Latest Gaming and MMORPG Updates

PAX: Double Dragon Neon Brings Back the ’80s, But Not in a Good Way
Baldur’s Gate Enhanced Edition: Every Detail On Gameplay & Tweaks
New York Comic-Con’s Cutest Cosplayers Photo Gallery
Blizzard continues shedding staff in Korea
The Best and Worst Video Game Compilations

PAX: Double Dragon Neon Brings Back the ’80s, But Not in a Good Way

Posted: 07 Apr 2012 03:53 AM PDT

Max Payne and I go way back. Throughout the series’ first two installments, I was
wholly immersed in its stark shadows, smoky atmosphere, and hard-boiled
dialogue. I brandished my pistols and dove sideways more times than I
could count.
I cherished the horror and violence of his revenge as if it were
written by Raymond Chandler himself, and yet, a place that I’d never
experience Max Payne’s world was online. That void was quickly remedied
when I got my hands on a small slice of the multiplayer portion of
Rockstar’s next effort, Max
Payne 3.

MP3 is attempting to destroy
the barriers between single and multiplayer in a wide variety of ways. We’ve
written about the solo portion before,
but this time we got to spend some time in the online Gang Wars.
The story in Gang Wars, the most fleshed out mode of multiplayer, runs
alongside that of the solo campaign. The skirmishes you take part in
online will oftentimes be set moments before Max’s arrival to a
location during the story, or sometimes in the charred remains of where
his whirlwind tour of revenge previously swept through. While third-person works fine offline, the perspective can oftentimes lead to
ineligent combat that feels more like a frantic crapshoot than a
strategic faceoff; even phenomenal titles like Red
Dead Redemption suffer in
moments of intense action. While I was a bit worried that MP3′s
multiplayer would stall under the same stress, I’m happy to report that
the impeccable energy from the series’ singleplayer campaigns transfers
over quite well into the online arena. Yes, there were still a handful
of moments where it seemed like my opponent and I both cracked under
pressure, especially once combat became an up close affair, but the
game remained a controlled experience for the most part.

Rockstar showed off a slew of
game matches, most of which were slight variations on genre classics
like team deathmatch and king of the hill. One unique mode is called
Payne Killer, which starts off as a free-for-all until someone scores
the first kill. After this occurs, the killer becomes Max Payne, while
the victim transforms into his singleplayer sidekick Passos. These two
characters come equipped with special weapons, higher health, and
unique abilities. It then becomes the task of the remaining players to
work together in taking down these two protagonists. Whoever scores the
kill against Max or Passos earns the right to play as the powerful
hero. This mode encouraged players to work together in short spurts to
take down the two powerhouses, but those alliances you make will
quickly be severed once one member gets the kill and joins the other
side.

Baldur’s Gate Enhanced Edition: Every Detail On Gameplay & Tweaks

Posted: 06 Apr 2012 09:53 PM PDT

It's a bank holiday, there is no news – so instead we're going to give you a bumper load of details on this year's most important PC game.

No, we're not kidding. Baldur's Gate Enhanced Edition might only be a remade, repackaged digital version of the classic RPG but it's still the game that has no doubt made you into the shrivelling , excuse of a person you have become today. Who needed friends when you had Minsc and Edgar? Don't pretend to deny it.

So rather than arbitrarily re-iterate what we already know – yes, it is going to be on PC, Mac and iPad and will be out in Summer 2012 – we thought it'd be more helpful to track down some of the details we can garner from Tweet-happy head honcho Trent Oster (formerly of BioWare and, before that, Black Isle). So here it is, everything you need to know about Baldur's Gate: Enhanced Edition as Tweeted by Trent Oster:

Gameplay

There will only be one miniature, giant space hamster.
There will be new content added into BGEE in the form of new characters and new locations. No details on what this will take just yet, except that it will be a mix of areas added into the main game and sections for a new adventure/expansion. Sounds like it code be a healthy chunk of content, especially since Trent doesn't know "how we are going to build that much art."
The new content will be separate and "can be ignored".
Both BGEE and BG2EE will contain the additional content from their related expansion packs – Tales Of The Sword Coast and Throne Of Bhaal.
Characters will transfer from BGEE to BG2EE.
BGEE will still be built on DD 2nd Edition rules. If it ain't broke, don't fix it, right?
May include additional difficulty modes, as inspired by community mods.
New equipment will be added into the game to cover for neglected classes.
There will be an increased level cap, though not too high – Baldur's Gate encounters don't scale very well, apparently.
BGEE will feature Baldur's Gate 2: Throne Of Bhaal's weapon proficiencies, classes and kits. There may even be new classes and kits added in.
Original Baldur's Gate characters will have new, text-only dialogue. None of the original characters will have new voice work.
Enemies from Baldur's Gate 2 will be implemented into BGEE.
Dialogue system will remain the same – no Mass Effect style convo wheel.
No content will be removed.

Visual/Audio Improvements

Online

Will be released in "summer". No specific date just yet to allow for flexibility and ensure a good quality game.
Won't cost too much, Beamdog is committed to making BGEE a great buy.
Currently planned for a digital-only release, though there may be a disc version due to demand.
Should come in at under 2GB for iPad limit.
Beamdog has been in talks with Atari for about two years, way before Baldur's Gate arrived on GOG.com
Android tablets will be a potential option.
Trying to embrace the Weidu method of mods. Trent wants to get mods compatible across all platforms. There may be a new, better mod management system.
Some mods will be included as "canon".
Will be looking at ways of making modding easier, and compatible with earlier, existing mods.
Could come to iPhone post-ship.
EA and BioWare have no input in BGEE or BG2EE. Trent Oster and EA "don't share views on games".
The more successful BGEE is, the more additions the team can bring over to BG2EE. Big success = more new content.
Won't be on consoles.
UI will change depending on platform.
Icewind Dale content is not yet available for Beamdog.
French will be one of the supported languages.

THE BIG NEWS

Baldur's Gate 3 is the ultimate goal, and is dependant on the success of BGEE and BG2EE. Planescape: Torment could even become a future project.

New York Comic-Con’s Cutest Cosplayers Photo Gallery

Posted: 06 Apr 2012 08:23 PM PDT

New York Comic-Con's Cutest Cosplayers

Everyone loves cosplay galleries — at least, if the amount of traffic, comments, and links they get is any indication. And hey, why not? The amount of attention some people put into their costumes is admirable, sometimes maybe even borderline-crazy. But when you’ve been doing this as long as we have, all those costumes start to blur together. Girls in lovingly detailed but inappropriately skimpy spandex thongs, folks wearing cardboard armor, scrawny guys trying to pass themselves off as muscular slabs of superheroism, hefty dudes straining the stitching on their Char Aznable uniforms… it’s the same show after show. After a while, you just need a fresh take on it all.

Luckily, we found exactly that at this year’s New York Comic-Con. Maybe it’s the family-oriented nature of the show, or maybe it’s just the event’s close proximity to Halloween. Whatever the case, the cosplayers who caught our eye were the legions of little kids roaming the show while decked out in full costumes. From classics like Batman to newfangled characters like Hatsune Miku, the under-10 set was well-represented at NYCC. And to be honest, they kind of melted our hearts. There’s something awesomely sincere about a pre-teen Doctor Who brandishing his sonic screwdriver with a determined expression on his young face that a 35-year-old in the same threads could never hope to capture.

We photographed our favorite next-gen geeks from NYCC — with their parents’ permission, of course! — and have rounded them up into this gallery so that your heart, too, can be melted. Enjoy, and prepare to say, “Awww.” (A lot!)

Photos by Catherine Nguyen.

Similar Article: http://www.1up.com/features/york-comic-con-cutest-cosplayers

New York Comic-Con’s Cutest Cosplayers Photo Gallery

Blizzard continues shedding staff in Korea

Posted: 06 Apr 2012 03:53 PM PDT

A couple of weeks ago, Blizzard Entertainment announced laying off around 600 staff globally from the company. Many point towards the sliding number of World of Warcraft users as the main catalyst. Just 5 days ago, it was announced World of Warcraft in Korea will be closing off 10 servers (link) in what is said to be a major sign of the game’s declining numbers in the country of online gaming.

Earlier today, foreign reports were pointing to Blizzard Korea shedding off numbers from its staff strength. The Korean arm once had around 330 employees during its heyday, but the number was recently reported to have trimmed down to 230 instead. Following the layoff announcement, the numbers will most probably be around 200 soon.

An anonymous staff mentioned that the folks will be working until the end of this month. Before BlizzCon 2011, I read an article by an industry analyst about how Blizzard will suffer if the secretive Project Titan is not announced at the event. To some extent, I think the analyst got it spot on.

The Best and Worst Video Game Compilations

Posted: 06 Apr 2012 09:53 AM PDT

definitely

Posted: 9 hours ago by Dub_Z

the other example of how to do it right.

thought of Metal Slug Anthology while reading this too… that was definitely not a rip off, even if everything after 3, post-Playmore is a little recycled-feeling. 1, 2, X 3 on a single disc was already a bargain.

MMORPG News

Defiance: First In-Game Footage Revealed
Firefall: NDA Lifts
Rift: Gloamwood Pines
Star Wars: The Old Republic: Novare Coast Trailer Released
Runescape: New Player Experience Spotlighted in New Trailer
Wakfu: The Subscription Edition Review of Wakfu

Defiance: First In-Game Footage Revealed

Posted: 06 Apr 2012 04:34 PM PDT

Trion Worlds has released the first ever trailer from its upcoming MMO, Defiance. The trailer shows off the first-ever in game footage from Defiance, an MMO that will tie in with the Syfy television show of the same name. The trailer was revealed at the 2012 PAX East convention.

Firefall: NDA Lifts

Posted: 06 Apr 2012 01:25 PM PDT

The NDA has officially lifted for those players who have been beta testing Red 5's Firefall. Our own Grakulen has been a busy guy and has several awesome videos to show off some of Firefall's features.

Rift: Gloamwood Pines

Posted: 06 Apr 2012 11:04 AM PDT

In today's Chronicles of One Telaran, Caedryn the Dwarf has reached a milestone of sorts with his arrival in Gloamwood Pines. He's got stories to tell of his first steps in the Rift zone known for spiders and other creepy crawlies. Read on!

Star Wars: The Old Republic: Novare Coast Trailer Released

Posted: 06 Apr 2012 09:10 AM PDT

Bioware and the Star Wars: The Old Republic dev team have released a new trailer featuring the new Novare Coast warzone that will debut when v1.2 goes live later this month. Enjoy!

Runescape: New Player Experience Spotlighted in New Trailer

Posted: 06 Apr 2012 08:36 AM PDT

Jagex has sent out a brand new Runescape trailer to show off the overhauled new player experience. Called "The Troll Warzone, the new area brings a brand new quest line into Runescape designed to introduce new players to the game and to familiarize them with RuneScape's lore.

Wakfu: The Subscription Edition Review of Wakfu

Posted: 05 Apr 2012 02:09 PM PDT

In our second review today, we re-examine Wakfu from the subscriber's side and see how it stacks up. See what you think and leave us your thoughts in the comments.

General gaming

PAX: Double Dragon Neon Brings Back the '80s, But Not in a Good Way
PAX: Penny Arcade Adventures Bares Its Naked Inspiration
PAX: With Hell Yeah!, Sega Does What Nintendon't: Namely, Give Us a Drill Dozer Follow-Up
How Can Final Fantasy Versus XIII Not be a Disappointment?
Games, Dammit! Episode 14: Remakes, Re-releases, and Re-imaginings
The Best Video Game Glitches
Gamers Reflect on What They'll Miss Most About the Old Days

PAX: Double Dragon Neon Brings Back the '80s, But Not in a Good Way

Posted: 06 Apr 2012 08:21 PM PDT

Majesco recently announced Double Dragon Neon, an update to the classic arcade game due this summer. The "neon" in the title is less a play on "neo" and more a reference to the fact that Double Dragon was a quintessentially '80s kind of game; the roaming brawler died at the hands of Street Fighter II right around the time that Kurt Cobain waxed poetic about deodorant and the '90s sprang to life. Thus the game's interface design of this remake is drenched with electric blue and hot pink, hearkening back to the days of Miami Vice, Members Only jackets, and that one rich kid in your class who wore 20 Swatches at once on one arm, each with a little rubber guard strap over its face.

But that's not the only part of Neon that feels like it blasted its way directly out of the '80s. The game as a whole is redolent of the bad part of the '80s: The part dominated by terrible home ports of arcade favorites, insipid licensed NES games, and industry-destroying market crashes. It's ugly, slow-paced, limited, and all in all comes off as... well, cheap.

PAX: Penny Arcade Adventures Bares Its Naked Inspiration

Posted: 06 Apr 2012 07:03 PM PDT

When television shows go on hiatus, they frequently return to the airwaves with a storyline that reflects the passage of time. The protagonists of Penny Arcade, on the other hand, make a point to mention the fact that the four years that have elapsed between 2008's Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness Episode 2 and the upcoming Episode 3 amounts, in-game, to all of a week. Comparing the two episodes, though, you'd be forgiven for thinking Episode 3 actually shattered the limitations of linear time and came out years before Episode 2 -- about 15 years before, to be precise. Where the first two installments of Penny Arcade's game series were contemporary-looking 3D adventures by Hothead Games, Episode 3 leaps backward three hardware generations to resemble a 16-bit RPG.

PAX: With Hell Yeah!, Sega Does What Nintendon't: Namely, Give Us a Drill Dozer Follow-Up

Posted: 06 Apr 2012 05:05 PM PDT

I was surprised to see a colorful, classic-style 2D platformer on display at Sega's PAX East booth this weekend that I'd somehow never heard of. Developed by Arkedo and due soon for release via Xbox Live Arcade and PSN -- producer Camille Guermonprez tells me they finished the game yesterday -- the evocatively named Hell Yeah! is both hyperactive and hyper-saturated. The tutorial level on demo at PAX is drenched in shades of red and offers a hint of an excellent, entertaining action platformer.

What really surprised me, though, was that despite Hell Yeah!'s first impression hitting me with a tease of Sonic the Hedgehog, that sensation quickly faded as the game grew more and more reminiscent of another, far more obscure game: Game Freak's Drill Dozer, the vibrating puzzle action game the arrived to little notice in the waning days of the Game Boy Advance.

How Can Final Fantasy Versus XIII Not be a Disappointment?

Posted: 06 Apr 2012 02:20 PM PDT

borderlands 2

Square Enix announced Final Fantasy Versus XIII way back at E3 in 2006, along with its peers Final Fantasy XIII and Final Fantasy Agito XIII. Since then, both vanilla XIII and Agito have actually seen release -- Agito under the new name "Type-0" -- and the former has even enjoyed a recent sequel. Yet Versus remains nowhere to be seen; Square didn't even bother teasing it at last year's Tokyo Game Show.

Games, Dammit! Episode 14: Remakes, Re-releases, and Re-imaginings

Posted: 06 Apr 2012 12:34 PM PDT

Since Jeremy recently fled the country, I found myself in charge of our very own Games, Dammit podcast this week. And because we're down one man, I had no choice but to use this new responsibility for an ulterior motive; my discussion with Jose and Marty helped inform this brand new feature, which acts as a nice supplement to episode 14 (or vice-versa). After spending several hours writing and podcasting on the subject this week, I really can't think of much more to say aside from "enjoy!" And please, let us know what you think about remakes, re-releases, and re-imaginings in the comments section below and/or the message board of your choice (preferably ours). Jeremy will be back in two weeks with a brand new episode, so until then, have a great Easter weekend!

Download Episode 14 of Games, Dammit here!

The Best Video Game Glitches

Posted: 06 Apr 2012 12:31 PM PDT

Feature

The Best Video Game Glitches

The greatest broken bits of our favorite games.

By: Steve Watts April 6, 2012

Glitches happen. No matter how hard a developer tries or how much QA testing a game goes through, occasionally a bad bit of code will cause conflicts in some unforeseen way. Most of the time these are minor annoyances, and in our modern age such issues often get patched before they impact too many people. Once in a while, though, they turn out to be hilarious, beneficial, or even a vital part of a game's legacy. We've thought up a few of our favorites. What are yours?

Gamers Reflect on What They'll Miss Most About the Old Days

Posted: 06 Apr 2012 11:00 AM PDT

Gaming is rapidly changing. Whether we're talking about things becoming more digital or new business models or whatever else, the industry already looks a great deal different than it did 10 or 20 years ago and that's only going to continue in the coming decades.

As with anything in entertainment that changes, people are going to yearn for the way things used to be (while also worrying about what the future will bring). For me, one of the things I miss most is the sort of manuals games used to come with. What I looked forward to most when first buying a new game, regardless of what it was, was opening the box up and flipping through the manual before actually trying the game out. And I'm not just talking about spending time devouring the pages of a manual (or whatever other paperwork a PC game would come with -- keyboard shortcut cards, tech trees, etc. -- as it installs); console and handheld game manuals had to be read cover to cover before the game went into the system. This wasn't a matter of preparing for games with no tutorials, as I treated those with in-game instructions no differently. I specifically remember reading the entire manual for Mario Party 2 -- Mario Party 2 -- before I would even stick the cart in my Nintendo 64.

MMOGaming News

Defiance Shows the Combat for the First Time
WoW Art Gallery: Mustang Sally
WoW Fan Art: The Lich King
An Exclusive Sneak Peak at Eclipse War Online (KR) [Part 1]
WWIII Breaking Out - Arctic Combat Revealed Synopsis Trailer
Hecarim, the Shadow of War Revealed!
Dragon Nest VS Dungeon Striker
TERA Crafting Guide Released
Guild Wars 2: Client's Region Locked But Game Server's Free

Defiance Shows the Combat for the First Time

Posted:

Trion Worlds' open world shooter Defiance just gave players the first look at the combat with a teaser trailer. The game is being shown in the ongoing PAX East 2012 and we should be able to watch the full trailer later.

Continue reading Defiance Shows the Combat for the First Time.

WoW Art Gallery: Mustang Sally

Posted:

Blizzard have updated the Trading Card Game art gallery to feature ten new pieces. Each image is taken directly from the official World of Warcraft Trading Card Game. Be sure to give a shout-out to your favorite pieces in the comments.

Continue reading WoW Art Gallery: Mustang Sally.

WoW Fan Art: The Lich King

Posted:

The World of Warcraft Fan Art Section has been updated with four new pieces of fan artwork.

Continue reading WoW Fan Art: The Lich King.

An Exclusive Sneak Peak at Eclipse War Online (KR) [Part 1]

Posted:

Today, we've got some exclusive information including some unique features and character introduction about the new 3D fantasy MMORPG Eclipse War Online, which is developed by Korea-based NDOLPHIN and published by SG INTERNET.

Continue reading An Exclusive Sneak Peak at Eclipse War Online (KR) [Part 1].

WWIII Breaking Out - Arctic Combat Revealed Synopsis Trailer

Posted:

Arctic Combat's new synopsis trailer reveals the initial dispute between US, NATO, and Russia after the announcement of the estimated amount of buried resources beneath the Arctic Ocean.

Continue reading WWIII Breaking Out - Arctic Combat Revealed Synopsis Trailer.

Hecarim, the Shadow of War Revealed!

Posted:

Soon a new champion will grace our presence in League of legends, this one is Hecarim, the Shadow of War - who is pretty much a ghost Centaur. I do have to hand it to Riot, the default skins are starting to look better as they crank out more champions, from the ugliness that the default skins of heroes like Garen, Xin, Sivir, ect to these new champions, they're definitely improving.

Continue reading Hecarim, the Shadow of War Revealed!.

Dragon Nest VS Dungeon Striker

Posted:

Today, Dragon Nest's developer Eyedentity Games has announced their another new MMO - Dungeon Striker, which will kick off its first CBT on April 27th till April 29th.

Continue reading Dragon Nest VS Dungeon Striker.

TERA Crafting Guide Released

Posted:

Crafting system may be not the most important thing in MMORPG, but it is really helpful to get better gear. En Masse Entertainment has released a crafting guide for TERA fans.

Continue reading TERA Crafting Guide Released.

Guild Wars 2: Client's Region Locked But Game Server's Free

Posted:

About two weeks ago, we had a post discussing about the region lock problem in Guild Wars 2. Now today, we've got a confirmation answer by Community Manager, Rubi Bayer via a recent Facebook post. Check out the responses below.

Continue reading Guild Wars 2: Client's Region Locked But Game Server's Free.