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Horizon, PUBG, Nier: Automata, Zelda: BOTW, Super Mario Odyssey will compete for “Game of the Year” at 2018 SXSW Gaming Awards
The nominees for the 2018 SXSW Gaming Awards have been announced, and for once, there doesn’t appear to be a clear-cut favorite in any of the categories.
Six games are currently leading the pack after receiving a total of six nominations apiece. Horizon: Zero Dawn, PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds, Nier: Automata, and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild all pulled off the double hat trick, and each game also secured a nomination for “Video Game of the Year.” Cuphead and Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice were shut out of the “Video Game of the Year” category, but both games also managed to earn six total nominations.
Rounding out the “Video Game of the Year” field is Super Mario Odyssey, which earned five total nominations.
As in years past, fans are invited to vote for their favorites at IGN.com. The winners in each category will ultimately be decided by a 50/50 vote between the public and the SXSW Gaming Advisory Board.
The 2018 SXSW Gaming Awards will be held on Saturday, March 17, and the full list of nominees in all categories can be found after the break. (more…)
Atari is creating a Pong game show known as Million Dollar Pong
I’m sure there were quite a few cutthroat Pong competitions in the 70s. And it’s easy to assume those head-to-head battles are a thing of the past. But wait… the people of 2018 will soon get their own chance to compete against each other for big money and big prizes.
According to a recent report in Variety, the creative mind behind The Gong Show and Rock and Roll Jeopardy, Scott Sternberg, has teamed up with Atari to produce a game show based on Pong. The show will be known as Million Dollar Pong, and it’ll feature a “brand new” spin on the arcade classic:
“’Pong’ is a cultural touchpoint for generations of people,” said Sternberg. “It’s not often we get the chance to develop a game show concept around such an iconic brand. I can’t wait to give people the chance to see, experience, and play a brand new ‘Pong.’”
If you’re looking to enhance the period atmosphere of your living room before Million Dollar Pong‘s premiere, there’s no need to break out the wood paneling just yet. The show has yet to be signed by a network or streaming service.
Night in the Woods, Crypt of the NecroDancer, SteamWorld Dig, more coming to Nintendo eShop this week
It’s another big update for the Nintendo eShop, and several highly-acclaimed games from years past will make their way to the Switch’s online storefront this week.
Leading the way to the Switch is Night in the Woods, Infinite Fall’s exploration game focused on the “strange and amazing and terrible things” of young adult life. Also available to download for the Switch today is Crypt of the NecroDancer, a hardcore rhythm-based dungeon-crawler. And finally today, Image & Form will bring their intergalactic MetroidVania, SteamWorld Dig, to the Switch.
You can learn more about all of this week’s additions to the Nintendo eShop after the break. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, News, Switch, Wii U
Tagged Night in the Woods, SteamWorld Dig
Nintendo Switch has officially outsold the Wii U after ten months on the market
It’s official. After launching in March and being available to consumers for just under ten months, the Nintendo Switch has officially surpassed the Wii U in total sales. According to Nintendo’s internal tracking, they’ve sold 14.86 million Switch consoles as of December 31. This milestone easily leapfrogs the Wii U, which sold just 13.56 million consoles before it was discontinued in January 2017.
Nintendo also shared some software sales figures for the Switch’s first year, and leading the way is Super Mario Odyssey with 9.07 million copies sold. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is second place with 7.33 million copies sold, and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild was close behind with 6.7 million copies sold on the Switch.
Other million-sellers for the Switch include Splatoon 2 (4.91 million), 1-2-Switch (1.88 million), Arms (1.61 million), and Xenoblade Chronicles 2 (1.06 million).
Nintendo will announce full-year sales figures for the Switch in April, and it’ll be interesting to see what these numbers look like then.
Posted in News, Switch, Wii U
Tagged 1-2-Switch, Arms, Mario Kart 8, Splatoon 2, Super Mario Odyssey, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Xenoblade Chronicles 2
The Video Game Canon: 2018’s “Version 2.0” Update
The Video Game Canon is a statistical meta-ranking of dozens of “Best Video Games of All Time” lists that began in 2017 with Version 1.0, and the ranking has been updated several times since then. Which game is #1? There’s only one way to find out…
The Video Game Canon has been upgraded to “Version 2.0” thanks to the addition of four new lists that were published throughout the last year. Edge Magazine’s “100 Greatest Videogames” issue, Jeux Video’s “Top 100 Best Games of All Time,” Polygon’s massive “500 Best Games of All Time,” and Stuff UK’s “50 Greatest Games of All Time” have reshuffled the ranking in a big way.
Let’s take a look…
Visit VideoGameCanon.com for all future updates to this project and to explore the complete Top 1000.
Wulverblade, Dissidia Final Fantasy NT, EA Sports UFC 3, more coming to PS Store this week
Some bashing and crashing is the order of the day in this week’s PlayStation Store update.
First up is Wulverblade, a side-scrolling beat ’em up from Darkwind Media and Fully Illustrated that retells the bloody history of Britannia. Also this week, Square Enix teamed up with Team Ninja to launch Dissidia Final Fantasy NT, a 3v3 arena fighter that features more than 20 characters from the long-running RPG series. Both games are now available to download for the PS4.
And on Friday, EA Sports will release EA Sports UFC 3 for the PS4. The sports sim includes a host of new animations and a new Career Mode that promises the most “authentic” MMA experience available.
You can learn more about all of this week’s additions to the PlayStation Store after the break. (more…)
Posted in News, PS4, Vita
Tagged Dissidia Final Fantasy NT, EA Sports UFC 3, Wulverblade
Celeste, Pokemon Crystal, more coming to Nintendo eShop this week
Nintendo fans will need to climb the mountain to be the very best in this week’s Nintendo eShop update.
First up is Celeste, a side-scrolling platformer for the Switch from Matt Thorson, the creator of TowerFall. Players will take control of Madeline and help her climb Celeste Mountain by completing “hundreds of hand-crafted challenges” and bouncing back from death after death after death.
Over on the 3DS side of the eShop, Nintendo will make Pokemon Crystal available to download for their handheld beginning tomorrow. Pokemon Crystal was originally released in 2001 as a companion game to Pokemon Gold/Silver. This 3DS re-release includes local multiplayer and support for the Pokemon Bank app.
You can learn more about the rest of this week’s additions to the Nintendo eShop after the break. (more…)
Posted in 3DS, News, Switch
Tagged Celeste, Pokemon Gold/Silver
Celeste, Lost Sphear, OK K.O.! Let’s Play Heroes, more coming to PS Store this week
It’s a big week for the PlayStation Store, and several long-awaited PS4 games will make their way to the digital storefront over the next few days.
Leading the pack is Celeste, a competitive mountain-climbing game from Matt Thorson, the creator of TowerFall. Also set to launch this week is Lost Sphear, the latest retro-styled RPG from Square Enix’s Tokyo RPG Factory. And Capybara Games returns this week with OK K.O.! Let’s Play Heroes, a beat ’em up based on the Cartoon Network series.
Elsewhere on the PlayStation Store, Bandai Namco and Arc System Works will bring Dragon Ball Fighter Z to the PS4 on Friday. It’ll be released on the same day as Capcom’s newest monster-hunting action RPG, Monster Hunter: World. And Supermassive Games will rewind the clock on Until Dawn with The Inpatient, a PlayStation VR-powered sanitarium simulation.
Finally, Telltale will continue their newest Batman adventure with Batman: The Enemy Within – Episode 4: What Ails You.
You can learn more about all of this week’s additions to the PlayStation Store after the break. (more…)
Posted in News, PS4, Vita
Tagged Batman: The Enemy Within, Celeste, Dragon Ball FighterZ, Lost Sphear, Monster Hunter: World, The Inpatient