The critically acclaimed Bastion, which we gave a perfect score for in our review, will now be recieving downloadable content. The DLC is set to head into the Bastion on the 14th of December under the title ‘The Stranger’s Dream’.
Supergiant Games released to following information concerning the details of the DLC’s new features:
– The Stranger’s Dream: a new fully narrated Who Knows Where sequence, bigger and more challenging than the others. You’ll gain a bit more insight into Rucks’ backstory as well as the history of Caelondia if you can survive this fight.
– Score Attack Mode: a challenging new way to play through the story! You start at level one with all Spirits and Idols unlocked. Your combat performance is rated for efficiency, and all areas are repeatable.
– No-Sweat Mode: for those who just want to experience the story of Bastion, this mode provides unlimited chances to carry on from where you left off if you’re defeated in battle.
That is undoubtedly a pretty hefty amount of new content for the little XBLA game that could. The DLC drops tomorrow, at the incredibly low price of 80 microsoft points. Now that is a bargain right there. Supergiant Games originally planned the DLC to be absolutely free but due to a clause with Microsoft they had to give it a price, so they opted for the lowest price they were allowed.
Will you be picking up ‘The Stranger’s Dream’ DLC for Bastion? Let us know in the shoutbox and comment section.
While you could go through all of the various related articles below and look for all the new additions to Final Fantasy XIII-2, Square Enix has saved you all of that trouble because today they have released a new trailer which covers everything new in the title. This includes the new story, new system updates, new additions, monster abilities and even the better graphics.
Besides the trailer you can find below, you will also see a handful of screenshots that show various gameplay sections including a “Beginner’s Primer” which will let players catch up on what happened in the first game. Check them out below.
From what we have seen of Army Corps of Hell the title looks absolutely crazy and hectic and so far that has only been the single player mode. But now we have footage from Square Enix themselves which shows us just how crazy everything will look when players hop on the multiplayer part of the title.
Now the title will support 4 player local co-op play which is something of a shame as, although Japanese gamers usually can take huge advantage of local co-op with handhelds, in North America local only co-op on handhelds usually means that the mode will see little actual use. Catch the trailer below.
Whenever the holiday sale season begins there will always be a multitude of sales popping up across all different platforms as companies try vie for the money in your wallet. If you are a PC gamer than perhaps Good Old Games will be claiming all the money in your wallet because they have just launched a massive holiday sale with nearly everything in their library at 50% off.
You can see all the deals here which include not only old titles for around $3 a piece but even newer titles for only $20. Let us know which of these deals catch your eye, I know more than a few of these titles are worth far more than what you’ll be able to pay for them.
While we learned about the existence of Tony Hawk Pro Skater HD from the pro skater himself, Tony Hawk, there was little actual revealing to be had for the title during the VGAs. Today however Activision has decided to reveal a bit more about the title. The developers behind the game are the same ones who worked on one of the biggest flops in the franchise Tony Hawk Ride, Robomodo.
Before anyone gets angry however, the controls will be controller based, not skateboard peripheral based. The graphics have of course seen an upgrade and the cast of selectable characters has been changed with new more popular skaters such as “Nyjah Huston, Chris Cole, Eric Koston, Andrew Reynolds, Rodney Mullen, Lyn-z Adams Hawkins (Pastrana), Riley Hawk, and, of course, Tony Hawk himself.” Expect to see the title sometime this Summer for around $15.
There’s a bit of an upset in the latest release of the weekly UK All-Formats Top 40 charts, with Skyrim knocking Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 off of the top spot after a 145% rise in sales.
Skyrim was fifth just last week, but as retailers slashed prices in the UK, the Bethesda game rose above the competition, also surpassing Assassin’s Creed Revelations (now in fifth) and FIFA 12 (now fourth). Meanwhile, Modern Warfare 3 is holding its ground at number two, followed by Just Dance 3.
As the debate rages on whether digital is the future, what one knows is which side Electronic Arts COO Peter Moore is on. He has issued a warning to fellow publishers: adapt to the digital era or they will wither into the empty abyss that is closure… or something along those lines.
What he means is that those publishers who decide to stick with the traditional model (I’m guessing he means the $60 box model) will disappear from the face of the gaming world. He was speaking with Industry Games on the need for publishers to move forward,
“Transitions are hard because revenue slows down and costs speed up. You’re getting ready to develop for new platforms, whether they be hardware platforms or software, and it’s getting to be even more complex now. The companies that have prepared themselves and have diversified their offerings to chase the consumer wherever they want to play games are the companies that will succeed and thrive and flourish. Companies that continue to rely on the old model as the model changes before our eyes, unless they change their ways and invest in the future those companies eventually will die off. No two ways about it.”
Also in his interview, Peter Moore talks about how important the retail sector and the boxed versions of the game, still praising their contribution in the industry.
“The packaged goods business, while still flourishing and strong, eventually – as we’ve seen in music and movies – will go to the cloud. It will go digital and we’ll be delivering games from the cloud and delivering games directly to hard drives and we’re still going to sell a lot of discs for the foreseeable future. But eventually, physical media will diminish as the core part of how gamers get their content. And we’re ready for that, but we’re also still ready to be the number one packaged goods publisher in the world, which we are. If you want to be a publisher that’s still going to be viable for the consumer 3-4 years from now, you better be ready to deliver your content anytime, anywhere and to everyone.”
Football Manager developer Sports Interactive are looking at the future of the series and believe that it lies with the more common trends that usually surround digital distribution: mobile platforms (including tablet support), cloud based technology and microtransations. Speaking with develop, Sports Interactive’s Miles Jacobson said that this could be the direction of the series, but has revealed that console ports of the series are not on their plans,
“We’re looking to hire six to ten engineers to work for us, particularly on next generation tech. And when I talk about next generation technology I’m not talking about consoles. I’m talking more about mobile platforms and what’s happening in the PC and Mac world as well. We’re not looking at coming back to console.”
This might have been the cold reception by fans when the series did debut on the Xbox 360 as it did not performed well in terms of sales. Then again, a football management simulator might not be the best game for a console. What about the Playstation Vita? Well, just like Epic, Jacobson has revealed that they will wait for the reception before committing to the handheld. Disappointing, considering that the Football Management series has been on the Playstation Portable for quite sometime.
Yesterday at the Spike VGAs Square Enix introduced a new trailer for Hitman: Absolution where Agent 47 returns whilst making a rather dramatic turn. Everybody’s favorite silent assassin goes all out, guns blazing just the way we like it! Sporting rather impressive graphics, the original assassin is set to return sometime 2012. The game is being developed by IO Interactive and will be published by Square Enix. Unfortunately no gameplay footage is shown, but it does look pretty damn cool. Very little details have been released, so for now I suppose we’ll have to be patient. In the meantime, check out the trailer below and see it for yourself!
Trine 2 Developer: Frozenbyte Publisher: Focus Home Interactive Platform: PC (reviewed), Mac, XBLA, PSN Release Date: December 7, 2011 (PC and Mac only) Price: $14.99 (available here)
Overview
Unsurprisingly following on from Trine comes Trine 2, a truly multi platform title that come 2012 will even see it’s way to a Linux release. Developed by Finnish company Frozenbyte, it’s a puzzle platformer with a big emphasis on the puzzle. There are goblins to fight and jumps to make, but you’ll spend the majority of your time figuring out mechanisms, rotating and conjuring objects , and generally trying everything possible to get to the next level.
There’s a good helping of action for your cash, and as well as a 7-8 hour single player experience, there’s a local and online multiplayer to add a little bit of longevity. It’s all incredibly well styled to the tune of a fairy tale, and is yet another entry in this year’s gaming season that proves that the platformer still has a lot of life in it yet.
Overview
The three heroes of the Trine (a mysterious artefact that doesn’t do much but float around suggestively), are gathered together once more to defend the realm. In typical fantasy style, the three are a thief, a wizard and a knight, and they go up against a horde of goblins and various other icky denizens of the fairy tale world. Along the way they stumble into another realm, where the Queen of the land sets them off on a great adventure to save her kingdom.
There are a few predictable twists and turns along the way, and the characters (Zoya the thief, Amadeus the wizard and Pontius the knight)only rise a little bit out of caricature. It is nice that they even have their own names and voices, but the fairy tale set up doesn’t allow for much in terms of character. The story too never really becomes anything more than background noise, and the brief scenes between levels (presented as pages of a story book) are all too easy to skip.
Overview
Luckily the gameplay is a treat. The three characters are incredibly well balanced, with each having a handful of unique skills that can be upgraded along the journey. As you would expect, the knight is the hack and slash man handy in a fight, but can also make use of his shield to deflect fire and redirect water or acid. Zoya the thief can sweep quickly across distances with her hookshot and catch goblins from afar with her bow, and Amadeus with his conjured planks and boxes provides something of a cheat option for every puzzle – throw planks at it and run!
All three characters are instantly interchangeable in single player and the game makes full use of all of them – never does one or the other feel expendable. What can feel a bit redundant are some of the skill upgrades – there are a few that are very useful (Pontius’ throwing hammer, extra objects to conjure for Amadeus), but some that past a certain point become redundant when all three characters are accessible – why would you choose to sneak past enemies with Zoya when you could take them out with a hammer to the face?
The puzzles range from the simple – stack a few crates together to clear a gap – to the maddeningly simple – stack a few crates whilst dodging lava, jumping neatly onto a moving platform, holding a spiked pendulum out of the way and making the perfect jump to the other side. They’re often beautifully imaginative too , and can see you channelling water onto magical plants that blossom into new bridges, or feeding a giant frog to use it’s extended tongue as a platform. Frozenbyte have utilised the entire gorgeous world that they’ve created and integrated it perfectly with the gameplay – it’s a pleasure to play, with spot on controls and just the right amount of head scratching to the puzzles. The physics are incredibly tight, and with Amadues able to rotate and balance all manner of objects, the smallest of angles and balances come into play – Trine 2 has that great quality to it that makes you feel smart for suceeding (even if you do cheat a bit).
The multiplayer too is incredibly well integrated. In a public online game you can begin adventuring on your own, get drawn into the game and then suddenly find yourself joined by another player or two. Having all three characters on screen simultaneously opens up a whole new aspect to the puzzles, allowing for more chaotic and creative methods to appear from nowhere. There is a chat system available, but half of the fun comes from figuring out what everyone is up to without talking about it, letting crazy wizards conjure planks everywhere as Pontius throws his hammer at everything in sight.
The multiplayer is really the games only claim to longevity though – as great as Trine 2 is, it just doesn’t have anything to pull you back into it. There are collectibles to be found throughout the levels, but these scraps of concept art and bizarre rhymes are a bit of a disappointment – hiding some of the skills or maybe some new costumes would have added a bit more incentive to revisiting a level.
Minor gripes aside Trine 2 is a fantastic slice of puzzle platforming, and the core gameplay is near faultless -all it needs is a few tweaks to the bells and whistles.
Visuals/Audio
The screenshots speak for themselves – Trine 2 is gorgeous. The fantasy world Frozenbyte have brought to life here is a vibrant one, a living and breathing place lit by the glow of candles, populated by bizarre creatures and oddball plants. There are plenty of different environments to gawk at, and some of the enemies and environments will simply bring a smile to your face. The details are what really make it work though – watching Amadeus clutch his hat in the wind, or Pontius using his shield as a giant paddle – small touches that add a wealth of personality to characters that have fairly flimsy set ups. The voice actors from the original Trine return (that’s Isabella from Dragon Age II if Zoya sounds familiar) and do a good job with some fairly average dialogue. What does hold it back is the strangely detached feeling of the voices from the characters – it does sound like background narration more than character dialogue. The music for the most part provides a soft backdrop to all the puzzling, but kicks up a notch with a great battle theme whenever it’s time to dice some goblins.
Overall
Trine 2 is an easy game to recommend. For $14.99 you get some tricky, addictive gameplay, a gorgeous story book world and a multiplayer that’s ripe for some creative chaos. The story is absolutely nothing new and it may not be up there in terms of replayability, but that’s easily forgotten when you’re bouncing around on a giant starfish, conjuring boxes and shooting ice arrows at goblins. Frozenbyte have created something in Trine 2 that feeds on the warm fuzzy glow of fantasy , keeps your brain engaged and is great fun to boot – Trine 3 please?
