Tag: entertainment

Apex Legends Revealed, Free to Play Battle Royale Now Available On PS4, Xbox One, and PC

Respawn Entertainment, the makers of Titanfall, have announced a new free to play battle royale game in the futuristic FPS franchise called Apex Legends.

Meshing the hero shooter style found in games such as Overwatch with the battle royale genre, Apex Legends will adopt the free to play method, bring the unique take on the widely popular genre.

Rumors began hitting the forums and messages boards late last week, with Kotaku’s Jason Schreier breaking news that the game’s initial reveal would be take place later that weekend, with a possible soft launch on Monday, February 4th. Last night, many content creators and streamers took to social media to confirm the existence of the game, along with Respawn themselves, promoting their reveal stream today.

While a mainline Titanfall sequel was confirmed to be in development by Respawn, it is unknown if that project had morphed into Apex Legends or if the original project is still in the works. Respawn, who EA purchased in December 2017, is also scheduled to release an upcoming Star Wars game later this year, titled Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order.

Apex Legends is now available on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC (Origin). For more information, tune into Respawn Entertainment’s deep-dive stream on the game starting at 3 PM EST/12 PM PST.

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Zelda II and Blaster Master Headed to Nintendo Switch Online’s NES App on January 16th

Two well known classic titles are making their way to Nintendo Switch Online’s NES App next week, with Zelda II: The Adventure of Link and Blaster Master finding a home in the subscription service’s online library. The two titles join an ever growing list of classic Nintendo Entertainment System games available through the Nintendo Switch’s online service, which now spans over 30 entries.

Originally released in January 1987, Zelda II: The Adventures of Link pits players back into the classic fantasy world of Hyrule. Per the eShop‘s description: Known for its drastic change from its predecessor, the Legend of Zelda, the sequel sees Link return to Hyrule to search for the Triforce and to awaken Zelda from an endless sleep. Embark on a quest to find the Triforce of Courage and save Hyrule from ruin. Learn magic spells, talk to people in towns to get clues, collect items to increase your power, and explore six palaces where the underlings of the evil Ganon await you. This sequel to the adventure classic uses a side-scrolling visual engine unique to the series for more technical combat, and it features more in-depth world roaming as Link encounters townsfolk while on his quest.

Released in June 1988, Blaster Master is the story of a normal guy and his epic underground adventure. Per the eShop’s description: Jason, in search of his pet frog named Fred, has fallen down a manhole into a world of danger. Mutant-sized creatures of which the likes he never imagined, await him at every turn. In order to survive, Jason must pair up with an armored combat vehicle codenamed SOPHIA. It’s panic or perish as you blast through an endless maze of tunnels, seeking secret passages for an escape. Destroy the Plutonium Boss and his mutant cronies before these warlords destroy the Earth. Load up your arsenal, and get ready for the final encounter!

New users to the service can get a 7-day free trail of Nintendo Switch’s online service, and receive full access to all games available in the NES App’s catalog, along with Zelda II: The Adventures of Link and Blaster Master starting January 16th.

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Prey, Project Cars, and Metro 2033 Redux Coming to PlayStation Now in January

PlayStation Now, Sony’s on-demand game service, has slowly and quietly dominated the game services market for quite some time now. Reported late last year, the service accounted for over 51% of all gaming subscription services on the market. Bundled with the option of being able to download games available now instead of streaming, makes the service even more attractive to a wide variety of gamers. This month, the service will be added multiple new game to its library, including a few well known and reviewed titles.

Released in PlayStations’s US blog, Prey, Project Cars 2, and Metro 2033 Redux lead a list of new games coming to the subscription service. Other games include Chess Ultra (PS4), God Eater 2: Rage Burst (PS4), Lock’s Quest (PS4), Onechanbara Z2: Chaos (PS4), Skydrift (PS3), and Thunder Wolves (PS3). Including January’s games, over 275 streamable and downloadable PS4 games are available, and over 700 games streamable altogether.

The big title of the month, Bethesda’s Prey, is a sci-fi thriller that not only bends your mind, but also your body. As stated from the blog post:

You awaken aboard space station Talos I, only to find that you’ve been at the center of a science experiment gone terribly wrong. Use your wits, a unique arsenal of deadly weapons, and an array of mind-bending abilities to survive against horrific aliens and discover the dark secrets lurking within Talos I.

Metro 2033 Redux is sure to scratch the itch of post-apocalyptic shooter for those who are craving it. Rounding up the notable titles is Project Cars 2. With over 180 elite race and road cars, a wide variety of tracks and course to master, dynamic surface and weather physics, racing career progression, and modes including Indy Car, Oval Racing, and rallycross, this car sim is sure to rev your gaming engine.

Players who have yet to try the service have the opportunity to try PlayStation Now for free for 7 days, on either your PS4 or PC.

 

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PlayStation 4 Surpasses 91.6 Million Units Sold Worldwide Following Holiday 2018

Sony’s vice grip over the current console generation has continued to strength with each passing year, as more and more gamers turn to the PlayStation 4 as their go-to gaming platform. With a stellar line up of first part exclusives like God of War (2018) and Marvel’s Spider-Man, 2018 was a great year to own Sony’s fourth generation game console, and the numbers are speaking for themselves.

In a press release from Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE), the company stated that the PlayStation 4 has now cumulatively sold through more than 91.6 million units globally as of December 31st, 2018. From that number, more than 5.6 million units globally were sold during the 2018 holiday season.

Image Courtesy of Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE)

Since the initial reveal and launch of the system, Sony has placed an emphasis on ‘gaming’ in regards for the system, specifically with blockbuster first-party exclusives. One such exclusive and one of the hottest games of the year, Marvel’s Spider-Man has cumulatively sold through more than 9 million copies worldwide as of November 25, 2018, since its launch in September 2018. The company also stated to date that an estimated 876 million PS4 games have been sold since launch, including 50,7 million during the 2018 holiday season. “I would like to express my deepest gratitude to our passionate community around the globe, and our partners, for helping us achieve these milestones” John Kodera, President and CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment added. “This year, we will bring more enhanced experiences to our fans along with a highly anticipated lineup of games that are only possible on PS4. As we look toward the next PS4 milestone, SIE will continue to evolve, and we will further expand the platform to deliver the best interactive entertainment experiences to the world.”

As the next generation of gaming consoles begin to loom on the ever approaching horizon, Sony also continues its march towards the now somewhat inevitable 100 million units sold mark. Only four consoles now have greater overall sales figures than the PlayStation 4: Nintendo Wii (101.63 million), Sony PlayStation (102.49 million), Nintendo Game Boy/Game Boy Color (118.69 million), Nintendo DS (154.02 million), and Sony PlayStation 2 (over 155 million).

 

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Obsidian Releases 15 Minutes of ‘The Outer Worlds’ Gameplay

Obsidian Entertainment officially announced their newest project The Outer Worlds last night at the Game Awards 2018. Following the announcement, the newly owned Microsoft studio has released a new 15 minute gameplay video showcasing what fans can expect from the upcoming cosmic RPG.


In the demo released by Game Informer, Obsidian shows off the gameplay style, which gives off major Fallout vibes, which isn’t shocking given the close relationship with the IP from developing the spinoff title, Fallout: New Vegas. One aspect that sticks out is the dialog system. Giving you a multitude of options on how to approach situations, the player can focus on making dialog decisions that affect not only the story, but the world around you. You can also see the emphasis on pulpy humor, similar to that of the Fallout series at time.

While no concrete release date has been announced, The Outer Worlds is scheduled to release on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC (Steam) in 2019.

Jeff Kaplan, VP of Blizzard, to Present at Game Awards 2018

Overwatch continues to be one of the most popular multiplayer games out to date, with the game reaching 40 million players worldwide this past summer. One person you could point to in having a hand in the hero shooter’s success would be long-time developer/executive, Jeff Kaplan, who has been heading the project for years now; and now he will be apart of the show that only a few years ago awarded his game with gold.

In a recent tweet published by Game Awards creator Geoff Keighley, he confirms that the vice president of Blizzard Entertainment will be presenting an award during this year’s Game Awards on Thursday, December 6th.

Kaplan, who oversees all current and future plans for Overwatch, has been attached to the project since the days of the cancelled ‘Titan’ project that lead to the eventual inception of Overwatch in 2016. Kaplan and his team won the coveted Game of the Year award for the massively successful multiplayer game in 2016.

While there is no indication that Kaplan will be making an announcement pertaining to Overwatch, or Blizzard in general, the company will be looking for ways to improve their look in the public eye following the lukewarm reaction to the upcoming mobile adaptation of Blizzard’s long running RPG looter franchise Diablo, entitled Diablo Immortal. There have also been rumors of Overwatch making its way to the Switch, after the company confirmed its possibility to run on Nintendo’s hybrid system. With an emphasis put on the show being a homestead to for announcements and premieres to happen, an Overwatch related announcement isn’t necessarily out of the question.

The Game Awards 2018 is set to air live on Thursday, December 6th, 2018 at 9 PM EST/6PM PST. For more information, including platforms to watch the show on, please visit their website.

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Obsidian Entertainment & Take Two Set to Premiere New Game at the Game Awards

The fifth annual Game Awards is set to go live next Thursday, December 6th, and creator Geoff Keighley promises that fans are set to see the most new game announcements at the show to date; and now we know one of the games that are set to strut their stuff for the first time to the public eye.

In a tweet released by Keighley, Obsidian Entertainment and Private Division are set to announce their upcoming RPG for the first time to the public. Obsidian, who is best known for development on Fallout: New Vegas and Star Wars: Knight of the Old Republic II, was recently acquired by Microsoft, began a viral marketing campaign on its website recently, showing various ‘countdowns to a special message’, that coincidentally lined up with the upcoming awards show. Private Division, Take Two’s independent publishing label based out of New York City whose most recent success has been the wacky but accurate space simulator Kerbal Space Program, also joined in on the fun by quote tweeting Obsidian’s original tweet, leading fans to begin to connect the dots.

From what little the public has been made aware of in regards to the game, we do have confirmation that the game will be 3rd person RPG, will not include microtransactions, and is believed to be one that space themed. The game, which has confirmed to be published by Take-Two’s Private Division, sees Fallout creators Tim Cain and Leonard Boyarsky return to helm the project. In an interview conducted by Game Informer in December 2017, Cain spoke briefly on the upcoming RPG saying “If people have liked our previous RPGs, they’re going to like this one in terms of how we make reactive worlds, and especially our style of humor”. In the same interview, Boyarsky also touched on the upcoming title, by saying “It was the opportunity to work with Tim on a new IP that we were creating from scratch again, because we did it on Fallout and Arcanum and those were great experiences and I just missed doing that.I missed working on single-player, in-depth RPGs with a lot of choice, consequence, and reactivity. I like making other types of games, but there is something special about the kind of games we started with Fallout that really appeals to us and speaks to us creatively.”

While neither developer nor publisher have confirmed so, it is believed to be a multi-platform experience, due to the large progress made before the developer being acquired by Microsoft, along with the publication being handled by Take-Two’s Private Division subsidiary.

For more updates on upcoming title announcements at the Game Awards 2018, including Obsidian Entertainment’s newest IP, be sure to follow us on Twitter and Facebook, and keep it right here on Bonus Accessory.