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Halo 4 ViDoc makes Chief human, multiplayer map 'Exile' revealed
Along with the revelation that Grifball will be making its way into Halo 4 multiplayer, a number of other exciting tidbits were revealed by 343 Industries at PAX. First up is a brand new ViDoc which takes a look behind the scenes of Halo 4 and at the emotional growth of John 117 himself. Of particular interest are the bits showing off Halo 4's motion capture setup, which appears to be borrowing a page from Naughty Dog's playbook and capturing the full physical performance of the game's actors.Next up is a first look at the multiplayer map, Exile. Check out some screens below, featuring a verdant canyon setting and one guy being really mean with the flag.
Kirby-themed bubblegum record blown away at PAX
In other news, 536 people blew bubblegum bubbles together. Also, it was a world record for simultaneous bubblegum blowing, which is lovely. The bubblegum blowers blew at PAX to celebrate Kirby's 20th anniversary, and the upcoming release of Kirby's Dream Collection on September 16We were unsure Nintendo could rustle up enough blowers to blow a world record. But, like the bubblegum, we were blown away, as was the previous record of 304 achieved by Kirkwood Community College in 2010. We're sorry, Kirkwood, but 304 to 536 just blows.
PAX Prime 2012: Neverwinter and Raiderz flaunt their stuff
Did you realize that PAX was going on this weekend? I bet you did. I bet something gave it away, like the puddle flood of posts titled with PAX Prime 2012 all over our feed. If you didn't notice, here's thew news: PAX Prime went down this weekend. You're a little late, though; it's pretty much all over. But you can read about stuff we did. Go ahead. I'll wait. This post ain't going anywhere. So now that you're up to speed, let's talk about about Neverwinter and RaiderZ, both of which Perfect World Entertainment was showing off this weekend.
This Unfinished Swan story trailer is delightful
This trailer for The Unfinished Swan from PAX 2012 delves into the Sony-published, Giant Sparrow-developed game's mysterious plot. While no specific release date has been revealed for this PSN-exclusive game, the game's official site indicates it will launch some time in 2012.
PAX Prime 2012: Riot and the North American regionals
It's a good time to be a League of Legends fan. With the European regionals at Gamescom and North American regionals here at PAX Prime, there's plenty of excitement. The Riot team is gearing up for big changes in Season Three while continuing to support its incredibly large community. We sat down with the busy and gracious Associate Producer Paul Bellezza to talk about what Riot is looking forward to in the near future.
Ron Gilbert's platformer / adventure game 'The Cave' also headed to Wii U eShop
The Cave isn't just destined for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC, apparently. During a demo at PAX Prime this afternoon, DoubleFine rep Greg Rice pointed out that the game's also headed to the Nintendo Wii U's eShop.The platformer slash adventure game wasn't actually playable on Wii U at the studio's booth, so it's unclear how different (if at all) the game will be on Nintendo's next home console. We're hoping that the Wii U's tablet controller (the WiiPad™) has a giant touchscreen button that simply says "Solve," though it'll probably be something more clever.
How Cave Johnson's talking head got cut from Portal 2
Cave Johnson, the eccentric, unstable president of Aperture Science, was going to have a more purposeful role in Portal 2, writer Erik Wolpaw said during the Plot vs. Play panel (co-hosted by Joystiq's Ben Gilbert) at PAX Prime today.Wolpaw described the following scene, which was cut from the final version of Portal 2 after Valve realized it was too vague mechanically for players to enjoy: Cave Johnson's voice said, "I'm Cave Johnson" over the intercom, followed by, "No, really, I'm Cave Johnson. Look down." Cave's personality was trapped in a computer and he begged to be unplugged, while players found use in his hardware and had to push him against a wall to jump on a ledge.In the end, the gameplay didn't fly and the scene – and story arc featuring Cave in a computer – was removed entirely. We like to think that means Cave got his wish, and he's not still trapped inside a box, screaming about lemons and plugs.
Watch a live stream of Joystiq's PAX panel with Erik Wolpaw, Tim Schafer, Kotaku [Update: It's over!]
Joystiq's Ben Gilbert is sitting down with Valve's Erik Wolpaw (writer on the Portal series), Double Fine's Tim Schafer (company president and fundraising maven) and Kotaku's Jason Shreier at PAX Prime today, to talk "Plot vs. Play."This ragtag group will dissect the importance of narrative over gameplay, vice versa, inside-out and inverted, and it's all captured live for you to watch below via Twitch TV. The panel begins at 3 p.m. ET, or as the indoctrinated few call it, right now.Update: The panel and live stream are now finished. If you missed the action, keep an eye on the PAX Prime 2012 page on Twitch TV, which should update with the day's recording.
Halo 4 adds Grifball to the multiplayer menu
Community-created mode Grifball is graduating to the big time in Halo 4. 343 Industries revealed during PAX this weekend that the popular sport would now be a major multiplayer mode in Halo 4, available for play at launch. For the unaware, Grifball pits two teams against each other as they fight to grab a bomb (or, ball, in this case) and deliver it to the enemy's base. Each team is armed with only hammers and energy swords.Grifball in Halo 4 will be a bit different, as you can see in the video above. For one, players can now throw the ball, allowing for passes between teammates, and the mode has been adjusted to be more fast-paced – the ball will respawn much more quickly now when dropped. On top of that, using the sword to take out the ball carrier will now instantly give you the ball, rather than sending it flying away when killing with the hammer.
PAX Prime 2012: Hands-on with PlanetSide 2
Sony Online Entertainment's PlanetSide 2 is still in the process of development and beta testing, but the team brought the game to PAX for its North American tradeshow debut. If you really want to know what it's like, you can always sign up for the beta yourself. Otherwise, you can skip below this cut to hear about our hands-on time with the game on the show floor.
Runic's post-Torchlight 2 plans: Mac port, patches, and a trip to the mountains
Runic's CEO Max Schaefer seems both simultaneously relieved and nervous as he sits in the Torchlight 2 booth at PAX Prime 2012. Relieved, because his company finally announced a release date for its long-awaited game, and slightly nervous, because he knows the community's judgment is finally coming. But even launch won't bring a real break for Runic: Schaefer says the company has a clear plan laid out for post-release work.A Mac port and language translations are first on the list, says Schaefer – both of those are real priorities for the team. Runic's also working on patching the game (if necessary), and getting the content editor up and running so both users and devs can make some mods and add-ons for the game. After that, says Schaefer, he's not sure. "We'll go up into the mountains or something and figure out what to do next."Schaefer says that both a console port of Torchlight 2 and "an MMO" aren't out of the question, but there are problems with both of those ideas. "We will not be making a traditional MMO under any circumstances," he says, so a possible Torchlight MMO could look very different from what players might imagine – a pretty different stance from what we've heard in the past from Runic Games.And while the studio had plenty of success with an Xbox Live port of its first Torchlight game (and Microsoft showed interest in a port of the second game), Schaefer says "it's a lot harder this time," given the way the game is built, to put together an Xbox port. All of that is a long way off, however – Schaefer's more concerned about getting this game released first.
PAX Prime 2012: RIFT's Storm Legion approaches
The Storm Legion is coming. Even now, those touched by Crucia are preparing to unleash her will. But RIFT's Storm Legion expansion is bringing more than just dragon minion foes. A new soul for each calling, player housing instances, new continents, new dungeons, and new raids are all part of the bundle. We caught up with the Trion team at PAX to catch a glimpse of what the oncoming storm will bring.%Gallery-161264%
Tour Mojang's pop-up museum: view the beautiful lawsuit docs for Scrolls, the insides of a Creeper
Mojang's more than just the studio that birthed Minecraft – it's also the studio that birthed the amazing fan art you see above. Beyond said art, Mojang erected a faux museum in honor of its short life on the PAX Prime 2012 show floor.In it, we witnessed the actual legal documents served to Mojang head Marcus "Notch" Persson over Scrolls, the inner workings of a Creeper (its heart is dynamite!), and a very impressive set of Legos. Take the tour with us in the gallery below.%Gallery-164126%
Second generation Razer Blade upgrades innards, lowers price
The original Blade laptop from Razer may only be six or so months old at this point, but six months is essentially a million, billion years in consumer electronic terms. Hence, Razer has announced an updated version of its gaming rig, which features new internal components and a lower-yet-still-wallet-crushing price of $2,499.Whereas the original Blade packed a 2.8 GHz Core i7 processor and a GeForce GT 555M GPU, the new model ships with an as-of-yet unannounced Core i7 CPU and a GeForce GTX 660M, as well as eight gigs of 1600 MHz DDR3 RAM, a 500-gig 7200 rpm hard drive and 64-gig solid state drive. The rest of the package (17ish-inch 1920x1080 display, capacitive multitouch Switchblade LCD side display, etc) remains the same. First generation Blades will be receiving a price drop to appropriately reflect the introduction of the new hotness, bringing its down to $2,299. Anyone that has already purchased the original Blade, however, will be able to upgrade to the new model at a $500 discount. Pre-orders for the second generation Razer Blade start tomorrow, with delivery expected to take place by the end of the month. %Gallery-164115%
PAX Prime 2012: Up close and personal with Torchlight II
Torchlight II is marching toward its September 20th launch date. Actually, it's probably skipping joyously with a little ferret or adorable puppy trailing along behind it. Is your clicking-finger ready? We took some time at PAX to dabble our toes in the game and splash around a bit. Now we have damp toes and a hands-on experience with Torchlight II.
Firefall beta opens up its item store, sells Founder's Packages (on sale now)
Red 5 Studios is once again showing off its open world, free-to-play MMO Firefall (currently still in closed beta) at PAX, and the newest bit of content included is a set of in-game stores, allowing players to purchase items and features via microtransaction. Firefall lead designer David Williams promises the developer won't "sell power items or content areas to players." Instead, Firefall's item stores are all about aesthetic and convenience items, things that players can use to customize their character's look, or have some fun in the game world.In addition to the company's just-announced 'Founders' content bundles (detailed above, and currently on sale during PAX), Williams showed us some special cosmetic items available for purchase, like shaggy dreadlocks or a flashy helmet, as well as items from an in-game store called Luau Larry's. Larry will happily sell you some fun items, like a little voodoo doctor pet, or a tiki torch that plays in-game music and causes everyone around it to dance when placed in the world.Becoming a founder also grants priority access to Firefall's current beta build – along with XP boosts, real-world items, in-game currency and more based on purchased tier. And the items in the founders' packages are set to be available on September 24, so we may hear about a bigger update coming then. Meanwhile, the current price on all three packages ($15, $37, and $75, down from $20, $50, and $100) lasts through PAX weekend.
PAX Prime 2012: Hands-on with Phantasy Star Online 2
I'm sure I'm not the only one around here who has fond memories of sitting in front of a Sega Dreamcast (a moment of silence, please), hacking-and-slashing my way through the original Phantasy Star Online, and I'm also sure that I'm not the only one who's positively giddy for Sega's upcoming Phantasy Star Online 2. So of course, when I found out I'd be able to get my hands on the game at PAX, I was pretty ecstatic. But nostalgia can only go so far, and I'll admit I was somewhat nervous as I stepped up to the demo station. Would this new iteration in the PSO series live up to my rose-tinted memories of the title? I stepped into the boots of a Human Hunter to find out for myself.
Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes gameplay footage sneaks out of PAX 2012 [Update: Now with official footage!]
What we have here, ladies and gentlemen, is the very first gameplay footage of Kojima's next non-Raiden oriented entry into the annals of Metal Gear history, Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes. As you can tell, Snake's ability to stealthily infiltrate a compound and mess up everyone's day has remained in-tact since Metal Gear Solid 4 launched in 2008. Sorry about the shaky-cam nature of this – Konami wasn't allowing direct streaming of the event, so here we are. We'll get a nicer version up for you as soon as it's released.As we heard a couple days ago, Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes is an open world stealth game powered by Kojima Productions' proprietary Fox Engine. And yes, it did look super, super impressive.Update: Konami's official release of the footage we saw earlier today has been embedded above for your viewing pleasure. Don't say we never got you anything.
PAX Prime 2012: WildStar presentation and Q&A
Carbine Studios' premiere foray into the MMO field, the deliciously sci-fi WildStar, has been high on my to-watch list since PAX Prime 2011 when I got my first look at the game (over Rubi's shoulder, admittedly). So I was delighted to have the opportunity to sit down with a few members of WildStar's development team for a short presentation and Q&A session at this year's PAX Prime. The developers, led by Lead Narrative Designer Chad Moore, set the tone of the presentation by leading off with the recently released housing preview video (which you should go watch if you haven't already), followed by a short explanation of the game's backstory. For the uninitiated: The game takes place on the planet Nexus. Nexus was once inhabited by a race of hyper-technological beings known as the Eldan before they mysteriously disappeared, causing the location of the planet to be lost to the annals of time. Until now, that is. Now everyone wants a piece of that sweet, technologically advanced pie, and players arrive from all over the universe to explore this mysterious planet and the secrets within. Admit it: You wanna know what those secrets are, right?%Gallery-130867%
Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes is gorgeous, open-world, and not Metal Gear Solid 5
Hideo Kojima divulged details on Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes at an "introspective" PAX session about the series today. The game's demo was shown recently to attendees at a Metal Gear 25th anniversary event in Japan, and involved Snake sneaking his way through an open world.So what else is new about Ground Zeroes? It's a "prologue" to Metal Gear Solid 5, says Hideo Kojima. The open world of Ground Zeroes is literally the entire world – a helicopter can be called to help during missions or ferry Snake in and out of mission levels. Moreover, you can customize the music that the helicopter plays when it arrives to help you ("Flight of the Valkyries" played during the demo we were shown today – Kojima says the louder the song is, the more of a chance of you getting caught, so maybe Slayer wouldn't be the best choice).Kojima reiterates that Ground Zeroes is a current-gen game, though Fox Engine is scalable for next-gen as well. He wouldn't give specifics on the name, but calls the game "a beginning" rather than an end for the series.Is Ground Zeroes the "Project Ogre" we've been wondering about? That's still not clear. What we do know is it's headed to current-gen consoles (360 and PS3 were mentioned) rather than the next, yet-to-be-determined hardware generation.
