Tag: playstation

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God Of War 4 To Delve Into Norse Mythology

GodOfWar_2

The God of War series, now one of the most successful PlayStation exclusives, has long delighted its fans with an exciting and highly dramatized take on Greek mythology. Dealing primarily with the Spartan warrior Kratos and a collection of Greek gods (most notably Ares, the god of war for whom the series is named), the games have always thrived on action-packed gameplay and cutting edge graphics. And God Of War 4, which was revealed at E3, looks to be more of the same in these regards.

The big difference this time around, as noted by Parent Herald’s write-up on the forthcoming release, is that Kratos will now be dumped into Norse mythology. This is a sharp change in direction for a franchise that up to this point has been all about traditional Olympian characters, and makes sense to give the game a new look. However, it may also not be so surprising given that a few other games have made a habit of blending mythologies and providing players with fun selections of gods and god-like figures.

Gameloft’s Gods Of Rome, a highly rated fighter game for mobile devices, has perhaps been the most blatant in mashing different mythologies together. While it advertises itself largely as a game about Olympian gods, there are always new characters and warriors being added, and settings range from Mt. Olympus itself to a gorgeous Chinese temple. There’s not much of a sense of cohesion between all these characters and settings, but it’s interesting to see how naturally you can jump between different myths without feeling jarred or confused. They all play on our imagination similarly.

Online, the diverse library of gaming content at Gala’s bingo platform takes a similar approach to mythology to what we see in Gods Of Rome. While the site is known primarily for its bingo gaming options there are plenty of slot and arcade options that provide different types of gaming, and most of them are built around recognizable characters, settings, or general fictional concepts. Among them, titles range from Nordic Heroes to Rise Of Anubis to Zeus III and Legend of Triton, incorporating Norse, Egyptian, and Greek mythology.

A couple of other apps and games demonstrate similar approaches, and now that we know the new direction God Of War is moving in it seems fair to wonder if this is only the beginning. It’s a little bit hard to imagine the transition that will land Kratos among Norse mythological figures, but if God Of War 4 works smoothly and proves as popular as its predecessors it’s easy to imagine the developers making it a trend. It could be that as some other games have explored blending mythologies, the God Of War series could begin to progress through different histories in much the same way so that many other popular console franchises could also leap through various times and settings.

If this is the way things are going, God Of War may have a more interesting future than anyone would have guessed before the new game was revealed.

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BioShock Collection Announced for Xbox One, PS4, and PC

BioShock is back. After a three-year hiatus since the release of BioShock Infinite on the Xbox 360 and PS3, the dark mysteries of Rapture and Columbia return in a single package.

BioShock grew to immense popularity quickly with an incredible narrative and story telling. BioShock Infinite set the bar even higher in 2013 with what one of the best endings to a trilogy in gaming history.

This three-game collection offers all DLC, add-on content, and also includes bonus Director’s commentary to take gamers through the eyes of the development team as they created the worlds.

Many gamers were teased on the idea of the collection before and even during E3, and though 2k Games waited just a bit longer than most expected the game is finally confirmed.

Check out the trailer below for the official announcement:

The BioShock Collection is slated to release September 13 in North America and September 15 world-wide.

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Things to look for at E3 2016

E3 2016 is coming at a time where it seems like calling the Xbox One and the PS4 the “new generation” sounds crazy at this point. Now developers are fully in the swing of this iteration of hardware and though the excitement of the first few years of the new generation is dying down, a new excitement for high quality games is building.

Here’s a quick breakdown of what the gaming giants are coming out with in the next week when E3 starts on June 12.

Microsoft

Most gamers are familiar already with the idea that Microsoft is poised to announce a new “slim” Xbox along with perhaps an Xbox One “Scorpio” — an upgraded version of Xbox with potentially 4x the power of the 2013 Xbox One. These news stories are the biggest bombshells for Microsoft at E3, but beyond this the games that they’ve got in their arsenal are just as exciting.

Gamers have long deserved a quality Pirate game and very few have even attempted to create an original game in this style for over a decade. Rare is back in action looking for redemption and this comeback tour starting with Sea of Thieves is an incredible starting point. An open-world, multiplayer-focused adventure game set on the rugged seas is well deserving of some new information that gamers will certainly be privy to during Microsoft’s conference on June 13.

ReCore is another lesser known title just starting to come to the forefront since being announced at last year’s E3. This action-adventure game comes from some incredible minds — Keiji Inafune, the designer of the first 3 Mega Man games is teaming up with Armature Studio another developer who has plenty of high quality games behind them like Metroid Prime 3 and Batman: Arkham Origins.

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ReCore deserves to be brought to the spotlight with such prestigious developers working on it and an incredibly unique concept powering it.

Sony

Just like Microsoft’s next version of the Xbox One, the PlayStation 4.5 is expected to be the highlight of the show with the more powerful version of the console being prepped for more extensive use with the PlayStation VR. VR is certainly the future of gaming at least in some facet. The immmersion created is incomparable to previous gaming experiences and if Sony can capitalize and market their PS4.5 as a way to bring those VR experiences closer to life they’ll find success despite the not-totally-favorable idea of releasing an upgraded console midway in it’s life cycle.

The Last Guardian looks like it will finally come out with a definitive release date as well.

An infinite number of beautifully unique worlds seems impossible. But it's the reality of No Man's Sky.

No Man’s Sky is a bit of a concern with some having expected the game would be here by now, Sony and Hello Games will have to be careful if they intend to show any footage of the game — so as to avoid any bad publicity or resentment fans may have for its late release.

Nintendo

Is Nintendo even a real giant anymore? It’s certainly incredibly successful and has the greatest characters and history in gaming behind it, but with so little excitement being centered around it today it’s tough to imagine them having an overtly “successful” E3.

The Legend of Zelda Wii U 1

Pokemon has taken center stage for the last year and The Legend of Zelda WiiU continues to be the biggest talking point for them. But is that enough to keep fans excited? Or will they actually release a more comprehensive breakdown of what the Nintendo NX is? Most signs point to no, but Nintendo always seems to have a knack for surprising people.

Check out The Platinum Achievement Podcast for a greater breakdown of E3 predictions along with a lot of other nonsense.

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Gamestop CFO predicts sales rebound for Star Wars Battlefront after Black Friday

This is one of the most saturated holiday seasons ever in gaming with major titles such as Fallout 4, Halo 5, Rise of the Tomb Raider, Call of Duty: Black Ops III, and many many more. Star Wars Battlefront was expected to be among the top sellers, but after its first week it’s clear that EA and other parties have to reel back their projections.

In the latest Earning Conference Call, Gamestop called out Battlefront along with Halo and Tomb Raider for underwhelming sales numbers in the build-up to this holiday season, but Gamestop’s CFO has not lost hope in a great turn-around.

“…we anticipate that this game is going to be a very strong game, when the movie launches in mid-December. Not to mention the fact that we have it prominently displayed in our Black Friday, and in fact we’re the only retailer that has it with significant discount, which is also going to guide sales.” – Tony Bartel, Gamestop CFO

Gamestop is relying on the success of every single title due to release during this Q4 with themselves and other brick-and-mortar stores continuing to combat the growing sales of digital gaming, but the exact sales numbers that Black Friday is helping make up isn’t quite available yet — it’ll be at least a few days before we get any idea. Though, it’s reasonable to predict that digital gaming will continue to widen it’s lead on physical game sales.

Still, gamers and investors should expect better of Star Wars Battlefront. EA has launched a massive advertising campaign for the game, but so far it seems their emphasis on the PS4 has in-fact hurt their sales — the PS4’s userbase of Battlefront gamers is larger than that of the Xbox One and PC installbase combined.

While Battlefront took the brunt of Gamestop’s criticism, Bartel didn’t single out the Star Wars title — Halo 5 was another game that didn’t live up to expectations. Microsoft claimed it was the best launch in Halo history, but Bartel seemed to disagree telling reporters to direct questions regarding the exact digital sales-numbers of Halo 5 to Microsoft.

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EA finds success in Japan with Star Wars Battlefront; leads charts after one week

Star Wars Battlefront hasn’t quite received the grand reception that EA was anticipating, but the game has still had a solid release in most markets. One surprise was Battlefront’s top spot in the Japanese market — taking no. 1 in the charts after just a week.

The main competition that Battlefront has faced comes from the likes of Halo 5, Fallout 4, and Call of Duty Black Ops III. However, due to the focus on western markets that these games have it helps make more sense of the success of Star Wars Battlefront in Japan.

Adding on to that, the Playstation 4 — the place where Battlefront has thrived the most, doubling the sales of that of Xbox One and PC — is dominating the home console market by a wide margin in markets outside N.A. — and especially so in Japan.

The sales, published by Japanese site, 4gamer.net (and translated by gematsu), are listed below.

Software Sales (followed by lifetime sales)

  1. [PS4] Star Wars Battlefront (EA, 11/19/15) – 123,908 (New)
  2. [PS4] Atelier Sophie: The Alchemist of the Mysterious Book (Gust, 11/19/15) – 30,759 (New)
  3. [PSV] Atelier Sophie: The Alchemist of the Mysterious Book (Gust, 11/19/15) – 25,805 (New)
  4. [PSV] Omega Labyrinth (D3 Publisher, 11/19/15) – 25,113 (New)
  5. [Wii U] Animal Crossing: Amiibo Festival (Nintendo, 11/21/15) – 20,303 (New)
  6. [PS4] Call of Duty: Black Ops III (SCE, 10/06/15) – 19,355 (206,801)
  7. [PS4] Sword Art Online: Game Director’s Edition (Bandai Namco, 11/19/15) – 18,342 (New)
  8. [Wii U] Splatoon (Nintendo, 05/28/15) – 17,681 (802,117)
  9. [3DS] Sumikko Gurashi Omise Hajimerun Desu (Nippon Columbia, 11/19/15) – 16,464 (New)
  10. [3DS] Yo-kai Watch Busters: Red Cat Team / White Dog Squad (Nintendo, 07/11/15) – 14,700 (1,744,440)
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Sony to add backwards compatibility; Playstation 2 emulator for PS4

Microsoft made waves announcing Xbox 360 backwards compatibility for the Xbox One at E3 2015, and Sony is showing they have their own, similar plan up their sleeves.

A Playstation 2 emulator has been confirmed by Sony.

The emulator is currently in the works but no exact details are yet available regarding what games — or how many games are going to be included.

While the Xbox One took advantage of the tremendous success of the Xbox 360 with backwards compatibility, the PlayStation 4 is arguably in a better place skipping back two generations. The new generation console will be taking on part of the library of the best-selling console of all time. While many of the titles are outdated, this is certainly a welcoming feature — especially for older gamers who want to experience the nostalgia.

Digital Foundry suggests that the PS2 emulation software is already being utilized by the PS4 console. The latest PS4 Star Wars bundle includes copies of Star Wars: Jedi Starfighter, Star Wars: Racer Revenge, and Star Wars: Bounty Hunter along with the new Star Wars Battlefront release. Digital Foundry claims that these games all run on the same PS2 emulator that Sony is expected to soon roll out in a larger scale.

More info to come soon. Follow Pixelpine on twitter for updates.

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Activision/Treyarch garners $550 million from Call of Duty Black Ops III release

Call of Duty has been a staple of video gaming for a decade now, and though the franchise has been developed by multiple studios with various subsets it always pushes out a consistent, quality product.

That trend is continuing with Call of Duty: Black Ops III — the fourth installment of the series following the story arch of Call of Duty World At War, Black Ops I, and Black Ops II.

The game is not only a week old, but according to reports by Activision the game had sold $550 million copies worth within just three days of its November 6 launch.

It is currently the most successful launch of a media this year whether it be games, movies, or anything else.

The game competes with the same success that Black Ops II had in 2012 when it took in $500 million in just one day.

“Call of Duty is more than a game, it’s a year round passion for a growing base of millions of fans and it’s only gaining momentum.” – Eric Hirshberg, CEO of Activision Publishing

The bread and butter of the franchise has been the multiplayer ever since Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, and there was no reason to expect anything but a massive success in that department. Activision reports “more than 75 million hours” have been spent online through the first three days.

Also of note, Black Ops III’s digital sales set a record for Activision with downloads on new generation consoles up 100% from last year. Digital gaming is continuing to rise in all facets of the gaming industry.

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PlayStation 4 is finally $349

Early holiday for gamers

It was only a matter of time before Sony delivered the proverbial slice in its flagship console’s price tag from its debut price of $400 to Microsoft’s competing $349 mark.

John Koller, Vice President of Platforms Marketing for Sony Computer Entertainment America, announced the console’s first price cut Thursday on the PlayStation.Blog:

“Since the launch of PS4, we have been thrilled with the amount of gamers jumping into the world of PlayStation for the first time. If you haven’t made the jump yet, and you’re starting early on your holiday wish list, I have good news – we’re dropping the price of the PlayStation 4 system in the U.S. and Canada. Starting tomorrow, October 9, you’ll be able to pick up PS4 starting at the new price of $349.99 USD / $429.99 CAD (MSRP).”

This move is geared toward continuing Sony’s reign atop the consoles sales with a slew of interesting holidays bundles hitting shelves in November, some of which include Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection Bundle (10/9), Limited Edition Call of Duty Black Ops III 1 TB Bundle, and of course, the mecca of PS4 bundles, Star Wars Battlefront Bundle.

However, if you want to obtain the limited edition Star Wars bundle, which includes the Darth-Vader themed console and DualShock 4, you will still have to shell out $399. But let’s be honest, do you want to argue with the Sith Lord over prices?

PlayStation 4 dominance

The PS4 is simply on fire, currently holding 50 percent of the console market. It has shipped over 25 million units as of July 31 and outsold Xbox in August for the fourth consecutive month. In fact, the PS4 has sold more than the Xbox and Wii U combined.

Xbox head Phil Spencer admitted in an interview with Videogamer, he’s unsure if Xbox could ever catch the PS4.

“You know, the length of the generation… They have a huge lead and they have a good product. I love the content, the games line-up that we have.”

As of October, PS4 console sales are estimated at 25.4 million, passing the original Xbox which sold 24 million worldwide.

Last year, Microsoft marketed the Kinect-less Xbox One for the holiday season as $349 and made the price permanent in January. But although the price change boosted sales for Microsoft, it did not slow down the PS4.

Sony has sold the PS4 for $399 since its launch.

It’s also interesting to note the differences between this generation and last generation.

The Xbox 360 launched with two separate versions — Core ($299) and 20GB model ($399) as well as Sony — $20GB ($499) and 60 GB ($599) — which was a bit pricey.

Xbox proceeded to create Arcade, Pro and Elite versions, each with new price tags. Meanwhile, PlayStation 3 received its first real price cut three in a half years after its launch when Sony introduced the PlayStation 3 Slim 120 GB for $299.

Sony put all its money into its launch and it seems what looked like an interesting race two years ago has turned into a lopsided affair. With the Black Ops III beta being “the most successful beta in the history of the PS4” and an exclusive Star Wars Battlefront bundle being offered only on the PlayStation brand, you can bet PlayStation’s owner base will grow over the holidays.

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The end of Joel and Ellie? New characters a possibility for The Last of Us 2

The Last of Us has made waves as one of the best modern games to ever release and the developers at Naughty Dog have certainly had the idea of a second game in their head since the first title’s launch on the PS3 back in 2013.

In an interview with PlayStation Magazine Naughty Dog’s creative director, Neil Druckman, revealed that Uncharted 4’s development impeded on his and Bruce Straley’s desire to get to work brainstorming the next The Last of Us.

“…we were brainstorming ideas for The Last Of Us 2 with new characters; ideas for TLOU 2 with Joel and Ellie; ideas for a sci-fi game; ideas for a fantasy game, and building prototypes for each one of those ideas. And just as we were getting close to settling or narrowing that list down, we were asked to work on Uncharted 4.”

With a team as small and concentrated as Naughty Dog it’s understandable that The Last of Us has taken a backseat to Uncharted 4, but that doesn’t mean some things are being brewed by the dev. Nolan North, Joel’s voice actor, confirmed the existence of a TLOU 2 last week at MetroCon.

Apparently Naughty Dog wasn’t quite expecting North to talk about the game at all according to Druckman. “…that was kind of a surprise for us for him to say that. I was like “Oh, he knows more than we know [about] what we’re doing next.’ We joked about it afterwards during shoots and stuff.”

North also announced that he has not been approached (yet) for any other work from Naughty Dog besides’ Uncharted 4.

Though with the revelation of these type of stories in the same time frame it’s likely that Naughty Dog truly hasn’t gotten too deep into the TLOU 2’s development. It’s a possibility that not even they know if Joel and Ellie’s story will continue in some fashion in the next game.

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A ten year plan for Destiny? Not so fast says Bungie [Poll]

Destiny released to widely varying criticism with many complaints of a lackluster story and plot since its release in 2013. The title has recently gotten it’s biggest add-on yet — The Taken King. The DLC has not steadied the game’s place at all though with a barrage of complaints accompanying the massive sales numbers.

Up until now, Bungie has suggested that this trend of big DLC updates would continue as the game was expected to last as long as ten years. Bungie’s contract with Activision promised a ten-year span of dedicated work on the game and in multiple interviews Bungie suggested that they were prepared to continue working on the game for those years.

In an interview with the Guardian in 2014 the CO of Destiny, Pete Parsons said “We love to invest in universes. We did Halo for ten years we just didn’t have the benefit of knowing it would happen.”

Well, that plan isn’t quite what Bungie is thinking now according to Erik Osborne, Bungie’s community and marketing relations manager.

“It just became the narrative. I mean, I drive a Honda Civic. I don’t know shit about $500 million. A ten-year plan? It’s a ten-year partnership agreement. It has nothing to do with the development of the game proper. To think that somehow, before Destiny had shipped, we had some ten-year plan written down somewhere? It’s comical. We allowed the narrative to get constructed that Bungie is just a corporate entity and not a bunch of humans, a collection of people who are just trying to make a really great game.”

Though these comments directly contradict the expectations of Activision’s CEO, Eric Hirshberg when he spoke with Wired magazine in September, 2014.

“I think a lot of franchises get built game-to-game, or month-to-month — the moment really determines the momentum of the franchise… Bungie aren’t just thinking about the content that goes on the first disc; they’re thinking about a ten-year story.”

Do you think Destiny was designed to last for ten years?

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