Not much has been said about Mars: War Logs since the announcement trailer 3 months ago, but the time has finally come to show off more in these first screenshots from Spiders Studio and Focus Home Interactive. In the six screenshots released, player can check out some of the places, people, and other life on the red planet.
Set more than one hundred years after a disastrous event that threw the Mars’ colonies into disorder and made water an ultra precious resource for the incredibly dry world. Taking the role of Roy Temperance, players can do their part for the planet as they choose from different skills and perks to aid in the cyberpunk-style world that exists there. Part action, part RPG using those skills to fight in different ways and crafting different equipment, players will find their own path that could decide the fate of the colonies.
Mars: War Logs is currently set to release on the XBLA, PSN, and PC Digital in early 2013. Until then, be sure to check out the gallery of screenshots below.
Today, Bioware and LucasArts have launched the free-to-play option for their MMORPG, Star Wars: The Old Republic.
The previously subscription-based only game will now allow players the chance to experience the full storyline arcs of each of the eight available classes, up to a level cap of 50. This is a great incentive for those who were/are put off by the subscription-based model (as common as it is in MMOs). However, you must be made aware that there are some restrictions on your gameplay experience in F2P. To be fair to those who have been paying a subscription, F2P has limited game options and access to certain game content. These limitations (listed here) should not deter potential adopters. As Matthew Bromberg, General Manager of BioWare Austin states: “There has never been a better time to start playing with us.”
In other SWTOR news, Game Update 1.5: HK-51 Activated has been released today as well. The update adds new areas, a new companion and much more. Here is the official breakdown of new content made available with the update:
Get ready for an action-packed adventure to earn control of one of the galaxy’s most deadly Assassins, HK-51. Submerged beneath the icy surface of Belsavis lies a derelict ship and if you are brave enough to venture through the wreckage, you will embark on a mission that ultimately rewards you with a powerful new, yet familiar, ally the ruthless Assassin Droid, HK-51.
Explore Section X, a previously untouched area of the prison world of Belsavis. The Dread Masters’ servants are searching for a powerful and ancient weapon. Fly to Section X and secure the target of their search to be richly rewarded.
Travel to Denova to take on Operation: Explosive Conflict – now with a Nightmare Mode! Teams who complete in this new mode can earn the final pieces of the Dread Guard gear set and a brand new mount that will be sure to cause tank envy!
For further information, and to get started on your F2P account, head over to the official Star Wars: The Old Republic website.
Unfortunate news for Playstation 3 owners who have bought Call of Duty: Black Ops for the console – the game is a buggy mess that is for the most part broken. At least that’s what reports coming in are claiming, with gamer’s taking to the Playstation forumslambasting the game as a problem-riddled disaster.
PS3 gamers have sadly not been able to access the online multi-player whatsoever due to connectivity issues that Activision have been unable to explain. Activision did however take to twitter to apologize to gamers afflicted with the connectivity error saying “We are aware of connectivity issues that some players are facing in Black Ops II on PlayStation 3. We are working on resolution, thank you.” As you can see though they did not provide any insight as to why this issue was occurring at all in the first place.
Gamers have also noted a a number of other bugs and glitches within the game, many of them graphics related some far more severe such as console crashing. Perhaps the most troubling issue is the fact that the main pre-order incentive for the Hardened and Care Package Editions of the game, the Nuketown 2025 map code is effectively a piece of pretty paper with some funky letters and numbers on it, as a large number of codes can not be redeemed on the Playstation 3 for reasons unknown at time of posting.
We can only hope that Activision resolves these issues as soon as possible in order to provide Playstation 3 users with the same ‘quality’ experience that gamers on other platforms are getting. Be sure to let us know your thoughts on all of this in the comments section below.
The Playstation All-Stars Battle Royale roster has now expanded to 22 after the first two downloadable characters were announced in a post on the Playstation Blog. They are Kat from the Playstation Vita title Gravity Rush and Emmett Graves from the Playstation 3 title Starhawk. These two characters will be available early 2013, so there is some time before they are unleashed upon the All-Stars. Kat was rumoured to make an appearance after a leaked page on the official site, but Emmet’s inclusion is certainty one that was not seen.
The post does have some info on their playing style. Emmett will have access to all of his signature weapons and Starhawk’s “Build-in-Battle” system so that he may unleash an aerial fury upon his opponents. Kat’s main ability is the manipulation of gravity via a small cat that follows her around. There are also finishing attacks she possess in Gravity Rush, which will probably become one of her Super Attacks.
Once these two characters have been released, they will be available for free. The catch is that they will only be available for free in the two weeks after release. After that, it is presumed that they will have a price tag. Emmett and Kat will only require a one time purchase as DLC is transferable between the PS3 and Vita versions.
Update: Seth Killen has revealed that both Kat and Emmett will be getting the same treatment as the launch characters in the comments section of theUS Playstation Blog post. Both will have their own story to tell and will receive their own rival. It is not known if Kat and Emmett will be rivals or other DLC characters will rival each of these two characters.
At an event earlier tonight in Sydney, us here at Capsule Computers were invited down to the Nintendo Experience Store in Sydney for a unique media night and a chance to get some more alone time with the Wii U console before its release on the 30th of November this year. On display at the store was a fair number of games that will be available either at launch or during the launch window. Unfortunately, most of the games on display were at the EB Expo this year, so not too much is new.
The games on display were few in number, but incredibly fun to play. We actually spent the majority of the night playing Just Dance 4 from Ubisoft. However, the other games were: New Super Mario Bros. U, Nintendo Land, Darksiders II, Assassins Creed 3 and Zombie U. The builds on display were slightly different to the ones that we have played previously at the EB Games Expo, but most of the gameplay mechanics were arguably the same.
Out of all of these titles, the only major difference worth really talking about is the Nintendo Land build. In this were able to play a couple of more Minigames, or new maps that were not previously available in the EB Games Expo code. For instance, we were able to access the Zelda, Animal Crossing, Find Mario, Luigi’s Mansion, Ninja Stars and I think one other that I can’t quite recall in this build of the game. Out of all of those, we definitely had the most fun with the Luigi’s Mansion and Metroid games.
From what we noticed with the more “hardcore” titles available at the event was that aside from the Zombie U game from Ubisoft, the rest were really just straight up ports of the existing game with some kind of feature added for the Wii U Tablet Controller support. For instance, in Darksiders II, this would mean that you could quickly access your inventory while playing on gamepad. It would have been nice to see a version of the game being built from the foundations for true Wii U functionality.
Lastly at the event we were able to score an interview with Jamie from Nintendo Australia. You will be able to see this video embedded below this article in its own box. During our interview we talk about the public will be able to see at the Wii U Experience store in Sydney, as well as some of the best titles to pick up at launch.
Be sure to check out EB Games Expo coverage for more info on our thoughts on the Wii U games on show. You can find our individual Wii U game impressions here, Darksiders II here and Just Dance 4 here. We will also have a Gaming Connection segment coming up in the next few days with a plethora of footage from the event, so stay tuned.
Basking in the glorious city of Sydney, Epiphany Games and Immanitas Entertainment are getting pumped for their upcoming release of Frozen Hearth on November 29th! Frozen Hearth is a real-time strategy title that encompasses a few twists to surely make it stand out from the rest of the genre. Adding more strategy to the game, the developers took incorporate a system of checks and balances that disallows the player to enhance certain units/armies to their full capacity. This twist will make players constantly check units to see the advantages of upgrading abilities from one unit to another to gain an effective combination.
Gone is the rock, paper, scissors style of playing – work with your own idea for a strategy instead of playing for timing.
(Epiphany Games)
Check out the screenshots and teaser trailer below to gets the chills of an innovative RTS title. If you like what you see, head over to Steam’s Greenlight section to vote Frozen Hearth up!
Earlier today, Namco Bandai Games Europe S.A.S. announced that Tekken Tag Tournament 2 will become available for digital download on the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Wii U.
Tekken Tag 2 will be available on the PlayStation Network and Xbox Live starting November 21st, while prospective Wii U owners will be able to purchase and download Tekken Tag 2 from the Nintendo eShop from the Wii U launch window on. In other Tekken Tag 2 news, the game has been updated this past week to include the final batch of additional playable characters. Some of these characters – namely Kunimitsu, Angel, Ancient Ogre and Michelle Chang – were provided as pre-order bonuses across different retailers.
The other characters who have now been unlocked in this, likely final, batch of DLC for the title, include: Unknown, Dr. Boskonovitch and Violet. The characters are automatically added to the character select screen after a quick download of the latest title update. This applies to the Xbox 360 and PS3 versions, while the Wii U edition will come with all of theses DLC characters listed here, as well as exclusive content that we previously detailed.
Fans of the Crysis series are sure to be happy with this latest trailer from upcoming futuristic shooter, Crysis 3. Within, it is actually revealed that Michael “Psycho” Sykes is still alive! Yes the aptly named character from the original Crysis game was thought to be dead after not appearing in the sequel; however this new video will set fans minds at ease. Thought to be a simple plot hole in the series, many will be eager to find out what exactly it is that “Psycho” has been up to. The trailer also shows off some more of the excellent gameplay Crysis is known for.
Running on CryEngine 3 and displaying some new alien weapons and unique environments of an overgrown New York City, this preview is sure to impress fans and even critics alike. By effectively combining tactics and efficient suit usage, players of the game will be able to come out on top no matter what sticky situation they find themselves in. With stunning visuals and intense moment-to-moment action, Crysis 3 is being developed by Crytek and is set for release in February 2013 on Playstation 3, Xbox 360 and PC.
Wonderbook, Sony Computer Entertainment’s new AR peripheral for the Playstation Move, has finally arrived in Australia. Alongside the release of the physical peripheral, the first title in the Wonderbook range, Book of Spells, is also available. Book of Spells brings exclusive new and original writing from J.K. Rowling, the author of the Harry Potter series, as players learn familiar spells from the world of Harry Potter, such as Incendio, WingardiumLeviosa and Expelliarmus.
J.K Rowling had this to say about working with Book of Spells:
“Wonderbook: Book of Spells is the closest a Muggle can come to a real spellbook. I’ve loved working with Sony’s creative team to bring my spells, and some of the history behind them, to life. This is an extraordinary device that offers a reading experience like no other.”
Book of Spells is not the only title that will be compatible with Wonderbook. The BBC hit Walking with Dinosaurs will also be coming to Wonderbook, as well as content from Disney. Moonbot Studios, who have won awards for their animated content, will bring Diggs Nightcrawler to Wonderbook, bringing the film noir genre with it.
If you happen to have a loved one or a friend who is a major anime fan but don’t know what to get them for the holidays then you may want to keep reading because Viz Media may have you covered. Over the next few weeks Viz is planning on releasing a large number of anime on both Blu-ray and DVD.
First we have the first half of InuYasha: The Final Act and the first box set for Pokemon Black & White on November 20th, then things get mature with Berserk: The Golden Age Arc I on November 27th. Following these releases we have two Bleach releases in the form of Bleach: Hell Verse on December 4th and the Bleach Vol. 15 Box Set. It is also worth noting that two Naruto Shippuden releases have already hit stores in the form of Naruto Shippuden The Movie: The Will of Fire and the Naruto Shippuden Vol. 12 box set.
