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Sony takes responsibility for GTA5 leaks, Rockstar responds
The leak of gameplay and story details concerning Grand Theft Auto 5 stemmed from a file in the European PlayStation Store's digital pre-order download of the game, Sony and Rockstar announcements revealed yesterday. PlayStation Social Media Manager Sid Shuman stated that the pre-order file has since been removed and apologized to "Rockstar and GTA fans across the world who were exposed to the spoiler content." Rockstar's statement on a Rockstar Newswire post explained it was "deeply disappointed by leaks and spoilers being spread in advance of the game's launch. GTA5 represents years of hard work by many people across the world, and we all couldn't be more excited to finally share it with you properly this September 17." Rockstar also took the opportunity to remind Social Club community members that anyone discussing spoilers or misinformation would "have commenting privileges revoked until well after the game's release." It's nice to see Rockstar committing to providing a spoiler-free place to anticipate GTA5, but we all know how the internet handles popular media. If you're hoping to keep the game's surprises intact, consider avoiding social media until the game's September 17 release.
Chaos Theory: Nursery tales and TSW's issue #7
I look forward to a new issue in The Secret World as I do any much-anticipated book release. I can't wait to dive right into it, experience a great story, and come out of it changed somehow. We've been waiting months for a new story arc in this game, and now it's finally here. Warning, massive spoilers ahead! While MJ got an advance tour of the issue, I purposefully remained ignorant of it so that I could experience it for the first time on the live servers. The whole affair begins with Who Horrifies the Horrors? in the Besieged Farmlands in Transylvania. The one-eyed Carmen told me that something's agitating the local werewolves, and when the scary beasties that you know are terrified, then it's probably not good all around. It turns out that the werewolves aren't being agitated; they're being hunted, ripped apart, and slaughtered. The alive ones practically trample over me trying to escape the area, but I'm not going to give them a free pass just because they're scared. A little cleanup with my trusty shotgun and those mongrels won't need to worry about fear any more.
Script guesswork compiled for patch 5.4
As I'm certain many of you are aware of, these days there have been a whole lot of sound files datamined for the upcoming patch. We've featured a number of them, but one of the annoying things about datamined sound files is that they're only ever for one character at a time, so unless the mouthy NPC has decided to do an extended monologue, you don't get a chance to hear the proper conversation as it's designed to be heard. Silencer, on the MMO-Champion message boards, decided to attempt to remedy that, and has compiled some scripts featuring a best guess of a few full conversations from a few of the sound files. In particular, there is a branch of the legendary quest featuring Wrathion and Lorewalker Cho, as well as a scene between Cho and Emperor Shaohao. There's no guarantee that any of these are 100% accurate, of course, but for the lore-interest inclined, these ideas are worth a look. As usual, all these links contain spoilers for upcoming content, so click at your own risk!
Patch 5.4 PTR: Sound files rife with spoilers
Our friend Stevan over at Adriacraft has been busy doing what he does best, and trawling the patch 5.4 PTR build that just went live, and he's unearthed some sound files that can only be described as spoiler-heavy. They're so spoiler-heavy that we've put the whole lot after the break, so head on down if you are OK with some seriously heavy spoilers. If you are not OK with spoilers, do not hit the break, do not listen to the audio, do not read the comments. Instead, enjoy this lovely shaman. And what's more, this is datamining. Datamining is encouraging players to draw conclusions from files found in the game's systems. The developers have been known to put things in there which are red herrings, things which are never used, things which aren't even meant to be in there. So take it as read that that could well be what's going on. And take all this with a hefty pinch of salt. If, however, you love datamined spoilers, read on.
ArenaNet's guide to GW2 Flame & Frost: Retribution
If you're excited about Guild Wars 2's Flame & Frost: Retribution, ArenaNet is one step ahead of you with a new guide they've provided on the game's site. This spoiler-free mini-guide covers today's Living Story release (with a spoiler-rific version toward the end) and provides a schedule of events for the Flame & Frost epilogue, starting May 12. Be sure to also read through today's patch notes for more details on Flame & Frost: Retribution.
Patch 5.2 PTR: Additional Wrathion quest sound files
Spoiler Alert: Adriacraft has been back with more of their datamined audio files, and wow, these ones have some spoilers in them. If you don't want to have spoilers about Wrathion's questline, or anything else for that matter, definitely don't watch the video, or hit the break to read any more of this post. Final Warning: Spoilers after the break. Really big spoilers. Do not hit the link below if you don't want to know.
Hyperspace Beacon: SWTOR spoiler alert!
Originally, I had my heart set on playing a Smuggler when Star Wars: The Old Republic went live, so I had intended on not playing one in beta. But the temptation was far too strong. I played a couple of Smugglers to try out the different specs and see the storyline from a couple of different points of view. Unfortunately, that burned me out on the class, and I could never finish the story on the live servers. Another of my intentions when the servers went live was to max out a character as fast as I could so that I could get to endgame in a decent amount of time. Therefore, I picked a class that I didn't think would hold my interest: the Sith Warrior. Unfortunately -- or fortunately depending on your perspective -- I fell in love with the Sith Warrior storyline. I was impressed that an "evil" character could have such an interesting story arc, so much so that by the end I was really rooting for her to win. What I didn't know was that there was a connection between the Sith Warrior story and the Smuggler story. I was right there listening to the characters speak, yet I didn't understand at first why I felt that nagging feeling as if I'd heard certain things before. Once I did discover the connection between those two storylines, I sought out other story connections. I found out that SWTOR is full of these tiny links. Since it's been a year since release, I figured that it's safe to share some of my favorites. Yes, major spoilers follow the break.
Breakfast Topic: How long do you bang your head against the wall before you Wowhead something?
Are you a puzzle-solving fanatic? Confession time: I'm not. I admire the spoiler-free lifestyle, but after eight years of playing, I don't have the patience for too much protracted fumbling about for a particular mechanic or location. Mists has taught me that sometimes, you just have to keep clicking on the yak -- except when that doesn't work, in which case Wowhead comments have taught me that tenderly whispering "/reload ui" into said yak's ear can save the day. I'll keep retrying challenging encounters 'til the cows come home, but nothing sends me alt-tabbing to Wowhead faster than procedural confusion. When I log out mid-quest line, it's easy to forget how that friendly, lurking NPC next to me is planning to assist, so when sparkly quest items fail to appear at the quest location the next day, a quick trip to Wowhead reminds me that I have to kill the mobs to let my sneaky buddy search the corpses for the requisite loot. I also tend to spur my mount anxiously away to a task as soon as an NPC assigns it to me, long before his colleagues have finished hemming and hawing over my worth to cough up their own exclamation points. Wandering about and painstakingly retracing my steps is for the birds -- I head straight to Wowhead to find out where I dropped the storyline. How long will you bang your head against a given issue before consulting Wowhead or another reference? What do you consider a reasonable number of spoiler-free attempts? Do you have little patience for procedural snags but relish the chance to puzzle your way through what a quest wants you to? Do you salivate at the opportunity of trial and error or drool in confusion over muddled mechanics?
Breakfast Topic: Are you more open to game spoilers than you used to be?
Game content in any MMO today stands little to no chance of remaining unspoiled for long. While WoW Insider takes every effort to tuck spoiler details behind the cut, we'd have to stop reporting on the game to avoid giving away any clues at all. By coming to a site like WoW Insider, players tacitly agree to at least a basic level of spoilers, of learning what's waiting to be discovered within the game they love. Attitudes about spoilers change over time. As much as I enjoy blind raiding (heading into a raid with nothing but the most inconsequential knowledge of what might lie ahead, leaving the group to figure out mechanics and strategies by trial and error), the WoW community clearly prefers and indeed demands the opposite. Players are encouraged to study and learn raid tactics for bosses they've never seen, and Blizzard implemented the dungeon journal so that players could click open encounter basics right there in the game. Walking into the raid finder with no knowledge of what you're about to face or what to do constitutes a massive faux pas in today's WoW, something most raiders would consider grounds for an immediate kick from the group. Maybe you're less taken with the thrill of discovery or the reward of figuring something out than with the actual the doing of it, making guides and spoilers a vital part of your WoW repertoire. Or perhaps you enjoy something like collecting mounts, making lists of potential mounts and how to get them an essential part of your game plan. What's your own outlook on spoilers? Is there a certain degree of information you tend to seek about new content, drawing the line at a particular level of detail? If your attitude and the way you use spoilers has changed over time, do you think that's based more on the changing views of the WoW player base or changes in the way you play and enjoy the game?
Patch 5.1 Sound Files: The conflict gets real (Spoilers!)
Over at MMO Champion, a large amount of sound files have been datamined from the 5.1 PTR, all of which are embedded after the cut for your listening pleasure. They provide some fascinating foresights into what awaits players in the upcoming patch, as well as setting us up for the flavor of the expansion to come. SPOILER ALERT: Do not hit the break or listen to these sound files, or visit the MMO Champion thread if you don't want spoilers. These sound files are so spoiler-heavy, just listening to them spoiled the milk in my fridge. If you don't want spoilers, don't go over the break, don't hit the link, and don't listen or watch. Fair warning.
Flameseeker Chronicles: My Guild Wars 2 wishlist
Having hit level 80 on one character, finished the personal storyline, delved into dungeons, been handed my backside in PvP, conquered keeps in WvW, and run around like a chipmunk on crack with multiple alts, I feel that I am totally in a position to pass absolute judgment on Guild Wars 2. Well, I've at least had enough time to draw some firm opinions about the game. There are a lot of things I like, but there are also things I wish were different. This is by no means a conclusive list of those things. What are they? You'll never know unless you skip below the jump. Go on. You know you want to.
Potential spoilers for Halo 4 story unleashed in official assets
A barrage of Halo 4 media and pre-launch information has led a few fans to uncover more about the story than 343 Industries may have intended. The following information may be considered a spoiler; it names the supposed main antagonist and contains a snippet of the motion-capture script revealing a potentially pivotal scene with him, Master Chief and Cortana, as collected by NeoGAF:
Flameseeker Chronicles Extra: A brief history of Guild Wars 2's Tyria, part two
Earlier this week we started looking at the history of everything leading up to Guild Wars 2 in what is probably a grave disservice to the lore writers at ArenaNet. When we left off, the Charr and humans were still bickering over Ascalon, players had just saved the world at the end of Prophecies, and there were still some 253 years left before the start of Guild Wars 2. Now it's time for the events from Eye of the North through Guild Wars Beyond and into the present day. This lore overview isn't even pretending to be all-encompassing, but it might help you understand what the dragon nonsense is about and what's going on with the world you're stepping into. Except where events had exceptional impact, we'll largely ignore what's going on in Cantha and Elona, or else we'd need two whole more posts. I hope it goes without saying that there are lore spoilers ahead, as well as Eye of the North, Guild Wars Beyond, and companion novel (Ghosts of Ascalon and Edge of Destiny) spoilers. You have been warned.
Flameseeker Chronicles: A brief history of Guild Wars 2's Tyria
I see a lot of questions about whether or not people who want to play Guild Wars 2 should jump into the original in the (increasingly diminishing) time left before launch. I don't think there's really a one-size-fits-all answer to that question. For those of you who are worried about missing a bunch of lore and history, however, I can do a little to help with an introduction to Tyria, its history, and the events leading up to Guild Wars 2. This won't be exhaustive (see the word brief in the title?), but it might help you understand what the dragon nonsense is about and what's going on with the world you're stepping into. Except where events had exceptional impact, this focuses mostly on what happened in the continent (not the entire world) of Tyria. I hope it goes without saying that there are lore spoilers ahead, as well as Guild Wars campaign spoilers.
Samsung's spoiler-police reveal how it kept the Galaxy S III a surprise
Samsung has opened up about the measures it took in order to maintain secrecy in the run up to the launch of the Galaxy S III. The project was so top secret that engineer Buyong-Joon Lee even flatly denied what he was doing to his 11-year-old son. Inside the labs, handsets were moved between facilities in locked boxes, while the prototypes were personally delivered by a globetrotting executive to network partners. The company went as far as producing three entirely different models, each one constructed as if it was the final product, so the team had to build and rebuild components to accommodate each design. Spare a thought for the procurement department, which had to rely on written descriptions of the handset in order to set the price and buy components -- enabling that May 3rd launch to go off with its surprises intact.
Breakfast Topic: How do you feel about Mists of Pandaria spoilers?
What with Mists of Pandaria news and coverage of the beta all over the place, spoilers can be really, really hard to avoid. While I generally try to keep spoiler content out of Know Your Lore (and clearly label it as such if something might be a spoiler), I've still been just as busy posting beta news and information about zones, quests, features and more. Now thankfully, WoW Insider clearly labels all Mists of Pandaria info as such, so you can easily scroll right on by if you don't want to read anything ... but that doesn't mean that the temptation isn't there. You know what I mean. Even if you've sworn to yourself you don't want to know, you won't look for anything, and that you want to go into Mists completely unspoiled, the temptation to look is there. Do you push the button and read the news, or do you firmly keep yourself spoiler-free? And what counts as a spoiler? Is news posted on the official WoW site, like the information from the press event, hands-off? Or does that count as fine to look at, but beta info is forbidden? Do you care about spoilers? Do you avoid every bit of Mists info you can and try not to read anything at all? Are you tempted by the glut of information out there to indulge yourself as much as possible? Or do you just read everything that's available and shrug off spoilers as something you don't really worry about?
Mass Effect 3 gets super leaky: story files trickle out of BioWare, acci-demo caught on video
"We are still investigating, but it appears that some internal story files have been leaked," Mass Effect 3 producer Jesse Houston admitted on the company's forums. Apparently said story files aren't representative of "the final story experience," but Houston's urging fans nonetheless to skip reading them, "if they want to experience the purest form of the story in Mass Effect 3." Perhaps even crazier in ME3 leak news, the game's private beta became notably public for people participating in the preview for the upcoming Dashboard reboot, with an approximately 13 minute video running through the entire thing. It kinda, sorta contains some light spoilers, but it's nothing you haven't already heard about in preview coverage (the beta is identical content to what we've seen of ME3 in various press events, minus co-op). As previously noted, the leaked beta is missing a variety of major technical aspects (animation issues, missing sound), so it's not the best representative of the game's final product, but it is a chance to see some early Husk murder. And boy do we like Husk murders! [Thanks Sang!]
EVE's Alliance Tournament IX ends in controversy
The Alliance Tournament is one of the highlights of the EVE Online calendar. Every year, tens of thousands of people tune in to watch teams from competing alliances battle it out in a massive knock-out style tournament. With rules in place to limit the number and value of ships a team can field, the Alliance Tournament is as close to a fair fight as you'll find in EVE. This year's tournament came to a close last night after two weekends of qualifying rounds, exciting knock-out matches and a controversial final. Skip past the cut to find out how this year's tournament ended. Be warned that this post will spoil the outcome of the tournament. For those of you who missed the live stream, we'll be compiling an in-depth summary with links to videos of all the matches once CCP has uploaded the matches to YouTube.
The Daily Grind: How dependent are you on internet guides?
Allow me to indulge in my old-timey voice. Back in the day, we didn't have no dang internets to hold our hands through every twist and turn of them videotronic games. No, we got through by the pluck in our spines, the sheer focus of 10-hour gaming sessions, and the frantic calls to our friends begging for help to pass a level. OK, even by those early days, we were pretty weak when it came to tough spots in games, but still -- it was nothing compared to what we see today. Times have changed, but our desire to bypass difficult sections of games has not. If we can't cheat our way past it, we'll gladly leap to any aid that presents itself, whether it's a strategy guide, a walkthrough, or an elaborate database devoted to cataloguing every step of every quest in our MMOs. Today is an honesty check for you: How dependent are you on spoilers to get through quests when you get stuck? Do you try to puzzle things out for yourself, or is your first instinct to tab out and look up the solution? For bonus discussion, does this mean that it's impossible for devs to really surprise us anymore? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Patch 4.2: Thrall's quest sound files reveal major spoilers
Major spoilers ahead, friends. On the other side of this jump is Thrall's dialogue from the epic quest coming in patch 4.2. What fate awaits the former warchief of the Horde? Is Thrall gone for good, or is there still a chance we can save him from his elemental fate? Click faster, time is of the essence! Major spoilers ahead. You have been warned.
