All Articles: Helldivers

Fallout 4 wins “Game of the Year” at 2016 DICE Awards

Posted on February 19, 2016 by John Scalzo

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The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences held their annual DICE Awards ceremony last night, and Bethesda’s Fallout 4 emerged from The Vault to take home “Game of the Year” honors. The expansive open world RPG also won in two other categories, “Role-Playing/Massively Multiplayer Game of the Year” and “Outstanding Achievement in Game Direction.” However, it wasn’t a sweep for the post-apocalyptic adventure.

A trio of other games took home three awards last night including Moon Studios’s Ori and the Blind Forest (“Outstanding Achievement in Original Music Composition,” “Outstanding Achievement in Animation,” and “Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction”), Psyonix’s Rocket League (“Sports Game of the Year,” “Outstanding Achievement in Online Gameplay,” and the “DICE Spirit Award”), and The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (“Outstanding Achievement in Game Design,” “Outstanding Achievement in Story,” and “Outstanding Technical Achievement”).

While the ceremony featured plenty of revelry and merriment, last night’s DICE Awards were also a bittersweet affair as Satoru Iwata was posthumously awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award for his distinguished business leadership of Nintendo. And Hideo Kojima, who recently parted ways with Konami after more than three decades with the company, was named to the AIAS’s Hall of Fame.

A complete list of this year’s winners (which also includes Super Mario Maker, Mortal Kombat X, Star Wars: Battlefront, and many more) can be found after the break. (more…)

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Nominees for the 2016 DICE Awards have been announced with Rise of the Tomb Raider and The Witcher 3 leading the way

Posted on January 13, 2016 by John Scalzo

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The Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences has announced the nominees for the 2016 DICE Awards.

Square Enix’s Rise of the Tomb Raider and CD Projekt’s The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt lead all other games with eight nominations apiece, including “Game of the Year.” They’ll be competing for the AIAS’s highest honor against three other games: Bloodborne, Fallout 4, and Ori and the Blind Forest. All told, 53 different titles received at least one nomination.

“Looking at the nominees for the 19th Annual DICE Awards, I am especially impressed by the broad range of titles catering to gamers’ increasingly sophisticated and diverse tastes,” said Martin Rae, the President of the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences. “It is always gratifying to watch our industry and its many artists and craftsmen grow and continue to challenge and thrill audiences.”

In addition to this year’s awards show, Satoru Iwata will be honored with a posthumous Lifetime Achievement Award and Hideo Kojima will be inducted into the AIAS Hall of Fame.

The ceremony for the 2016 DICE Awards will take place on Thursday, February 16, during this year’s DICE (Design, Innovate, Communicate, Entertain) Summit. 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 , , , , , , , , , , , ,

New Releases: LBX Little Battlers Experience, Dungeon Travelers 2, Madden 16 Bundle, More

Posted on August 16, 2015 by John Scalzo

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Just three new releases will be available on store shelves this week before we ask if you’re ready for some football.

This week’s biggest new game is also, in many ways, its smallest. LBX: Little Battlers Experience was developed by Level-5 and will be published by Nintendo for the 3DS. Based on the popular manga and anime series also created by Level-5, LBX: Little Battlers Experience follows a group of kids who create tiny palm-sized robots that do battle in slightly less-tiny arenas.

Also available this week is Dungeon Travelers 2: The Royal Library & The Monster Seal, a turn-based RPG for the Vita from Atlus. Taking place entirely in a first-person view, players will delve deep into a series of dungeons to battle “monster girls.” Meanwhile, Helldivers: Super Earth Ultimate Edition is a disc-based release of the popular PS4 twin-stick shooter. The “Super Earth Ultimate Edition” will include download codes for the PS3 and Vita versions of the game as well as all 11 expansion packs, the Bonus Weapons pack, and other extra content.

Finally, the Xbox One-exclusive Madden NFL 16 1TB System Bundle will give brand new Xbox One owners the chance to play EA’s yearly football simulation a week earlier than everybody else and a year-long subscription to EA Access. I suppose current Xbox One owners could also partake in this deal, but they’d have to purchase a second Xbox One system to do it…

Actually, I think Microsoft would be completely OK with that.

Posted in 3DS, News, PS4, Vita, Xbox One | Tagged ,

PS Store Today: Helldivers, RE Revelations 2: Episode 2, Zombie Army Trilogy, more

Posted on March 3, 2015 by John Scalzo

Sony kicks off their eight-week Spring Fever promotion with Helldivers, a top-down shooter set in a dystopian future where players are tasked with defending mankind from a horde of alien invaders. It sounds like a good time will be had by all. And I do mean all, Helldivers is a Cross-Buy title compatible with the PS4, PS3, and PS Vita.

Also available this week is the PS3 and PS4 launch of “Contemplation,” the second episode from Resident Evil Revelations 2. Capcom has plans to complete this chapter of the Resident Evil saga in a timely manner as the remaining two episodes should launch next week and the week after, respectively. If Resident Evil doesn’t have enough zombie Nazis for your taste, then prepare to square off against undead Hitler in Rebellion’s Zombie Army Trilogy, which will also be released for the PS4 this week. Even more horror can be found in the noirish White Night, which is a survival horror game that’s rendered completely in black and white.

Something slightly less horrifying will be available for PS4 and Vita owners as OlliOlli2: Welcome to Olliwood will take the side-scrolling skater off the streets and onto the set of a blockbuster film. Can you skate on top of the Olliwood sign? Yes, yes you can. Finally this week, La-Mulana EX will make Vita owners very happy as the cave exploration title will appear on Sony’s handheld in its most complete edition yet.

More details about these games (and a few more new releases) can be found after the break. A full rundown of this week’s new game add-ons and discounts can be found at the PlayStation Blog. (more…)

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Sony’s Spring Fever 2015 includes Hotline Miami 2, Shovel Knight, Titan Souls, five more

Posted on February 27, 2015 by John Scalzo

This Winter has been absolutely brutal for people all across the United States, but Sony wants to remind us that Spring is almost here with their announcement of a double-size Spring Fever promotion. Beginning March 3 (take that, Punxsutawney Phil!), the promotion will run for eight weeks and include some of the most anticipated PlayStation Store releases across the PS3, PS4, and Vita.

Helldivers, a top-down shooter for the PS3, PS4, and Vita, will kick things off on Tuesday and the whole thing will wrap up on April 21 with Shovel Knight‘s PS3/PS4/Vita debut. In between, gamers will get a chance to test out six more great titles (and PlayStation Plus subscribers will receive a 10% discount on each game during its launch week):

  • 3/3 – Helldivers (PS4/PS3/PS Vita Cross-Buy)
  • 3/10 – Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number (PS4/PS3/PS Vita Cross-Buy)
  • 3/17 – Jamestown Plus (PS4)
  • 3/24 – Metal Slug 3 (PS4/PS3/PS Vita Cross-Buy)
  • 3/31 – Axiom Verge (PS4)
  • 4/7 – Bastion (PS4)
  • 4/14 – Titan Souls (PS4/PS Vita Cross-Buy)
  • 4/21 – Shovel Knight (PS4/PS3/PS Vita Cross-Buy)

Bastion and Axiom Verge will also launch for the PS Vita at some future date. As with the other Spring Fever releases, both will be Cross-Buy compatible.

Posted in News, PS3, PS4, Vita | Tagged , , , , , ,

New trailer showcases “Spring 2015” Vita games: Shovel Knight, Hotline Miami 2, more

Posted on February 12, 2015 by John Scalzo

I’m not sure Sony understands how seasons work, especially after viewing this highlight reel of “Spring 2015” releases on the Vita. The mercury has dropped to 40 below in some places, and I’m watching a trailer that includes a game that launched yesterday (the monkey rhythm game Jungle Rumble), one that was released last week (movie tie-in SpongeBob HeroPants), and another that’s been available since January (Grim Fandango Remastered). Now, I’m no big city meteorologist, but I think I can safely say that those are all “Winter” releases.

That said, the short trailer does give us a nice glimpse at some of the upcoming Vita games that will populate the PlayStation Store over the next three months. They include JRPG Oreshika: Tainted Bloodlines, surreal shooter Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number, top-down squad shooter Helldivers, beloved retro side-scroller Shovel Knight, action RPG Toukiden: Kiwami, side-scrolling skateboarder OlliOlli 2: Welcome to Olliwood, and the Zelda-like Titan Souls.

Further said, this trailer isn’t just for portable players. Many of these titles will be offered up on the PS3 and/or PS4 as part of Sony’s Cross-Buy promotion.

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