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Here’s the launch trailer for Game of Thrones: The Lost Lords… because it launches today
The second episode of Telltale’s Game of Thrones adaptation, Game of Thrones: The Lost Lords, is all set to be released this week on the PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, and mobile platforms. So naturally, Telltale has released a brand new launch trailer for the game. In case you need to be caught up, here’s what players can expect from The Lost Lords:
House Forrester is in disarray. Their liege lord and his heir are dead, and Ironrath is occupied by Whitehill soldiers. The survival of the family depends upon those who are left.
Placed at King’s Landing, the epicenter of intrigue, Mira Forrester must weigh her loyalty to Margaery Tyrell against the needs of her family, while choosing how to play the political games of Tyrion Lannister. One misstep could spell doom for Mira and her entire family. To the far north, Gared Tuttle finds that the wall and its crows hold little love for a squire from the Wolfswood, but finds kinship in the bastard son of Ned Stark.
Gared must prove worthy of becoming a ranger in order to carry out the mission given him; one that is vital to the future of those he serves. To the east, Asher Forrester, the exiled son, is called back to Westeros to aid his family, but how can one man help when the Boltons rule the north with an iron fist? Meanwhile, an unexpected source of hope returns to the Forresters, but Ironrath is no place for the weak.
Telltale has planned a staggered release schedule for Game of Thrones: The Lost Lords. PC, PS3, and PS4 players will be able to play it beginning today while Xbox One and Xbox 360 owners will have to wait until tomorrow. Finally, Android and iOS will get a crack at The Lost Lords on Thursday.
Sony sells SOE to investment firm; New company hints at Xbox development
Columbus Nova, an investment management firm, has announced that they’ve acquired Sony Online Entertainment lock, stock, and barrel. The deal includes all of SOE’s development studios as well as the rights to their entire game portfolio including EverQuest, EverQuest II, PlanetSide 2, DC Universe Online, H1Z1, Landmark, and the upcoming EverQuest Next.
A new name comes with the new owners and SOE will be known as Daybreak Game Company from now on. A non-Sony owner also means that some of SOE’s biggest titles will make their way to the Xbox One and mobile platforms in the not-so-distant future.
“We are excited to join Columbus Nova’s impressive roster of companies. They have a proven track record in similar and related industries and we are eager to move forward to see how we can push the boundaries of online gaming,” said John Smedley, the President of Daybreak Game Company. “We will continue to focus on delivering exceptional games to players around the world, as well as bringing our portfolio to new platforms, fully embracing the multiplatform world in which we all live.”
According a post on the SOE Community Forum, it will “business as usual” for SOE as they transition to their new life under Daybreak Game Company. So things shouldn’t change too much for current players in the near-term.
Liam Neeson seeks his revenge in this Clash of Clans Super Bowl commercial
Laim Neeson is quite taken with Clash of Clans. The actor, who has made a career out of threatening people with his Irish baritone, starred in a Super Bowl XLIX commercial for the mobile game last night.
A description of what transpires in the 60-second spot won’t do it justice. You need to see it for yourself. Oh, and pray for BigBuffetBoy85, he’s going to need all the help he can get.
Sega to institute layoffs, early retirement program as company continues to struggle
Sega (which officially does business under the Sega Sammy Holdings name) has been dealing with financial difficulties for some time, but it looks like their latest round of problems will result in some big changes for the company.
Sega’s Board of Directors met this morning and hammered out a restructuring plan that they believe will help the company’s financial position in the future. Unfortunately, a key part of that plan will involve an unspecified number of layoffs and a voluntary early requirement program that the company will offer to 300 employees. Some of the layoffs will come from Sega of America, which will be moving from its current headquarters in San Francisco to a smaller facility somewhere in Southern California.
The restructuring, which is expected to be completed by the Summer, will also lead to a new focus on downloadable titles developed for smartphones and the PC. Sega is also heavily involved in big budget and mid-tier on consoles and the PC, but it’s currently unknown how this plan will affect the company’s internal development teams.
Get bonus XP in Evolve by playing Evolve: Hunters Quest, a mobile match-3 puzzler
Quick, grab your phone or tablet, because 2K Games has just released a free-to-play companion app to Evolve for mobile devices. But if you were looking for a little shooty shooty on the go, you might be disappointed. Evolve: Hunters Quest is actually a match-3 puzzler. Available through the iTunes App Store, the Google Play Store, and the Amazon Appstore, Evolve: Hunters Quest will offer 100 missions and the ability to earn Mastery Points which can be spent in the PC, PS4, and Xbox One edition of Evolve to level up your favorite characters:
Evolve: Hunters Quest is a match-3 puzzle combat game based on the Best of Show E3 award winner, Evolve. Use match 3 tokens of the same color to unleash devastating attacks on your enemies, and fill up energy bars to activate hunters’ special abilities. Earn Mastery Points to rank up your character in both the mobile and console games. Explore the planet of Shear in search of new wildlife and monsters. Discover and complete your collection of exotic wildlife in the Bestiary, and earn unique art for the Evolve console game. Enhance your Evolve skills by watching your multiplayer match replays from a strategic top-down view, and devouring intel in the Game Changer. Evolve: Hunters Quest lets you continue your Evolve experience from anywhere!
Evolve will be released on February 10.
Shadow of Mordor and Dragon Age 3 lead all nominees at 2015 SXSW Gaming Awards
Another major award show has announced their 2014/2015 nominees and, once again, Dragon Age: Inquisition and Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor lead the pack. This time, we’re discussing the 2015 SXSW Gaming Awards, where each game has secured five nominations apiece.
Naturally, both games are competing for the Game of the Year prize, alongside Bayonetta 2, Dark Souls II, and Shovel Knight. Dragon Age: Inquisition was also nominated for “Excellence in Gameplay,” “Excellence in Technical Achievement,” “Excellence in Narrative,” and “Excellence in Design and Direction.” Shadow of Mordor is up for most of the same secondary awards, except swap out “Excellence in Gameplay” for “Excellence in Animation.”
The winners of the 2015 SXSW Gaming Awards will be announced on Saturday, March 14 as part of the SXSW Gaming Expo, which runs from March 13th through the 15th in Austin, Texas. The first 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 Bayonetta 2, Dark Souls II, Dragon Age: Inquisition, Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor, Shovel Knight, Tabletop Games
The Witness reaches “Puzzle Complete” milestone, but still no release date in sight
As one of the first games presented during the PlayStation 4’s unveiling, it was originally assumed that Jonathan Blow’s The Witness would be a launch title for Sony’s new-generation console. But here we are in the first month of 2015 and the Myst-inspired puzzler is still no where to be seen. But it looks like the development team has just reached a major milestone.
In a post on the game’s News Blog, Blow wrote that The Witness is now “Puzzle Complete,” meaning that all of the game’s 677 puzzles and “high-level creative decisions” have been completed. The developers said that there’s still work to be done on some “story stuff” and “the menu system,” but for the most part, all that’s left is polishing and playtesting:
It does *not* mean that the game is done. We still have a lot to do! But it *does* mean that the nature of the work changes and becomes simpler, because we don’t have to be making high-level creative decisions any more. It is now much more about turning the finish-the-game crank (making sure stuff plays well and polishing it up) for anything related to game design, modeling and texturing.
However, the bad news is that The Witness still doesn’t have a release date. So we’ll all just have to continue to wait patiently for the game, which will launch first for the PC and PS4, then on iOS, and on “other platforms” after that.
Posted in Mobile, News, PC, PS4
Tagged The Witness
Here’s the first gameplay trailer for the Daytona-inspired 90s Arcade Racer
Before Gran Turismo and Forza Motorsport, racing game fans cut their teeth on “arcade racers” like Sega’s Daytona USA and Namco’s Ridge Racer.
Most of the arcades we frequented in those days have shut their doors, but the freewheelin’ spirit of those games will live on in Pelikan13’s The 90s Arcade Racer. Currently in development for the Wii U, mobile devices (iOS and Android), and PC platforms (Windows, Mac, and Linux), The 90s Arcade Racer will attempt to meld together elements from our favorites 90s arcade racers in a brand new game for modern audiences. Basically, it’s the “Snakes On A Plane” of on-the-nose game titles. But how on the nose is the title? Why not see for yourself in the first ever gameplay trailer, which has been embedded above.
The 90s Arcade Racer currently doesn’t have a release date and will be available… wait for it… when it’s ready.
Posted in Mobile, News, PC, Wii U
Tagged 90s Super GP