PlayStation Plus Free Game January Lineup Trailer Released

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January 3, 2014

Sony is upping the ante for Microsoft’s Games with Gold by unleashing possibly the best free game line up yet. PlayStation Plus subscribers now have access to BioShock Infinite, DMC: Devil May Cry, Don’t Starve, Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons, and more. Gamers can take a sneak peak at the titles with the new January Lineup Trailer.

The games are for all three Sony consoles and are available for free for all subscribers over the age of 18 in the Canada and the United States who maintain their PlayStation Plus subscription. PlayStation Plus subscriptions are available for $49.99 for a year or $17.99 for three months.

Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed iOS Review

Andrew Day

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January 3, 2014

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Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed iOS Review

Sonic & All Stars Racing Transformed
Developer:Sumo Digital
Publisher: Sega
Platforms: iPhone (Reviewed), iPad, Android
Release Date: Jan 2nd, 2014
Price: $0.99 – Available on iTunes and Google Play

Overview

Kart Racers are some of the most fun, party-oriented racing games that people can play. For an inconceivable amount of time the title of the best kart racer was undisputedly defended by Mario Kart. That was until Sonic joined the fray with his own racing series – Sonic & Sega All-Stars. Last year’s instalment proved to be a massive hit with console owners and now that fun has been ported over to the mobile platform. Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed is underlined by bright colours, a loveable yet nostalgic cast and awesome level design which all combine together to make the first major kart racer to hit the mobile platform to be by and large a success.

Gameplay

While Sonic & All-Stars doesn’t bring too much new to the world of kart racers, what it does bring is a lot of fun. It all boils down to the standard formula of racing a bunch of colourful characters around a track, while picking up items to impede your opponent’s progress. The game’s single player experience is split into either Grand Prix or World Tour Mode. Grand Prix is the same as you would come to expect from a racing game – pitting you against a bunch of AI-Controlled racers through a series of tracks. World Tour is where the game really gets interesting.

World Tour has you playing against the AI but with slight twists and deviations. Each stage typically has a set challenge or theme to race through. These challenges can range from standard racers to drift challenges or even races that take place entirely in the air. There are five different World Tour campaigns with 8 events in each for a total of 40 events for players to race through.

While single-player is a big part of the game, this is a racer and that means we need some sweet multiplayer. Luckily Sonic & All-Stars brings it in spades. Players can race alongside their friends through local cross-platform play, or also against strangers across the net using Game Center.

The controls for the game itself can be a little difficult to pick up and play. While most mobile racers have you controlling the direction by tilting the device left or right, All-Stars goes back to the old virtual thumbstick. The thumbstick can be a little unresponsive at times, forcing you to oversteer in order to maneuver your kart properly. Many players will adapt to this rather quickly but it is still a little jarring when you first start playing.

Visuals & Audio
Sonic & All-Stars is actually a really nice game to look at. While it isn’t pushing the boundaries of the the iPhone’s hardware it features a bright colour pallet and a set of wild and varied race tracks that just look great.

The game features a slew of different racers that showcase not only the sonic family, but also a bunch of Sega heavy hitters. Disney’s Wreck-It Ralph also joins the ensemble with his signature look. Seeing all of these different characters racing against one another is a dream come true for anyone who grew up with the infamous hedgehog and his crew.

The race tracks all look amazing and are completely different from one another. The game keeps you on your toes with level design that changes rapidly (making use of boat and plane transformation mechanics similar to recent Mario Kart titles) leaving you wondering if it was even the same stage to begin with.

The game sounds just as good as it looks. The soundtrack is composed of a bunch of songs that franchise fans will immediately remember and that all manage to fit perfectly with the theme and tone of the game as well as the individual levels. The sound effects of lobbing a firework bomb at your friends are satisfying and reall capture the spirit of the game perfectly.

Overall

Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed is an enjoyable kart racer for mobile devices. While I doesn’t bring anything overly new or exciting to the table, what it does present is a lot of fun. Some awkward controls may hinder players initially but you will quickly adapt. The games biggest draw is without a doubt the ability to play online, no matter where you are. Sonic & his friends have definitely made the successful jump from console to mobile.

Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.

Endless Nights Released on iOS

Amelia Craigie

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January 3, 2014

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Check out the brand new iOS game Endless Nights, a rogue-like role-playing game by Nations Software. This game has attempted to tackled the problem of players getting bored of replaying the same old game and quests by creating a different experience each time you play it.

This sets Endless Nights to be a true adventure survival game, partially due to its no retries, only game overs. To balance out the frustration of death, there is a permanence system which allows players to choose a specific profile, such as the profile that allows some gold or gems to be carried over to the next character.

The game has a play-as-you-want skill system to avoid characters being exclusive to a class types; the choices players make direct their class. This again mixes up the game play as each time you can play any way you want.

There are also loads of other aspects to the mobile game such as a crafting system, themed areas, ability combinations, randomized quests and multiple end-game bosses which pushes Endless Nights to provide countless adventures and an endless amount of action.

Find it here on iTunes at AU$0.99. The game is priced low so even those with tight wallets can have a crack at this one.

King’s Facebook Hit Farm Heroes Saga Now Available on Mobile Platforms

Press Releases

Philip Federico

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January 3, 2014

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King’s Facebook Hit Farm Heroes Saga Now Available on Mobile Platforms

Beat the holiday blues with a trip down to the farm!

LONDON & NEW YORK, 2 JANUARY 2014: King, the world’s leading casual games company and creator of global hit game Candy Crush Saga, today announced that Farm Heroes Saga, its hugely popular and loveable match-three Facebook title, is now available to download for free on iOS and Android platforms.

Perfect to pick-up and play anytime, anywhere, Farm Heroes Saga is a super cute and social game which challenges players to switch and match various selections of lovable ‘Cropsie’ characters in rows of three or more, within specified move limits. With 100 levels available at launch, players can look forward to endless strawberry switching and carrot crunching chaos.

Farm Heroes Saga incorporates similar gameplay mechanics to King’s award-winningCandy Crush Saga, while also featuring a number of new and distinct ways of playing a match-3 puzzle. Additional gameplay elements include rechargeable boosters and regular challenging ‘Boss’ battles where players take on the evil ‘Rancid the Raccoon’ who is attempting to spoil the peaceful nature of the farm.

Having first launched on Facebook in March 2013, Farm Heroes Saga is now a top three Facebook game (AppData Dec 2013) with an extensive and active community. Its popularity stems from its colourful design, wide range of loveable characters and distinct and original gameplay features.

Farm Heroes Saga on mobile will seamlessly synchronise with Facebook so players can progress, unlock new levels and access leaderboards wherever and whenever they like, without losing any of their progress.

“Ever since we first launched the original installment of Farm Heroes Saga on Facebook ,the mobile version has been one of our community’s most requested titles,” says Tommy Palm, Games Guru at King. “We hope that its snackable nature and rewarding progression system will prove to be as much of a hit with mobile players as it has been with our Facebook fans. We look forward to welcoming new players down to the farm!”

Farm Heroes Saga is available to download for free now on iOS (iPhone, iPad and iPod touch) and on Google Play for Android.

-ENDS-

About King:
King is the world’s leading casual games company, with more than 1 billion gameplays per day globally. King offers more than 175 exclusive games in 14 languages through mobile, Facebook and the website www.king.com. The company has offices in Barcelona, Bucharest, London, Malta, Malmo, San Francisco and Stockholm. For more information, visit http://about.king.com.

Ice Block Breaker Surfaces on iPhone and iPad

Vicky Martin

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January 2, 2014

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Crave Creative Games have announced the recent release of their classic mobile game, Ice Block Breaker for iPhone and iPad, following the debut on Android. The app designer, Mike Hempfling is well known for his development on Farm Ninja, Math Whiz Flashcards and Stickman Drop.

Ice Block Breaker revolves around a penguin collecting fallen items from ice blocks, instead of performing a dance number from Happy Feet.

The indie mobile app, Ice Block Breaker features;

PowerUp Abilities: Big, Small and Freeze Paddle, Ammo and Bonus Ball
Earn additional points by collecting fallen items
Levels increase with difficulty
Cool Penguin Ice Theme

Why not break the ice today? Ice Block Breaker is currently available to download from the App Store on iTunes here for only $0.99!

Luke’s Winter 2014 Anime Picks

Luke Halliday

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January 2, 2014

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2014 is finally upon us and with it comes a new slate of anime to sink our teeth into. Like I’ve done in previous anime seasons I will be highlighting my top picks, this time for Winter 2014. I’ll be listing off the series that look most promising going into Winter 2014. At a glance this looks like it could very well be the best Winter season in quite some time. Usually Winter proves to be a weak season of anime, but for 2014 there looks to be some real heavy hitters. So without further adieu, these are the series that I will be watching this season of anime:

Buddy Complex
A mecha anime from Sunrise studio? Who would have guessed! To be honest, I can’t say that Buddy Complex looks good per say, but rather it looks so totally silly that it will likely be fun in the same way that Sunrise’s last mecha anime Valvrave the Liberator was.

Both stylistically and story-wise, Buddy Complex could quite easily be passed off as Valvrave the Liberator season 3. It looks to be very much a spiritual successor of that anime and I for one would be more than happy to get some more Valvrave-esque anime. Something crazy and fun, Buddy Complex looks to be all that and even a bit more. Heck if it actually turns out to be well and proper good than that’s just gravy isn’t it?

Hamatora: The Animation
This one looks like it could be the dark horse for the season. Not many are giving this one any real attention but I get the feeling it could be something special. With the creator of Blood Lad working on the series, it has an impressive pedigree no doubt. Having loved Blood Lad, this one naturally has my full attention.

The story revolves around some kids in Yokohama with powers fighting other people with powers for some reason. You know powers are pretty neat and with a simple concept like that, there is a lot of possibilities. I’m looking to be wowed by Hamatora and I think it will no doubt do just that.

Nisekoi
As far as romantic comedies go Nisekoi is a very good one. The manga is a personal favourite of mine from the current Jump line-up. It features a likable cast a characters and some hilarious scenarios. While it may not exactly be the most original romantic comedy, it tackle all of the romcom tropes you’d expect and then hits them out of the ball park. It really does a great job at the classic romcom and even throws a twist here and there. I’m certainly looking forward to seeing this one animated. I’m not too sure about SHAFT animating it as they don’t have the best track record for quality in my opinion but hopefully the brilliant source material will shine through.

Space Dandy
Undoubtedly the most anticipated anime of Winter 2014 is Space Dandy, the latest work from legendary anime director Shinichiro Watanabe. It looks like Watanabe took his classic series Cowboy Bebop and splashed it with a new coat of paint and spun it on a more comedic route.

I love Watanabe and his body of work. He has never once not impressed me with one of his anime series and I expect Space Dandy to be no different. While it does look like something very different from his previous works, I think it will still carry the spirit that all Watanabe anime do. Space Dandy looks simply out of this world. Bring on the dandy guy in the space.

Yokai Watch
I’m a sucker for Level-5, both for their games and their anime. I love the Inazuma Eleven series the most however. It is such a bizarre anime series, relentlessly optimistic and filled with bombast. While Yokai Watch features a completely different story to Inazuma Eleven, if Level-5 manage to recapture that unwavering positivity with Yokai Watch, I’ll be more than pleased.

Level-5 bring something fresh to the table with their anime and games. Something different from the standard kids anime and this one looks to be a lot of fun because of it. A young boy has a watch that lets him see Yokai. It is a simply concept but I get the feeling that Level-5 will find a way to make it crazy as they do. Working alongside OLM, the studio behind Pokemon, I can only see great things for Yokai Watch and I am dying to ‘watch’ it.

Honorable Mentions: Silver Spoon 2, Noragami, Witch Craft Works and Strange+.

Feed Me Oil 2 Available Now on the App Store

Kane Bugeja

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January 2, 2014

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Feed-Me-Oil-2-01 — **Some people have such expensive taste**

Mobile games publisher Chillingo and developer Holy Water Games have just released their latest title Feed Me Oil 2 for purchase on the App Store. The game is, just as it appears, a sequel to the slick puzzler Feed Me Oil and will once again challenge you to carefully guide the pricey liquid in question into predetermined areas.

Channel oil into the gaping jaws of surreal living worlds in Feed Me Oil 2, the sequel to the groundbreaking and genre-defining Feed Me Oil. Guide gallons of the stuff around a series of mind-bending mechanical designs using new and improved physics. Watch as the oil moves realistically around each level and through the air, water and along ice in four fun-filled chapters.

As mentioned, Feed Me Oil 2 is available now on the App Store. Check out the screenshots and trailer below to get you in the puzzling mood. Test your brain and do your best to not waste a single drop of that sweet, sweet Texas Tea.

WIN – Mythbusters Season 8

Luke Halliday

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January 2, 2014

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We have 5 DVD copies of Mythbuster Season 8 to give away on courtesy of Beyond Home Entertainment. Season 8 of Mythbusters is the one that features the special Breaking Bad episode! To win simply leave a comment below answering the following question and we’ll pick a few lucky winners at random:

What myth do you want to bust and why?

We’ll pick the lucky winners on the 15th of January, so you have a roughly 3 weeks to enter. Please make sure you leave a valid email when you post your comment so we can email you if you win.

Good Luck to all!

**SPECIAL NOTE**

Competition is open to AU Residents only.

Follow us on :

Twitter | FACEBOOK | YouTube | Google Plus | RSS

Check out our other Competitions here

Dark Frenzy: Establish Your Name in Inferno Legend

Press Releases

Philip Federico

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January 2, 2014

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Dark Frenzy: Establish Your Name in Inferno Legend

Beijing, China – January 2, 2014 – Gamebox’s downloadable MMORPG Inferno Legend has recently released a major update with the brand new feature of “Dark Tournament”. Dark Tournament is a new PvP feature that enables players to see their true strength comparing with others.

Free Mode & Class Mode
There are two different modes in Dark Tournament. In Class Mode, players will be divided in groups according to their class. And players of each class will be paired and fight in rounds. At the end of the tournament, each class will have an independent rank so that players can see how good they are among players of their class.

Free Mode is even more competitive. It is like Class Mode but with players of all classes on the same platform. And at the end of it, there will be only one rank so that players can see their stance in their server.

Prayers & Outbursts
Like any competition, the preparation phase in Dark Competition is vital. Without knowing who their next opponent will be, players still have some options prepare for the upcoming battle. No matter who the opponent is, improving the strength of yourself will always bring you a better chance of winning. Besides the equipment enhancing and skill upgrading players are already familiar with, Dark Tournament provides extra options of prayer and outburst that immediately enhance the rating of players’ team.

To use Prayer, players need to spend a certain amount of Gold. Prayers will give your team a rating boost throughout the entire tournament. And Outburst is free with a 30% rating boost for your team for the upcoming round. However, Outburst can only be used 3 times in a tournament, so it will be a very strategic decision in which rounds Outburst should be used for players to make depending on how far they expect their team would go into the tournament.

With this new Dark Tournament feature and the existing Arena function, Inferno Legend PvP system is pretty complete. Players now have multiple choices to challenge each other and see their standings in this game. This will certainly bring a strong sense of achievement.

For More Information on Inferno Legend visit the Official Website at http://il.gamebox.com/ and ‘Like’ Inferno Legends on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/infernolegendofficial.

About Changyou
Changyou.com Limited (NASDAQ: CYOU) is a leading developer and operator of online games in China with a diverse portfolio of online games that includes Tian Long Ba Bu, one of the most popular massively multi-player online (“MMO”) games in China, and DDTank and Wartune (also known as Shen Qu), which are two popular web games in China. Changyou also owns and operates the 17173.com Website, a leading game information portal in China. Changyou began operations as a business unit within Sohu.com Inc. (NASDAQ: SOHU) in 2003, and was carved out as a separate, stand-alone company in December 2007. It completed an initial public offering in 2009. Changyou has an advanced technology platform that includes advanced 2.5D and 3D graphics engines, a uniform game development platform, effective anti-cheating and anti-hacking technologies, proprietary cross-networking technology and advanced data protection technology. For more information, please visit http://ir.changyou.com/.

About Gamebox
Headquartered in Beijing, China, Gamebox is a leading worldwide developer, publisher and distributor of massively multiplayer online games, including the critically acclaimed Wartune and Odin Quest. It has made many famous games and become famous in the whole world. Gamebox maintains operations in North America, Europe, South America, Southeast Asia, Australia/New Zealand.

More information about Gamebox and its products can be found on the company’s website at http://www.gamebox.com.

Ace of Diamond Episode 12 Impressions

Luke Halliday

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January 2, 2014

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Ace of Diamond
Episode 12 – Target

It is just unbelievable how very good Ace of Diamond is. It almost feels like its cheating it is that good. How is it that Ace of Diamond continues time and time again to hit it out of the park? It is a mix of a few things really, excellent production from Madhouse and Production I.G. and the incredible source material from mangaka Yuji Terajima. All of it comes together for what is truly sports anime at its best.

Picking up at the fever pitch we left off last week, we see Chris continue to unite the team and form an unstoppable battery with Ejiun. Chris and Eijun truly understand one another and it is the chemistry between the two that drives the episode. Slowly over the course of the episode we see Eijun refine his talents with the help of Chris, but at the same time we see Chris slowly fall apart with his injury.

As I speculated last week, the injury rears its ugly head here, proving to be one hell of a dark cloud overhanging Chris. The real kicker here however is the mysterious Zaizen. As the game plays on, a player by the name of Zaizen continues to call the shots, marking plays for his team, all of which seem designed to play towards Chris’ weakness. Who is this mysterious Zaizen? Well it is hard to tell at this point, but it seems that he may very well have a past connection to Chris. I’m not sure I missed any moment explaining that, but the episode ends in a very interesting way. Zaizen calls himself to the field, vowing to finish Chris off.

All of this raises some interesting questions. Who is Zaizen and what is connection to Chris? Does Chris’ injury have anything to do with this guy? What kind of havoc will Zaizen cause on the diamond? We of course have to wait until next week’s cour capper to get our answers, but we undoubtedly are instilled with intrigue by this character.

Last week we saw Chris at his best, and this time we see the other side of that coin, perhaps the side that pushed himself too hard and caused his injury to begin with. Chris can’t help himself, he sees a diamond waiting to shine in front of him and he wants to make that happen. The Chris and Eijun relationship has really come into its own here and the cast has been well established at this point. I suspect things won’t exactly end well for Chris, he even admits this looks to be his last match. The injury storyline has run quite deep and rings true for any athletes who have suffered the same fate.

For Chris it is a real passing of the torch moment to Eijun. The passing of the torch tale is one that plays out often in sports films and shows, heck it even plays out in real life. Despite not exactly reinventing the wheel there, Ace of Diamond just does it so well. It takes what is a common sports tale and much like Chris does to Eijun, Ace of Diamond makes that old tale shine like a diamond. It takes something oldschool, a classic no dout and makes it new. Ace of Diamond is really just too good, story-wise, character-wise, tonally and emotionally, it is pitch perfect.

As we move onto the end of this cour, Ace of Diamond continues to excel and while it seems like the story of Chris is winding to a close, the story of Eijun looks to be only just beginning.

Check out more Ace of Diamond impressions HERE.