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All Articles: Overwatch
Blizzard’s first animated short for Overwatch focuses on Winston the Gorilla
Excuse me… that should be Winston the Scientist. But the great thinker is also a great ape and he’s the star of “Recall,” Blizzard’s first animated short for Overwatch:
“Recall” tells the story of Winston—a genetically engineered gorilla and brilliant scientist who longs for the days of heroism to return. In this episode, we explore Winston’s thoughts and memories as he wrestles with the decision to recall the agents of Overwatch, all while the forces of Talon stage an attack on his laboratory in the abandoned Watchpoint: Gibraltar.
The short perfectly captures that Disney/Pixar vibe that Blizzard has cultivated for Overwatch all along. And could there be a better way to spend a lazy Sunday than to watch a genetically engineered gorilla fight back against a hit squad with a banana peel?
Overwatch will be released for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One on May 24. And the second animated short, which will focus on Talon operative Widowmaker, should be available sometime today.
Blizzard’s Overwatch will be released on May 24
Blizzard has announced that their upcoming “hero shooter,” Overwatch, will be released for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One on May 24. The merry month of May will actually be a busy one for nascent genre, as 2K Games and Gearbox will release the similarly-themed Battleborn on May 3.
A brand new “Street Date” trailer will clue players in on the story so far, along with Overwatch’s many different modes:
In Overwatch, players join the ranks of a legendary force of soldiers, scientists, adventurers, and oddities, and clash on the battlefields of a near-future Earth. The game features a diverse cast of 21 heroes—each with their own unique arsenal of extraordinary weapons and incredible abilities. Teamwork is critical as players complete objectives, swap heroes on the fly, and combine their powers to game-changing effect—the action is intense, immediate, and fun.
Since the world last caught up with Overwatch at BlizzCon 2015, Blizzard has introduced a number of game features in the ongoing closed beta test. In a new map type, “Control,” teams battle to capture and hold objectives in locations such as an omnic village in the mountains of Nepal and a high-tech skyscraper in a Chinese metropolis. Overwatch’s new progression system awards players with Loot Boxes containing an array of cosmetic items to personalize heroes, including sprays, emotes, voice lines, and skins such as Punk Tracer and Safari Winston.
In addition to “Quick Play” mode, which automatically matches players with teammates and opponents of similar skill online, players can test their mettle against computer-controlled opponents in a new “Play Vs AI” mode, while “Custom Games” allow players to set special rules for hero switching, damage modifiers, and more.
Players who haven’t had the chance to try Overwatch yet will be able to participate in an Open Beta scheduled to take place May 5-9 on all three platforms. But if you’re already convinced that it’ll be great, prospective players who pre-order the game by April 29 will receive early access to the Open Beta beginning on May 3.
Activision confirms Skylanders 6, new Call of Duty from Infinity Ward, Destiny expansion in 2016; Destiny 2 coming in 2017
Activision revealed a first look at their 2016 release slate during today’s quarterly financial report… and you’ll never believe what they announced. Nah, I’m just kidding, even an amateur prognosticator could figure out what Activision has in store for this year.
First up, the publisher confirmed that Infinity Ward will develop the next entry in the Call of Duty franchise, which will be released this Fall. The developer’s most recent game was 2013’s Call of Duty: Ghosts, and right now it’s unknown if they’ll continue with that story or move in a different direction. But we do the currently untitled Call of Duty 2016 will be Infinity Ward’s first in Activision’s new three-developer cycle for the series.
Activision is also aiming to launch the sixth entry in the Skylanders series in Fall 2016. Skylanders 6 is in development at Toys For Bob and will be released alongside Skylanders Academy, a new television series based on the franchise.
Bungie’s Destiny will receive more content in 2016, but don’t expect a full-fledged sequel just yet. Another “large” expansion to the original game will be released this year, and the famed developer announced they’ll launch Destiny 2 in 2017.
Finally, Blizzard got a chance to discuss their plans for 2016, but the developer just reiterated a release schedule that we’ve known for a while. Overwatch, their upcoming hero shooter, is on track for a Spring 2016 release on the PC, PS4, and Xbox One. And World of Warcraft: Legion, the sixth expansion to the world’s favorite MMO, will be released this Summer, just after the June premiere of the Warcraft movie.
Posted in Mobile, News, PC, PS3, PS4, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Tagged Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare, Destiny, Destiny 2, Overwatch, Skylanders Imaginators, World of Warcraft
A Day-By-Day Guide to All of 2016’s New Video Games (April – September)
The Spring and Summer months are currently less dense with new releases than the first three months of the year, but that should change fairly soon, especially since publishers have staked a claim to every week from the beginning of April to the end of June with at least one big new release dropping every seven days.
Are you ready? Because here… we… go… (more…)
Posted in 3DS, Features, Mobile, PC, PS3, PS4, Switch, Top Story, Vita, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Tagged Ark: Survival Evolved, Battleborn, Bravely Second: End Layer, Dark Souls III, Deus Ex: Mankind Divided, Dishonored 2, Doom (2016), Dragon Quest VII: Fragments of the Forgotten Past, Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King, Fable Legends, FIFA 17, Gears of War, Homefront: The Revolution, Hyper Light Drifter, Lego Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Madden NFL 17, Mighty No. 9, Mirror's Edge: Catalyst, NBA 2K17, NHL 17, No Man's Sky, Odin Sphere, Overwatch, Pikmin 4, Quantum Break, Ratchet & Clank, Star Fox Zero, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutants in Manhattan, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Umbrella Corps, Uncharted 4: A Thief's End, World of Warcraft, Zero Escape Volume 3
Blizzard celebrates their 25th anniversary with a message from co-founders Mike Morhaime and Frank Pearce
In 1991, Mike Morhaime and Frank Pearce launched Silicon & Synapse, a game development studio that would go on to obtain global recognition under its current name, Blizzard Entertainment. Morhaime and Pearce (along with Allen Adham, who is no longer with the company) started small, developing puzzle platformer The Lost Vikings and racing game Rock N Roll Racing before moving on to the first game in the Warcraft series, Warcraft: Orcs & Humans.
Blizzard’s take on the real-time strategy genre helped shape the future of the company (and the video game industry as a whole) in ways that no one could have imagined. You can draw a direct line between that game and all of Blizzard’s subsequent projects including Diablo, StarCraft, World of Warcraft, Heroes of the Storm, and Hearthstone.
So to celebrate all of the monumental things the company has done in the last 25 years, Morhaime and Pearce recently sat down to narrate a thank you to their fans. They reminisce about the past, they’re proud of the present, and they look to the future and the next 25 years.
Blizzard’s next game, the hero shooter Overwatch, will be released for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One this Spring. The developer will also release World of Warcraft’s sixth expansion, World of Warcraft: Legion, sometime this Summer.
Everybody get ready… Overwatch is coming to PC, PS4, Xbox One in Spring 2016
Before this weekend, everyone assumed that Blizzard’s Overwatch would be available exclusively for the PC sometime this year as a free-to-play game. But all of that changed during the developer’s annual BlizzCon convention. As part of the weekend’s festivities, Blizzard announced that Overwatch will be released for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One in Spring 2016 in a full-priced “Origins Edition.” A 6v6 “hero shooter,” Overwatch will come packed with 21 heroes, including three that were announced at BlizzCon:
- Genji, a cybernetic ninja, is an expert assassin capable of extraordinary feats of agility, including reflecting enemy attacks with his blade.
- D.Va is a former pro-gaming superstar who pilots an experimental military mech in defense of her home country.
- Mei travels the globe applying her scientific expertise to protect the natural world; in battle, her arsenal of climate-manipulating technology has the power to put the opposition on ice.
“We’re building Overwatch to be the first-person shooter we’ve always wanted to play, with a vibrant world, awesome heroes, and an emphasis on tightly focused cooperative gameplay,” said Mike Morhaime, CEO and co-founder of Blizzard Entertainment. “We’re excited to welcome console and PC gamers to the fight for the future, and we can’t wait to see all the incredible things teams are able to accomplish on the battlefield this upcoming spring.”
Players who pre-order Overwatch will receive five alternate character skins: Blackwatch Reyes (Reaper), Strike-Commander Morrison (Soldier: 76), Overgrown Bastion, Security Chief Pharah, and Slipstream Tracer. A Collector’s Edition (Retail Price: $129.99), which will contain the pre-order skins, a full-color art book, the Overwatch soundtrack, and a statue of Soldier: 76, will also be available.
Blizzard released a handful of new Overwatch trailers this weekend, including the brand new gameplay trailer embedded above. You can also check out overview trailers for Genji, D.Va, and Mei, along with a closer look at the pre-order skins.
Overwatch beta will begin on October 27
Blizzard has announced that the long-promised beta for Overwatch will begin on October 27, a little less than two weeks from now. Players in the Americas will gain access to the beta first (with Europe and Asia following soon after) and if you’re interested in taking part in the test, be sure to sign up at Battle.net.
The developer plans to employ a two-tiered structure for the Overwatch beta. A constantly available “Closed Beta” will offer a limited number of players access to every map and every hero to test every nook and cranny of their team-based shooter:
Closed Beta
The Closed Beta will be composed of a small number of testers who will have regular access to our public beta test. Our goal for the Closed Beta is 100% gameplay feedback, and we’ll be encouraging participants to discuss and dissect every hero, map, ability, and other aspect of the game on our upcoming beta forums.In order to get the most meaningful and constructive feedback possible, the total number of players in the Closed Beta will be extremely limited… though we’ll be adding more people from time to time to make sure we have the right number of heroes actively engaged.
Meanwhile, a much larger player pool will be invited to take part in “Beta Test Weekends,” which will feature a more restricted set of maps and modes:
Beta Test Weekends
From time to time, we’ll also need to open up the floodgates and call upon an army to overwhelm our hardware. The goal: get as many heroes playing as we can, all helping us “stress test” our servers to ensure they can withstand the assault.These larger-scale Beta Test Weekends will be brought online occasionally for a limited time, generally over a weekend, and will run concurrently with our ongoing Closed Beta test. Because Beta Test Weekends are primarily hardware- and tech-focused, the number of heroes, maps, and gameplay modes will be restricted—but feedback on everything will definitely be welcome.
If you’re unable to get into the beta, Blizzard also plans to bring a playable version of Overwatch to this year’s BlizzCon, which will be held at the Anaheim Convention Center on November 6th and 7th.
Blizzard has released five more gameplay videos from Overwatch
Blizzard is at it again, releasing five more gameplay videos for Overwatch, their upcoming free-to-play arena shooter.
This time out, the developer has shone a spotlight on a “super-intelligent, genetically engineered” battle gorilla named Winston, a deadly assassin (appropriately) named Widowmaker, a soldier with a specialization in heavy weaponry named Pharah, a hulking German brawler named Reinhardt, and a defensive robot named Bastion.
Wilson’s trailer has been embedded above because he is literally the 800-pound gorilla in the room. The other four can be found after the break. All together, Blizzard has released 13 gameplay trailers for Overwatch totaling more than two hours. If you’ve been putting it off, it’s time to get watching. (more…)