Just as Mage’s Initiation is closing up shop on their Kickstarter page, Himalaya Studios is presenting to the community a demo version of the title. Having reached well over the goal of $65k, the project is currently at $90.5k funding. Perhaps the extra funds will provide more quests and fine tuning that every game desires.
To make a pledge towards the project or download the demo, click (here). Please note that the demo is part of the game’s alpha build thus any bugs or glitches should not deter you from the game’s overall content.
Take a look at our own preview of the demo (here).
Free to play this weekend is Jagex’s own Ace of Spades available on Steam. Ace of Spaces is a first-person shooter that not only allows you to engage in “Minecraft graphics” combat but also allows you to create/destroy your environment in the process.
What more does Ace of Spades have to offer? While you are taking a free tour of Jagex’s demo this weekend on Steam, you can take advantage of their discounts for the title. From now until Monday, March 18th 17:00 GMT all packages will be available for half the price! This means you can pick up the game for $4.99 right (here). Take a look at the trailer below to get your jollies full of box people shooting at each other!
Today 5pb. revealed that they are offering fans of Phantom Breaker Battle Grounds a special treat. If you happen to enjoy the retro sounding background music offered in their recently released game, then you can now download a track a week from SoundCloud.
Over the next five weeks the company will be releasing one song per week for a total of five songs. Here is the kicker though, each song will only be available for one week and will be taken down when the next song is added. Each song is free to download and you can find the first song “Demon Boss” hereand the whole Soundcloud page itself here.
Today Activision chose to release a new video for their upcoming Walking Dead video game, The Walking Dead: Survival Instinct. The video can be seen below and this time around it shows off behind-the-scenes footage including some new information about the game, voice recording and talks with Norman Reedus who plays Daryl and Michael Rooker who handles Meryl.
As you can see, the game has seen a drastic visual improvement since we last saw it and a decent amount of never before seen gameplay footage has also been included. The Walking Dead: Survival Instinct is set to be released next week on March 19th in the US and March 22nd in Europe for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Wii U.
Grinding Gear Games, developers of the popular action roleplaying game Path of Exile, recently announced that they have already hit two million registered users, despite having only launched the Open Beta in late January of this year. With overwhelming praise from both media and the player community, it’s on track to become on of 2013’s most popular PC games.
Chris Wilson, producer of Grinding Gear Games, said of the news:
“We’re really pleased with Path of Exile’s reception. It blew our expectations out of the water and continues to grow every day. The continued feedback and support from our fans has been great. We expect to add a lot of new content and features during the Open Beta period as we approach full release later this year.”
Grinding Gear is sticking to the schedule of releasing a content patch every week, including new skills and unique items, many of which were designed by the game’s Diamond supporters – people who’ve contributed $1000 or more for the chance to be part of the game’s development.
You can check out this runaway free-to-play PC game at its official website here.
Today the first piece of artwork for the next Hyperdimension Neptunia title was released. As you may already know, Hyperdimension Idol Neptunia PP is going to be an idol simulation type of game instead of a standard RPG which explains why Neptune is wearing the outfit that she is in the image to the right, which can be clicked for a larger version.
Currently little is known about the exact gameplay aspects of Hyperdimension Idol Neptunia PP, but it is known that the company developing it is Tamsoft which is known for their work with Dream C Club and that it is meant to be released on the PlayStation Vita on June 20th. As for a Western localization, it is certainly possible but still up in the air.
Dollar Dash, Kalypso Media’s newest game, has finally received an official release date for the PlayStation Network. The game will be dropping in America for the Sony faithful on Tuesday, March 19 for $9.99.
Developed by Candygun Games, Dollar Dash is a fast-paced free-for-all multiplayer game. Up to four people can take on the role of a thief to duke it out, using extravagant weapons to steal bags of money. You’ll then have to stash it in the getaway vehicle before it disappears. It offers 18 maps, loads of weapons, player customization, and a heaping helping of comedy.
You can check out our review of Dollar Dashhere. The game has also recently dropped on for XBox as well.
Ubisoft sure has a problem when it comes to keeping Assassin’s Creed details under wraps. Assassin’s Creed IV’s information was leaked ahead of time and now it seems that their next portable Assassin’s Creed game has been revealed ahead of time as well.
A Spanish retailer called XtraLife had listed a game called Assassin’s Creed: Phoenix Rising on their website. Before it was taken down the listing stated that the game would be released on October 10th and would be coming to the PlayStation Vita. Considering October 10th is about three weeks before the release of Assassin’s Creed IV, it is possible that Ubisoft is aiming to release these two games the same way they released Liberation and ACIII last year.
Today Namco Bandai announced that they will be hosting two panels at Wondercon later this month which will take place from March 29th to March 31st in the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, California.
The first panel will be for Tales of Xillia which will occur on March 29th from 3 to 4 PM in room 207BCD. This panel will feature Tales series producer Hideo Baba as well as the game’s lead English voice actors who will discuss their interpretations and inspirations for Jude Mathis and Milla Maxwell.
Interestingly enough, it is worth noting that the press listing did mention that Tales of Xillia would be released in the Summer, making it the first release window for the game outside of 2013.
Anyways, the second panel is for the already released Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 3 which will be held on March 30 from 4 to 5PM. The room will remain the same and it will feature CyberConnect2 boss Horishi Matsuyama who will give fans in attendance a special inside look at the franchise’s future as well as make a special Ultimate Ninja Storm 3 announcement.
Besides these panels, Hideo Baba and Horishi Matsuyama will also be available to sign autographs at various times at Namco Bandai’s booth.
Hey Canada! It’s supposed to be spring! You’re supposed to get warmer, not colder! Oh well, another excuse to stay indoors and play video games, right?
Bear with me. This is going to be a long section for Steam. This week, Steam is running an Ubisoft themed weekend for their Daily Deals along with knocking down the price of many Ubisoft titles. For those unwilling to wade into the hellhole known as SimCity’s DRM, check out Ubisoft’s reformed DRM title Anno 2070 for %66 off. Ubisoft stripped out almost all of the unpalatable DRM restrictions and have changed it to a 3 activation limit with an activation returned every month. The futuristic game is a city builder with some combat elements. City builder fans who are looking for something a little more serious in tone than Tropico 4 should definitely check out Anno 2070. All of the DLC except Deep Ocean can be easily skipped as they are mostly game shortcuts mixed with special unit skins. Deep Ocean on the other hand is a fully blown expansion pack.
Three smaller Ubisoft titles is today’s deal. I Am Alive is also 66% off. Originally released on the consoles as a downloadable title, I Am Alive tried to implement some new and interesting gameplay ideas that ultimately didn’t do so well. Adventure game From Dust is 75% off. The game was released to a lot of praise for its creativity when it was released. Finally Rayman Origins is 66% off. The game is a return to Rayman’s 2d platforming roots packaged in modern look. If I had to choose between the three, I’d probably choose Rayman or From Dust as the game to buy.
Steam has a large list of games on its week long sales this week. RPG Arcania, platformer Cargo Commander, the DLC for free to play strategy game Frontline Tactics, turn based strategy game Endless Space, co-op FPS Left 4 Dead 2, trippy rollerblading game Jet Set Radio, F1 racing sim F1 2012, and kart racer F1 Race Stars are all on sale this week. I highly recommend purchasing Left 4 Dead 2 and Jet Set Radio. They are slightly older, but excellent titles. Left 4 Dead 2 has support for Steam Workshop now which really extends its life.
Finally, Steam wraps up their giant list of sales this week with two weekend deals. Ace of Spades has a free to play weekend and is also on sale for 50%. The game is the result if Team Fortress 2 and Minecraft had a love child. Considering the game is a free weekend, I highly recommend downloading it and giving it a try before purchasing. Also, thanks Jagex. I have now had the song Ace of Spades stuck in my head for the last two weeks because of your trailer, jerks. The adventure game Little Inferno is on sale for 60% off. The game is simultaneously on sale on iTunesfor $0.99. So if you are ok with using an iPad, you’ll probably be better off snagging the iOS copy.
I wasn’t kidding when I said Steam Sales was a long section. But alas, there are more vendors than just Steam selling games. Greenman Gaming’s 20% off coupon expired today, but there are a ton of indieand EA games on sale this weekend. Sort of a David meets Goliath weekend. Particular titles to note are Crysis 3 and Dead Space 3 which are both %33 plus an additional $4.00 instant cash back or $5.00 store credit. This is one of the best prices for Dead Space 3. However, if you’re looking for Crysis 3, I highly recommend getting a 50% off coupon at the Crysis Facebook page and using it on Origin.
There is a giant list of indie games on sale. Excellent titles to note include Dustforce, Chivalry: Medieval Warfare, the Cognitiongames, Frozen Synapse, Psychonauts, Trine, and To the Moon. If you plan on playing To the Moon, keep some tissues close by, that game is known to make grown men weep with its touching story. Additionally, if you’re looking to purchase Cognition Episode 2, I highly recommend saving some money and buying the Indie Royale Thoughtful Bundle. You will get the second episode plus a few extra games for less money.
Gamersgate is running a Witcher Weekend. Both The Witcher 1 is 60% off and The Witcher 2 is on sale for 40% off. Although they are both excellent RPG games, the deal is pretty luke warm to pretty crappy. Both games have been seen on sale for 75% off consistently during major Steam sales and elsewhere. The more interesting sale is the group of Paradox Interactive titles on sale for 75% off. Grand strategy game fans are highly recommended to purchase Victoria 2 and its expansion A House Divided. X-Com games are also 50-60% off this weekend including the recent XCOM: Enemy Unknown.
GetGames has a big Adventure Sale. Titles to note include Beyond Good and Evil, Prince of Persia, Quantum Conundrum, Gemini Rue, and Trine. If I could only recommend one title in the whole sale, I would recommend purchasing Beyond Good and Evil. It is one of those cult hit action adventure titles that is finally getting a long awaited sequel.
