Monthly Archives: August 2013

Train2Game News: DFS Competition Winner

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DFS WinnerThe Train2Game student who won the DFS home set up competition is Luke Marchese from Stoke on Trent.

Luke was chosen as the winner of the competition as he is clearly an avid gamer. In his entry picture we can see: Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii, Game Cube, SNES, Dreamcast, Wii U, N64, PS3, Megadrive, a NES, A gamegear, three monitors and countless games. He also has Sonic figurines and loads of games memorabilia.

When Luke was told that he won the competition he said “It feels great to win a prize for showing off my collection. I have been collecting Video Games and consoles almost all my life and if I remember correctly I have a total of 19 consoles plus well over 250 games.  Gaming has always been a passionate subject for me and there is nothing I love more than designing games.”

Train2Game would like to wish Luke a big congratulations and we hope you enjoy your £50 Amazon voucher.

Thank you as well to all the other entrants, you all have great gaming set ups! You can view a gallery of the other entrants below.

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Train2Game News: WWE 2K14 Phenom Edition

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Undertaker2K announced that enigmatic WWE Superstar Undertaker will be featured through the “Phenom Edition” of WWE 2K14, the forthcoming release in the WWE flagship video game franchise.

Available for the Xbox 360 games and entertainment system from Microsoft and PlayStation3 computer entertainment system, while supplies last, the WWE 2K14 “Phenom Edition” is scheduled to include the following items:

  • Exclusive tin coffin box;
  • Exclusive collectible art card personally autographed by Undertaker;
  • Exclusive Undertaker playable character: “American Badass”;
  • Exclusive Undertaker-themed controller skin;
  • “WWE Undertaker – The Streak”: Disc #1 (on Blu-Ray/DVD);
  • Access to WWE 2K14 global pre-order offer: Ultimate Warrior playable character;
  • Copy of WWE 2K14 video game.

“The Deadman. The Lord of Darkness. The American Badass. The Phenom. In every aspect of his career, Undertaker has commanded the admiration and respect of WWE fans and newcomers alike for more than two decades,” said Chris Snyder, Senior Director of Marketing at 2K. “His unequivocal legacy will be fully realized in the WWE 2K14 ‘Phenom Edition’ and is a must-have item for any collector.”

With captivating ring entrances and looming, omnipresent appeal, Undertaker is WWE’s longest-tenured current Superstar and holder of several WWE titles throughout his storied 20-year career. He is best known for his unrivaled winning streak at WrestleMania, WWE’s biggest event of the year, where he boasts a 21-0 record. Whether he took on Hulk Hogan and Ultimate Warrior early in his career, aligned in tag team competition with his brother Kane, delivered career-defining matches against WWE Superstar Triple H and WWE Hall of Famer Shawn Michaels or squared off against his most recent WrestleMania opponent CM Punk, Undertaker is responsible for some of WWE’s most prolific and memorable moments.

You can pick up the game on November 1.

Train2Game News: Microsoft’s Accelerator Programme

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Microsoft VenturesTrain2Game are looking for a team or studio that might be suitable to take part in Microsoft’s pilot for their Accelerator programme, www.microsoftventures.com.

This is aimed at promising early-stage start ups. For 8 weeks the new studio would receive strong mentoring, technical guidance and connections to other start ups.

This is a highly sought after programme so your team (studio) would need to be already established and have collectively produced at least one game. The game may not have been published, but we will need to see at least one game that you’ve made.

The team should have between 2 and 5 members with at least one member of the team able to attend the Microsoft Accelerator offices in tech city, central London, Monday to Friday from 1st September for 8 weeks. Other members can work remotely but one member of the team must work from tech city.

Microsoft will work with the team to develop them into a fully fledged studio. The team, for example, may be one which has previously taken part in one of our game jams and has stayed together since, although this is just an example. All members of the team must be Train2Game students.

It is essential that all teams who wish to be considered apply to us through the correct route; please see Student World for more details of how to enter. Your entry must be in by 3pm on 14th August; entries received after this date cannot be considered.

We cannot guarantee that any team will be accepted into the Microsoft Accelerator programme but suitable teams will be put forward by us. Teams which we feel may be suitable will be contacted by us by 16th August 2013.

Good luck to all those who enter!

Train2Game News: Imp Paired getting good attention

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Imp PairedTrain2Game would like to congratulate Nicholas Lister, a young man who has just released Imp Paired on his own.

Imp Paired is a memory game released for iOS devices. The game is a bold, modern reinterpretation of a classic memory game mechanic. You’ll find yourself trying to match up patterns under packages on a production line overseen by a pair of maniacal imps.

It has a charming art style and catchy music whilst you use the best of your memory to complete the levels.

The game has just been featured in The Sun newspaper with an excellent four out of five score, highly impressive for a young man who created this game on his own.

You can enjoy a play through of the game by Nicholas himself in the video below

This is a perfect example that anyone can create a good game, no matter what there circumstances. Congratulations Nicholas from Train2Game, we look forward to seeing what you create in the future!

Train2Game News: UK Top 20 Games – 05.08.13

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MinecraftIt’s the start of another week so it is time for the Train2Game Top 20. A quiet week in the charts this week has seen Minecraft: Xbox 360 Edition hold on to the number one spot for a second week running with the only other new entrant being The Smurfs 2 game that ties in with the movie. The game entered the charts at number five.

All formats

Week ending 3 August 2013

POS.  TITLE  PUBLISHER  LAST
WEEK 
1 – MINECRAFT: XBOX 360 EDITION MICROSOFT 1
2 THE LAST OF US SONY COMPUTER ENT. 3
3 ANIMAL CROSSING: NEW LEAF NINTENDO 4
4 FIFA 13 EA SPORTS 6
5 THE SMURFS 2 UBISOFT –
6 FAR CRY 3 UBISOFT 7
7 LEGO BATMAN 2: DC SUPER HEROES WARNER BROS. INTERACTIVE 10
8 CALL OF DUTY: BLACK OPS II ACTIVISION 16
9 – TOMB RAIDER SQUARE ENIX 9
10 ASSASSIN’S CREED III XBOX 360 CLASSICS 11
11 MARIO AND LUIGI: DREAM TEAM BROS. NINTENDO 5
12 LEGO THE LORD OF THE RINGS WARNER BROS. INTERACTIVE 15
13 MAX PAYNE 3 ROCKSTAR 14
14 GRAND THEFT AUTO IV XBOX 360 CLASSICS 12
15 PIKMIN 3 NINTENDO 2
16 NEED FOR SPEED MOST WANTED EA GAMES 20
17 BATTLEFIELD 3 EA GAMES 19
18 GRAND THEFT AUTO EPISODES – LIBERTY CITY ROCKSTAR 17
19 THE ELDER SCROLLS V: SKYRIM – LEGENDARY BETHESDA SOFTWORKS 8
20 THE SIMS 3: ISLAND PARADISE EA GAMES –
< previous week
Leisure software charts compiled by Chart Track, (C)2013 UKIE Ltd

These charts cannot be reproduced either in print or online without obtaining permission from Ukie. If you wish to reproduce the charts in print or online, please contact david.smith@ukie.org.uk for the appropriate license.

Train2Game News: SpecialEffect helps Mitch

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SpecialEffect Thanks to all the work that gaming charity, SpecialEffect, have done they have been able to help a young man named Mitch.

Mitch has cerebral palsy which makes it difficult for him to use the triggers on the back of his controller which would have a huge impact on what games you are able to play.

SpecialEffect have remapped the triggers to two small switches under the controller, and attached it to a heavy duty clinical mounting to reduce the effect of the tremor in his arms. This has allowed Mitch to be back on a level playing field with his friends and he is able to now give as good as he gets!

Mitch was ecstatic with the results saying “It puts the fun back if you can be just as good as someone else.”

You can see how happy Mitch is in the video below

We at Train2Game are very happy to support SpecialEffect as much as we can and will continue to do so to keep helping people like Mitch.

Train2Game News: Games Industry News – 02.08.13

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Batman It’s the end of the week so is is time for the Train2Game news round up.

Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment and DC Entertainment today confirmed that Batman: Arkham Origins will ship with a mode that allows players to take the franchise’s award-winning gameplay online to play with friends and foes.  The online component blends the traditional Arkham gameplay with third-person shooter mechanics and is in development by Splash Damage. The multiplayer will be available on all platforms except the Wii U. You can enjoy the trailer for it here: http://youtu.be/CFx82wX3NE8

Continuing the hero game theme, Deadpool has had it’s first DLC announced. The “Merc with a map pack” will introduce two new challenge maps; GRT Plaza and Inside the Tower. You will also get two new costumes for Infinite Mode: a D-Pooly and Uncanny X-Force suit. The DLC is available now for 240 Microsoft points. You can also now purchase the game from the On Demand market.

In celebration of the highly anticipated launch of Pokémon X and Pokémon Y for the Nintendo 3DS family of systems, the first of three legendary character distribution events begins August 30 at participating Game stores across the UK. Players can get their hands on Shiny versions of the Legendary Pokémon —Dialga, Palkia, and Giratina—starting with, Dialga, which was featured on the cover of the Pokémon Diamond video game. What makes this event extraordinary is that each of the distributed Legendary Pokémon, which are already difficult to get during gameplay, will be Shiny, meaning they have unusual colouring that is extremely rare. Each Shiny Pokémon will be available, one at a time, for only two weeks each, so Trainers will need to plan accordingly and head to a participating Game store if they want to add these extremely rare Legendary Pokémon to their Pokémon Black, Pokémon White, Pokémon Black 2, or Pokémon White 2 game.

A new character has been announced for the hit mobile game, Temple Run 2. You can now pay for and download Gold medal olympian, Usain Bolt to run from the dangerous in the game. As the first branded character in Temple Run history, Usain Bolt’s worldwide recognition demonstrates the global and cultural reach of the original endless runner game. “I am a big fan of Temple Run. I travel all over the world and travel time gives me lots of opportunity to play Temple Run at airports or on car journeys,” said Usain Bolt. “It’s exciting to see myself represented within a game I already play.”  The Usain Bolt character is available now as an in-app purchase in Temple Run 2 for $0.99, for a limited time only.

Finally in the lead up to the realease of The Elder Scrolls Online, Bethesda have announced The Elder Scrolls Anthology for PC.  The game arrives on retail shelves in Europe on September 13, 2013 for £49.99/€59.99, The Elder Scrolls Anthology features all five critically-acclaimed games, plus official add-ons – packaged together in an exclusive premium collector’s set.

 

Train2Game News: Eurogamer Expo 2013

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Eurogamer ExpoThe Gamer Network has announced that the PlayStation 4 will be playable at this year’s Eurogamer Expo.

The Expo takes place at Earl’s Court in London from Thursday, September 26 to Sunday September 29.

Other games that have been announced for the expo this year include;  Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag, Battlefield 4, FIFA 14, Batman: Arkham Origins, Dark Souls II and several titles from Nintendo, with many more still to be announced.

Over 70,000 consumers are expected to attend the show, with four-day passes and weekend tickets already sold-out. Tickets for Thursday and Friday are available from the event’s website so act fast!

The show will also see the return of the Indie Arcade, sponsored by SEGA, and a tournament and retro area to fulfil all your nostalgia needs!

The Eurogamer Expo also features the GamesIndustry Fair on September 26th and 27th. Curated by GamesIndustry International staff, the event includes the GameHorizon Investment Summit, the popular Career Sessions panels, the Careers & Education showfloor and BAFTA Career Surgeries.

Eurogamer is a great place to try out the new games and to talk to games developers. You can get an insight into how the industry works and how some of your favorite companies operate.

I advise every potential games industry person to attend this annual event!

Train2Game News: Microsoft explains their new player reputation system

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Xbox OneMicrosoft have announced plans for their overhaul of the reputation system on the Xbox One, in the hopes you play with like minded people.

The past systems Microsoft have used to let players known other peoples reputations have never walked all that well and have mostly been ignored but senior program manager of Microsoft’s new initiative, SmartMatch, Michael Dunn is working to change this.

SmartMatch will have three categories you will come into; Good Player, Needs Work and Avoid Me. They are going to be using a percentile system to place players into these categories and Michael Dunn said that: “You can imagine it like the ‘good players’ are like the 80 percent, the ‘needs work’ and the ‘avoid me’ are kind of the thin tail out from the rest of them.” The idea is to separate the Avoid Me group from the rest of the players.

Most people will automatically, “start with a score that’s in the 75 range, which is definitely a good player,” Dunn explained, and it will take quite a bit of work to get into the avoid me category. They also have a lot in place to help people who are getting grief complaints or complaints only from the same person, so it isn’t really possible to have a group of players or just one player give someone a low reputation.

However, people won’t just end up in avoid me or needs work without knowing. Unlike the Xbox 360 reputation system, with Xbox One Microsoft will be sending people warnings so that they may fix their problems before ending up in the deep end.

Dunn explains “The goal of the overhauled reputation system isn’t just to create some sort of stratified social hierarchy inside Xbox Live, but to improve the quality of matchmaking.”