The Sims 3, currently the best selling PC game of all time, has recently announced that it would allow any gamer a chance at a free-of-charge 20 minute trial. The demo includes the following of The Sims 3 add-ons:
The Sims 3
The Sims 3 World Adventures
The Sims 3 Ambitions
The Sims 3 Late Night
The Sims 3 Generations
The Sims 3 High-End Loft Stuff
The Sims 3 Fast Lane Stuff
Whether you are interested in talking to ghosts, traversing through Egyptian pyramids, or dancing with a group of vampires, The Sims 3 is the best choice for a full fledged fantasy life simulation.
Who wouldn’t want to try out a full game for free? The Sims 3 demo is available for free (HERE).
It will come as no surprise that Naughty Dog’s Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception sold a small country worth of copies on it’s very first day of release.
On day one alone 3.8 million units of the game were sold worldwide, making it one of the biggest selling titles of 2011 (within 24 hours of being on sale!). To put this into perspective, Uncharted 2 had sold 4.9 million units by October 2011- two years after it was first released.
Head of Communications at Sony Computer Entertainment Europe Nick Caplin had this to say about the game’s astounding success:
“Uncharted 3 is a blockbuster and these incredible sales figures reflect that. Consumers are clearly as eager to play the game as critics were to heap praise upon it, and the team at Naughty Dog deserve this fantastic reception at retail. The Uncharted series, exclusive to PlayStation®3, has redefined the third-person adventure genre and is now one of the leading franchises available.”
It’s an incredible achievement for Sony and the development team at Naughty Dog. Uncharted 3 will probably walk away with multiple game of the year trophies – as well as one for ‘highest ever use of superlatives in critical reception’ – and has already proved it’s worth in sales figures. Uncharted 4 anyone?
EA Sports will release a second, rather significant patch today for Xbox 360 and PS3 (PC/Mac patch already released). The patch extends through many areas of the game, including general gameplay, Career Mode, FUT, and online. The list was pretty substantial (seriously), so prepare for a long, yet promising read. Here’s what they fixed:
General Gameplay:
Issue when a user would call a second player to take a quick throw in, resulting in the game recognising it as the ball re-entering play.
Occasional problem where Manual crossing setting would reset
That wonderful misalignment of legs, albeit much more common in the demo, it still surfaced for a very small number of people in the full version.
Career Mode:
Weather conditions are now able to be chosen before a match
Salary suggestions for players will remain consistent when exiting and re-entering the negotiations screen.
Youth player salary returns to budget after releasing them from the Youth Squad
Fixed the problem when following through with a purchase option for a loan deal if it caused you to reach the maximum squad size.
No longer possible to sign a Youth Player with wages higher than your available budget.
Addressed a few rare situations where specific actions caused the controller buttons to become unresponsive.
When playing as a Player in Career Mode, your manager will be more likely to sub you off if your player is getting too tired
Fixed a strange situation where the commentary wouldn’t show up when playing a League Cup match involving Manchester United
Issues when editing and saving player positions and the subsequent console hang.
Removed the issue where your player’s team could enter a new season without a goalkeeper or the minimum squad size.
Resolved the issue where a player’s team would record a win despite the match being fore-fitted due to a lack of players
Recently signed Youth Squad players will enter negotiations with an accurate, consistent “Current Wage”, meaning they’ll be picked up more easily by CPU teams.
Game hanging issues when entering two controllers into a Career mode and then backing out.
Fixed the apparent random crashes experiences by some in Career Mode, where players would appear with a zeroed price
Made physical attribute growth more realistic, resulting in much more steady progression. (Neymar stamina issues anyone?)
Offer a new contract to a loaned out player who is on their last year of contract, instead of them just disappearing into free agency.
More noticeable progression and improvement for loaned out players
Most mid-week matches will be night-time lighting conditions
FIFA 12 Ultimate Team:
Using an outdated “Take Me There” link in the trade feed FUT hub will no longer result in your coins not being returned if you lose an auction.
Trade feed notification for a newly signed GK Coach will no longer cause game hanging.
Fixed disconnection issues when creating a new squad then immediately deleting an old one to apply an item.
Real-time information will be displayed during active auctions to prevent you being unknowingly outbid.
Fixed crash issues experienced on Match Setup before games
EAS FC XP and news feed will update after playing a single-player or play-a-friend game
Fixed struggle issues when paging through auction pages
Fixed various crash issues including the situation after downloading the latest FUT update after creating a Virtual pro, or when not signed into a gamer profile on the download page.
FIFA 12 Clubs
Camera settings will be saved for subsequent Club games after changing.
Penalty kick taker can be changed via Team Management
Accomplishments are now fully tracked in online matches.
AI difficulty has been decreased to Professional in order to stop people from not fielding defenders in order to let the AI do the work for them.
My Live Season, EAS FC and FIFA 12 Online
Injured or suspended players will now be automatically moved to the reserves rather than the subs bench.
Stopped the game from making too many calls for Support Your Club information upon entering the EAS FC hub.
Functional issues with the back/select button when returning to the EAS FC hub.
Enhancements made to loading in the pre-match arena before a EAS FC Challenge.
All Career Mode activity will now display correctly in the EAS FC news feed.
Fixed the occasional problem saw users fail to match up online due to mismatching squad files, despite re-downloading the online squad file.
Resolved stat tracking issues for Online Friendlies.
Creation Centre:
Crash problem when downloading a PNG image over the maximum file size.
Issues when trying to enter the CC Gallery after bookmarking numerous items to download.
Rare occurrence where your CC team would have a man missing on the pitch.
Changing kit sponsor images will no longer cause problems on the console.
Improved the way FIFA 12 handles large numbers of CC downloads in order to increase performance in the team-selection screen.
EA Sports Arena:
Enabled private sessions within the EA SPORTS Arena.
Turned on our in-game podcasts. You can access our regular five-minute chunks of audio news and information by turning the option on in the Game Settings > Audio menu. [English only)
Fixed loading and disconnecting issues for people with many save files on their hard drive.
[PC only] Corrected a problem where, after scoring a goal, custom music would stop playing for around two minutes. Also have added an option to the FIFA 12 launcher to disable some Windows settings, improving the framerate for people with lower-spec PCs.
BANG! Developer: SpinVector and Palzoun Publisher: DVGiochi Platforms: iPhone, iPad (reviewed), iTouch, Atom Netbook and PC Release Date: 21 October, 2011 Multi-player features: 12 November, 2011 Price: $3.99 – Available Here
Overview I’ve never played Bang! as a boardgame, although I can’t think as to why that would be because anything titled ‘spaghetti western’, ‘best-selling’ or ‘board game’ is usually pretty high on my purchase list. Still, I got the chance to fix this grave error, and got to do it on an iPad! So all is forgiven, self. There’s a certain love and delight which I believe should come with board games, its why I adore them, and why I am a sore loser. So lets see if Bang! managed to translate that to the mobile screen.
Gameplay
You have to play the tutorial when you first install which is good because if you don’t know the rules you will be as clueless as I used to be when I was a kid playing hearts and just moving whatever could be moved in the deck (referencing another classic card game just cos I can). If you already know the rules, just tap through and you can complain about that 1.4 seconds of your life that you wasted later. The tutorial takes you through a game that has clearly been set up to show you situations and its pretty awesome because it doesn’t feel like a tutorial half the time. Instead of taking you by the hand and pointing at things from afar, they let you do your own thing as well.
The default setting of five characters has two outlaws, one renegade, one deputy and a sheriff. Your goals differ depending on whom you play as, but unless you’re the deputy pretty much you just want the sheriff dead. Cue Bob Marley. The sheriff is revealed to all the players and then cue the tactical shooting and whatnot.
The controls are extremely simple, you select a card and drag. That didn’t stop me from doing things I didn’t mean to do like stealing the wrong card because while I was dragging I brushed past the top of another card, or accidentally shooting the sheriff when I was the deputy and was only trying to innocently pass my turn. The sheriff then thought I was an outlaw and proceeded to try and kill me for the rest of the game. I guess that is one of the downfalls of this game, shooting people accidentally.
Another downfall that I’m only picking on because this is based on a real-life game, is that I can imagine in the original version most of it is based on bluffing. Playing a game with your friends, looking around the table, trying to make them smile or laugh as you make that final decision about who to shoot. Playing Bang! online, or by yourself, is like playing online poker. A key component to the game is missing, and its great for people who are good with probability but for those of us relying on charm and good looks, it ain’t gonna work out so great.
There is also a play and pass option, but it just isn’t the same! Plus, if you’re playing and passing you don’t get the chance to see some of the gameplay that might be of important tactical information. Also, I don’t like other people touching my stuff.
The best solution I can come up with is setting up an online game on portable devices and then sitting in a circle and playing like that. But then, the online connection isn’t super stable so you might experience some drop outs from the person sitting across from you.
Putting bluffing issues aside, Bang! does in fact do a great job at bringing on the interest and involvement. It isn’t too fancy so that it tries to pretend it wasn’t a card game, and it’s just fancy enough to make it suitable for online play. Plus, the amount of platforms they’ve brought it to is quite impressive, so if you do like playing online there are definitely plenty of people for you to play.
Visuals The visuals are certainly stylised to Spaghetti Western, the characters all scream Western, from the well-dressed Southern gentleman, to the cowboys, to the belles who look like they could kill you while smirking seductively. Like I said before, there are animations, but they’re not over the top. There aren’t any cool-but-gets-old-quickly cut scenes to skip through, in fact a lot of the animations for things that happen are there for a second or two and then are gone. The developers seem to have had Gen Y in mind when they were designing this game.
Audio I pretty much always play on silent, so it’s a huge compliment to the game when I can’t play on silent because I feel like something is missing. The audio for the game almost completes the game, it isn’t just some soundtrack that they’ve thrown in or thought was just about there, it is the game. The Western soundtrack that just brings the game to another level, the sound effects, everything is perfect for it.
Overall In Bang! I have discovered a great, fun game. The rules of the original game stand well on their own, and this virtual version do bring some improvements in the way of well-placed animations and awesome sound effects and soundtrack. Multi-platform has really been brought to another level in this game, and that is definitely a huge credit to those who are into playing anonymous strangers on the internet (or friends, if you have them). The only downside is one that can’t be helped, it is the medium rather than the game itself.
EA Sports unveils the third and final installment video for SSX’s Massive World. SSX Creative Director Todd Batty and Environment Art Director Geoff Coates describe the intrinsic design for its varied environments. Whether you are snowboarding down the volcanic slopes in Africa or avoiding deadly drop-offs in the Alps, SSX will engulf you in inescapable beauty.
While exploring the frozen slopes of an Mt. Kilimanjaro, your only light source is an attached head lamp and the glow of bubbling magma. The excitement soon becomes very real as the darkness envelopes the screen.
If grinding down powerlines gets your blood pumping, the Rockies will be a definite joyride. Additional to powerlines players will also be able to coast on the ruins of abandoned trains. With a challenge course aptly named “Trees”, you will have to avoid smashing into the abundant Douglas Firs.
The third description covers the Alps. Old trainrails and expansive bridges cover the vast landscape. With half-buried houses, you are left to wonder why people would make a chairlift up these mountainsides.
SSX Massive World will be made available on February 16, 2012 in Australia as well as February 17, 2012 in New Zealand and Europe. North America will receive an earlier release on February 14. Get ready for the joyride of your life.
Remember a few weeks ago when we learned that there was a certain mode that would allow you to play as Marvel vs. Capcom 3’s final boss Galactus? Well now we know exactly how you can unlock that mode. Now this mode, which is inventively being called Galactus Mode, will not be available at the start but can be unlocked extremely easily.
Anyone who has a save file from Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds will immediately unlock it, while those who don’t must earn 30,000 PP. This means you will likely be able to quickly jump into a mode where you can literally wipe your opponent off of the map. Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 comes out next week on November 15 for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.
You have to admit, for a 112 year old man, Kazuma Kiryu looks like he is the same as we remember him from Yakuza 4. Team Yakuza is currently working on Binary Domain, which is a sci-fi shooter that takes place in 2080 Tokyo and anyone who picks up the game early in Japan will receive a code that allows them to play as Kazuma Kiryu online.
It is unfortunate that he can only be played online, however as you can see from the two images his outfit changes depending on what side you are fighting on. If you are playing on the Government team he wears his classic white suit, while those fighting with him on the Resistance will have him looking like a soldier. Binary Domain releases in February 16th in Japan and SEGA has already stated they will be released the title in North America as well. Hopefully he will also be a bonus character for those who purchase the Western version early.
Despite there being no news about a fancy Final Fantasy XIII-2 themed PlayStation 3 being released here in North America, there is a fancy collector’s edition for the title which was just announced by Square Enix. The company revealed today that they will be releasing a $79.99 Collector’s Edition of Final Fantasy XIII-2 which will feature cover art by Yoshitaka Amano, longtime artist of the series.
Besides the fancy case, and the game you will also be receiving a book of exclusive concept art and a massive four disc soundtrack to help flesh out the bundle. The collector’s edition will be available for both the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions of the title and will be available in “limited quantities” on January 31st at GameStop, Best Buy, and Amazon.com.
If you have been one of the unfortunate few who haven’t been able to activate your $50 Call of Duty Elite code, you are not alone as this problem seems to be growing larger in size due to the current strain on the severs. Activision are well aware of this problem, and released a statement today to inform Elite owners of the progress being made.
Since Tuesday’s launch, Modern Warfare 3’s multiplayer has been working great. In fact, the amount of players online is even higher than what it was this time last year for Black Ops. Have fun — we hope you continue to enjoy MW3 to the fullest.
However, on Call of Duty Elite, we are having trouble scaling the service to meet demand. Many of you are trying to get in and unfortunately, you can’t right now. You’re frustrated, we know it, and we know we need to fix it. Our teams have been working non-stop to identify issues and resolve them as quickly as possible. Again, these issues have no impact on the performance of the game.
We want to share with you what we know at this time and what we are doing:
At launch, our registration and login systems were crushed by gamers trying to enter the Elite site at the same time. We have now fixed the registration and login systems, but we have found that the greater than expected demand is crashing servers. We’re immediately deploying multiple additional servers to beef up the system. We are also going to temporarily limit access to Elite services on both the console applications and website while we build additional capacity and scale. We’ll look to increase access to greater numbers of users as soon as possible.
As more users log into the Elite system, you may find that the wait to get into Elite is longer than you expect. We know how frustrating that is and we appreciate your patience. Many of you are now able to see your player card and stats, but if you don’t see all your recent matches or career summary, don’t worry — your gameplay data for your entire careers in both Black Ops and MW3 is safely stored, and it will all be available to you once these issues are resolved.
And for our premium members who are Founders, know that granting your status and delivering your in-game benefits in MW3 is a priority. Also, to ensure that every premium member receives their full money’s worth, we are immediately and automatically extending your membership to Call of Duty Elite by 30 days at no additional cost. If you’re still considering becoming a premium member, we’re going to extend Founder eligibility until the end of the month, and you will also receive the additional 30 days of access.
If this were a free service, I would see no problem as this is just a bonus. However, considering the price-tag, this is now one embarrassing flub that many users are being effected by. At least it’s being dealt with in a transparent manner though, as this whole mess is sure to be over in just a couple weeks time.
Thursdays are great. DSi, 3DS, and Wii owners get new titles added to their particular service and leftover points turn into something useful. What’s out this week you may ask?
The first title up is Freakyforms for the eShop (3DS Exclusive) that lets players “create bizarre and bubbly creatures” and then bring them to life. There is even a nice little feature involved that lets the player Streetpass other 3DS owners and share their creations. Freakyforms is also a first-party eShop release, so quality is almost a sure thing at at just $6.99, this should hold owners of the platform over until Mario makes his debut on the platform in the coming week.
On the eShop/DSiware service comes Castle Conquerors: Heroes for $4.99, which has players set out to drive an evil empire from their home planet with over 20 hours of gameplay. Also for the service is Bloons TD for $4.99, a tower defense romp where you must pop “Bloons”.
Zelda fans must be loving this month, as yet another tribute clip is featured on Nintendo Video, titled “The Legend of Zelda Ballad of the Goddess”.
Wrapping things up on the Wii comes “Step Up!” for 800 Nintendo points. This game lets the features “professional trainers and specialized aerobic step workouts to help you burn all the calories you ever dreamed of burning.”
I’m quite attached to my calories at the moment, but you can now snag all of the above titles as of today and let us know which one conquers your interest in the comments down below.
