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The Walking Dead season two peers through a fall 2014 release window [Update: It was fogged, coming 2013]
Update: Telltale Games confirmed to Joystiq that The Walking Dead season two is coming in fall 2013, citing a statement to Game Informer: "The current estimated release window for season two of The Walking Dead is for fall of 'this' year (2013), and not 'next' year (2014) as has been reported after a recent interview. We apologize for any confusion and thank you and all of our fans for your continued excitement for Telltale's series."The horde is coming!Original Story: These ain't no 28 Days Later zombies: Telltale's The Walking Dead season two has a tentative launch window of fall 2014, studio CEO Dan Connors tells Eurogamer. Season one concluded in November 2012, and recently writer Gary Whitta outed a mysterious "something extra" coming before season two hits."He's been sacked. We threw him into the zombie pit," Connors jokes. But really, "We'll probably have something to announce fairly soon about what we're going to do. It'll be different."Whether something "different" is a line of trading cards, collectible stuffed animals or a Broadway show is still up in the air. Connors says he's a fan of the PS4 but he can't announce The Walking Dead on Sony's console yet. Executive Producer Kevin Boyle tells IGN that Telltale is looking forward to trying its formula on next-gen platforms."Season two will read what you did in season one and that will tailor some of the things that happened in season two," Boyle says. "They'll be a lot more social and in-between episode features for season two that definitely exploit what the new platforms have to offer. We're super-excited about PlayStation 4 and what all the other big console manufacturers have in store."There's no word if saves from PS3 games will transfer to the PS4.
Report: Assassin's Creed 4 to feature 'connected' single-player systems on next-gen
Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag is a next-gen game (gasp!), and will feature a few new, special systems on console versions, such as a "connected" single-player mode, creative director Jean Guesdon says in an internal Q&A unearthed by All Games Beta."Next-gen versions will bring to the players new, connected features allowing them to feel that even if they remain 'single player,' it will be better to be a 'single connected player,'" Guesdon says. "I mean that next-gen Consoles will allow players to have a solo experience that benefits the presence of a huge community."Guesdon doesn't go into detail about the connected systems. He does outline a few more tidbits about the game, including the "horizon system," which provides characters aboard the ship with "pirate opportunities," side-quests specific to an individual player's progress. Ubisoft has six studios working on Black Flag: Montreal, Singapore, Sofia and Québec working on single-player content, and Annecy and Bucharest developing multiplayer.
Sony UK boss: What PS4 does is more important than how it looks
When Sony revealed the PlayStation 4, it didn't reveal the PlayStation 4 – at least not physically. Sony didn't show off the actual PS4 hardware, aside from the DualShock 4 controller and a revamped PSEye, and a few viewers considered this a cop-out. There was "a bit of cynism" from fans following the conference, even though Sony presented more important things for a next-gen system, PlayStation UK managing director Fergal Gara told Video Gamer."It's much more important to see what the damn thing does," Gara said. "The shiniest piece of black, green or purple plastic ever, you know, whatever, so what? It's not the most important thing."After all, "a box is a box," as Gara puts it. However, if the PlayStation 4 is striped in shades of metallic black, green and purple, it could very well matter. Good luck making that color scheme work in any living room.
Yoshida: PS4 may have subscription levels, all games available digitally
The PlayStation 4 could employ a multiple-tier subscription service, offering different levels of access in a style similar to a cable television company, Sony Worldwide Studios president Shuhei Yoshida tells The Guardian."We could have gold, silver or platinum levels of membership, something like that," Yoshida says. "We can do subscription services when we have more content – especially now that we have the Gaikai technology available. With one subscription you have access to thousands of games – that's our dream."Yoshida says the PS4 will have more digital content than its predecessors, at least: Every game will be available as a download, while some will still be sold at retail. This makes it easier to host smaller games such as Jonathan Blow's The Witness, and it supports a broader range of payment models, such as free-to-play or subscription-based games."We're shifting our platform more and more to the digital side," he says. "PS4 will be similar to PS Vita in that every game will be available as a digital download, and some will also be available as a disc."Yoshida previously confirmed that current-gen PSN games won't run natively on PS4, though emulation or cloud service plans aren't out of the question.
Infamous: Second Son coughs up details on smoky hero, Seattle setting
Sucker Punch announced Infamous: Second Son at this week's PlayStation 2013 event, following an intro by game director Nate Fox that can only be described as... disturbing. So can the electric series' latest entry live up to his intensity? Well, there's a ways to go yet before we'll find out - Sony hasn't revealed if Second Son will be at the PS4's launch - but Sucker Punch took to the PlayStation Blog to shine a bit more light on the game.Second Son is set seven years after Infamous 2, and in Seattle - a real-life location as opposed to Empire City, which was based on New York. It stars 24-year-old Delsin Rowe, who Sucker Punch paints as a self-described underachiever. Whereas previous protagonist Cole McGrath was all about electricity, Rowe's superpowers, at least initially, revolve around smoke. That may not sound as badass as electric powers at first, but the game's debut trailer showed a smoked Rowe can whip up plenty of havoc. As for Fox's (melo)dramatic intro, that was designed to underline the paranoia and restricted freedoms of Second Son's world in the wake of the last game's cataclysmic events. As you might expect, the prohibitory forces in charge and new hero Rowe aren't exactly best mates.On a final gameplay note, Sucker Punch suggested we could see the return of good/evil choices as per previous games: "As with all games in this series," said producer Brian Fleming, "the path the gameplay and story take will depend on the decisions you make along the way." %Gallery-179480%
NMA TV lends its unique perspective, animation to PS4 event
Taiwanese media giant NMA has weighed in on the PS4 announcement in the above video. We aren't sure we necessarily agree with the conclusions reached by the organization – is the shape of the box really that important? – but we don't watch these to see levelheaded analysis or objective reporting.We watch to see a robot PS4 shoot eye lasers at Mark Cerny.
Jonathan Blow bears Witness to getting an indie, PC game on PS4
Jonathan's Blow's next mind-melting puzzler has a bright – and colorful – future in the next generation, as he took center stage at Sony's conference last night to announce The Witness would come to PlayStation 4 as a timed exclusive. After the show, Blow told us that his team is hard at work on the PS4 port of The Witness, and a PC version is still in tow."Basically, you'll see The Witness on PS4 before you'll see it on the next Microsoft console or on the Wii U, presuming we eventually do ports to those consoles," Blow said. "Ideally we want the game to be in as many places as we can get it, but since we are a small developer and it's a complicated game, we can only do so much at once."Blow decided to port The Witness to PS4 because he liked the console, not to snub players on other platforms or simply make a quick buck, he said:"People are speculating that we did this because of money, but that is not the case at all. We like the console and we like the people we are working with; we were already developing a PS4 port of the game, which prevents us from doing other console ports anyway, again because we can only do so much. So it was only a small step to go from this practical fact of development to a formal agreement signed on paper."Besides, signing a contract with any company wouldn't be too difficult for Blow and his team, since they already have at least one Witness.
Yoshida: PS Vita digital purchases beat PS3 each month
Last night's PS4 unveiling event showed Sony is a company committed to digital distribution and the cloud. Sony Worldwide Studios president Shuhei Yoshida echoed those sentiments during follow-up interviews, telling Destructoid that the digital business is quite booming for Sony, especially on the PS Vita – which has more people purchasing content on a monthly basis than on PS3."Digital business is the faster growing business," Yoshida said. "We do not publish numbers, but every month it's almost a new record that the purchase on Vita is higher than the PS3, because everything is available [digitally]."Among the things we anticipated from last night's event was a price drop for the PS Vita in North America. Sony lowered the price in Japan last week, but during our own interview with Yoshida, he confirmed no such plan exists for North America.
PS4 Eye has two cameras: One to watch you, one to make you pretty
Sony's PlayStation 4 Eye has two cameras each with a max resolution of 1280 x 800, four microphones and a field of view of 85 degrees, and all of these aspects work together in new ways, Sony Worldwide Studios president Shuhei Yoshida tells Engadget. The cameras, for example, mark a departure from the current PS Eye's single lens, and they each have specific tasks: One is in charge of capturing the setting and ensuring a quality picture, and the other handles motion tracking. The cameras will triangulate the 3D space, recognize gestures, enable Kinect-style body tracking and will work with Move functionality embedded in the DualShock 4 controller. Sony's goal is for players to be able to snap 3D pictures and video and store it on the PS4. The microphones will be incorporated into PS4 games, though Yoshida was tight-lipped about their role in potential voice-control functions for the console itself.%Gallery-179477%
PS4 doesn't require an always-on internet connection
The PlayStation 4 does not need to be constantly connected to the internet, president of Sony Worldwide Studios Shuhei Yoshida told Eurogamer following Sony's conference yesterday. The PS4's internet settings are fully customizable, whether someone is concerned about data limits or simply wants to be left alone."Oh yes, yes, you can go offline totally," Yoshida said. "Social is big for us, but we understand there are some people who are anti-social. So if you don't want to connect to anyone else, you can do that."The PS4 has a secondary custom chip that allows users to play games as those games are downloading, and Yoshida said the PS4 will have a low-power mode where the main system is asleep but the subsystem is awake, downloading or uploading content.Players will be able to wake up the PS4 via tablets, smartphones or with the Vita, Yoshida further explained. The Vita will be able to play PS4 games remotely, with the goal of all games using remote play functionality.
Diablo 3 on PS4 and PS3 will feature all major PC updates, first screens
Diablo 3 is heading to the PS4 and PS3 with some goodies in tow, bringing all of the PC version's latest updates, "including Paragon levels, the Infernal Machine event, Monster Power, Brawling, and more," Blizzard writes. The console version will of course have customized controls, a new user interface and fresh camera perspective. Check out the first console images in the gallery below.Diablo 3 on PS4 and PS3 will support singleplayer and two versions of multiplayer: up to four-player, local split-screen, or four-player online games. Blizzard will debut a playable demo of Diablo 3's PS3 version at PAX East from March 22 - 24.%Gallery-179451%
Killzone: Shadow Fall confirmed as PS4 launch game
Killzone: Shadow Fall is one of the PS4's launch games, developer Guerrilla Games revealed. Posting on the PlayStation Blog, Guerrilla senior producer Steven Ter Heide spilled the beans on the first Killzone entry to release alongside a PlayStation console."Today we are happy we can finally show you what we have been working on," Heide said. "It has been an amazing journey for us so far, being offered the opportunity to be a launch title for the new PlayStation, and the subsequent mild panic to figure out how to best handle all of that. But being able to now share it with you is both a scary and proud moment. We are hoping you will like what we have created, and are happy to present you with the first glimpse of Killzone: Shadow Fall."Shadow Fall will be joined at the PS4's launch by Watch Dogs, and likely also by DriveClub from Motorstorm team Evolution Studios. The LinkedIn profile of the DriveClub senior environment artist Jeremy P Miller describes the game as a "PlayStation 4 launch title." We've reached out to Sony for comment.%Gallery-179475%
Deep Down trailer sinks its teeth into Capcom's Panta Rhei engine
Revealed at last night's PlayStation event, Deep Down (working title) will be Capcom's first demonstration of the company's new Panta Rhei engine. So what can Panta Rhei bring to PS4? So far, a very angry, very unfriendly dragon, and very hot-looking fire.
Sony: PS4 can play used games
The newly announced PlayStation 4 won't block used games, Sony confirmed. Speaking to Eurogamer and despite a few translation issues, Sony Worldwide Studios chief Shuhei Yoshida said the new system can play second-hand games.There's been speculation next-gen hardware, including the PS4, is being designed to block the second-hand game market; Sony patented technology to tie discs to specific users, while Edge sources recently indicated the next Xbox has an always-on Internet connection to do the job. As far as the PS4's concerned we know now that's not the case, and that means we say so long and thanks for all the fish to a certain gif that's done the rounds.
Take a closer look at the DualShock 4 and PS4 Eye
Sony has sent out some glossy close-up shots of today's newly-unveiled PS4 controller, the DualShock 4. It features a largely similar setup to its predecessor, the DualShock 3 – save for that front touchpad, light bar on top of the controller, redesigned analog sticks and the fact that it has no start button. Sony also sent over shots of its new PS4 Eye peripheral, a log-like improvement over the single-lensed PlayStation Eye camera that currently exists on PS3. The PS4 Eye has two cameras built in that can gauge player distance from the television and the like. %Gallery-179397%
PlayStation app brings second-screen experience to iOS, Android
With a new PlayStation app, Sony plans to extend the PlayStation 4 console experience to a second-screen. Announced for iOS and Android devices, the app will allow players to enhance their gaming experience by accessing information – such as maps for the PS4 title being played – as well as make purchases for their console on the go and "remotely watch other gamers playing on their devices."Based on its description, the app seems similar in purpose as Microsoft's SmartGlass application; however, Sony's offerings expand further with the addition of updates to its PlayStation Vita. As revealed during its PlayStation 4 reveal event, the Vita will be able to remotely play console games with the use of Gaikai's streaming technology.
Driveclub shows off its fancy auto parts
Evolution Studios announced Driveclub at Sony's PlayStation 4 event today, bringing along this flashy video of some of its cars. Check out those trifecta-automators, that massive flubbinator, the multi-fuelcocitor and of course that beautiful flux capacitor.
PlayStation 4's DualShock 4, Eye camera detailed
Sony has revealed some more specifics regarding the PlayStation 4's new DualShock 4 controller, as well as the new, double-camera PlayStation 4 Eye peripheral announced during tonight's event. Six-axis controls return in the DualShock 4, as do the familiar array of face/shoulder buttons and direction inputs. New additions to the unit include a PlayStation Vita-esque touch pad on the front of the device, which is capacitive and can register two points of contact at a time. The pad itself can also be clicked as a button, from the sound of the press release tucked away after the break. Start and Select buttons have had their functionality reassigned to a new "Options" button. Meanwhile, a "Share" button allows the player to access the PlayStation 4's wealth of social options, which include live-streaming through services such as Ustream and the sharing of videos on social networks. Additionally, an LED "light bar" on top of the controller illuminates to communicate various information to players, such as a character's current health status, for instance. That light bar also communicates with the PlayStation 4 Eye, the latest version of Sony's storied camera peripheral. This time around, the Eye features two cameras capable of a maximum resolution of 1280 x 800 each, in addition to a four-channel array of microphones. The cameras have the ability to "cut out the image of the player from the background, or to grasp players' position in front and behind," which sounds rather familiar if you ask us. Users can use the Eye to log into their PlayStation 4 via facial recognition, in addition to the PlayStation Move implementations you'd expect from the device point.
Infamous: Second Son trailer takes back control
The announcement trailer for Infamous: Second Son asks the question, "In a future police state where everyone is monitored at all times, how many metal chains will you choose to wrap around your wrist?"
This is Unreal Engine 4 running on PlayStation 4
Epic's Unreal Engine 4 was shown off during Sony's PlayStation 2013 event today, where the PlayStation 4 was formally announced. Above you can see demo footage of the "Elemental" demo, while below you can comb through a gallery of some still.Epic's Seattle arm has been toiling away on Unreal Engine 4 since the studio's formation late last year. In October, Square Enix confirmed it was the first company to publicly license Unreal Engine 4. %Gallery-179391%
