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Time Magazine names their top ten video games of 2015

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It looks like Time Magazine will get the first word in the annual discussion about the best games of the past 12 months as the publication recently published their look at the “Top 10 Video Games of 2015.” As usual, Time’s honorees are a mix of blockbusters and games with a lower profile. That includes this year’s #1, which is Prune, a “minimalist” puzzler for the iOS. I’d never heard of Prune before today (and I’m sure I’m not alone), but it certainly looks interesting.

Among this year’s blockbusters, Nintendo has two titles in Time’s Top Ten: Super Mario Maker at #6 and Splatoon at #10. Both certainly made the Wii U stand out against the PS4 and Xbox One. But speaking of the PS4 and Xbox One, several multiplatform games rose to the occasion in the eyes of Time’s editors including Rise of the Tomb Raider (#2), Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain (#3), The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (#5), and Batman: Arkham Knight (#8).

The rest of Time’s Top Ten can be found right here:

Time Magazine’s Top Ten Video Games of 2015
1. Prune (Mobile)
2. Rise of the Tomb Raider (Xbox One, Xbox 360)
3. Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain (PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One)
4. Her Story (PC, Mobile)
5. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (PC, PS4, Xbox One)
6. Super Mario Maker (Wii U)
7. Ryan North’s To Be or Not to Be (PC, Mobile)
8. Batman: Arkham Knight (PC, PS4, Xbox One)
9. Undertale (PC)
10. Splatoon (Wii U)

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Game of Thrones: Episode 6 is now available… and so is a trailer recapping the whole story

I hope you’re all caught up with Telltale’s Game of Thrones adaptation, as the final episode, The Ice Dragon, is now available to download on the PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, and mobile devices. But if you’re still behind (and you’re not afraid of spoilers), be sure to check out the “Recap Trailer” embedded above. It’ll helpfully provide an overview of the many choices players have had to make over the first five episodes, while also setting up the grand finale:

Your story is about to come to an epic conclusion. With House Whitehill tightening its grip on Ironrath at the behest of Ramsay Bolton, the remaining Forresters must give their all to save the family, whether through diplomacy, subterfuge, or violent force. In the frozen wilds beyond The Wall, Gared learns the secrets of the mysterious North Grove, and Mira discovers that political games in a King’s Landing controlled by Cersei Lannister often involve the highest stakes of all.

What is the fate of House Forrester? When you play the Game of Thrones, you win or you die. Your choices, your story: you decide.

Game of Thrones: The Complete Season is also available to purchase from retail outlets beginning today for the PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One.

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The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt leads all nominees at the 2015 Game Awards

Geoff Keighley’s Game Awards are back for another year and the nominees for the 2015 edition were announced late last week. From Software’s Bloodborne, Bethesda’s Fallout 4, Kojima’s Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, Nintendo’s Super Mario Maker, and CD Project Red’s The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt will all compete for the coveted “Game of the Year.”

Besides Game of the Year, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt actually lead the competition with six total nominations including “Best Narrative,” “Best Performance,” “Best Art Direction,” “Best Score/Soundtrack,” and “Best Role-Playing Game.” CD Projekt Red is also up for “Developer of the Year” due to their exemplary work on the game.

The 2015 Game Awards will be held on Thursday, December 3 at 9:00 PM (Eastern Time). Fans will be able to watch the show on a variety of platforms and devices including YouTube, Twitch, Steam, the PlayStation Network, Wii U, Xbox Live, and Go90. And don’t forget, plenty of “World Premiere Trailers” will make their debut in between the awards.

The full list of nominees and awards can be found after the break. (more…)

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Nintendo’s first mobile “game” is a communication app known as Miitomo

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Nintendo recently revealed their first mobile game as part of their quarterly financial report. Rather than producing a Mario platformer or a Zelda-style adventure game, Nintendo has partnered with DeNA to create Miitomo, a “conversation starter” communication app.

Miitomo will let players create a Mii, which will then ask you questions about hobbies, thoughts, and experiences. These answers will then be shared with your friends (through your Mii) to get everyone talking. Nintendo President Tatsumi Kimishima talked a bit more about how Miitomo works during his presentation:

These “friendly communication starters” have an advantage that even the people who are less willing to send messages can easily participate. Another unique characteristic of Miitomo is that you may be able to find out unknown aspects about your friends or unexpected commonalities you share with your friend because Miitomo may pick up the topics that you usually do not discuss but would be willing to answer if asked.
What we would like to realize is, through such communication, you will be able to deepen friendly relationships and have more people with whom you can play games.

Miitomo will be released for mobile devices in March 2016. Nintendo and DeNA will follow it up with the release of four more titles by March 2017.

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Telltale’s Game of Thrones series will conclude on November 17

Telltale’s Game of Thrones adaptation will come to a bloody conclusion (I’m assuming) on November 17. That’s when the game’s final episode, The Ice Dragon, will be released for the PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, and mobile devices.

“The epic conclusion to the season is the most ambitious and diversely presented episode we’ve ever produced,” said Kevin Bruner, CEO and Co-Founder of Telltale Games. “The fate of House Forrester has been in the hands of players all season long, and the finale will be tailored to provide a uniquely harrowing conclusion for each and every player based on the decisions they’ve made in the game thus far.”

If you missed out on Telltale’s adaptation of HBO’s adaptation of George R.R. Martin’s expansive series of novels, don’t worry, a retail disc collecting all six episodes will also be available on November 17 for the PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One. The developer will even let you try before you buy as the first episode, Iron From Ice, is now free to download on the PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, and mobile devices.

To get players excited for the final episode of their Game of Thrones adaptation, Telltale has produced a featurette starring the show’s cast chatting about their experiences with the game.

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Activision adds 12 “fan-favorite tracks” to Guitar Hero Live

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I honestly thought Activision would call it a day after the Guitar Hero Live tracklist ballooned to 110 songs, but it looks like I was wrong. This morning, the publisher announced that 12 more songs would be included on the game disc, all of which have been featured in previous Guitar Hero games. There’s a lot of good stuff to be found in this latest tracklist update, especially if you’re a fan of 80s/90s rock:

  • AFI – “Girl’s Not Grey”
  • Audioslave – “Cochise”
  • Disturbed – “Down with the Sickness”
  • Faith No More – “Epic”
  • Incubus – “Drive”
  • Living Colour – “Cult of Personality”
  • Pat Benatar – “Hit Me With Your Best Shot (Live)”
  • Queen – “We Are the Champions”
  • Ratt – “Round and Round”
  • Slipknot – “Before I Forget”
  • Survivor – “Eye of the Tiger”
  • Warrant – “Cherry Pie”

Guitar Hero Live will be released in less than two weeks, on October 20, for the PS3, PS4, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One, and mobile devices. If you want to dive deep into the entire tracklist, Activision has created a Spotify playlist that’ll keep you busy for exactly seven hours and 40 minutes.

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Tales From the Borderlands: Episode 5 will be released on October 20

Telltale has announced that Tales From the Borderlands will come to its explosive end during the week of October 20 with the release of the fifth episode, The Vault of the Traveler. If the trailer embedded above is any indication, Rhys and Fiona are in some kind of trouble again, but hopefully a series of humorous shenanigans will help them escape. The complete release schedule for The Vault of the Traveler can be found right here:

  • Tuesday, October 20: PC/Mac, PS4, PS3
  • Wednesday, October 21: Xbox One, Xbox 360
  • Thursday, October 22: iOS App Store, Android’s Google Play Store, Amazon.com Appstore

And if you haven’t had a chance to take Tales From the Borderlands for a ride yet, Telltale wants to remedy that. The developer also announced yesterday that the game’s first episode, Zer0 Sum, is now available as a free download on consoles and mobile devices.

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Downton Abbey: Mysteries of the Manor, a hidden object game, is now available for mobile devices

Clutch your pearls and hang on to your monocles… Downton Abbey is getting a video game. Published by Activision, Downton Abbey: Mysteries of the Manor is a free-to-play hidden object game that is now available to download for iOS and Android devices.

Downton Abbey: Mysteries of the Manor is an adventure of exploration and discovery, featuring characters and locations from the series. When an unknown intruder ransacks the mansion, putting the Crawley family’s fortune in jeopardy, players must discreetly search every room to find the missing treasures and unravel the mystery behind the break-in. But in a place where everyone has something to hide, no one is above suspicion. Throughout the journey, players can find and return missing items to their rightful owners, earning the trust of the estate’s residents and unlocking new areas to advance the story. They can also compete with friends on social leaderboards to see who can restore more of the Abbey’s most prized possessions to their former glory.

The sixth and final season of Downton Abbey premieres this weekend in the United Kingdom, while PBS will import it for American audiences beginning in January.

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