2016 and all that jazz – IDL NEWS

Hello, once again, internet.

Rocket League’s Xbox Release
Rocket League will finally make its debut on the Xbox on Wednesday, February 17th. Bundled with the game will be the three previously-released content packs: Supersonic Fury, Revenge of the Battle-Cars, and Chaos Run. The Xbox One will also include two unique vehicles inspired by Halo’s Warthog ad Gears of War’s Armadillo.

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Rocket League Hype Everywhere

Star Wars Battlefront Double XP Weekend
Star Wars Battlefront will host a double XP weekend February 12-14 after the SWB community successfully completed the recent Community Challenge.

I’ve found the game to be quite fun, and will try to log sometime this weekend to help rank up.

Tom Clancy’s The Division Umpteenth Beta
Ubisoft has announced another Division Beta, this most recent one running Feb 19-21st. I played the closed Alpha, and enjoyed what it had to offer, but NDA prevents me from discussing it further. And unfortunately I slept through the most recent closed beta, but I heard that it included the same missions and Dark Zone. I will try to take part during this new window to see where the game has improved, this close to release, and then share my opinions.

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Titanfall Sequel Will Have Single Player Campaign/Multiplatform
The sequel to 2014’s Titanfall, expected to release late 2016/early 2017 is confirmed to have a single-player campaign and will no longer be exclusive to the Xbox One.

“One of the shortcomings of the first game was we just did not have the mechanism to tell everyone ‘here’s who you are, here’s where you are, and who’s around you,'” Stern said. “We knew all the answers; we just could not deliver it.”

I loved Titanfall, and still play it from time to time. I felt that its lack of solid single-player was its only lacking element. That being said, I wouldn’t have played the online component as much as I did, if it had.

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New Releases – Feb 9

Assassins Creed Chronicles – Russia (Xbox One, PS4)
Wrapping up the trilogy, Russia has come out, just a few weeks after part two, India, came out. I played ACC China, and thought it was a unique 2.5D game, beautiful art and fun runner sequences. As I progressed through the game, it did become quite difficult in parts with a couple insta-fails parts. From what I’ve read India and Russia is very similar, but Russia has some unique sniper gameplay mechanics and a 2nd character, so I am looking forward to giving both of them a try. Here were my initial thoughts on China: ACC CHINA

Unravel (Xbox One, PS4, PC)
Unravel caught a lot of eyes at E32014 as this little indie darling being revealed by a very nervous dev showing off his baby for the first time, and not really know what to expect. The game has garnered quite the emotional response over the year that followed with fans sending in photos of their own little Yarny dolls. The game is finally out and I got to try the first two levels last week and found that the game was very pretty with some unique puzzle ideas. Excited to play through the full release.

Firewatch (PS4, PC)
Locked away as a PC and PS$ exclusive right now, Firewatch looks like a unique story driven game with brilliant voice acting. Not my typical genre but I’ll keep my ears peaked to news of any Xbox ports. One of the unique features of the PC version is you can order physical prints of the photos you take in-game.

Dying Light: The Following Enhanced Edition (PS4, Xbox One, PC)
Dying Light’s big expansion is here – The Following – and alongside it, comes the full Enhanced Edition package. Myself and Illestrader will be picking this up as we’re in need of another lengthy co-op game.

Lovers in a Dangerous Spacetime (PS4)
Lovers makes its PS4 debut. Here’s my impression, for the Xbox: Lovers in a Dangerous Spacetime

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In somewhat of a gaming rut, trudging through some and hesitant to start others, I recently sat down and played through the Beyond Good and Evil HD re-release. This was in-part because I wanted something fresh, but also because I wanted to give the Xbox One Backwards Compatibility a try, as I hadn’t to date. I’m going to put up a review for it later this week.

I’m also still working on the website re-alignment to include art and other projects. It’s been slow as other priorities have shuffled my website obligations some.

-iRogan

 

Tomb Raider, Rainbow Six, and Unravel- IDL NEWS

Back to what I do, news, games, games, and news. Obviously before I jump back into reviews, a little warming up is warranted. Write the rust off. Flex the hands.

I have a lot to talk about in the near future, reviews needing writing, news needing telling, impressed needing sharing. The holidays are nearing and free time is becoming a hot commodity.

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Rise of the Tomb Raider’s PC Date
S20150601131216Rise_of_the_Tomb_Raiderquare Enix had previously announced that Rise of the Tomb Raider would be released on the PC in “early 2016” and it appears we have the real date, outed by Amazon. RotTR’s Xbox One timed exclusivity ends January 29, 2016 and will come bundled with the Baba Yaga DLC.

Rainbow Six Siege’s Changes
Rainbow-Six-SiegeMid-to-late December, Ubisoft will be syncing up the HUD for both casual and ranked playlists, making the experience more consistent. This will encourage casual players to try their hands at the ranked areas without feeling overwhelmed, and competitive teams to test and experiment new plays in the casual arena without risking rank droppage. Ubisoft also announced hardcore playlists for next year – including minimal HUD, and mag count instead of bullet count.

Unravel Price and Date
unravelEA and Coldwood have announced that Unravel will release February 29th, 2016 for $19.99 on Xbox One, PS4, and PC.

 

EA describes Unravel as “a heartfelt story about love and longing, and the ties that bind, with Yarny as the red thread that runs through it all.”

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Looking forward through the looking glass, I have a lot of things to post and talk about, and I’m excited to be back. It’s been a nice break for sure, and I played a lot of games, and drew a lot.

I have quite the queue of reviews to get through over the next few weeks: Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor, Metal Gear Solid V: Phantom Pain, Need For Speed, Star Wars Battlefront, Assassins Creed Chronicles: China, Tales From The Borderlands, Wolf Among Us, Mushroom 11, Valiant Hearts: Total War, Gears of War: Ultimate Edition, Battlefield Hardline, and Pneuma: Breath of Life, to name a few.

I also plan to do a top 2015 Games I Played List.

ARK Early Access on the Xbox One releases tomorrow, so I’ll be talking about that. I still have Assassins Creed Unity and Batman Arkham Knight queued before Mad Max.

And some website optimization, re-org of categories and menus for the New Year. I honestly don’t know where I’ll find the time. Wish me luck.

_iRogan

E3 2015 – EA Press Conference – LIVE

EA E3 2015 Press Conference:

*Live blog. Please refresh*


Just a few minutes away. Quick hopefuls: Mass Effect 4, Star Wars Battlefront and Mirror’s Edge 2. I’m also expecting all the sports line-up 2016. More info about NHL 16. Hopefully more info about the Need for Speed reboot too.


Mass Effect Andromeda

-1:00pm: Time for EA. Starts with Mass Effect 4 concept art trailer, and zooms out to our new Shepherd with the Omnitool. Show’s space.

“Discover a new Galaxy”

-Shows the planet vehicle and new combat. Mass Effect: Andromeda. Holiday 2016.

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– Sizzle reel to showcase 3 new original IP. New sports titles, and Mirror’s Edge later in the show, and finally Star Wars. Games for console, PC, and mobile, with the finale of the show is Battlefront.


Need for Speed

-Up next is the return of Need for Speed. Live action story trailer. Definitely Need for Speed underground feel. Night driving in an open city. Inspired by the history of the series. Customization of NFS Underground, and open world of Carbon. Multiplayer and connectivity of Rivals. 2x the size of the Rivals map. Realistic world and iconic cars. Richest customization ever in a NFS game.

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-Fully open world. The 5 pillars of a Need for Speed game combined into one game: Speed / Style / Build / Crew and Outlaw, all combined into one game. November 3rd, 2015.

-In-game cutscenes are live action, transitions into the customization window for the car. Dozen of points of customization for the vehicle. Transition into the open streets and racing. Game looks gorgeous. Cinematic chase camera. Cops get involved almost immediately. Minimal HUD. Very much on the DICE Frostbite engine with particles and HUD artifacts. Race ends and the play needs to escape the cops.


Star Wars The Old Republic

Star Wars The Old Republic – New expansion: Knights of the Fallen Empire. Bioware style story. Free expansion for all subscribers. Quick pre-rendered story trailer.


Unravel

-EA plans on having more trials and Betas to get more fan feedback earlier. New IP up next.

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-First one up: an emotional and creative experience centered on a character with a huge heart. This is Unravel.

-Yarn game, sort of like Sackboy, Little Big Planet. Yarn unravels as we move. Yarny is the main character. Exploration game to find the proper path. Physics based gameplay to overcome obstacles. Quick trailer to show the story and gameplay. Very heartwarming game. player uses the yarn to swing or pull objects, and is always leaving a trail of yarn.


Plants Vs. Zombies Garden Warfare 2

Plant’s Vs Zombie mascot hits the stage to music. Gets quickly escorted off the stage.

“You can’t take zombies anywhere.”

Plants vs Zombie Garden Warfare 2. Plants on the attack for the first time in game’s history. New strategic layer of depth to the levels. Game game play demo. Shown the ZomBoss factory, a new level. Zombies have taken over and created Zomburbia. Now plants are on the attack to get their world back.

-New class – Imp. Playing as zombies, defending the factory from the invading plants. Live gameplay being shown. Smallest and fastest class. Next up. SuperBrainz, new melee class. CaptainDeadbeard is shown next, the zombies new sniper class. New power ups and weapons are shown. Imp calls down a Titan, and now its time to evacuate after the level has been completed. Sensing  a Titanfall vibe here :).

-GW2 now supports a solo play against AI or local split-screen. Transfer characters from GW1 over to 2 on launch. GW2 will launch Spring 2016. Game will support free content updates after launch. Game promises to be fun, and hilarious. Quick trailer sends us off showing a slew on new maps.


EA Sports

NHL 16 up next. Voiceover of a coach behind the scenes hyping up the players in the dressing room. Team is at the heart of NHL 16. EA Sports Hockey League is back.

Rory McIlroy PGA Golf now uses the Frostbite Engine. Real course and fantasy courses.

NHL and Madden incorporate training modes to help you become a better player

NBA Live 16 up next. Gameface HD scanning tech. You can use a mobile phone to capture the face, incorporates into the game. 5 secs to generate a preview. Pretty impressive. Sept 29th release for NBA Live 16. new free-flowing movement engine, 1000’s of new animations. Completely rebuilt passing and dribbling animations. New shot system to release the ball when you want. New game mode to be revealed later this summer. Quick trailer – captured in-game.


-Mobile games time. Need for Speed No Limits. Fifa 15 Ultimate Team 2nd screen on the Apple Watch.

Star Wars Galaxy of Heroes CCG card playing game. Across the whole Star War Universe.

Minions Paradise. A builder game. Quick trailer about the main character, Phil, who ruins everything. Seems like a mobile micromanagement game. Available later this year.


FIFA 16

FIFA 16 is up next. Quick historical trailer is shown. Pele comes to the stage – “the greatest football player of all time”. Story time about the history of the sport and the introduction to the sport in the USA. Football – the beautiful game.

-More innovation this year. Compete at a higher level, and new ways to play. better defense mechanics. Interception intelligence. No-touch dribbling. New trainer also incorporated into FIFA.

-For the first time ever, women’s teams are now in the game. More news throughout the summer.

-Quick trailer wraps up the FIFA portion- Play Beautiful.


Mirror’s Edge

-Experience the rise of faith. Mirror’s Edge is an origin story for faith. Mirror’s Edge Catalyst. More colour. Shows a new city. Trailer shows the backstory to Faith. New traversal and parkour.

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-To be released February 23rd, 2016. In-game footage trailer.


Madden NFL 16

-Draft champions discusses Fantasy Football. Similar to Madden mobile and Ultimate Team, but incorporated into the console version of Madden 16. Taking fantasy to another level. Can bring your drafted team solo or online.

-Passing mechanic has been overhauled.  Focused on 3 new positions. Quarterbacks has new body relative passes. Receivers has new catch types: possession catch, run-after-catch, and aggressive catch. Defenders. We can now play the receiver, and can interrupt passes as defenders. Game launches August 25th. E3 Trailer player – captured in-game.


Star Wars Battlefront

-An array of multiplayer modes. Ability to fly X-Wings. Play as one of the legends. Solo and Split-screen missions also available.

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-Gameplay: Walker Assault one of the largest modes. Empire must escort the AT-AT walkers. As the rebels, you must stop them. Captured from PS4 from both perspectives. Battle of Hoth. Shows the rebels running around the Hoth base defending incoming enemies. TIE fighters overhead and AT-AT incoming. Game is a first-person shooter or 3rd person shooter. Can call in orbital strikes. Can fly as the bombers. Looks amazing and sounds authentic. Bombers have the tow cable to trip the walkers. Can fly as the TIE fighters. Pilot the AT-AT. Explosions seem authentic. Lots of sparks. First person and 3rd person flying. Legends are on the battlefield too. Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker are shown.

-Coming November 17th, 2015.


EA’s press conference is over. Ubisoft is up right quick at 3PM.

-iRogan