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The final 'Resident Evil Village' demo will be playable for 8 days
RE Village's final 60-minute demo will be playable for a full week.
Niantic's new 5G game demo highlights the future of AR gaming
Niantic has unveiled a new multiplayer AR demo game that it says can handle up to ten times more simultaneous players on 5G.
‘Resident Evil 3’ remake demo will come to consoles and PC on March 19th
The remake of 1999's Resident Evil 3 will be out in a matter of weeks, but there are plenty of survival horror fans who don't want to wait that long. A demo for the game will give gamers a taste of Jill Valentine's escape from Raccoon City on Thursday, March 19th. The remake uses the same engine as Resident Evil 7: Biohazard and the Resident Evil 2 remake, meaning there are no more frustrating tank-style controls. Instead, a more fluid, over-the-shoulder control scheme and camera setup will let players better experience one of the most well-received games in Capcom's iconic series.
Play the first chapter of 'Final Fantasy VII Remake' now
It's not long until the highly-anticipated remake of Final Fantasy VII launches, and while we may have picked up advance access -- you can make your own mind up. Yes, Square Enix has launched the first chapter of Final Fantasy VII Remake as a demo, playable starting today.
The Game Awards will run a 48-hour demo 'festival'
Public hands-on time at shows like E3 and PAX is great, but it's not much use if you can't be there in person. The Game Awards might have a simple solution for that problem: bring the show to you. It's introducing The Game Festival, an experimental event that will make demos for a dozen-plus indie games available through Steam for 48 hours starting on December 12th at 1PM Eastern. You might recognize some of the selections, including Nightdive's System Shock remake and Glass Bottom's charming-as-hell Skatebird.
'The Last of Us Part II’ preview: Vengeance and vulnerability
It's been years since I've felt so vulnerable playing The Last of Us. While I've finished the original game several times, this is my first time playing the upcoming sequel. I'm stalking my way through the suburbs of Seattle on a revenge mission, and things are getting dire — no health packs, no shotgun shells, just a knife, a revolver, far too few bullets and far too many enemies on my tail. But let's back up a bit. At the exact moment Sony announced The Last of Us Part II's February 2020 release date, I was playing the game at a preview event in Los Angeles. The demo I was handed consists of two disconnected sequences. Developer Naughty Dog explained that the Seattle segment comes after a traumatic event that sets Ellie -- Part II's protagonist -- off from her home in Jackson, Wyoming.
'Anthem' VIP demo gets off to a rough start
The "VIP" demo period for EA's Destiny-like online shooter Anthem started at noon ET today and almost immediately ran into gamestopping issues. Despite being limited to invited users and those who had pre-ordered, it faced severe capacity issues and connection problems that eventually impacted all of EA's online services this afternoon. Login issues across EA's services have been mostly resolved, and according to the company, players on PC and PS4 should be able to access the demo now without any issue -- if you can't try restarting the game and logging in again. However, a spokesperson tells Engadget "Our team is still working on fixes for some of the issues we're seeing on Xbox One," where many players are getting stuck at the loading screen above. For those who did get in, the problems didn't start there, with disconnections and crashes. However, many people are playing right now, and streams of the demo currently make it the third-most viewed game on Twitch. An open demo is supposed to be available on February 1st -- we'll see if the servers hold up better then. Update: A new EA support page covering the Day 1 issues said that connectivity on Xbox One should be improved, and advises anyone still seeing issues to restart their console. Update 2 (1/26): If you were hoping EA would give players something for their trouble, then congratulations, there will be an additional new vinyl available at launch for those who played this weekend. And that's it. Otherwise, BioWare's Head of Live Service Chad Robertson acknowledged that the launch of this demo "did not go exactly as we planned," while offering some explanations and talking about fixes that could roll out now or may wait until next weekend's open demo.
'Anthem' demo is available to pre-load on all platforms
BioWare's Anthem is less than a month away, but before then players will get a taste of the shared-world shooter thanks to a pre-release demo. This being EA, however, the timings are a tad complicated.
'Anthem' demo will be open to everyone on February 1st
No, you won't have to plunk down some cash to play the Anthem demo before the game's February 22nd debut. BioWare and EA have announced that the sneak peek on February 1st through February 3rd is an open demo that will be accessible to anyone on PC, PS4 and Xbox One. If you've either pre-ordered the game or subscribe to Origin Access, you'll just play earlier -- a "VIP" demo will run between January 25th and January 27th. You'll also receive an in-game item to flaunt your early adopter status.
BioWare will offer a full 'Anthem' demo on February 1st
Full demos for games aren't very common these days, especially for online-focused games where you're more likely to see alpha and beta tests. BioWare is promising something different for Anthem, however. The studio plans to release an honest-to-goodness demo for the shared-world shooter on February 1st for PS4, Xbox One and PC players. You'll likely have to be a "VIP" (that is, either a pre-order customer or an EA Access subscriber) to try it, but this should offer a proper taste of the game rather than a technical preview like Destiny's alpha tests.
'Transference' demo gives a taste of Elijah Wood's PSVR thriller
The Elijah Wood-backed mind-bender Transference is due to arrive September 18th, but you don't have to wait until then (or spend hard-earned cash) to see if it lives up early buzz. Ubisoft and SpectreVision have released a prequel demo, The Walter Test Case, for both PlayStation VR and regular PS4 users. The title has you living through the 1993 experiment that sets up the main game, making you experience the "digitally recreated" memories of a PTSD patient while tackling puzzles in a mysterious apartment. Suffice it to say this won't be a walk in the park.
Watch 20 minutes of 'Anthem' gameplay in 4K
Open-world action RPG Anthem is finally set to arrive in February on PS4, PC and Xbox One. Bioware is getting gamers pumped by releasing a video of the gameplay demo it showcased at E3, including almost 20 minutes of footage. Better yet, the video is in 4K resolution, so you can see just how rich those visuals are.
Waymo's 360-degree demo ride shows what self-driving cars 'see'
One of the big steps necessary to roll out self-driving cars is getting the public to trust them, and Waymo's latest attempt to achieve that is with a new 360-degree experience. Viewable on a computer, your phone or a VR headset, it feeds a simulation of mixed video and sensor data (LiDAR, radar and cameras) from one of the company's Pacifica Hybrid minivans to give you a feeling of what it "sees" while driving along.
StoreDot demos EV battery that reaches a full charge in 5 minutes
StoreDot, an Israeli startup known for making fast-charging batteries, announced its model for EVs in 2015. The company claims that its EV battery can reach a full charge within only five minutes and can keep the car running for 300 miles. Now, to prove that its technology works, StoreDot has demonstrated its product's charging capability on stage at the CUBE Tech Fair in Berlin. The presenters didn't exactly have the chance to show the battery get to 100 percent, since they had to pack up before the process was done. But you can still see how fast it inhales electricity in this Periscope video taken by Gruendermetropole.
Play the unsettling opening of 'Prey' for free
With epics like Zelda and Persona 5 still occupying many players' time, the idea of spending more hard-earned cash on another $60 game is a big ask. It seems as though publishers have realized this too, as in a bid to drive sales for the upcoming Prey, Bethesda is letting you try it before you buy. Starting on April 27th, PS4 and Xbox One owners will be able to dive into the game's unsettling first hour free of charge. With the full game not launching until May 5th, this gives console gamers a week to figure out whether Prey's worth the cash. Putting you in the shoes of Morgan Yu, this sci-fi adventure sees players exploring the seemingly idyllic Talos 1 before you discover the space station's terrifying secret.
The hidden depth of mobile puzzle game 'Where Cards Fall'
We're sitting in a circle on the floor of a decadent San Francisco hotel lobby, crowds of people milling around the couches and stairways. The young men of Snowman, the studio behind Alto's Adventure, watch as Sam Rosenthal sets up a small iPad, preparing to show off his latest game, Where Cards Fall. Rosenthal is the co-founder of the Game Band, a small Los Angeles studio working with Snowman to bring its new project to iOS, Apple TV and Steam this autumn. Rosenthal flips through a slideshow of character designs, explaining the premise as he goes. Where Cards Fall is a top-down, 3D puzzle game that has players build houses of cards to navigate tricky environments. It follows a handful of teenagers over the course of 10 years, from adolescence to college and finally adulthood. The art is cartoonish yet polished, as if the designs of Oxenfree had been transformed into 3D.
Play 'Overwatch' for free all next weekend
If you already aren't one of Overwatch's 20 million players, developer Blizzard Entertainment wants to fix that. Starting next Friday at 1pm Eastern, PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One owners can play the wildly popular shooter for free. And this isn't just a limited slice of the game, either. The entire roster of heroes and maps are available across Quick Play, Custom Games and the Weekly Brawl.
'Superhot VR' feels like a time bending, action-packed puzzle
Earlier this year, Superhot launched on PC and consoles with a fresh gameplay gimmick: Time only moves when you move. This simple idea turned the fast-paced action of an FPS shooter into an odd, methodical, and tense puzzle game where players could stop in their tracks to think their way around a barrage of incoming bullets. It's incredibly fun on traditional gaming platforms -- but it's even better in virtual reality.
Prepare for terror with the 'Outlast 2' demo
With Halloween fast approaching, it's a good time to build out your collection of spooky games. Outlast, a first-person thriller set in a psychiatric hospital, was a huge hit in 2014, and now developer Red Barrels is working on a sequel. To pique your curiosity, it's offering a free demo on Xbox One, PS4 and Steam. I can't vouch for its scariness, but my colleague Jess Conditt was appropriately terrified, jumping and shrieking at E3 last June. It follows two journalists, Blake and Lynn Langermann, as they investigate a murder deep in the Arizona desert. Scary stuff. The teaser will be available until November 1st. If you're still pining for some Outland lore, there's also a comic book series called The Murkoff Account you can check out -- two of five issues have been released so far, explaining some of the events between the first and second games.
Hopefully the new 'Resident Evil 7' demo won't make you queasy
If the first demo for Resident Evil 7: Biohazard didn't leave you with a headache or worse (yeah, even in 2D), it might've left you scratching your noggin. Well, the "Beginning Hour" demo is getting an update, according to a post on the PlayStation Blog. The Twilight update "expands on what you can do and explore" in the run-down shack. Over on Capcom Unity the publisher-developer teases that even if you've explored every corner of the house that "we've got something special in store for you." So maybe, just maybe, you'll find a use for that severed finger. Hopefully the update means the flashlight's incessant bobbing and swaying been fixed, too.
