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World Video Game Hall of Fame welcomes its Class of 2020: Minecraft, Bejeweled, Centipede, and King’s Quest
After selling more than 200 million copies over the last decade, it’s hard to remember a time when Minecraft wasn’t nearly synonymous with the entire medium of video games. And though it was only available in an unfinished form from 2009 to 2011, it seemed to emerge from Mojang’s offices as a fully-formed phenomenon even in its earliest days.
So as players continued to flock to its Lego-like world in droves, it was a bit of a shock when the game was denied entry into the World Video Game Hall of Fame three separate times. Shortlisted as a finalist in 2015, 2016, and 2018, the title was passed over again and again and again. But Minecraft’s creative sandbox become too big to ignore this year, and it has finally been enshrined among gaming’s greats.
In a stunning upset, three unlikely candidates also garnered enough support from the Hall of Fame’s Selection Advisory Committee to join the Class of 2020. A genre-defining match-3 puzzler from PopCap (Bejeweled), a classic coin-op from Atari (Centipede), and one of earliest adventure titles from Sierra (King’s Quest) won out over more popular titles such as NBA Jam, GoldenEye 007, and Guitar Hero.
While this year’s class might look a little surprising, historians working at the Hall of Fame’s parent organizations, the Strong Museum and the International Center for the History of Electronic Games, helped put their importance into perspective. (more…)
Finalists for the World Video Game Hall of Fame’s Class of 2020 have been announced
The finalists for the World Video Game Hall of Fame’s Class of 2020 have been announced… and they’re on fire.
This year’s honorees include titles from every era of gaming, though the Star Power of Guitar Hero looms large over the competition. But that’s OK, because there’s a few other firestarters vying for a spot in this year’s class, including Midway’s NBA Jam, Mojang’s Minecraft, and Nintendo’s Super Smash Bros. Melee.
There’s also the groundbreaking GoldenEye 007, the unforgettable Nokia Snake, the edutaining Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?, and the addicting Bejeweled. Rounding out this year’s crop of finalists is Naughty Dog’s Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, and a trio of classics from the early 80s (Centipede, Frogger, and King’s Quest).
This isn’t the first opportunity to join the World Video Game Hall of Fame for some of these games, and fans will have the chance to make their voice heard by submitting a Player’s Choice Ballot. The public can vote once per day now through April 2nd, and the three games that receive the most votes will join the 29 other ballots submitted by members of the Hall of Fame’s International Selection Advisory Committee.
The Strong Museum’s International Center for the History of Electronic Games, the entity that oversees the World Video Game Hall of Fame, will announce the inductees from the Class of 2020 at a date to be determined in a special ceremony. For now, you can learn more about this year’s finalists after the break. (more…)
Posted in Mobile, News, PC, PS2, PS3, PS4, Retro, Switch, Vita, Wii, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Tagged Bejeweled, Centipede, GoldenEye 007, Guitar Hero, King's Quest, Minecraft, Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?, World Video Game Hall of Fame
Grand Theft Auto V is the best-selling game of the 2010s
The NPD Group’s Mat Piscatella has one more list of best-selling games for us… the best-selling games of the 2010s.
Originally posted on Twitter, the chart was topped by Rockstar’s Grand Theft Auto V, but the majority of the list was dominated by Activision’s Call of Duty franchise. Seven of the ten slots were claimed by the shooter series, leaving only two remaining places for Rockstar’s Red Dead Redemption 2 (#7) and Mojang’s Minecraft (#10):
Best-Selling Games in 2010-2019
1. Grand Theft Auto V
2. Call of Duty: Black Ops
3. Call of Duty: Black Ops II
4. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
5. Call of Duty: Black Ops III
6. Call of Duty: Ghosts
7. Red Dead Redemption 2
8. Call of Duty: WWII
9. Call of Duty: Black Ops 4
10. Minecraft****** All Digital Sales Not Included
****Digital Sales on PC Not Included
While the Call of Duty franchise remains a perennial presence on the sales charts, there’s no guarantee it’ll have the same impact on the 2020s. After all, the best-selling game from 2000-2009 was Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock.
Shovel Knight’s King of Cards and Showdown expansions will be released on December 10
Yacht Club Games has announced that the first chapter of the Shovel Knight saga is finally coming to a close after four expansions and five glorious years (though you’ll need to tack on an additional year if you want to go all the way back to the Kickstarter campaign). Yesterday, the developer confirmed that Shovel Knight: King of Cards and Shovel Knight Showdown will both be released on December 10.
King of Cards is a followup to Plague of Shadows and Specter of Torment, and it’ll be the final side-story starring a member of the villainous Order of No Quarter. Meanwhile, Showdown breaks from tradition and isn’t a platformer at all. Instead, it’s a multiplayer fighting game that features the franchise’s entire cast, along with a huge single-player adventure.
Fans who originally backed the Kickstarter campaign for Shovel Knight, or who own the Treasure Trove bundle, will receive both expansions for free. The King of Cards expansion will be available for the 3DS, PC, PS3, PS4, Switch, Vita, Wii U, and Xbox One, while Showdown will be available for the PC, PS3, PS4, Switch, Wii U, and Xbox One.
Yacht Club will also release King of Cards and Showdown as standalone downloads for fans who are digging into the franchise for the first for the PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One.
Finally, the developer will try to also take over your favorite game store on December 10th with the release of a pair of Amiibo sets (a Treasure Trove 3-Pack and a Gold Edition Shovel Knight), as well as a Physical Edition of Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove (which includes the original game and all four expansions) for the Switch and Xbox One. A PS4 version of the Physical Edition will follow in 2020.
Whew, that’s a lot of Shovel Knight. But don’t forget, Yacht Club is also hard at work on a 16-bit-styled sequel/spin-off known as Shovel Knight Dig.
Posted in 3DS, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Switch, Vita, Wii U, Xbox One
Tagged Shovel Knight, Shovel Knight Showdown, Shovel Knight: King of Cards
Square Enix’s Romancing Saga 3 is now available in English for the first time
It’s been a struggle for RPG fans in North America and Europe to experience Square Enix’s long-running Saga franchise over the years. While the earliest Saga games were brought West under the Final Fantasy Legend banner, many of the later entries were only released in Japan by the publisher.
Thankfully, Square Enix has recently begun filling in those missing piece with a handful of Saga-related re-releases, including today’s launch of Romancing Saga 3.
Originally released for the Super NES in 1995, Romancing Saga 3 follows eight different protagonists, “each with their own motives and unique personalities.” This HD remaster of the game will give players outside of Japan their first chance to try out the turn-based RPG, which will include upgraded graphics, new areas to explore, and a New Game+ option:
Romancing Saga 3 gives players the freedom to forge their own path, choosing to play through eight different narratives led by eight protagonists, each with their own motives and unique personalities. Developed by industry veterans, including renowned developer Akitoshi Kawazu (Final Fantasy, Romancing SaGa, SaGa Frontier), this HD remaster will feature optimized graphics, a new dungeon called the Phantom Maze to explore, and a New Game+ function. Romancing Saga 3 adds new storylines to the game original game, making it the perfect time for both new and veteran players to experience the SaGa series.
Romancing Saga 3 is now available to download for the PC, PS4, Switch, Vita, Xbox One, and mobile devices. A Launch Trailer for the RPG re-release has been embedded above.
Shovel Knight: King of Cards will be released in December
Yacht Club Games delivered Shovel Knight to fans all the way back in 2014, and they’ve spent the rest of the decade fulfilling a Kickstarter campaign promise to produce additional campaigns starring three of the game’s villains. Those expansions did a lot to fill out the world of Shovel Knight and they’ve helped make the main character something of an international superstar.
But now the developers are ready to close the book on Shovel Knight’s first adventure this December with the release of Shovel Knight: King of Cards.
A fittingly jampacked new trailer for King of Cards has been embedded above, as the developer said (on their official website) that the expansion will be the biggest Shovel Knight adventure yet:
King of Cards marks our grandest adventure yet, and we hope the trailer whets your appetite for the banquet of adventure which awaits! It has more levels, mechanics, secrets, and content than any Shovel Knight game to come before it. It’s a spectacle, crammed to the coffers with ideas- it’s the biggest game we’ve ever made, and we can’t wait for everyone to finally, finally play it. We’ve used everything we’ve learned in the past to make this game shine. We hope that you’ll find it both a delightful return and a fitting sendoff to Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove.
Shovel Knight owners will be able to download the King of Cards expansion for free for the 3DS, PC, PS3, PS4, Switch, Vita, Wii U, and Xbox One, though it’ll also be released as a standalone game for the PC, PS4, and Switch.
And if you haven’t dug into the Shovel Knight series yet, Yacht Club will package the original game and all four expansions together into a special retail edition, known as the Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove, for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One.
In the meantime, fans will be able to test out a demo of Shovel Knight: King of Cards at this weekend’s PAX West convention.
Posted in 3DS, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Switch, Vita, Wii U, Xbox One
Tagged PAX West 2019, Shovel Knight, Shovel Knight: King of Cards
Yacht Club Games is bringing Shovel Knight, Cyber Shadow, and an all new game to PAX West 2019
The good folks at Yacht Club Games have been very busy over the last two years. The developer is currently hard at work putting the finishing touches on Shovel Knight: King of Cards and Shovel Knight Showdown, and earlier this year, Yacht Club signed on to published Mekaskull’s Cyber Shadow.
All three of these retro-styled titles will be playable at the developer’s booth at this year’s PAX West convention, which will be held next week in Seattle (August 30th through September 2nd). But Yacht Club has also promised that a surprise will be waiting for fans who visit their booth… demo stations for a brand new never-before-seen game.
As of now, all we know about this unannounced game is that it’s currently in development for the Nintendo Switch. But even if you’re not attending PAX West this year, you’ll be able to learn more about it during the first ever Yacht Club Presents livestream on Wednesday, August 28, at 2:00 PM (Eastern Time). The livestream will be broadcast on YouTube and Twitch, and will also include “tons” of new information about Shovel Knight: King of Cards and Shovel Knight Showdown.
Posted in 3DS, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Switch, Vita, Wii U, Xbox One
Tagged PAX West 2019, Shovel Knight, Shovel Knight Showdown, Shovel Knight: King of Cards
Yacht Club delays Shovel Knight: King of Cards and Shovel Knight Showdown
Yacht Club Games originally planned to close the book on the Shovel Knight saga on April 9 with the release of Shovel Knight: King of Cards and Shovel Knight Showdown. But plans change, and late last night the developer confirmed (via their official website) that both titles would be delayed by “several months… at most!”
Naturally, this delay will also apply to the upcoming retail release of Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove (a compilation containing all five Shovel Knight games), as well as the Amiibo 3-Pack featuring Specter Knight, Plague Knight, and King Knight.
This is not a major delay so much as more space to bring everything together for a polished and complete finale. As always, these last steps require coordination with many teams beyond our own.
We realize the delay is disappointing. To communicate better with everyone moving forward, we will not be announcing a new date until we know one for sure, from all partners involved. All builds shipped out, updates ready to launch, for everybody and everyone. We will announce it for good once it is 100% all across the board!
The final two games in the Shovel Knight saga are currently in development for the PC, PS4, Switch, Xbox One, but other platforms will also get in on the fun. King of Cards will be available as a free expansion on the 3DS, PS3, Vita, and Wii U for owners of the original Shovel Knight, while Showdown will receive a similar release on the PS3 and Wii U.
Posted in 3DS, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Switch, Vita, Wii U, Xbox One
Tagged Shovel Knight, Shovel Knight Showdown, Shovel Knight: King of Cards, Shovel Knight: Plague of Shadows, Shovel Knight: Specter of Torment