Tag Archives: Game Development

Train2Game News: Shining Force MMO

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Shining ForceunFun Games, creator of the longest-running MMO series “First Star Online” is releasing Shining Force Online this Thursday evening.

This is a free fan-made MMO created because of a message board post lead developer R. Mulvany saw 8 months ago.

“I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do next”, says Mulvany. “I thought about doing a remake. I heard about the Sonic 2 fan remake being shut down and that was a shame – it looked fantastic. I was googling about and found a Shining Force fansite where – years ago, they tried to make a Shining Force MMO. This wasn’t the only attempt. Searching, I found 6 other tries that also never happened. Maybe it was cursed, I don’t know, but I wanted to take a crack at it.”

Shining Force Online will be one of the launch titles on Arcade County, a free gaming site from unFun Games which features some of the most unique web games around. You won’t find any tower defense or Angry Birds ripoffs there. It’s all about doing things no one has thought of before.

Shining Force Online will release this coming Thursday 28 November in beta form. The world will not be complete, but there will be 100+ maps and a good deal of quests. Mulvany warns that there will most likely be growing pains and a potential server wipe if exploits are discovered.

“This is a very story-driven game. You will play through a story complete with cutscenes, character that die, and twists along the way. We won’t have the entire game ready at launch. We’ll be in beta for a few months. The way the engine works – we’ll open up new worlds and content literally on a daily basis. Even if you don’t patch, it doesn’t mean we didn’t add tons of content while you were away.”

Players will only need to create an account on www.arcadecounty.com in order to play Shining Force Online. The game can be played on the web or via a downloadable game client for PC, with a Mac version coming in a few weeks.

To learn more about Shining Force Online, check out the game’s page at: http://www.arcadecounty.com/games/shiningforceonline

Train2Game News: BioShock Infinite: Burial at Sea Episode 1 Review

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BioShock Infinite Burial at Sea2K and Irrational games have recently released their first bit of story DLC for one of the biggest games of the year, BioShock Infinite, and I got to review it.

I am going to start off by saying their will be some spoilers for the main game here. Do not read on if you haven’t finished BioShock Infinite’s main story.

The DLC, Burial at Sea Episode 1, puts up back in the role of Booker DeWitt with Elizabeth as your companion. However this time you are in the underwater city of Rapture before it’s demise. The entire DLC was created using the same engine that created Columbia which gave brought Rapture up to date with the game.

This being a BioShock game the atmosphere and look of Rapture was breath taking. Every building and every view was a pleasure to look at. The underwater city at this time also lets you see some people and places in all their glory before the events of the first game.

The combat has been changed slightly in this DLC as you are once again battling splicers as oppose to the human forces you fight in the main story of Infinite. The focus is more on stealth this time, sneaking up behind enemies or setting traps with your plasmids.

In addition there is also the return of the weapon and plasmid wheel which made choosing which allowed you to take all the weapons you find. There is also a new plasmid for you to try which I personally quite enjoyed.

The story of this DLC is a good follow up to the main campaign and after the end of Infinite it is good to see some continuation of the idea. Much like the end of Infinite the ending of this story leaves you thinking for a while after finishing.

The biggest downfall for Burial at Sea: Episode 1 was that it was far too short. I am not one to race through games, I like exploring and searching as much as I can and still it took me just under three hours to complete.

I understand it is Episode 1 but just as I was really getting in to the game, it ended much to my disappointment. I can only hope that Episode 2 stays at this standard but just goes on longer.

Train2Game News: LEGO Marvel Super Heroes infographic

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Marvel LegoLEGO Marvel Super Heroes is the latest critically acclaimed LEGO adventure from TT Games, and the first to feature heroes from the Marvel universe.

To celebrate the game’s release, Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment is delighted to share this infographic, which highlights some incredible facts about the LEGO series and LEGO Marvel Super Heroes. Have you wondered how long it would take Iron Man to fly across LEGO Manhattan, or the time it would take Hulk to freefall from the S.H.I.E.L.D Helicarrier?

You can find out these facts and more with the LEGO Marvel Super Heroes infographic at the bottom of this blog.

In LEGO Marvel Super Heroes players take on the role of their favourite Marvel characters like Spider-Man, Iron Man, Wolverine, Thor, Captain America and the Hulk, as they assemble to battle against some of the most menacing Marvel Super Villains, including dastardly Doctor Octopus, the ghastly Green Goblin, the ruthless Red Skull, the vicious Venom, Thor’s vexing brother, Loki, as well as the Devourer of Worlds, Galactus.

Players will unlock more than 100 playable characters, including Mystique, Elektra, Mandarin, Silver Samurai, Malekith, Aldrich Killain, Super-Skrull and more.  Players can also choose from a plethora of magnificent bonus hero characters, such as the heroic Guardians of the Galaxy, the Punisher, Captain Britain, Squirrel Girl and Deadpool.

20130238-LIG_13

Train2Game News: Xbox One SmartGlass app available now

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Xbox One SmartGlassThe release of Xbox One is nearly upon us but before Xbox One arrives on Nov. 22, you can download the Xbox One SmartGlass app today.

The Xbox One Smartglass App is separate from the Xbox360 app that you may currently own on your smartdevice. You may remember from the Xbox One launch announcement that Microsoft are planning on making this app a lot more integral to your console experience.

Of course you may wonder what the point to getting the app would be before the console is even released. Until the console is released you may want to try these three things to wet your appetite for the next generation console:

  • Search for the perfect game. Don’t waste any time – search for new Xbox One games so you can jump right in when your console is ready. Xbox One SmartGlass also lets you view information such as game details, achievements and challenges so you’re ready to get going with your favorite games. You can even check out the Game DVR clips already uploaded by the community!
  • Keep up with friends. Connect with friends and the Xbox Live community even before you finish setting up your console. Use the app to see what your friends have been up to, check out their latest achievements, or read your messages while you’re waiting.
  • Personalize your dashboard. Pin your favorite games and apps to the Home screen so you jump into your favorite activities right when you finish setting up your console and log into Xbox Live.

Connecting Xbox One SmartGlass to your Xbox One is easy. Just use the same wireless network on your Xbox One SmartGlass-enabled device as your Xbox One and open the app to automatically connect to your console. Once synced, you can use Xbox One SmartGlass to fly through your console set-up by using gestures to navigate and your device’s keyboard to log in to Xbox Live.

Additionally, Microsoft have partnered with developers to deliver some amazing experiences for movies, games and apps available on day one and beyond worldwide. These include Star Trek Into Darkness, Fast & Furious 6, Dead Rising 3, Just Dance 2014, Battlefield 4, Internet Explorer and Machinima.

The Xbox One SmartGlass app is available for download now on all iOS, Android and Windows 8 smart devices.

Train2Game News: Unity partners with GameAnalytics

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unity-logoGameAnalytics, a fast-growing free analytics provider, and Unity Technologies have partnered in order to bring the powerful GameAnalytics tools into the Unity Asset Store Online Services Strategic Partner program.

“During the last nine years, Unity has truly managed to democratize game development for the creative teams. GameAnalytics is on a mission to follow up from where the Unity engine ends and enable game developers of all sizes to monitor and optimize everything easily, from user acquisition to game design based on hard facts,” explained Morten E. Wulff, CEO of GameAnalytics. He continued: “Improvements based on performance metrics are essential to success in today’s free-to-play marketplace.”

GameAnalytics was founded in 2012 with $2.5m in funding from notable investors such as the CEO of Huffington Post, Jimmy Maymann, and TechCruch’s founder, Michael Arrington. Like Unity, GameAnalytics is a Danish company. It now supports almost 4,000 games and tracks more than 30 million new players each month.

One of the secrets behind GameAnalytics’ explosive growth is how easy it is for Unity developers to get started. As the CEO of Roadhouse, James Hursthouse, explained: “For us, the deep integration between GameAnalytics and Unity meant that we were up and running with 45+ important metrics in a few hours of development time.” James continued: “Today, more than 15 people from our company log in to GameAnalytics every day as one of the tools we use to check KPIs on everything from player acquisition and engagement to in-game monetization.”

“GameAnalytics has been committed to bringing analytics to the Unity community from the day they started the company,” stated David Helgason, CEO, Unity Technologies. “Analytics is an important part of launching a successful game and with GameAnalytics working with us in the Unity Asset Store Online Services Program, that will be easier than ever for development studios of all sizes.”

This could be a very helpful tool for Train2Game students and student studios using Unity to create their games.

Train2Game News: EGX Rezzed 2014 tickets now on sale!

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Rezzed 2014Tickets are now on sale for EGX Rezzed 2014! Next year’s event will take place between the 28 and 30 March at The NEC, Birmingham.

For those of you who haven’t experienced EGX Rezzed before, it’s an event brought to you by the team behind EGX London, formerly Eurogamer Expo. EGX Rezzed will boast many of the features that visitors to EGX London will recognise, with hundreds of next gen consoles and PCs packed onto our huge show floor. It’s a great opportunity for you, the gamers, to get hands-on with the hottest titles before they hit the shops.

In addition to playable games the organisers are planning a host of features including the return of the developer sessions which will see famous game designers presenting their latest projects directly to you in the dedicated auditorium. Meanwhile, the Leftfield Collection will showcase the latest and greatest from the world of indie games.

Plus, there will be an extensive board games area complete with demonstrators to give you a guiding hand, a Minecraft hunger games tournament stage and stands selling all manner of gaming merchandise including t-shirts, figurines, posters and more.

Tickets are available now and if you book before January you can take advantage of a 20% early bird discount. Day tickets are currently £9.60 while those of you looking to get the most for your money can pick up a three day pass for £21.60. Saturday and Sunday early entry tickets are £12.80, with afternoon tickets coming in at £7.20 each. Group discounts are also available.

Information on the playable games, the developer sessions and the rest of the EGX Rezzed features will be revealed over the course of the next few months.

To purchase tickets, see more about the event and look at what happened last year, visit http://www.egxrezzed.net/

Train2Game News: Call of Duty: Ghosts for £9.99

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Call of Duty GhostsIf you are a Call of Duty: Ghosts fan who is upgrading to one of the next gen consoles then good news! You don’t have to buy the game again at full price.

Activision have made it nice and simple for you to get your current generation copy of Call of Duty: Ghosts on the next generation console. For just £9.99 you can download the next generation version straight to your console. This offer obviously only applies to people who already own the game on Xbox360 or PS3.

You will even get to keep hold of your season pass and gamer profile so you won’t lose all the hard work you have put in to the game already and you will still be able to get all the future DLC that will come out for the game.

To upgrade your game from Xbox360 to Xbox One it can be done through Xbox Live. To upgrade from PS3 to PS4 there is a unique code with the game you will be able to use.

If you have held out on getting the game with your next generation console it will be available for £64.99 from selected retailers.

The Xbox One is out this Friday for £430 and the PlayStation 4 is out 29 November for £349.

Train2Game News: Adventure Time Game

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Adventure TimeD3Publisher and Cartoon Network Enterprises announced, Adventure Time: Explore the Dungeon Because I DON’T KNOW! is now available.

The game, based on the hit animated series, has been published by NAMCO BANDAI Games Europe in the UK and is on Xbox 360 games and entertainment system from Microsoft, and the PlayStation3 computer entertainment system. The game will also be coming on Nintendo´s Wii U system on 6 December, and on the Nintendo 3DS system on the 13 December, 2013.

Adventure Time: Explore the Dungeon Because I DON’T KNOW! is an action adventure game with a completely new storyline from Pendleton Ward, the creator of the Emmy Award-nominated Adventure Time television series, in collaboration with game developer WayForward.

The adventure begins in the Land of Ooo as players help Princess Bubblegum save the Candy Kingdom by exploring the mysteries surrounding a massive Secret Royal Dungeon.  Adventure Time: Explore the Dungeon Because I DON’T KNOW! features the voices of the show’s most popular characters and players can select from multiple fan-favorite characters with up to four players, including Finn, Jake, Marceline, Ice King, and more.  A wide selection of upgrades is available at the player’s disposal and they can showcase a number of attack moves, special abilities, and skills to defeat baddies throughout the dungeon.

“By collaborating with Pendleton Ward, the famous creator of the Adventure Time animated series, WayForward and D3Publisher have put an obvious care into making a brand new entertaining adventure game for fans of all ages.” said Mathieu Piau, EMEA Marketing Director for NAMCO BANDAI Games Europe. “Grab your friends now and share the radical fun of the multiplayer experience in Adventure Time: Explore the Dungeon Because I DON’T KNOW!”

Enjoy the trailer below!

 

Train2Game News: UK Top 20 Games – 18.11.13

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Call of Duty GhostsActivision Blizzards’ Call of Duty: Ghosts easily holds the crown for a second week at the top of the All Formats chart. The title adds Xbox One to its list of available formats and it sells strongly despite consumers having to wait another week until the next gen console arrives. Despite assembling an all-star cast Warner Bros. Interactive have to settle for second as Lego Marvel Superheroes makes its debut. However it does become the second biggest week one release for a Lego title bettered only by Lego Indiana Jones: Original Adventures all the way back in Week 23 2008. Nintendo’s Professor Layton and the Azran Legacy moves up to number ten, up three places from its debut last week. The title along with Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask which climbs to number twenty, both benefit from retailer bundling which contributes to 3DS XL hardware sales more than doubling last week’s total.

All formats

Week ending 16 November 2013

POS.  TITLE 

FORMAT

 LAST
WEEK 

1

– 

 CALL OF DUTY: GHOSTS

XB360

1

 

2

LEGO MARVEL SUPER HEROES

XB360

–

 

3

FIFA 14

XB360

4

 

4

ASSASSIN’S CREED IV: BLACK FLAG

XB360

3

 

5

BATTLEFIELD 4

XB360

2

 

6

GRAND THEFT AUTO V

XB360

5

 

7

MINECRAFT: XBOX 360 EDITION

XB360

8

 

8

SKYLANDERS SWAP FORCE

XB360

10

 

9

BATMAN: ARKHAM ORIGINS

XB360

6

 

10

PROFESSOR LAYTON AND THE AZRAN LEGACY

3DS

13

 

11

– 

 JUST DANCE 2014

WII

11

 

12

WWE 2K14

XB360

7

 

13

DISNEY INFINITY

XB360

12

 

14

FOOTBALL MANAGER 2014

PC

9

 

15

– 

 POKEMON Y

3DS

15

 

16

POKEMON X

3DS

14

 

17

TOMB RAIDER

XB360

16

 

18

– 

 LEGO BATMAN 2: DC SUPER HEROES

XB360

18

 

19

ANIMAL CROSSING: NEW LEAF

3DS

20
 

20

PROFESSOR LAYTON AND THE MIRACLE MASK

3DS

–

 

< 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: Icey Monty’s new gaming website

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Shooter3dGamesTrain2Game Student Studio, Icey Monty, have expanded their company even further and are now the proud owners of a gaming portal.

John Esslemont and Nick Walker started work for the gaming site last month and have since been hand picking their favourite online titles to be featured on the site. The page already features a treasure trove of shooting games from around the web in one helpful place.

When asked why they decided to start this site Nick said “A client of ours, who owns a few similar sites, suggested the idea to us after we’d finished some work with him. We’d been discussing the idea of moving away from client work to pursue our own development ideas anyway, and with that in mind, the investment in a new website seemed appropriate.”

This is Icey Monty’s first big step from their current client work to developing their own games and ideas. They now have a ready made platform they can publish too without any hassle. In my opinion the guys have made an excellent choice.

You can view the site and enjoy all of the carefully hand picked shooting games at Icey Monty’s new website, www.shooter3dgames.com