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Elder Scrolls MMO: What We Want To See
Adam Barnes
Elder Scrolls Online has been announced, but what do we want to see?
The Elder Scrolls MMO is official, and with such a vast and ripe world to explore there’s plenty of options for Bethesda to use. But what do we want to see from such an epic MMO?
New Races: Snow Elves, Dwarves?
Rumoured to be set a thousand years before Skyrim, we’d like to see the eclectic mix of races available to the history of the Elder Scrolls. Snow Elves have been rumoured for the next Skyrim DLC, and as a race that was forced underground by the Dark Elves of Morrowind, it would be interesting to see this event unfold.
Similar the Dwarves, or the Dwemer as they’re more commonly known throughout the Elder Scrolls, are a mysterious race. Long-since perished, these dwarves have left ancient ruins filled with mechanical contraptions autonomously defending the dangerous underground caverns.
There’s two options here: exploring the race of Dwarves as they lived their lives or watching the downfall of the inventive Dwemer.... Read More...
Black Ops 2: A New Beginning, Or The Beginning Of The End?
Dave Cook
Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 has been officially revealed. Does this near-future military romp change things enough to halt brand fatigue, or will it be another nail in the coffin? Read on to find out.
The reveal of Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 was one of the worst kept secrets in gaming for a long time. That said, few could actually predict just how far Treyarch would stray from the beaten path in an attempt to keep brand fatigue at bay.
In the eyes of many, something simply had to give, but nobody knew what the studio had in store. Would the Black Ops 2 campaign deliver another predictable romp down a static corridor full of bombast and noise, or would it breathe new life into the beast?
When the official reveal trailer dropped this morning, rumours of a near-future backdrop were confirmed, but reaction to the clip has been mixed to say the least. Many gamers and critics have called out Black Ops 2 by saying it’s simply another Call of Duty game with a sci-fi skin, and at face value, you can sort of see their point.
Others applauded the shift in tone, and the possibilities it could bring to the table. Granted, it’s a change... Read More...
Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 Reveal, Multiplayer & Weapons - What The New COD Needs To Stay Fresh
Dave Cook
Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 is being revealed 1st May. We discuss what Treyarch needs to do if it’s going to keep the series fresh.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 is set for a worldwide reveal on Tuesday 1st May over at the official Call of Duty website. To be fair, the unveiling of Black Ops 2 this year was always a safe bet, but this predictability is half of the problem Activision’s franchise now faces.
Depending on who you ask, Treyarch is either the best thing to happen to the Call of Duty franchise in recent years, or the worst. Call of Duty: Black Ops split opinion in a big way, based on the studio’s weak efforts Call of Duty 3 and Call of Duty: World at War.
But mistakes can be rectified, and in Call of Duty: Black Ops Treyarch – love them or hate them – created what is possibly the most fairly balanced Call of Duty multiplayer since the first Modern Warfare, while attempting to buck the trend with new features.
This desire to stay fresh is exactly what the Call of Duty series needs to stay on top. Whopping year on year sales, no matter how much... Read More...
Generation Z: The Next-Generation Is Coming But It Won't Be What You Expect
Nick Jones
The next generation of games consoles won't follow the established pattern but will be born of the internet generation, says NowGamer Editor in Chief, Nick Jones.
Back in 2010, Valve's Gabe Newell took to the stage at Sony's pre-E3 press conference to announce Portal 2 for PlayStation 3. Along with that announcement came another, less headline-friendly one: Steamworks would be a part of the deal – play Portal 2 on PS3 and connect to Steam, Steam cloud, Steam friends and Steam achievements.
No other Steamworks/console crossovers followed but the point was taken, and the intent clear: Valve wanted a piece of that box under your TV.
Six years ago no one could have imagined a PC-centric company like Valve would be a part of the console landscape but that landscape looked very different back then. There was an established way of doing things: every five years or so console manufacturers would release more powerful hardware, each generation would have a winner and a loser. Commodore Vs Spectrum, Nintendo Vs Sega, Sony Vs Microsoft. And all the while, PC would remain in the background, keeping itself to...
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Valve’s Steam Console – Why It Could Revolutionise Gaming
Dave Cook
Valve is rumoured to be working on a Steam console, but would this be a guaranteed hit for the developer? We weigh up the evidence.
Valve has already conquered the realm of digital PC game sales through its Steam service, but recent rumours suggest that Gabe Newell and company are looking at taking on the console market as well.
Although Valve has staunchly debunked claims that it’s developing a console, computer engineer Jeri Ellsworth recently tweeted “I’m working at Valve on next gen gaming hardware”.
Now, either Ellsworth knows a whole lot that the rest of us don’t or he’s a massive troll. True or not, recent rumblings in the industry are pointing towards some kind of hardware interest at the studio.
On the face of it, a Steam console sounds like a great idea. The games on Steam are affordable, there’s no subscription fee, the selection of titles is vast and there are tons of big name... Read More...
Kinect’s Broken Promises - Has the Kinect Dream Been Realised?
Dave Cook
Kinect has been out for over a year now, but has it lived up to the reveal hype? Join as we discuss Kinect’s success, failings and future.
When Microsoft revealed Kinect to the world, the announcement came hand-in-hand with a pretty hefty elevator pitch. Talk of truly immersive worlds where you are the controller became common among the PR buzz circuit.
Among the hype, pipedreams of Minority Report interfaces and intelligent, speech-based communication with NPCs got onlookers sweaty with anticipation, while clips of loved up couples and genetically perfect families playing games together set the scene.
The circus continued as Peter Molyneux and his AI cavalcade promised us the most advanced NPC interaction ever seen in gaming through Milo. “Is it a game?”, “is it just tech?”, “Wow, that Kate sure is pretty eh?”
In the run up to Kinect’s launch, rumours leaked out of the gaming news sphere about Microsoft removing a proposed processor from the device in order to trim back production costs. The removal allegedly stunted Kinect’s... Read More...
Halo 4: Why Copying Call Of Duty Is A Big Mistake
Dave Cook
Halo 4 multiplayer is slowly being revealed by 343 Industries, but is the series in danger of going from innovator to follower in the wake of Call of Duty? Join the discussion here.
Halo 4 has been shown in more detail this week, by way of a Game Informer reveal, and as part of this coverage 343 Industries has been revealing nuggets of information on the multiplayer component, which has been dubbed Halo Infinity.
There seems to be a lot of cribbing from the Call of Duty playbook going on, such as a new mini-mission mode called Spartan Ops, a bigger focus on currency that can be spent on new gear, talk of expanded load-outs, overhauled perk systems and more.
The Call of Duty DNA is all over these elements. Spartan Ops sounds like Call of Duty’s Spec Ops with a narrative, perks and load-outs are a staple of Activision’s series and so on.
When Bungie was in control of the Halo franchise, innovation was assured with each release - just look at Halo 3’s Forge for example. I would be unfortunate to see 343 developing Halo 4’s multiplayer component based on the wants of the Call of Duty massive,... Read More...
The Mass Effect 3 Ending As Seen Through The Eyes Of The Internet
Nick Jones
The internet's reaction to the Mass Effect 3 ending has been manic, extreme, but most of all creative. Nick Jones takes a look at how gamers have translated their feelings about the ending into pictures and video.
I'm pretty sure that everything that could be said about the Mass Effect 3 ending has been said.
People have felt entitled, have protested, raised cash for charity in an attempt to get BioWare change the ending even... while others have felt the need to dissect the ending find its ‘true’ meaning.
It's a dream! Apparently.
Things got so bad that BioWare even promised it will look into the issues. Ray Muzyka explained that he felt games were an art form and that "the team and I have been thinking hard about how to best address the comments on ME3’s endings from players, while still maintaining the artistic integrity of the game."
I can smell new DLC.
Whatever the final outcome, what I’ve found...
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Durango: Why A DLC-Only Console Isn’t Possible. Yet.
Nick Jones
Microsoft’s new Xbox, supposedly codenamed ‘Durango’, will supposedly come without a disc drive. The most likely distribution method of games, therefore, would be via DLC. But is this even possible, and if so, what are the challenges facing Microsoft to make it a reality?
On the face of it, the idea seems reasonable enough – we’ve all been downloading content digitally for years. So the next logical step is for gaming to follow suit, right?
Certainly, for publishers, there are huge advantages to digital delivery: a massive reduction in piracy, prices are controlled at the source, trade-ins are eliminated overnight and production and distribution costs are massively cut. But there are some pretty big problems Microsoft must overcome if it’s to make a DLC-only console a reality.
Game sizes are massive and are only going to grow with the next generation of consoles.
The main difference in delivering an MP3 and a triple-A game digitally is the file size. The average album rocks in at around 50MB but compare this to Uncharted 3, which, according to Sony, was the first game to fill a 50GB Blu-ray disc.
And you think 50GB is unusually large for a current gen game? Well, think...
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The New iPad Release: What It Means For Games.
Dave Cook
iPad is getting a 3rd iteration, as revealed by Apple at an event in San Francisco last night, along with some strong words about the new tablet as a gaming device. But what does the new iPad really mean for gaming?
iPad 3, ‘The New iPad’ – whatever you want to call it – has finally been revealed by Apple, and along with it, the capability to support bigger and better games.
However, speaking at Apple’s iPad reveal event, Apple CEO Tim Cook said that the iPad is the favourite gaming device for those who own home consoles such as Xbox 360 and PS3.
I’m not quite sure where Cook got his information from, but I’m pretty certain that for many people this statement simply doesn’t ring true.
Can Apple be justified in stacking the new iPad against this generation’s home consoles? Granted, the new iPad is a nice piece of kit, boasting a quad core A5X chip set, a retina display screen that weighs in at 2048 x 1536 resolution, and AirPlay mirroring with Apple TV.
All nice features I’m sure you’ll agree, and while this means that the new iPad tech places it almost shoulder-to-shoulder with PS3, the... Read More...
Latest Entries
- Elder Scrolls MMO: What We Want To See
- Black Ops 2: A New Beginning, Or The Beginning Of The End?
- Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 Reveal, Multiplayer & Weapons - What The New COD Needs To Stay Fresh
- Generation Z: The Next-Generation Is Coming But It Won't Be What You Expect
- Valve’s Steam Console – Why It Could Revolutionise Gaming
- Kinect’s Broken Promises - Has the Kinect Dream Been Realised?
- Halo 4: Why Copying Call Of Duty Is A Big Mistake
- The Mass Effect 3 Ending As Seen Through The Eyes Of The Internet
- Durango: Why A DLC-Only Console Isn’t Possible. Yet.
- The New iPad Release: What It Means For Games.
