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Serato adds SoundCloud, Tidal and more to your DJ toolbox
Serato DJ's latest Pro 2.1 and Lite 1.1 software updates have been in public beta for a couple of months, but today those final versions go live. Included with these updates are the addition of SoundCloud and Tidal streaming services right from your library, which is a big step forward for expanding your repertoire on-the-fly. The Serato Play expansion pack ($39) is also now an option, which provides controller-like tools on your keyboard, four decks, a row of filter knobs and headphone splitter capability, so you can finally do proper sets without connected hardware (if you really need to).
Expect four new expansions for 'Battlefield 1' this year
If you're a Battlefield 1 fan, get ready to open your wallet and jump into even more WWI-inspired battles. Gaming heavyweights EA and DICE just revealed four new expansion packs for its popular first-person shooter. All four expansions are included in this brand-new annual Premium Pass, which is available for XBox One, PS4 and PC via EA's Origin service. Each expansion will be available for purchase separately with the first entry, "They Shall Not Pass," available to premium members on March 14 and March 28 for non-premium players.
'The Sims 4' heads to the city with its latest expansion
As much as The Sims 4 has done to expand its cultural boundaries over time, it has always been set in the suburbs -- you know, that bastion of conformity and homogeneity. What about the city, where experiences tend to be more diverse? Enter City Living, a new paid add-on for the game that (surprise!) takes place in an urban landscape. You can live in or visit four distinct neighborhoods in San Myshuno, and broaden your horizons by attending street festivals or crooning at the local karaoke bar. At first glance, it's a more varied experience -- both culturally and in terms of gameplay.
Perfect World International product manager discusses expansion
Perfect World International revealed information on their expansion Rising Tide last month, and fans who were anxious to play it finally got their wish. Rising Tide is now live, and product manager Jon Belliss found some time to sit down with WarCry and discuss it a bit. The interview gave a nice rundown of the new race (The Tideborn) and two new classes (Psychic and Assassin) in the expansion. This fourth race has been in the works for a while, so the Perfect World International development team is excited to see their hard work go live. The new race and classes are only the beginning, however. Rising Tide features three new explorable zones, over 200 new quests (including some for married characters), over 100 new monsters, new gear, and quite a bit more. The full interview can be found over at WarCry, and more information on the expansion is available on the official site.
Guessing at early sales numbers for Wrath
Unfortunately, as of this writing, Blizzard hasn't yet released actual numbers for Wrath sales last week (we were expecting around two million, but we'll see what they say eventually). But that won't stop us from guessing -- the list of top ten games sold last week in the UK is out, and Wrath... is number two.That's right -- Activision's own Call of Duty: World at War beat out Wrath for the number one spot, but before you start worrying whether WoW has lost its charm, don't: not only was Wrath an expansion pack (expansion packs obviously don't sell as well as standalone games, sequels or otherwise), but the Call of Duty game has already outsold its prequel, the extremely successful Call of Duty 4, by a 2:1 ratio. Unfortunately, we don't have numbers yet, but all indications are that, in the UK alone, Wrath did almost as well as a game that outsold last year's best selling game. That all make sense?If not, hear this: Blizzard made a lot of money last week, and pretty soon we'll hear how much. Even more amazing, Activision Blizzard, who owns Guitar Hero, Call of Duty, and World of Warcraft, accounted for a full 25% of all UK game sales last week. The merger has already paid off.
EverQuest II upcoming expansion details: Set sail for the Rise of Kunark
Since we've now heard that pre-orders are becoming available for the fourth expansion to EverQuest II, expected to be released November 13th, let's take a look at what players will have to look forward to. Rise of Kunark will focus on the continent of Kunark, including its dragon-lizard inhabitants, the Sarnak. Veterans of the first EverQuest game may remember these annoying fellows, introduced during its first expansion, and be keen to relive old memories by relentlessly hunting them down all over again. But this time around, you can expect them to have a little help.The Sarnak will be greatly bolstering their numbers, as for the first time they become a playable race. Sarnaks will have their own new starting city located in the islands of the Timorous Deep, and the surrounding areas will support advancement to around level 20. The Kunark mainland is designed for the upper echelon of levels, and the expansion itself includes an increase of the existing level cap from 70 to 80. Along with the raising of the level cap and new race, other highlights of Rise of Kunark include an increase in the current achievement point limit of 100 to 140, and a new player mount, the Kunarkian Rhinoceros (which for some reason instantly brings to mind Donkey Kong Country and the rampaging Rambi) to traverse the lands upon. There will of course be new dungeons and raid encounters for the high level folks to sink their teeth into, with Veeshan's Peak (making its return from the original EverQuest) for the top raiders. You can read about the expansion or pre-order the game from Sony's Station Store. Those that pre-order will receive a new pet for their house, a Burynai Seeker. If you wanted to give the game a go before the expansion hits, EQ2's main page includes a download link to a 14-day free trial.
Bethesda talks Shivering Isles download and price
Bethesda Vice President of PR Pete Hines sat down with Gamasutra to talk about Oblivion's Shivering Isles expansion. In the Q&A, Hines stated that the the content will only be available through Xbox Live Marketplace. According to Hines, stand-alone expansions can not work with another existing product on the Xbox 360, leaving Marketplace downloads as the only viable option. Despite Bethesda wanting to have a version for the retail market, they were unable to do so because of this. Should implementing expansions via disc become possible after some extensive work on Microsoft's part, Bethesda plans to explore that option for Shivering Isles. As for price point, Bethesda doesn't have anything concrete yet. They are still in talks with Microsoft to find the proper balance between value and profitability. After Shivering Isles releases, Hines said that they are planning one or two more pieces of content for Oblivion, albeit not the size of the forthcoming expansion. So are you going to download Shivering Isles? If so, how much are you willing to pay?[Via Digg]
GRAW Chapter 2 expansion is now 1/2 off
When Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter's expansion pack came out on the XBLM there was a little uproar from the fans. Not due to the luscious content it held, oh no, but because the download cost a whopping 1200 Microsoft Points! But today Ubisoft announced that the Chapter 2 expansion pack has been discounted to a more reasonable 600 Microsoft Points. Go download the expansion pack for the new uber low price and if you already purchased it for 1200 ... that kind of sucks. Maybe Ubisoft will be nice next time and not gouge their loyal fans who ate up the content right away. [Thanks, Derka]
F.E.A.R. expansion announced, TimeGate to develop
Sierra Entertainment has announced that Extraction Point, the first F.E.A.R. expansion, is in the works and will be released for the PC this fall. TimeGate (Axis & Allies, Kohan) is handling the development, including the story concept. However, according to Vivendi (Sierra's parent company), Monolith is working closely with the studio to ensure that the expansion maintains the integrity of the original game.Monolith, now owned by Warner Bros., is working on its own sequel to F.E.A.R. and would do well to steer TimeGate in the right direction, as the expansion will likely tie the first and second games together. Monolith is also working with Vivendi to release the v1.5 patch, which will enhance F.E.A.R.'s multiplayer.Note: whether or not the expansion content will make it into the Xbox 360 port of F.E.A.R. has not been revealed.
Burning Crusade Bestiary
The official Burning Crusade site has been updated with a small bestiary, with promises of more additions in the coming months. Included is some interesting lore and nice concept art for Ethereals, Fleshbeasts, Forest Trolls, and Gronn. It is only a small update, true, but with so little substantial news about the expansion, you take what you can get.
