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Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End leads the way at 2016 Game Awards with eight nominations
We’re rapidly approaching the end of the year, and that means the 2016 Game Awards are right around the corner. The Game Awards will once again be produced and hosted by Geoff Keighley, who will honor this year’s best games and look to the future with a number of huge World Premieres, including the first gameplay footage from BioWare’s Mass Effect: Andromeda.
Before we blast off to a far away galaxy, let’s stop and recognize Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End, which received eight nominations this year from the Game Awards Advisory Board. In addition to “Game of the Year,” Nathan Drake’s final adventure is also up for “Best Game Direction,” “Best Art Direction,” “Best Narrative,” and “Best Action/Adventure Game,” along with a “Best Performance” nomination for all three of the game’s main performers.
Uncharted 4 will compete with some of 2016’s biggest titles for “Game of the Year” at the 2016 Game Awards including Doom, Inside, Overwatch, and Titanfall 2.
“The Game Awards is all about celebrating the state of video game art,” said Keighley. “In just a few short weeks we will recognize the most outstanding games of 2016 in unexpected ways, and preview the most anticipated games of 2017 and beyond with the longest, most in-depth world premieres we’ve ever attempted… including surprises and new game announcements.”
The Game Awards will be held on December 1 at 9:00 PM (Eastern Time), and fans can watch the show through their favorite video streaming service or at TheGameAwards.com. The full list of nominees can be found after the break. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, Mobile, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Vita, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Tagged Doom (2016), Game Awards 2016, Inside, Mass Effect: Andromeda, Overwatch, TitanFall 2, Uncharted 4: A Thief's End
Super Mario Run will be available for all iOS devices on December 15
Nintendo fans are waiting patiently to learn more about the Nintendo Switch, which will be available sometime in March. But today, the consolemaker gave fans an update on their other highly-anticipated upcoming project… Super Mario Run.
Nintendo announced this morning that Super Mario Run will be available to download from the iOS App Store on December 15. The game will be playable on all iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch devices running iOS 8.0 (or later), and players who want to try before they buy can access a free-to-play demo as well. Players looking to get the complete Super Mario Run experience (the main game, the Toad Rally battle mode, and Kingdom Builder) will be able to purchase it for $9.99.
“The wait is almost over for a Super Mario game that can be played on mobile devices,” said Doug Bowser, Nintendo of America’s Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing. “Developed under the direction of Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto, Super Mario Run brings a new take on the series’ beloved action-platforming gameplay to iPhone and iPad for the first time.”
Super Mario Run will also be released for Android devices sometime in 2017.
Posted in Mobile, News
Tagged Super Mario Run
Black Friday Game Deals 2016: Toys R Us
It’s possible that Toys R Us leaked the final retail price of the Nintendo Switch this morning, and now we’ve also got our hands on the retailer’s Black Friday deals for this year.
Toys R Us will open at 5:00 PM on Thanksgiving Day, and if you’re looking for bargains on games and accessories for “Toys-To-Life” franchises like Lego Dimensions, Skylanders, and Disney Infinity, they’re definitely the place to go. All three Disney Infinity Starter Packs are just $9.99, and the figures will be available in a “Buy 1 Get 3 Free” deal. There’s also a 50% discount on all Team Packs and Level Packs for Lego Dimensions, as well as a $50 price reduction on the Starter Pack itself.
Toys R Us is slashing prices on a lot of this year’s biggest games for Black Friday including a $20 discount for BioShock: The Collection, Dark Souls III, Doom, Fallout 4, Just Dance 2017, Lego Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Mafia III, Metal Gear Solid V: The Definitive Experience, Mortal Kombat XL, Pro Evolution Soccer 2017, ReCore, Super Mario Maker, Titanfall 2, and XCOM 2. And shoppers will get $25 off Destiny: The Collection, Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2, The Elder Scrolls Online: Gold Edition, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim – Special Edition, Far Cry: Primal, Gears of War 4, Grand Theft Auto V, Guitar Hero Live, NBA 2K17, Overwatch, and more.
Like most other retailers this year, Toys R Us will also be selling PS4 Slim and Xbox One S system bundles for $250.
The complete list of Toys R Us’s Black Friday Game Deals for this year can be found after the break. (more…)
SAG-AFTRA Strike: Is Telltale working on a Guardians of the Galaxy game? And Call of Duty 2017 might be titled Lethal Combat
SAG-AFTRA, the largest union for voice actors and stunt performers in Hollywood, authorized a strike against some game developers and production studios nearly two weeks ago. Because of the strike, all work ceased on a number of in-development projects, including a few unannounced games, such as Madden NFL 18 and Brothers in Arms 4.
Today, the union updated their list of projects that aren’t being struck, and it too includes a large number of unannounced projects.
Perhaps the biggest inclusion in the non-struck list is Guardians of the Galaxy: The Video Game (AKA “Blue Harvest”). It’s easy to assume that Marvel is developing a tie-in mobile game for the film sequel, but it interestingly shares a production house with Telltale’s The Walking Dead: A New Frontier. So it’s not too far of a leap to assume that Telltale’s mysterious Marvel project might star the Guardians of the Galaxy.
Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare, which launches this Friday, is also on the list, presumably because of the voice work needed for its Season Pass content. But the 2017 Edition of the long-running franchise, which is in the works at Sledgehammer Games, is included as well. The game is currently known as Call of Duty: Stronghold, though an additional codename, Call of Duty: Lethal Combat, is also included. Unfortunately, neither of these names gives us any idea where Sledgehammer is taking the Call of Duty franchise next.
Electronic Arts has four titles on the list, including Mass Effect: Andromeda. The other three are all listed under codenames, so all we can do is speculate as to what “Project X” (AKA “Delta”), “Walrus,” and “Yuma” refer to.
WB Games also has four titles on the list, all under codenames: “Lego Zeus,” “Metallica,” “Sabbath,” and “Kraken.” I know it’s just following the naming convention established by the others, but I would love a Lego retelling of the Greek myths.
Another mystery game is in the works at Take-Two, and it has three codenames. Dust (AKA “Dark Future & Aces High”) could be literally anything. However, the references to gambling and deserts might lead some to make the leap to Red Dead Redemption 2.
Insomniac has a single game in the non-struck list and it goes by the codename “Sleepless.” It’s possible that “Sleepless” is a stand-in for their Spider-Man game, which does take place in “The City That Never Sleeps.” I’d also wager that Final Fantasy Black is actually a codename for Final Fantasy XV, which has previously been referred to by Square Enix executives as the “dark side” to Final Fantasy XIII‘s “light side.”
Finally, a listing for Project Atlas (AKA “Saints Row”) is no doubt referring to Volition’s recently announced Agents of Mayhem, which is said to take place in the same universe as Saints Row.
The SAG-AFTRA union plans to hold a second picket this Thursday, November 3, in front of the offices of WB Games in Burbank.
Posted in Mobile, News, PC, PS4, Xbox One
Tagged Agents of Mayhem, Call of Duty: WWII, Final Fantasy XV, Guardians of the Galaxy, Mass Effect: Andromeda, Red Dead Redemption 2, Spider-Man
Catch ’em all in Pokemon Go’s Halloween Event now until November 1
With Halloween right around the corner, Niantic has launched the first in-game event for Pokemon Go. From now until November 1, players will have a better chance of finding a scary-looking Pokemon with “increased global encounters” for Drowzee, Gastly, Gengar, Golbat, Haunter, Hypno, and Zubat.
And it wouldn’t be Halloween without candy, so there’ll be plenty of opportunities to receive more Pokemon Candy during the event. All Trainers will earn twice the normal amount of Pokemon Candy, six pieces, for every Pokemon caught during the event. The Professor will also give Trainers two Candies (instead of one) for every Pokemon transferred to him. Players will also receive increased Buddy Pokemon Candy rewards over the next seven days as well.
“It’s been incredible watching people explore their neighborhoods and catch wild Pokemon all summer,” said Tatsuo Nomura, the Senior Product Manager at Niantic. “We would like to Trick-Or-Treat in our own special way by giving Trainers the chance to catch more Pokemon and earn extra Candy this Halloween.”
Niantic also released a new trailer for the Halloween Event, which has been embedded above.
Posted in Mobile, News
Tagged Pokemon Go
Meet the Children of Arkham in a trailer for Episode 3 of Batman: The Telltale Series
Batman: The Telltale Series continues to roll on with today’s release of the next episode in the series, New World Order. In a new trailer for Episode 3, we’ve learned that the aftermath of the attack by the Children of Arkham has left Gotham City, and The Batman, shaken to the core. Meanwhile, Harvey Dent is going through his own identity crisis:
In Episode 3, Penguin’s brutal attack broadcast on live TV has left Gotham City reeling. As Bruce and Batman, you’ll dig deeper into the web of intrigue surrounding the newly revealed Children of Arkham. Meanwhile, behind closed doors, the mysterious Selina Kyle reveals more of herself to Bruce. And in the aftermath of the attack, Bruce’s friend and Gotham’s new mayor, Harvey Dent, is a deeply changed man. Who can be trusted when the future of Bruce Wayne – and the Batman – could be determined by the flip of a coin?
Batman: The Telltale Series – Episode 3: New World Order is now available to download for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One. It’ll also be released for the PS3, Xbox 360, and mobile devices at a later date.
Voice actor strike reveals unannounced games like Lego Marvel 2, Brothers in Arms, more
SAG-AFTRA, a union representing voice actors and stunt performers, authorized a strike against game developers that began this morning. As part of the process, the union has published a list of projects that members are no longer allowed to work on, and it includes several unannounced games.
It wasn’t much of a shock to learn that EA Sports is already hard at work on Madden NFL 18 and NHL 18, but listings for Lego Marvel 2 and Brothers in Arms were a bit more surprising (though not unexpected). While WB Games has yet to make any noise about a new Lego Marvel game, Gearbox confirmed the existence of a fourth Brothers in Arms game last year.
A large number of mobile games also make up a large part of the list, as well as a few games that are denoted only by codenames. For example, Take-Two is working on something called “Alligator,” while EA is developing games under monikers as diverse as “Odin,” “Fearless,” “Scorpion,” and “Timbits.” We may never know what these codenames refer to (they may even belong to games that have already been released), but one of the union’s major demands is for developers to be more transparent during the hiring process and to use a game’s actual title when contracting with vocal/stunt performers.
Finally, several highly-anticipated 2017 titles will be affected by the strike including Kingdom Hearts HD 2.8: Final Chapter Prologue, Injustice 2, and Crash Bandicoot Remastered. So hopefully the two sides can reach an equitable agreement soon.
UPDATE: A representative from WB Games has informed us that the inclusion of “Lego Marvel 2” in the SAG-AFTRA strike list is actually a reference to Lego Avengers, which was released earlier this year. However, Lego Avengers was announced in January 2015, several weeks before the union’s deadline for projects that must be part of the picket line.
I’m not sure why it was included on the list (it’s possible the union goofed), but the official line from WB Games is that “Lego Marvel 2” is definitely not a reference to “Lego Marvel Super Heroes 2” or any other unannounced game. That said, I’d be very surprised if WB Games isn’t working on another Lego Marvel game, and we’ll likely hear more about “Lego Marvel 2” in the future.
Posted in 3DS, Mobile, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Switch, Vita, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Tagged Brothers in Arms 4, Crash Bandicoot, Injustice 2, Kingdom Hearts HD 2.8: Final Chapter Prologue, Lego Marvel Super Heroes 2, Madden NFL 18, NHL 18
Voice actors represented by SAG-AFTRA union go on strike against game developers
Negotiations between game developers and the voice actors and stunt performers represented by the SAG-AFTRA union began in February 2015, but after more than 18 months of discussions, the two sides appear no closer to an agreement. Because of the impasse, and to protest against a contract they believe is decades out of date, the members of the union went on strike this morning.
“SAG-AFTRA has gone to the negotiations table with serious concerns affecting voiceover and stunt performers,” said Ray Rodriguez, the Chief Contracts Officer for SAG-AFTRA. “It’s time for video game employers to take our concerns seriously and negotiate a modern contract based on actor safety, industry precedent and best practices.”
This strike won’t affect all developers, and currently only applies to games that went into production after February 17, 2015 at Activision, Electronic Arts, Insomniac Games, Take-Two Interactive, and WB Games. However, the strike also extends to several independent vocal production studios that do a lot of contract work with the big publishers.
The game developers are offering an immediate 9% salary hike for all performers, and “additional compensation” depending on the number of recording sessions. However, the union’s demands for better working conditions went unmentioned in a statement from the Chief Negotiator for the game developers.
The SAG-AFTRA union plans to push the game developers for a better deal over the next few weeks, and their first order of business is encouraging all members to join a picket line in front of EA’s headquarters this Monday, October 24.