Train2Game News: Shining Force MMO

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: Icey Monty’s new gaming website

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

Train2Game News: Star Trek Online Season 8 update

STO_F2P_LogoPerfect World Entertainment Inc. and Cryptic Studios are pleased to announce that Star Trek Online, the award-winning free-to-play MMORPG, is launching its latest content update Season 8: The Sphere today.

In this latest season, players will explore the inside of a massive Dyson sphere, face off in new battle zones, receive new end-game gear, and combat a new ancient alien species. Free to all players, Season 8: The Sphere takes players to newer and deeper parts of the Star Trek universe.

“We’re thrilled to announce that Season 8: The Sphere is ready for you to explore,” said Executive Producer, Daniel Stahl. “With massive new events and our first ever battle zone, The Sphere introduces new types of missions that emphasize strategic thinking and effective coordination. Inside The Sphere you’ll face the Voth with their massive capital ships and mechanized troops, providing significant challenges for even the most experienced Admirals. Season 8: The Sphere is just the latest in a long line of free content updates and players can expect many more exciting seasons to come.”

Star Trek Online is a free-to-play massively multiplayer online game where players can pioneer their own destiny as Captain of a Federation starship. Or they can become a Klingon Warlord and expand the Empire to the far reaches of the galaxy. With its latest expansion, Legacy of Romulus, players can work to rebuild the Romulan legacy as a member of the Romulan Republic. In Star Trek Online players have the opportunity to visit iconic locations from the popular Star Trek fiction, reach out to unexplored star systems and make contact with new alien species.

For more information and to download and play Star Trek Online for free, please visit the official website at: www.startrekonline.com

Train2Game News: New Steam update

SteamThe new Steam update will now allow users to toggle whether they want to be able to download games whilst still playing another game or not.

The update also lets you choose what time of day future updates will occur.

The full list of updates are below:

General

  • Add ability to limit what time of day Steam is allowed to automatically update apps
  • Add option to let other games download while a game is running (this is a per-game setting)
  • Add download regions for Calgary, Edmonton, Winnipeg, and Ottawa in Canada
  • Add ‘Copy all text to clipboard’ context menu option in the System Information dialog.

Steam client UI

  • Improve downloading status text at the bottom of the main window

Big Picture

  • Added ability to opt into game betas and edit launch options
  • Added Inbox item under Linux if your machine requires a reboot due to OS level updates
  • Fix infinite loop of Cloud sync error dialogs on game launch
  • Fixed mouse cursor being visible during startup animation even if it hadn’t moved

Linux

  • Fix paste pasting stale text.
  • Fix Ctrl+C/Ctrl+V in client-hosted web page text controls.
  • Fix incorrect foregrounding of a blank window in some silent startup cases.

Train2Game News: New World of Warcraft expansion announced

wow_wod_logo_hires_m03At Blizzcon this past weekend, Blizzard announced the next expansion for World of Warcraft, Warlords of Draenor.

The fifth expansion to Blizzard Entertainment’s acclaimed massively multiplayer online role-playing game, sends players to the world of Draenor at a pivotal moment in history to fight against and alongside legends from Warcraft’s brutal past.

Across Draenor’s savage jungles and battle-scarred plains, Azeroth’s heroes will engage in a mythic conflict involving mystical draenei champions and mighty orc clans, and cross axes with the likes of Grommash Hellscream, Blackhand, and Ner’zhul at the height of their primal power. Players will need to scour this unwelcoming land in search of allies to help build a desperate defense against the old Horde’s formidable engine of conquest—or else watch their own world’s bloody, war-torn history repeat itself.

“Warlords of Draenor gives players a chance to take a commanding role in one of the Warcraft series’ most crucial conflicts,” said Mike Morhaime, CEO and cofounder of Blizzard Entertainment. “This expansion also includes features that make it easy for anyone to jump right into the action, whether they’ve played WoW at some point in the past or are just setting foot in Azeroth for the first time.”

To help new and returning players answer the call to arms on Draenor, the expansion will enable anyone to instantly boost one character to level 90, including a newly created character, quickly getting them up to speed and ready to enjoy the latest content with their friends.

To establish a foothold on Draenor once they’ve arrived, the displaced champions of the Horde and Alliance will be able to construct their own Garrison, an expandable, customizable stronghold that will serve as each player’s personal base of operations throughout the course of the expansion. As the Garrison grows, players will be able to recruit NPC allies and followers to take up residence, gathering resources and embarking on missions on the player’s orders.

Warlords of Draenor will also introduce fully revamped player character models and animations for many of World of Warcraft’s existing playable races, bringing the orcs, humans, and several other longtime residents of Azeroth up to the visual standards of newer races while still maintaining their iconic style and identity.

Along with these new features, World of Warcraft players will enjoy a wide array of new content on their way to the new level cap of 100, including new Zones, Dungeons, Raids, Scenarios, Battlegrounds, and more. Warlords of Draenor will also introduce questing improvements designed to encourage exploration and add unpredictability to players’ ongoing adventures.

Train2Game News: Microsoft Executive comments on Cross-platform gaming

MicrosoftPhil Spencer, executive of Microsoft, has recently commented that cross-platform between Xbox One and PC makes a lot of sense.

Spencer was asked in an interview with AusGamer, whether Windows 8 and Xbox One could host cross-platform play between their respective platforms.

“I’m not allowed to leak things,” Spencer replied, “but I think what you’re talking about makes a lot of sense.”

Mr Spencer then went on to mention past attempts at cross-platform and how it was received.

“If you go back to Shadow Run on Xbox 360, something I worked on, we had PC players playing against Xbox 360 customers. We didn’t have tremendous success with that, but we learnt a lot from it.

“Then earlier this year we released Skulls of the Shogun, which was a game we launched on all three platforms on the same day, and you could start on one platform and then save the game to the Cloud and play across any of the screens and progress. And then Halo: Spartan Assault has some links between Halo 4 and Spartan Assault, even though they’re very different games.”

The executive went on to comment on how important Xbox Live will be in developing for cross-platform.

“This connected ecosystem across all the different devices is definitely where I think the future of gaming is going; you don’t have to do it as a developer, but you have the capability and I think a system like Xbox Live across all those screens where you know who someone is and who their friends are, what their Achievements are and their progression is really critical to that.”

The Xbox One releases next month so it won’t be long before we can start seeing how this next generation console will evolve over the coming years.

Train2Game News: Dungeon Defenders 2

Dungeon Defenders 2Trendy Entertainment, creators of the critically acclaimed tower defense title Dungeon Defenders, today announced it has hit the reset button in the development of its highly anticipated sequel, Dungeon Defenders II, removing the MOBA-elements and instead focusing on what fans really want to see-the evolution of the action tower defense genre.

Scheduled for soft launch this spring, Dungeon Defenders II is a roleplaying and tower defense title that vastly improves upon the foundations of the first game. A core pillar of Trendy’s new project is getting fans directly involved in how they evolve and develop the sequel. This recent shift in direction is just one example of how Trendy plans to incorporate their community’s feedback into Dungeon Defenders II.

“We’ve been listening very closely to our community, getting feedback from fans of the first game on what they want to see in a sequel, and we realized we needed a shift in our development focus,” said Philip Asher, Marketing Director at Trendy Entertainment. “We had strayed from making the kind of game fans wanted and the kind of game we wanted to develop. So, we’ve nixed the MOBA-style of gameplay and other ‘extra’ features we were talking about and instead are making the sequel we all want to play. We’re improving everything we loved about Dungeon Defenders, one step at a time. First we’re going through the core gameplay experience; injecting more meaningful decisions and moments into the minute to minute gameplay that you’ll want to share with your friends. Then, in late October we’re going to kick off our first major community initiative to get fans involved in the development of the game, and start working with them to make the roleplaying and item systems as satisfying as possible.”

In Dungeon Defenders II, the land of Etheria has been invaded by the Old Ones and players must rally, alone or with friends, against the invasion.. The game features brand new combat and tower placement systems that synchronize the roleplaying, action, and tower defense elements of the first game for more visceral and strategic gameplay. New defense and ability interactions make for exciting, emergent gameplay and new environmental traps increase variety and strategic planning throughout each level in the game. The team is also working on a completely new mission structure and content release strategy which will revolve around the way the community wants to play.

“Imagine dousing a crowd of enemies with oil and then the Apprentice’s flameburst tower hitting one of them with a flame bolt, lighting them all up! Or a trap launching an orc into the sky, only to be frozen and then shatter after crashing to the ground. We’re creating these synergistic systems as a way to allow players to discover and share new ways to play the game: whether it’s finding a new piece of gear that creates a whole new defensive strategy to a map or improving defenses in a way that makes you completely rethink your entire setup, we want the combat and roleplaying elements to shape how you defend Etheria.” said Daniel Haddad, Lead Content Designer.

Dungeon Defenders II is currently in development for PC, Mac & Linux, and scheduled for soft launch as a free-to-play title next Spring.

You can enjoy a teaser trailer below

For more information, visit www.dungeondefenders2.com

Train2Game News: Valve Steam Machine specs

ValveValve has confirmed the specifications of its Steam Machine prototype boxes, which will be sent out later this year.

300 of the devices will be sent to testers in a closed hardware beta, and will include the also-announced Steam Controller.

“The prototype machine is a high-end, high-performance box, built out of off-the-shelf PC parts,” said Valve in a statement.

“It is also fully upgradable, allowing any user to swap out the GPU, hard drive, CPU, even the motherboard if you really want to.”

“Apart from the custom enclosure, anyone can go and build exactly the same machine by shopping for components and assembling it themselves. And we expect that at least a few people will do just that.”

All of the “high-end, high-performance” boxes will run Valve’s Linux-based SteamOS operating system, but the cases will be made by a variety of manufacturers.

Valve’s list of the internal components of the Machines is as follows:

•    GPU: Some units with NVidia Titan, some GTX780, some GTX760, and some GTX660

•    CPU: Some boxes with Intel i7-4770, some i5-4570, and some i3

•    RAM: 16GB DDR3-1600 (CPU), 3GB DDR5 (GPU)

•    Storage: 1TB/8GB Hybrid SSHD

•    Power Supply: Internal 450w 80Plus Gold

•    Dimensions: Approx. 12×12.4×2.9-inches high

“This design is not meant to serve the needs of all of the tens of millions of Steam users,” added Valve on the details.

“It may, however, be the kind of machine that a significant percentage of Steam users would actually want to purchase – those who want plenty of performance in a high-end living room package”

“Many others would opt for machines that have been more carefully designed to cost less, or to be tiny, or super quiet, and there will be Steam Machines that fit those descriptions.”

Train2Game News: Battlefield 4 Beta

Battlefield 4Get ready to immerse yourself in the chaos of all-out-warfare with the exclusive Battlefield 4 beta available now on Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC.

Developed by DICE and powered by the advanced technology of Frostbite 3, the exclusive Battlefield 4 beta will showcase best-in-class multiplayer, spectacular visuals and massive destruction that is hallmark to the Battlefield series.

The Battlefield 4 beta features the Siege of Shanghai map as well as two game modes including the signature large scale battles found in Conquest and the adrenaline-fueled mayhem of Domination. Fans will also witness the power of Levolution, a new design concept where the environment dynamically reacts to the players every move, both big and small, to ensure that no two games are ever the same.

The exclusive Battlefield 4 beta will also introduce fans to Battlepacks, random combinations of new camos, dog tags and more that gamers will earn by progressing through multiplayer and that add an all-new layer of persistence and chance to the multiplayer experience.

Fans looking to get into the exclusive Battlefield 4 beta before October 4 can do so in three ways:

  • Pre-order the Battlefield 4 PC Digital Deluxe edition
  • Be a Battlefield 3 premium member
  • Be a registered owner of Medal of Honor Warfighter Limited Edition or Digital Deluxe Edition

In addition, Battlefield 4 will be hosting an open beta available to all Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC players starting on October 4. For complete details on the Battlefield 4 beta please visit http://www.battlefield.com/uk/battlefield-4/beta.

Battlefield 4 will be available November 1 for current generation consoles and available at launch for next generation consoles.

Train2Game News: UK Top 20 Games – 30.09.13

FIFA 14I am surprised to announce there is a new number one this week in the game charts. After GTA V made over a billion dollars in just three days it has already been knocked off the top spot by FIFA 14.

All formats

Week ending 28 September 2013

POS.  TITLE  PUBLISHER  LAST
WEEK 
1 FIFA 14 EA SPORTS
2 GRAND THEFT AUTO V ROCKSTAR 1
3 MINECRAFT: XBOX 360 EDITION MICROSOFT 6
4 PRO EVOLUTION SOCCER 2014 KONAMI 2
5 THE LAST OF US SONY COMPUTER ENT. 3
6 DISNEY INFINITY DISNEY INFINITY 8
7 TOM CLANCY’S SPLINTER CELL: BLACKLIST UBISOFT 5
8 SAINTS ROW IV DEEP SILVER 4
9 DIABLO III BLIZZARD 7
10 RAYMAN LEGENDS UBISOFT 16
11 CALL OF DUTY: BLACK OPS II ACTIVISION 12
12 KINGDOM HEARTS HD 1.5 REMIX SQUARE ENIX 10
13 LEGO BATMAN 2: DC SUPER HEROES WARNER BROS. INTERACTIVE 11
14 GRAND THEFT AUTO IV XBOX 360 CLASSICS 13
15 MAX PAYNE 3 ROCKSTAR 15
16 NEED FOR SPEED MOST WANTED EA GAMES 17
17 SKYLANDERS GIANTS SKYLANDERS
18 ALIENS: COLONIAL MARINES SEGA 9
19 TOMB RAIDER SQUARE ENIX
20 ANIMAL CROSSING: NEW LEAF NINTENDO
< previous week

Leisure software charts compiled by Chart Track, (C)2013 UKIE LtdThese 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.