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Xbox 360 deals: Black Ops 2, Garden Warfare, Oblivion
The third day of Microsoft's Xbox 360 Ultimate Games Sale features discounts on five games through Xbox Live. Activision's 2012 first-person shooter Call Of Duty: Black Ops 2 is half-off today ($29.99 / £24.99 / €34.99), as is today's lone XBLA deal, Assassin's Creed Liberation ($9.99 £7.99 / €9.99). Three other digital Games on Demand titles are on sale through the end of the day, starting with Plants vs Zombies: Garden Warfare at 33 percent off ($20.09 / £16.74 / €20.09). Bethesda's 2006 RPG The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion is 75 percent off today ($3.74 / £2.99 / €3.74) as well, and wrapping the day's deals is Red Faction: Armageddon at 77 percent off ($6.89 / £4.59 / €14.94). Microsoft is also sporting a number of deals that extend further into the month, such as Titanfall at $20 off and 40 percent off the Call of Duty: Ghosts season pass, both for Xbox One and discounted through July 14. [Image: EA Games]
Final Xbox Live Ultimate Sale includes Saints Row 4, Limbo and Metro: Last Light
Today is the final day in Microsoft's Xbox Live sale on Xbox 360, and includes discounts on nine games. The following six discounted items are available through Games on Demand: Saints Row 4, Metro: Last Light, Tropico 4, Adventure Time: Explore the Dungeon, Oblivion and Overlord 2. The other three games on sale through Xbox Live Arcade are Limbo, Puzzle Quest 2 and Rock of Ages. Head past the break for the full price breakdown of the discounted prices, which are good through the end of the day. Don't forget, 13 other games are on sale on the platform until tomorrow as well, including Portal 2, Batman: Arkham City and Mass Effect.
Elder Scrolls, Fallout and other Bethesda soundtracks now on iTunes
Now that's what we call Dragonborn music, Vol. 1. Bethesda Softworks has released seven of its game soundtracks to the mom and pop record shop known as "iTunes."The Elder Scrolls soundtracks, all composed by Jeremy Soule, include Morrowind and Oblivion for $9.99 each, while Skyrim asks an imperial premium at $15.99.Fallout 3 and Fallout: New Vegas, both by Inon Zur, are $11.99 apiece. Daniel Licht's soundtrack for Dishonored and Rod Abernethy's RAGE are $9.99 each.If you're trying to use the Elder Scrolls tracks in a surreal experience, try playing them on your iPod while walking around a city. Everything's so ... majestic.%Gallery-177751%
Skyrim, Oblivion wield deal-blades in Elder Scrolls sale on Xbox Live [update]
Looking for a last-minute getaway destination before 2013 grinds into gear? Why not try the lush, wildlife-infused terrains of Tamriel, on sale today on Xbox Live Airlines? Just don't forget to bring your dragon repellent. Yes, the last Countdown to 2013 deal of the year brings discounts for Oblivion and Skyrim on Games on Demand, as well as their DLC.Today's deal slashes Skyrim's price in half to $29.99, as well as taking 50 percent out of the Hearthfire and Dawnguard add-ons. However, at the time of writing Hearthfire is still at the regular 400 MSP, although Xbox spokestype Major Nelson indicates the price should lower later today, Dawnguard is rightfully half-off of 800 MSP.Meanwhile Oblivion gets a 33-percent-sized chunk ripped out of it, that taking the previous Elder Scrolls game down to $9.99. There are discounts for its DLC too, with the Shivering Isles and Knights of the Nine add-ons half-price at 600 and 200 MSP respectively.Update: The Hearthfire DLC is now at the indicated on-sale price of 200 MSP.
Morrowind and Oblivion GOTY editions half off all week on Steam
The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind is celebrating its 10th birthday by giving everyone else a present, the little gentleman. This week, Morrowind and The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion game of the year editions are half off, or even two-for-one if that helps justify your purchase. The sale runs through Monday, May 7 at 10 a.m. PT.Now the real question: What does one get an elderly 10 year old whose only wish is to make everyone else's day a little brighter and wallet slightly lighter? Answer: A Nerf gun. Everyone loves a Nerf gun.
Fallout 3 and Oblivion unite in double pack on April 3
Fallout 3 and The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion invite you to participate in their joyous union on April 3 in North America. Bethesda's double pack will feature the standard edition of both games, at $29.99 for Xbox 360 or $19.99 for PC.Bethesda isn't allowed to release the double pack on PS3, Pete Hines told Joystiq. "We will continue to work to try to change that, but at present it is still not approved," he said. "We would like to release a PS3 version a well."Seeing as Fallout 3 launched in 2008 and Oblivion in 2006, it's about time they settled down, found a partner and relinquished their previous $60 lifestyle. Of course the age gap may upset a few people since two years is, like, 80 years in video game time, but they'll get over it. While they're buying the double pack, probably.
Bethesda stuff on sale this week on Xbox Live Marketplace
If you've been dying to get a Vault suit for your Avatar, but haven't taken the plunge yet, then this is the week to do it. From now on until October 10, select Bethesda items are half-off -- not just Avatar items, but DLC and even a few Xbox Live Arcade games. Also: Horse Armor! Hit the jump for the full list.
Oblivion 5th Anniversary Edition hits Europe, Australia this week
The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion 5th Anniversary Edition, which launched in North America on July 12, will be available on September 22 and 23 in Australia and Europe, respectively. The bundle will cost £19.99/€29.99 on PS3 and Xbox 360; £14.99/€19.99 on PC. The pack includes the core game, the Knights of the Nine and Shivering Isles expansions, along with making-of Oblivion DVD and game map. There's no mention of the mail-in rebate offered in the North American edition, so we're checking with Bethesda for confirmation. Update: The PAL edition doesn't feature a steel case, but it does include the "special offer" on Skyrim.
Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion 5th Anniversary Edition available July 12, $30
The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion 5th Anniversary Edition, originally spotted back in May, will officially launch in North America on July 12. Priced at $29.99, the bundle includes the core game along with Knights of the Nine and Shivering Isles. It will be available on Xbox 360, PS3 and PC. The North America pack also includes Collector's Steelbook case with Daedric symbols, making of Oblivion DVD, game map and a $10 mail-in rebate offer on The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim and a Skyrim strategy guide.
Oblivion expansions, Fallout 3 DLC half off on XBL this week
It's been nearly five years, but that notorious Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion "Horse Armor" DLC is finally on sale. Along with the "Shivering Isles" and "Knights of the Nine" expansion packs, the equine armor is discounted by 50 percent as this week's Xbox Live deal. Keeping with the Bethesda theme, three of Fallout 3's DLC packs -- "Mothership Zeta," "Operation Anchorage," and "Broken Steel" -- are similarly discounted, as well as a handful of Avatar items. There has never been a better week to dress up an Avatar as a Vault 101 wastelander and buy virtual armor for a virtual horse. Head past the break for the full list of discounts.
Oblivion 5th Anniversary Edition spotted, available in June
The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion will apparently receive a "5th Anniversary Edition" on June 28. First spotted by Nitrobeard on Overstock.com, the $30 bundle also appears on Amazon.com with assets pending for PC, Xbox 360 and PS3. The package will allegedly include The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Game Of The Year Edition, collector's edition content like a map and DVD extras, along with a $10 coupon for Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. We've contacted Bethesda for confirmation of the bundle details. Skyrim starts its inexhaustible dragon hunt on November 11.
Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim built on new engine
In what is perhaps the best news about The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim so far, Bethesda confirmed via a tweet that the game's engine is "brand new ... and it's spectacular!" That's meaningless info to most, but for those of us who follow games a little too closely, "brand new engine" is more significantly "not Gamebryo," the troubled, notoriously glitchy skeleton inside Bethesda products like Fallout 3 and a few other titles, including the recent Epic Mickey. Bethesda community man Nick Breckon later tweeted that the new engine was built internally by the company. Will it still feel like a Bethesda game if faces don't occasionally turn inside out, dislodge from their bodies and fly around the room? We'll find out when Skyrim launches on Xbox 360, PC and PS3 on November 11. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in!]
Emergent to sell Gamebryo and the rest of its assets
If you've played Fallout 3 or Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, you're actually familiar with Gamebryo, even if you don't know it. It's a studio owned by Emergent Game Technologies, crafting middleware tech for tons of companies like Bethesda and Square Enix, whose biggest claim to fame is its Gamebryo Lightspeed engine, used in "over 350 games so far." And today the studio, along with the rest of Emergent's properties, including its IP (whole or in part), were put up for sale. The sales of asset notice comes from Gerbsman Partners via a post on the Blog of Intellectual Capital and details the current state of Emergent, a company which managed to lose revenue in the ballpark of $30 million since being founded in 2005 on through 2009. This year, the company actually showed a bit of profit, albeit a relatively small amount, nothing that could get Emergent back into the black. What's unclear as of right now is the future of Emergent: it hasn't filed for bankruptcy, but one could assume that selling all of your stuff means you're getting out of the business for good. We've contacted Emergent for some additional info and will update accordingly.
Bethesda parent company trademarks 'Oblivion' for use in films
ZeniMax Media -- umbrella company to Bethesda Softworks and id Software, among others -- trademarked the rights to the term "Oblivion" last month, as it pertains to "Motion picture film production; entertainment services, namely, providing motion picture theatrical films in the field of fantasy games." VGTribune noticed the filing, which raises the possibility of an Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion film -- or something related. The past few years have yielded a mess of cross-media expansion from gaming into film, with everything from Assassin's Creed to Halo getting live-action content delivered pre-launch as part of a game's marketing campaign. THQ has even made it a goal to push its games across multiple mediums with an initiative set forth by "crossmedia" evangelist (and executive vice president) Danny Bilson. Zenimax could just as likely be preparing a promotional film for use as a prequel to a forthcoming Elder Scrolls sequel. Stranger things have happened.
Bethesda's new game is for current platforms, 'pretty far along'
After two years of silence, Bethesda is very used to deflecting questions about its next, still unannounced game. But executive producer Todd Howard finally shared some info about the forthcoming project at this year's QuakeCon, telling Eurogamer that it's "pretty far along." Around 90 people are working on the game, and Howard predicts that the stretch between the project's announcement and launch will be the "the shortest it's been for us" (Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion was announced in September 2004 and released in March 2006, and Fallout 3 was announced in July 2004 but not released until October 2008). Additionally, he pointed out that the upcoming project will run on existing consoles and is built on the same engine that powered Oblivion and Fallout 3. "That's our starting point -- the Fallout 3 tech. It started with Morrowind, we went to Oblivion, we did a lot between Oblivion and Fallout 3 because now we had final hardware -- with Oblivion we had six months on final hardware, so Fallout 3 technically does a lot more than Oblivion. The new stuff is an even bigger jump from that," he said. He wouldn't get too specific on when we'd hear more, saying he didn't want to disappoint people by announcing an ... announcement that might shift later on. Hopefully, Mr. Howard knows that disappointment will be harder to avoid if that announcement turns out to be anything but Elder Scrolls V.
GenCon 2010: Fantasy fencing with 38 Studios
One thing is for certain: When you are sitting in the crosshairs of Curt Schilling and R.A. Salvatore during an interview, it's easy to become bowled over by their collective intensity and passion, especially when it comes to their interest in games and fantasy worlds. While GenCon Indy lacked its usual MMORPG presence this year, Massively was able to grab a few minutes of face time with 38 Studios' founder and lead writer as they passed through the convention. It was a bit of an odd interview, however, as two of the biggest topics -- 38 Studios' move to Rhode Island and any solid details about their top-secret MMO -- were off the table for discussion. Do not fret, as that certainly didn't stop us from trying to pry for a few hints along the way. Schilling and Salvatore were obviously eager to spill the beans about Copernicus, but they are still biding their time until the right moment. Happily, the duo didn't mind us fencing with them for facts, and were quite open about their single-player RPG lead-up to Copernicus, their general philosophy of designing the MMO, and why they've waited so long to unveil it to the public. Read on, gentle gamers, for a few ripostes, parries and lunges with two of the biggest figures in the industry right now.
Steam sale: Fallout 3, Oblivion, Morrowind
Bethesda's suite of RPGs have been discounted on Steam -- specifically, its Game of the Year offerings. The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind gets the most drastic cut at 75% off, down to $5, while Fallout 3 has been discounted by 50% to $25. The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion straddles the middle with a discount of 66%, down to $8.50. As far as sheer hours-to-dollars ratio, you're probably looking at something like eleventy kajillion. [Thanks, Brian]
The Daily Grind: Games that should be MMOs?
We all have a list of favourite games which we think should be MMOs. My first real exposure to RPGs was The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. I absolutely love this game and it's top of my list of titles (or in this case a franchise) which needs to be turned into an MMO ASAP. Logically (and as a games journalist) I know it's not that simple. I've interviewed several folks at Bethesda over the years and I know that their vision of The Elder Scrolls wouldn't translate too well to a Massively Multiplayer Online game.But that aside, I'm pretty sure most gamers are stoked that Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic is being reinvented as an MMO. I want to know, if graphics, dev wishes and game mechanics weren't an issue, what games would you like to see become an MMO and why?
The Digital Continuum: MMO-unfriendly games
It's a subject that's been touched on here at Massively not once or twice, but three times. Still, I feel like there's more to be said on the subject of making some non-MMO games into actual MMOs.Being a constant contributor to Massively means I obviously love MMOs, but that doesn't mean they're all I play. In fact I find myself constantly playing genres of all sorts on various platforms. Still, I do love to end the day (or sometimes spend most of the day) in a great massively multiplayer online game. There have been several occasions where I find myself playing a particular offline game and wonder, "Could this be developed as an MMO?" I eventually come to the conclusion that -- no, it probably can't.
