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E3 2014: WildStar's Jeremy Gaffney introduces The Strain
Although WildStar launched a mere week before E3 2014, that didn't mean the team didn't have exciting new things to talk about! In fact, Carbine President Jeremy Gaffney revealed the new content coming up at the end of the month. Fans, prepare yourself for the Strain! If you think the moniker implies some hideous malady that results in freakish mutations, you're right on the money. From ferocious multi-fanged rowsdowers and giant gastrointestinal pustules to an emote that makes a purple alien mouth erupt from your chest, this new content created by the "intelligent virus" shows a whole new side of the planet Nexus. And I got a sneak peek of the new land, new dungeons, strain-infected gear, and other mutated goodies that await players in the Strain Ultradrop. As a bonus, we've even got the official trailer for you.
Night in the Woods' snappy dialogue inspired by Twitter
The protagonist of side-scrolling adventure game Night in the Woods is a cat named Mae. Like the other characters in the game, Mae acts more human than feline, a 20-year-old college dropout that's coping with both her and her friends' gradual transitions to adulthood. After the PC, Mac and Linux game earned $209,375 on Kickstarter in November, developer Infinite Fall announced a PS4 version earlier this month, which was playable at E3. Writer and art director Scott Benson's work to provide ambivalent quips and behaviors for Mae that complimented the cynical cat's inner dialogue was immediately apparent in the game's E3 demo. It started with Mae contemplating what news reports would sound like if she chose to burn her room down with her in it. After bounding down the stairs, Mae's mom called her to the kitchen to see if she would be home in time to watch an awful made-for-TV movie about a man that kidnapped his wife. There's an open chair, but Mae sits on the counter while the mother and daughter discuss the film's premise at length (providing players choose to keep the conversation going). The to-do list in Mae's diary then updates: "Watch misery porn with mom." Benson, a seasoned animator and illustrator from Pittsburgh that is crafting Night in the Woods' story with his wife Bethany, admitted to Joystiq at E3 that drafting lines for a video game is new to him: "I've never written fiction or characters really before," as his previous animated shorts tended to be of the silent type. Benson had an interesting source of inspiration for his witty one-liners, then: Twitter. As he explained, the social media channel "has the same kind of cadence and kind of vague feelings" as Mae and friends display in Night in the Woods.
WildStar's first update is Strain
"Something is waiting," teases a new page on WildStar's site. The "something" might be nebulous, but it will be packaged in the game's first big update, called the Strain ultradrop. WildStar will be revealing more details about the ultradrop over the next week and has posted a schedule for those reveals. A video will be coming tomorrow, followed by a spotlight on the new locations of Blighthaven and Northern Wastes on June 24th. Two days later on the 26th will be a focus on housing and customization, and finally a dev speak concerning the patch will come on the 30th. Massively will have your first look at Strain from E3 coming tomorrow, so stay tuned!
E3 2014: The Division recaps its demo
Eager to hear more about The Division in the wake of the E3 media blitz? For those of you not on the ground during the convention, the latest development blog recaps the fine points on display in the game's E3 demo. As the blog explains, the core conceit of The Division is that you're not accepting the collapse of civilization but pushing back against it, chiefly by shooting the heck out of bandits and creeps until they're not a problem any longer. As described by the blog post, the game utilizes a complex AI for enemies -- sniping a bandit but not his friends results in the others running back for reinforcements, leading to a pitched firefight and a chance to use special unlocked abilities. The demo also showed off using the support app to take control of a drone, allowing you to see around walls and provide important data to allies even without being directly in the game. Check out the full recap for a thorough breakdown of where the game is right now in terms of game mechanics. Massively's on the ground in Los Angeles during the week of June 10-12, bringing you all the best news from E3 2014. We're covering everything from WildStar and Landmark to Skyforge and H1Z1, so stay tuned!
E3 2014: Recapping Guild Wars 2's first season
With Season Two of Guild Wars 2's living story starting up on July 1st, players are eager for more information. So far, only snippets and clues have teased fans. To try and glean more details, I sat down with Associate Game Director Steven Waller and Studio Design Director Chris Whiteside at E3 2014. Before moving on to what lies in store, however, the devs wanted to look back at the impact of the first season. Oh, and they offered a new trailer that adds a bit more fuel to the teasing fire!
Monster Hunter reaches new heights with bug-shooting pogo stick
To some, each subsequent version in Capcom's Monster Hunter series only adds a few new beasts, weapons and gear while maintaining one core concept: Slaying large, ferocious creatures in lengthy quests. As series producer Ryozo Tsujimoto told Joystiq at E3 last week, "you have to keep the key elements intact but you also want to innovate, you also want to add some freshness." "Freshness" means more than just Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate's four new monsters and weapons (two apiece), but indicates Capcom's drive to improve the ways players explore and interact with the game's environment. "We tend to, on the design side, just think of things that we as players want to do in these worlds but are unable to do in the current state," Tsujimoto said. Looking back at the last game to launch in the west, Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate, the developer opened up the game to underwater sequences, introducing beasts like Gobul to spotlight submerged battles.
Midnight Star is a mobile FPS that works (no, really)
From the mind that co-created the Halo universe, Midnight Star is a robust, alien-infested first-person shooter – for mobile devices. Wait, where are you going? Hang on! Just – hang on. Midnight Star is a good mobile shooter. The game comes from Alex Seropian, the man behind Halo, and Tim Harris, a former comic store owner and co-founder of game studio Seven Lights. Together at Industrial Toys, Seropian and Harris have been promising Midnight Star as a mobile shooter with innovative controls that make sense for the touchscreen platform, something the jaded mobile masses can believe in. And so far, Midnight Star delivers.
Sports-platformer #IDARB takes Twitch chat trolling to a new level
The last thing I expected to see during my playthrough of Other Ocean's #IDARB at E3 last week was an airbrushed Rick Astley strolling across the screen, but that's exactly what happened, ruining a likely goal for my chicken-and-duck team. Shortly afterward, the background swirled and all players on the field turned into clowns -- accompanied, as if by contractual requirement, by Entry of the Gladiators. Other Ocean's competing sportsman Frank Cifaldi triggered these concentration-rattling effects by typing commands into a Twitch chat window during the match, altering the game's momentum in his favor. #IDARB's retro-styled, side-scrolling approach to the sports genre is at once simple and ambitious, and inventive features like Twitch chat integration make it one of the most intriguing games to earn the support of the ID@Xbox program.
Far Cry 4 is Far Cry 3's worst enemy
In Far Cry 3, you are the savior that fell from the sky. Unfortunately, you are also Jason Brody, the rich white kid diving out of an airplane joyride, and ultimately rescuing a tribe of Pacific islanders from vicious pirates. As fun as Far Cry 3 was in the midst of a gunfight, its story was rooted in problematic themes and hung around the necks of air-dropped outsiders. That's set to change significantly once you tread the Himalayan footpaths of Far Cry 4, says narrative director Mark Thompson. The game's opening moments see new protagonist Ajay Ghale persecuted in his former home of Kyrat, barely escaping an encounter with a vile, sacrilegious despot named Pagan Min. Ghale is a returning native, while Min, an elite figure from Hong Kong's criminal underworld, is the outsider casting the shadow of monarchy. The story of Far Cry 4 clearly hinges on the history of Nepal and its bloody turn from monarchy to sovereign state, but it also reflects on Far Cry 3's sham of a hero.
10 Years Gone: Today is Joystiq's most decadent birthday
Shunted out of the Los Angeles sunshine and E3's all-encompassing embrace, the Joystiq crew returned to their respective homelands over the weekend, finding solace on both sides of the Atlantic. They returned to loved ones, frequently photographed pets, and much-needed rest. Today, the crew celebrates completing not just another E3 but an altogether more momentous occasion: JOYSTIQ IS TEN YEARS OLD, Y'ALL! It was on June 16, 2004 that the little ol' website known as Joystiq was born. Appropriately, it was E3 2004 that demonstrated a need for Joystiq in the first place. Our sibling site Engadget, overwhelmed by covering the show that year, realized that maybe there was something to these video game things and so Joystiq was created to cover that wide realm. We've expanded and contracted over the years, ballooning out into blogs like Xbox 360 Fanboy and others, with myriad podcasts and shows created along the way. Ten years on, we're at our most focused, entertaining and potent, with the Super Joystiq Podcast, Joystiq Streams, and the kind of daily writing that makes grown men and women weep with joy. We're going to be celebrating our Tin Anniversary with all kinds of special stories, including a massive look back at our favorite games of the past decade. Stay tuned for those over the next few weeks, and stick around for the next ten years.
Persona's demon designer wants your opinion
Shigenori Soejima is the man behind the distinctive look behind super stylish games like Persona 4, Persona 5 and Catherine. Yes, he's the man you thank for the nightmare-inducing Immoral Beast, but he's also the one who gave us Chie, Teddie, Kanji, Koromaru as well as the bevvy of fascinating demons that populate the games of the Persona universe. Soejima was on hand at E3 for a rare autograph signing, and fans lined up for hours to meet him and thank him for his work on the art of the Persona games. I asked him, through a translator, how he felt about the outpouring of appreciation, and his answer was both humbling and surprising: "He was very happy to be able to come into contact with such fans but to be honest, he wanted to talk to them more. Because he's Japanese and he can speak to the Japanese fans, he knows what kinds of things that they think about his artwork, versus, he's not sure what foreign audiences think, because he can't speak with them. He wishes he had a little bit more one-on-one time and could ask each of the people what do you like about it, what is it that draws you to my artwork? So because he wants to know that, he says for your readers to actually write to him, he would love to hear from your fans." We confirmed with Atlus that this offer is completely legit, so if you've ever wanted to let Mr. Soejima know what you thought about his work - or to ask what the real deal is with Teddie - now's your chance. We'll collect the comments below and send them off to Atlus for translation so that they can be passed along to Soejima himself. First question: Mr. Soejima, have you ever considered a micropig sidekick for Persona 5? Just something to think about. [Image: Atlus]
The Mog Log: Final Fantasy XIV's E3 revelations
Let me open off with an apology: Last week didn't feature a Mog Log column, and that happened without warning. This was a calculated decision; I figured last Monday it would be silly to talk about a game promised many exciting E3 reveals before those reveals when there was a game that had just launched. So I held off talking about Final Fantasy XIV until this week, but I am sorry if anyone had a fear this column was being unceremoniously dropped. But oh my, was it ever worth it. Here we are in the wake of E3 fit to burst with new information, new revelations, all the fun stuff you could ask for from the convention. It's ever so joyous. So let's talk about what we've learned about the next patch, the patch after that, vague rumblings of the future, and... um... darn. There was one big thing that got unveiled at E3, wasn't there?
Cartoonish Cuphead fills up on new trailer, has hopes for Master System port
Cuphead, the first game from StudioMDHR, received a stylish new trailer and screens last week that puts its 1930's-inspired design on display. The "run and gun action game" was pushed back to 2015 thanks in part to the developer's decision to switch from the XNA framework to Unity. It also "totally scrapped the original world map in its rough state" and began re-envisioning a more minimal GUI to focus on Cuphead's classic cartoon feel. When the game was announced in January, it was originally planned for PC. That's since changed, as the developer now expects to launch Cuphead on Xbox One as well as Steam. StudioMDHR also mentioned a "dream idea" in its latest press update: The developer hopes "we can at least be successful enough to port it to Sega Master System with cartridge, instructions and box" one day. [Image: StudioMDHR]
E3 2014: A quick hands-on with Destiny
As much as you might want have wanted to sink your teeth into Destiny at E3 2014, the lines and waits were pretty long. Even after the wait, we were afforded but a small taste of what Bungie's upcoming shooter has to offer before the next group was shuffled through. After watching a video that touted plenty of public events, three-man strikes, dungeons, and story content, I followed the herd into a room and was subsequently not allowed to play any of that. Instead, the machines were all set up in teams for multiplayer PvP matches only. Using pre-made con characters (players will be able to take their own characters in the competitive multiplayer mode at release), we dived right in to two back-to-back capture-the-flag scenarios. On the plus side, the two maps highlighted the good graphics and sported very different landscapes; besides the very distinct themes, one had vehicles to utilize, while the other did not. On the negative side, throwing together such random teams of folks who've never touched the game before led to a less-than-ideal experience in teamwork. The brief play-test that focused only on PvP allowed for little in-depth exploration of the title. How's Destiny PvE and the rest of its sci-fi quasi-MMO experience? We'll let you know when beta opens July 17th on the PS4! Massively's on the ground in Los Angeles during the week of June 10-12, bringing you all the best news from E3 2014. We're covering everything from WildStar and Landmark to Skyforge and H1Z1, so stay tuned!
Feedback Loop: Discussing E3, Nintendo, live streaming and more!
This week's edition of Feedback Loop is packed with gaming goodness. We discuss all the E3 things, analyze Nintendo's upcoming titles, share the worst games we've ever played and find out if watching feeds of other people gaming is any fun. You'll find all this and more in our fabulous forums after the break.
E3 2014: Shroud of the Avatar's Garriott and Long emphasize immersion
Touted as the spiritual successor to Ultima Online by its creators, Shroud of the Avatar aims to fill a sandbox-shaped void in the modern MMOverse. Judging by the successful crowdfunding campaign and continued support by backers, I know there are plenty of players who are eager for that to happen and believe SotA is the game to do it. Are backers getting what they paid for? One weekend every month they can jump in and experience a new release of the game and offer feedback to the development team. And thanks to E3 2014, I also got to jump in and get some hands-on time with the latest release of the game. On top of that, I spoke with Richard Garriott and Executive Producer Starr Long about everything from player economy and pay-to-win concerns to combat, immersion, and player-contributed content.
Rumor: Black Desert in 'final phase of negotiations' with NA, EU publisher
You know how Massively sometimes posts about feature-packed Korean sandbox import Black Desert? And you know how there's always that one commenter who's all "why are you writing about this? We'll never get to play it!" Well, that dude is apparently wrong. Korean website Inven says that Pearl Abyss is in the "final phase of negotiations" with a North American and European publisher. A PA rep wouldn't divulge the company or companies involved when asked at this week's E3, but he did say that the publisher in question "should be familiar when mentioned," according to MMO Culture.
E3 2014: PlanetSide 2 PS4 demo showcases visuals, performance
While PlanetSide 2 has been out since the end of 2012 on the PC, it isn't due out on PlayStation 4 until later this year. At E3 2014, we got a hands-on demo of the game with lead game designer Luke Sigmund and executive producer Clint Worley to check out how the console version of the MMOFPS is coming along. And it's definitely coming along. Sigmund said that In order to get PS2 ready for release on the PS4, the team has been focusing a lot of attention on optimization and getting the controls feeling right. Currently, the team is doing daily playtests to get feedback on the look and feel of the builds. Sigmund emphasized, "The things we are focusing on for the PS4 are usability, new player experience, and optimization. For us, it's just a matter of getting it right. We don't want to put it out there and not be happy with the way it looks." So how does it look right now? Pretty darn good!
E3 2014 had more attendees, fewer exhibitors than last year
While we've already covered some of the weirdest stories from E3 2014, here's another eyebrow-raiser from this year's big video games conference: while there were more attendees at E3 2014 compared to last year, there were fewer exhibitors. The Electronic Software Association counted 48,900 heads this year compared to 48,200 last year, and 200 exhibitors compared to 230. And while those numbers are nice and all, they only tell a portion of the story. Ever wondered about the hotel situation when nearly 50,000 people travel from across the world to descend on the city of Los Angeles? The ESA claims in a related press release that attendees "secured more than 28,000 total hotel room nights and generated nearly $40 million in revenue" for Los Angeles. We may have contributed our own fair share of quarters to that number. [Image: Joystiq]
The next Adventure Time game is a link to the past
Adventure Time: The Secret of the Nameless Kingdom will be the first in the WayForward-developed series under publisher Little Orbit, and a new name means a new direction. Whereas the previous game, Explore The Dungeon Because I Don't Know! was ... well, a dungeon-crawler, Secret of the Nameless Kingdom takes its inspiration primarily from a Nintendo franchise: The Legend of Zelda.
