Train2Game News Celebrate Pac-Man Turning 41 And Get Pac-Tive

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In 2021, BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment America Inc. celebrates PAC-MAN’s 41st anniversary with a myriad of activities and partnerships to help commemorate this milestone for one of the world’s most beloved and recognizable video game characters. 

PAC-MAN™ invites fans from around the world to get #PAC-TIVE throughout 2021 in mind, body, and within their communities.

Watch the official music video directed and produced by WEiRDCORE for PAC-MAN’s PAC-TIVE initiative theme song, written, produced, and performed by musical artist Yaeji featuring DiAN: https://youtu.be/idllz1EuO10

In keeping with this year’s PAC-TIVE theme, BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment America Inc. has partnered with both Giants Enterprises (the entrepreneurial arm of the San Francisco Giants Major League Baseball team), and National Basketball Association (NBA) for exciting activities and collaborations that encourage fans to get up and get PAC-TIVE! 

Avid runners can register for the Giant Race’s 2021RUN series, a year-long San Francisco Giants baseball-focused fitness program that includes monthly virtual challenges alongside four races traditionally held in Scottsdale, Sacramento, San Jose, and San Francisco.

Completing monthly challenges will reward participants with one of 12 exclusive pins including a special “Join the PAC” PAC-MAN pin for the month of May.

Register at the following link to start the challenge today! giantrace.com/2021RUN

PAC-MAN’s partnership with the NBA for the 2020-21 season continues with a new NBA Playoffs Adventure for PAC-MAN Mobile as well as new NBA-inspired merchandise.

Fans will have one last chance to play the NBA All-Star Event within PAC-MAN Mobile before the NBA Playoffs Event begins later this month. In the NBA Playoffs Event, fans will be able to play through 20 levels representing the 20 teams in the State Farm NBA Play-In Tournament and the NBA Playoffs, featuring fun basketball-inspired power-ups while collecting cards to fill out their PAC-MAN NBA Playoffs album. New NBA-inspired PAC-MAN gear is coming soon, including a PAC-MAN x NBA by Junk Food collection available on NBAStore.com featuring apparel for all 30 NBA teams, a line of ISlide PAC-MAN x NBA slide sandals, and much more to come. 

Bringing PAC-MAN back to his original gaming roots, we encourage all PAC-MAN fans to celebrate his 41st anniversary by playing some of his most recent releases; PAC-MAN™ Mega Tunnel Battle exclusively available on Stadia and playable for free with Stadia Pro, PAC-MAN™ WAKA WAKA available for select Amazon Alexa devices (including Echo Show devices, Fire TV Cube, and screen-based devices like Samsung TVs with Alexa Built-in), and PAC-MAN™ 99 available for the Nintendo Switch system.

All three titles offer exciting gameplay centered around PAC-MAN’s classic maze gameplay, showing how PAC-MAN continues to evolve within an ever-changing industry while still holding on to what makes his game unique.

Train2Game News Game of the Year – The Board Game About Making Video Games

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Indie tabletop company Nice Game Publishing today revealed details on its upcoming project Game of the Year, which will go live on Kickstarter on Monday, June 28, 2021.

In the game, players take on the role of video game developers, creating their own titles from hundreds of elements with the ultimate goal of conquering the eponymous award. Each playthrough will be different as variable upgrade paths, rivals and rewards keep players on their toes. Game of the Year is playable in 20-60 minutes as a cooperative or competitive experience for 1-4 players.

“The world of video games lets one explore such a rich universe of themes, activities and emotions. We’ve always been in awe of that. We wanted to make a game that celebrates that creativity and lets players take part. And at the same time we wanted to explore the less glamorous sides of the industry and poke a bit of fun at those. So in our game, whether you make a classic 3d-Shooter in a SciFi setting or a beekeeping management sim featuring ancient Egyptians is really up to you. But you’re going to need to complete the project in time and make some money. And maybe you’ll want to use that ‘Crunch Culture’ idea after all?”– Simon Schwanhaeusser, CEO at Nice Game Publishing GmbH

Game of the Year in a Nutshell:

  • Build your own unique games from a huge base of genres, themes and features, inspired by gaming culture old and new
  • Defeat rival games to conquer markets, earn loot and gain hype
  • Build your company using dice employees and specialists
  • Go up against the titans of the industry in a battle for the title of Game of the Year
  • Solo, cooperative and competitive gameplay for 1-4 Players
  • Content developed in collaboration with video game history experts

Visit goty-boardgame.com for more details, the newsletter and a first look at what it feels like to create titles in Game of the Year!

Train2Game News Best Year Ever For D&D

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Wizards of the Coast are proud to announce that 2020 was once again the most successful year for Dungeons & Dragons in its rich franchise history.

This is on the back of 2019 also being a record year already, with the legendary tabletop game continuing to grow and diversify its community which now counts with more than 50 million fans worldwide.

After an unprecedented year for businesses and individuals alike, Wizards of the Coast is proud to look back at the way the team and community came together stronger than ever, despite the need to party up at a distance. Wizards has compiled key figures for 2020 in an infographic that illustrates and celebrates the growth of the brand and highlights key milestones in the year ahead for D&D.

In 2020, D&D welcomed even more celebrity players and content creators to the table, be it at D&D Live, D&D Celebration or other exciting games, including the casts of Game of Thrones and Stranger Things as well as WWE Superstars and some of the UK’s top comedians. 

Key stats from 2020 include:

  • More than 50 Million players to date!
  • 7th consecutive year of growth
  • Sales have increased by 33% year-over-year globally
  • #DND is taking off on TikTok with over 1 Billion views in 2020
  • Over 4 Million views of D&D Live 2020
  • Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything was D&D’s most pre-ordered book ever!
  • March 2020 marked an all-time peak in search interest
  • Millions of downloaded free materials from D&D’s Stay at Home, Play at Home Hub

“We’re proud that Dungeons & Dragons continued to bring people together during the challenges of the pandemic, providing valuable social connection even when we couldn’t meet in person, as the brand continued to grow strongly.

With our video game Dark Alliance, the first D&D and Magic: The Gathering crossover card set, special events such as D&D Live and D&D Celebration, additional TTRPG releases, and more to come in 2021 alone, we’re well set-up to sustain this progress.

D&D is for everyone, and our growing EMEA¹ team are excited to introduce even more new fans to our legendary world of fantasy storytelling, now and in the years to come. We are hard at work on exciting plans for the future of D&D in our region, and look forward to sharing them with you in more detail in the coming months.” – Dan Barrett, Senior Brand Manager – D&D, EMEA.

What’s next for D&D this year? Thanks to regular TTRPG releases, the co-op action brawler Dark Alliance coming to PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S and Xbox Game Pass on June 22, the exciting MTG and D&D crossover Magic expansion Dungeons & Dragons: Adventures in the Forgotten Realms releasing on July 23 and the return of special events such as D&D Live and D&D Celebration, the brand is setting the stage for yet another successful year, continuing to broaden their impact as a leading fantasy franchise in mainstream media.

To stay up to date on the latest news regarding tabletop, games and entertainment, follow Dungeons & Dragons on Social Media (Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Twitch, Instagram). 

Train2Game News New Cyberpunk Shooter Coming Soon

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Video games publisher Curve Digital is delighted to announce that the highly anticipated debut title from Swedish indie studio Neon Giant, The Ascent will be released on 29 July 2021 on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One and PC and be available on Xbox Game Pass.

A solo and co-op action-shooter RPG set in a sci-fi cyberpunk world, The Ascent is the first title from Neon Giant, a new 12-person studio composed of games industry veterans who were some of the minds behind iconic AAA titles such as the Gears of War, Bulletstorm and Wolfenstein franchises. The game will target 60 fps and have full 4K support on the Xbox Series X, offering amazing gameplay performance for new generation console players.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=vqS3whDVa04%3Fwmode%3Dtransparent

“We are super excited that people will soon be able to jump into the world of The Ascent,”said Arcade Berg, Creative Director and co-founder of Neon Giant. “We love making games and we do it because we want people to enjoy the experience and world we have created – so we’ve designed a game that lets all players have fun with the element of gameplay that interests them the most. Whether you’re someone who enjoys exploring every corner, loves exciting combat or gets invested in the story and lore, we’ve tried to put something in The Ascent for everyone.

”Fellow co-founder and Creative Director of the studio Tor Frick added: “A month ago we celebrated Neon Giant’s third anniversary and we’re so happy to be launching our first title just after this milestone for our young studio. We have a very passionate and dedicated team and each person in the studio has brought something new and great to the overall experience of The Ascent, so we’re really excited to share the planet of Veles with everyone and see what people think of the world our team has created.”

The Ascent will see players dive into ‘The Ascent Group’ arcology, a self-contained corporate-run metropolis, stretching high into the sky and filled with creatures from all over the galaxy. Taking on the role of an indentured worker, the world starts to go haywire when The Ascent Group shuts down for unknown reasons. Life becomes a case of survival, with rival corporations and crime syndicates looking to fill the empty space. Players will have to take up arms and hold them off. The Ascent begins here.

The Ascent will offer players the chance to step into an action-orientated sci-fi RPG powered by Unreal Engine that takes the genre to new levels, available to play in both single-player and up to four-player co-op.

Features:

  • A free-roam play style in a cyberpunk inspired dystopian world
  • Classic RPG mechanics to enable players to build up their character including cyberware, augmentations and looting
  • An unprecedented sense of verticality within its world, with different levels and platforms discernible within play
  • Double-aim mechanic enables players to utilise the full screen and choose between multiple targets anywhere in the environment
  • A narrative-led adventure playable in single and up to four-player co-op modes

The Ascentwill launch on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One consoles and PC and be available on Xbox Game Pass 29 July 2021.
Pre-order today on Xbox: https://www.xbox.com/en-US/games/the-ascent
Pre-order today on PC: https://store.steampowered.com/app/979690/The_Ascent/
Game price £24.99 / $29.99 / €29.99 / ¥148.

Train2Game News Guild eSports Academy

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Guild Esports today announces the opening of the Guild Academy – the world’s most comprehensive and innovative esports online academy.

The online academy will welcome budding players aged 11+, and provide a range of resources designed to nurture their learning and life skills, as well as gaming abilities. The Guild Academy will provide all players of any ability individualised support and personalised challenges.

Academy members will be able to access detailed training programmes, designed to improve specific areas of play. They will also be able to test their skills in tournaments, and have gameplay performance analysed by Guild’s team of experts.

For beginner and intermediate players, Guild will offer peer-to-peer coaching and advice, whereby players are able to record specific areas of gameplay which can then be reviewed by more experienced players and feedback and advice given.

Guild’s vision is to use its unique academy structure to find the next generation of talent within esports by scouting players showing the most potential. These players will be offered live player development, greater 1-2-1 support, and invitations to bootcamps to participate in local area network (LAN) tournaments. This is part of Guild Esports’ path to pro strategy – using its in-house talent scouts to recruit the next generation of players.

The Academy is launching first with Fortnite & Rocket League specific training, with more esports to follow in the next six months, including FIFA and Valorant. The Guild Academy online platform is the first step in creating an esports talent pipeline based on the traditional sporting model.

The mission at the heart of the academy is to ensure all players leave having acquired new skills, both in gaming and life, regardless of whether they turn professional. Guild’s priority is to put the person first, the player second. The academy will take the personal development of each player beyond gaming – with its industry-leading team delivering masterclasses designed to both improve learning, and provide knowledge and skills to succeed in later life.

Guild understands the importance of taking parents on the journey with their ambitious gamer children. As part of the online academy, there will be a dedicated Parents Centre, keeping them involved and informed about careers in esports. Robust policies will be in place to ensure a safe and friendly environment, and players will need the appropriate parental consent to join the academy, depending on local data protection laws.

Outside of esport-specific coaching, The Guild Academy offers a holistic approach to player development where the focus will be on building good habits through better nutrition, work-life balance and much more. The first activation will be alongside Guild’s main partner, and official Academy partner, Subway. Working together to develop a fully integrated programme to the Guild Academy which will provide opportunities and education to the membership—ranging from from career opportunities to health and wellbeing leaning on Subway’s values of empowering people to make better choices.

New players will be able to sign up to a 30-day free trial – access to The Guild Academy will be £4.99, or local currency equivalent, per month after this period.

Carleton Curtis, Executive Chairman at Guild Esports, said: “Over the last year, people have recognised us for building some of the most talented rosters in esports. The Guild Academy represents our vision for the future. The academy will contain the most comprehensive training platform in esports, with individualised support and tailored training programmes provided to develop the esports stars of tomorrow. Ingrained in all aspects of the academy will be our culture of excellence, and our priority is nurturing aspiring gamers to develop in all areas of their life. We’re thrilled to launch, and help to push the industry forward.”

Joe Sutton, Director of Academy at Guild Esports added, “We’re very proud to have created such a special and unique academy. The level of training and development resources we have on offer to players of all abilities, is what sets the Guild Academy apart. We’ll be working to provide each player the tools to reach their gaming potential, whilst also setting them up with life skills for the future. This is just the beginning, and we’re excited for the future of the academy.”

For more information go to http://www.guildesports.com/ and join the conversation on social media using #GUILDGANG.

Train2Game News 2Game Accepting Crypto For PC Keys

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2Game is an officially authorized digital video game retailer that’s been around since 2014.

For years now, they have worked with some of the biggest, most prominent game companies in the world to supply gamers around the globe with phenomenal games at increasingly competitive prices.

Maximum safety and guaranteed game key authenticity are their bread and butter, and 2Game has received impeccable reviews on all fronts from its hundreds of thousands of users.

At last, though, they have decided that it’s time to take a brave step forward and embrace the future.

Now, users around the world are able to buy officially sourced PC game keys via 2Game using a number of prominent cryptocurrencies.

They support the following crypto formats, with many more coming down the line:

  • Bitcoin
  • Bitcoin Cash
  • Etherium
  • USD Coin
  • Litecoin
  • DAI

2Game is one of the very first authentic game retailers to support as wide an array of cryptocurrencies for game purchasing, and to further underline their dedication to this development, they have even got plans for the introduction of a potential 2Game Coin further down the line.

2Game believes that the future is now.

With crypto on the rise, it’s only a matter of time before this astonishing monetary development takes over the world.

By allowing gamers to purchase the most exciting upcoming games on the market using their crypto, 2Game are doing their part in making this a reality.

Join them as they brave the cutting edge of game key delivery on PC: get ready 2Game with crypto!

You can visit 2Game by going to https://2game.com/en-gb/

Train2Game News Final Fantasy & Kung Fury Metal Album

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Videogame band Super MadNES is pleased to present their third studio album, Fantasy Battles, a Final Fantasy-themed release paying tribute to battle themes from across the series and the iconic “True Survivor” from the movie Kung Fury, originally performed by David Hasselhoff.

To celebrate the occasion, Super MadNES has produced their first-ever promotional music video featuring “Force Your Way” from Final Fantasy VIII. Fantasy Battles is available now on Bandcamp in both digital and CD formats along with commemorative pins of the band’s logo:

Fantasy Battles Digital, CDs, and Pins on Bandcamp

Fantasy Battles features a six-song medley of music from Final Fantasy IV through Final Fantasy IX, “True Survivor” from Kung Fury, and a cover of chiptune artist Zantilla’s “Maggie’s Quest.” The full track list is as follows:

  1. Prologue (Final Fantasy IV)
  2. The Decisive Battle (Final Fantasy VI)
  3. Battle 1 (Final Fantasy IX)
  4. The Decisive Battle (Final Fantasy V)
  5. Force Your Way (Final Fantasy VIII)
  6. Those Who Fight Further (Final Fantasy VII)
  7. True Survivor (Kung Fury)
  8. Maggie’s Quest (Zantilla)

The Southern California band has toured the United States bringing their unique blend of synth-infused classic heavy metal with highly-produced visuals and has developed a large following through their performances and album releases.

Fantasy Battles follows 2016’s SNES-themed Blasters & Daggers covering Mega Man X and Super Ghouls ‘N Ghosts and 2018’s NES-themed Gothic Warriors covering Castlevania III and Batman.

Learn more about the band at http://www.supermadnes.com

Train2Game News NieR Re[in]carnation Pre-Registration Open Now

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SQUARE ENIX® and Applibot, Inc. today announced that pre-registration for the North American, European and Korean version of NieR Re[in]carnation, the first mobile title in the NieR series, is now live in select regions*.

Bringing together an all-star team including creative director YOKO TARO, composer Keiichi Okabe from MONACA and producer Yosuke Saito, the Action Command RPG NieR Re[in]carnation tells the story of a girl who awakens in a mysterious place known as The Cage. Guided by a creature who calls herself Mama, the girl sets off on a journey through The Cage to reclaim what she has lost and to atone for her sins.

A new promotional video for the title can be viewed here: https://youtu.be/m7WPrDc7i4w

Players can pre-register* through the AppStore and Google Play now.

Those who pre-register through the Google Play Store may be randomly selected to participate in an upcoming closed beta test.

Further details will be disclosed later on the official NieR Re[in]carnation social pages. Additional pre-registration information can be found here: https://nierreincarnation.com/preregistration/.

Additionally, by reaching 300,000 pre-registrants, all players will receive 3,000 gems upon the game’s release, allowing them to complete one 10x Summon for free.

Fans of the NieR series can also jump into NieR Replicant™ ver.1.22474487139…, the re-telling of NieR Replicant for modern consoles, which is now available on the PlayStation®4 computer entertainment system, Xbox One family of devices including Xbox One X, and PC (Steam®). NieR Replicant ver.1.22474487139… is rated M (Mature). Complete details on all editions of the game are available at: http://www.niergame.com.

  NieR Re[in]carnation will be available as a free download with in-app purchases on iOS and Android devices. Text will be supported in English and Korean. For more information, please visit: https://nierreincarnation.com.

Train2Game News Little Town Teaches Game Development

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YoYo Games today announced the launch of Little Town – a major new game-making tutorial which teaches students and hobbyists game development with  GameMaker Studio 2, the world’s leading 2D game development engine. 

Developed in collaboration with award-winning game developer and university lecturer, Benjamin Rivers, Little Town has been designed to help new game designers quickly learn the core functionality of GameMaker Studio 2 in a natural, fun way. 

Little Town is an adventure game in which players control a child in an idyllic small town. By following clues players must find the right items and bring them to one of the town’s three characters – the Baker, Teacher and Grocer. 


The tutorial enables students, hobbyists and new game designers to create their own layout for Little Town and use code to bring it and its people to life. Users will also be able to choose where to hide each item, as well as writing their own hints and dialogue. 

With over eight hours of video tutorials as well as a wealth of supporting materials, Little Town provides a robust framework for educators with teaching guidelines and assessment criteria with which colleges and universities can effectively start teaching game design to their students.

The Little Town tutorial teaches many core skills from creating vibrant animations using GameMaker’s powerful Sequences tool to controlling sprites, sounds and laying-out the playing area  – providing the perfect introduction to GameMaker Studio 2 and the fundamental principles of game design.


Stuart Poole, General Manager, YoYo Games, said: “We’re extremely pleased to release Little Town, our most comprehensive GameMaker tutorial to date and the first in a series of high-quality tutorials which are currently under development. 

Poole continued:“While we’re constantly striving to make GameMaker as easy to use and accessible as possible, quality tutorials like Little Town are essential as they provide a practical framework to enable users to quickly get up-to-speed with the core functionality of GameMaker so they can start making their own amazing games.”

Benjamin Rivers, Little Town’s creator, added: “While Little Town is perfect for anyone who wants to learn how to understand the basics of game making, the tutorial has been developed specifically to support students in higher education who are learning game design”.

The tutorial features six sections and has been designed to allow for both synchronous and asynchronous participation for in-class and remote learning. 

“Little Town has been structured to encourage self-driven learning and experimentation, which we hope will inspire a new generation of game developers,” added Rivers

Train2Game News Final Fantasy VII The First Soldier

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SQUARE ENIX® today announced that the battle royale action mobile game, FINAL FANTASY® VII THE FIRST SOLDIER, is now accepting pre-registrations for an upcoming closed beta test to be held from June 1 through 7, 2021.

Players looking to prove themselves as prime SOLDIER candidates can sign up here through the Google Play Store, now until May 28, 2021.

  In FINAL FANTASY VII THE FIRST SOLDIER, players will embark on an intense battle royale experience where they must fight to be the last SOLDIER standing. To do so, players will use magic and special abilities along with ranged and melee weapons to triumph on the battlefield. Players can choose between various styles, such as Warrior, Sorcerer or Monk, each of whom boast unique special abilities. In addition to other SOLDIER candidates, players must also contend with ferocious monsters who inhabit the outskirts of the city. By defeating them, players can gain experience needed to level up and unlock new weapons. Classic FINAL FANTASY elements abound in the game, such as rideable chocobos, powerful espers, including Ifrit, to summon and materia, which enables players to cast devastating spells. Players can customize their characters’ outfits and accessories, obtain various weapon and vehicle skins, emotes and more to create their own unique SOLDIER.

  To see live gameplay of FINAL FANTASY VII THE FIRST SOLDIER, view a replay of the first official livestream, which aired earlier this morning from Japan: https://sqex.to/D7f0s

  The livestream ended with the reveal of gripping new scenes from FINAL FANTASY VII REMAKE INTERGRADE, the enhanced and expanded version of the critically acclaimed and award-winning FINAL FANTASY VII REMAKE on the PlayStation®5 (PS5™) console. The new footage showcases the impressive PS5™ graphics for FINAL FANTASY VII REMAKE INTERGRADE and new content from FF7R EPISODE INTERmission, which follows Yuffie Kisaragi and her partner Sonon Kusakabe, on a dangerous mission to infiltrate Midgar and steal the Shinra Electric Power Company’s most powerful materia.

  To view the “FINAL FANTASY VII REMAKE INTERGRADE Final Trailer,” visit: https://youtu.be/YsXnDKAv_h8

  FINAL FANTASY VII THE FIRST SOLDIER is slated for release in 2021 and will be available as a free download with in-app purchases for iOS and Android devices.