to round off this week’s Newsbeat with some high-octane 360 news! Red Bull, makers of energy drinks and sponsors of extreme sports have announced that owners of Xbox 360 consoles are able to download and watch all the action from Red Bull TV straight on their consoles. Red Bull TV specialises in high-quality programming that takes you behind the scenes and up close and personal with inspirational stories, people and lifestyles in sports, music, and culture. All Red Bull TV films, shows, clips and live programs are available to Xbox Live Gold members on Xbox 360 around the globe at no additional cost.

So that’s it for another week of Xbox Newsbeat! Lots of sweet news to digest, and some cool game DLC to go and grab! Which of these bulletins jumps out at you the most? Let us know in the comments below and remember to stay tuned to Capsule Computers for all the sweet Microsoft news as it becomes available

Dynasty Warriors 8: Xtreme Legends PS3/PS4 comparison video released

Travis Bruno

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March 1, 2014

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With Tecmo Koei releasing Dynasty Warriors 8: Xtreme Legends soon, the company has released a comparison trailer showing how the PlayStation 4 version of the game is a significant improvement over the PlayStation 3 release. The trailer can be found below and from the looks of it, the PlayStation 4 version will feature more detailed character armor, more enemies on the screen, and oddly enough appear darker than the PS3 version.

Dynasty Warriors 8: Xtreme Legends for the PlayStation 3 and Dynasty Warriors 8: Complete Edition, the PlayStation 4 and PS Vita version that includes both Xtreme Legends and the original Dynasty Warriors 8, is set to be released on March 25th in North America.

Latest Noire Gekishin Black Heart trailer shows off new characters and gameplay

Travis Bruno

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March 1, 2014

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A new trailer for Chou Megami Shinkou Noire Gekishin Black Heart was released by Compile Heart today and this trailer highlights a number of the new characters that are in the game as well as the way gameplay will unfold. More details about these characters can be found on the game’s website here.

Currently Chou Megami Shinkou Noire Gekishin Black Heart is set for release in Japan on May 29th and at the moment the Vita title has not been announced for release in the West, though NIS America either has, or is, localizing most of the Neptunia games including the spin-off singing game.