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Upload your face to this WWE 2K15 trailer
2K offered a new trailer for WWE 2K15 today, showing off a bit of the game's superstar customization options. The latest entry in the wrestling series from Yuke's and Visual Concepts allows players to upload photographs to 2K's servers, importing their likenesses onto the heads of custom wrestlers. Head past the break to check out the video, which also boasts custom tattoo and logo options in the game's creation suite. WWE 2K15 is already available on Xbox 360 and PS3, having launched last week. 2K's wrestling series will debut on PS4 and Xbox One on November 18 in North America and November 21 internationally. The game features a historical rivalries "2K Showcase" mode as well as a My Career mode similar to the publisher's other popular sports series, NBA 2K. Its $25 season pass includes three additional stories for the 2K Showcase mode. [Image: 2K]
Broforce gets level editor, Mad Max and Kill Bill bros
Broforce received a free "tactical update" today, adding new missions and characters to the side-scrolling shooter. The two new bros in the game are Bro Max, a spoof on Max Rockatansky from Mad Max, and The Brode, a take on Uma Thurman's character The Bride from the Kill Bill series of films. The game's new campaign missions are set in Eastern Europe. The update also introduced Steam Workshop support for the game, allowing players to create their own levels and share them with the game's bro-mmunity. Broforce launched on Steam Early Access in April and was a source of fun for Joystiq Streams around that time. The game is still in beta, available for $14.99 through Steam and the Humble Store. Head past the break for a brotastic trailer that shows off the new items delivered through the game's update. [Image: Devolver Digital]
Capture new job creation tools in GTA Online this Friday
Rockstar will launch the capture jobs creation system in GTA Online this Friday, April 11 and is offering a rewards boost in select online missions until then. Starting Friday, Grand Theft Auto 5 players can use the GTA Online Creator Tool to build missions using one of four capture job variants: Contend, GTA, Hold or Raid. For those unfamiliar, Rockstar describes the capture jobs as a "GTA twist on classic capture the flag style confrontations." To get players accustomed to the job style's unique brand of action, the developer upped the reward levels for all official capture jobs in GTA Online. Until Friday, jobs like "GTA: All Abhorred" and "Raid: High Road" will earn players double the GTA$ and RP. [Image: Rockstar Games]
Minecraft user creates giant tortoise with steampunk city on its back
Atropos is the name of the eldest of the Three Fates in Greek mythology; the sister who used shears to cut the thread of a mortal's life. It is also the name of Minecraft user CARLOOOO's giant clockwork tortoise that has a steampunk city sprouting out of its back. We're not a fashion or celebrity gossip website so we won't get into a "who wore it better" argument over the name, but if we were to do such a thing, we think you know who we'd pick. (Hint: It's the giant clockwork tortoise with a steampunk city on its back.) Just sayin'. The whole project took five months to complete, and went through several designs - including a whale version - before settling on the one you can now download. If you want to take a tour before committing to such a large investment of real estate, check out the video above. [Image: CARLOOOO]
GTA Online's DIY mission tools arrive this week, story DLC and co-op heists due in 2014
Just when we thought we were out, Rockstar Games pulls us back in. GTA Online's latest free content pack brings user-created races and deathmatches into the fray, and the developer says it could be out as soon as tomorrow. Rockstar promises that players can craft two flavors of deathmatch (free-for-all and team-based) and three types of races including standard, GTA Race and a rally variant. Perhaps most tantalizingly, the company's blog post teases "screaming jet dogfights" when mentioning race types. We can only hope that means F-16s and not Franklin's canine companion, Chop. The firm says it will keep an eye on the community creations and promote the cream of the crop via a Rockstar Verified Jobs designation, as well. Rockstar also detailed some of its plans for the future of GTAO and Grand Theft Auto 5. GTAO is getting its own version of capture the flag later this month, and co-op heists are en route for next year; the Houser brothers promise that more info on the former will hit next week. As for GTA5, the outift says it has big plans for "substantial additions" to the single-player story. Now, why did we buy next-gen consoles again?
Blizzard talks procedural and player-created content in WoW
In an interview with Rock, Paper, Shotgun, Lead Content Designer Cory Stockton spoke about the challenges of producing content fast enough to keep up with the rate at which players consume it. Aside from their desire to move up to yearly expansions, one of the things they have had discussions about is adding procedurally-generated content to the game. "People just burn through our content so fast, if we could build enough content, we would," Stockton said. "Procedural content is totally something we've talked about." However, he was quick to point out that randomized content would not replace any of their handcrafted content. Cory Stockton I think what we'd like to do is say we can still have our seven or eight dungeons, but then over here we've got some crazy procedural supplement. Maybe the dungeon is random, maybe the boss is randomized with different [abilities] – how ever we could do that. But I think that'd be a cool supplement to the handcrafted stuff. Because I think that's what sets us apart. source Having dungeons or scenarios change up slightly every time you enter them could certainly make re-running them a little more fun. You could speculate all day about what they could do with this -- alternate paths through a dungeon, dynamic events, randomized trash and bosses, environmental gameplay, and much more.
Flipboard brings magazine curation to Android, gains web tools
If you're a Flipboard user, you'll recall that the app was recently updated to let you create your own magazines. Unfortunately, this functionality was limited to the iOS version. This changes today, as Flipboard brings magazine curation to Android. Creating a magazine is simple: just tap the plus button visible on each article inside the app or use the bookmarklet when surfing the web. This gives you a personalized way to collect posts, images and videos and share your ideas on Flipboard and beyond. The new Android version introduces some unique features. You're able to "flip" content into your magazines using the share button built into many Android apps. In addition to the existing social network integration, Flipboard now includes a share button of its own on magazine covers -- this allows you to share magazines via SMS, email or Pinterest. The app also makes it easier to create a new Flipboard account by supporting Facebook's Single Sign-on. Along with the updated Android version, Flipboard's rolling out a web-based Editor to help users manage magazines. This collection of web tools lets you reorder and delete content, rearrange magazines and check how often others have shared items in your magazines. Finally, the Financial Times is now available on Flipboard -- you'll even be able to read premium content by logging into your Financial Times account right within the app. Take a look at the gallery below and hit the break for the PR.
Flipboard launches user-created magazines, partners with Etsy (video)
Everybody loves Flipboard, right? If you're a fan like us, rejoice -- your favorite social magazine just got a whole lot better. Today Flipboard for iOS is receiving a major update that will let you create and curate your very own magazines. It also brings a boatload of other improvements to the table including a content partnership with Etsy. An update to the Android version will follow shortly. We were able to take the new version of Flipboard for a spin and get a demo from CTO Eric Feng. Hit the break to dive into the details and watch our hands-on video. %Gallery-183818% %Gallery-183819%
BattleBlock Theater to spotlight community-created levels
The Behemoth recently detailed its plans to feature community-created levels in its upcoming platformer, BattleBlock Theater. The game will include a "Furbottom's Features" section, which will spotlight hand-picked user-created levels in the solo, co-op and arena playlists. Players will have added incentive to play these levels, since strawberries in featured levels will be replaced with gems that can be spent in the BattleBlock Theater Gift Shop.We've embedded a trailer that shows off some of the levels created by BattleBlock Theater's beta testers above. These levels may not be included in the full game, which is set to launch this Spring.
Second Life rolls out Linden Realms publicly on December 1st
Something very unusual is coming to Second Life on December 1st: a game. All right, that in and of itself isn't all that unusual, since the virtual world has long empowered users to create their own systems and their own games. But this is still something different because it's not a user-created game. Linden Realms has been developed specifically by Linden Lab, and as of December 1st all users will be able to experience what a first-party game for the virtual environment feels like. Second Life content creators will, rather unfortunately, be facing off against an in-house project. Luckily, the tools used in the development of Linden Realms will also be made available to the community, giving everyone a chance to play with the new tools and improve upon gameplay experiences. Whether or not this is a good thing or not for the game's overall health remains to be seen, but it may well provide an interesting boost to the community's user-created content.
'Quality concerns' keep user-created content out of World of Warcraft
User-created content can be a real hornet's nest in any game. When the user-created content systems are done correctly, you get a lot of new and imaginative content in the game straight from the players. But it's the question of what happens when it goes wrong that keeps user-created content out of World of Warcraft, according to Chris Metzen. As Metzen put it in a recent GDC online panel, while he loves the idea and the team does bring it up from time to time, there's a concern about whether or not the regular level of content would meet the standards of quality the team expects for game content. Metzen also discussed some of the pressures the Blizzard staff faces with Titan's design, since the game is explicitly not set in one of the company's existing and long-running franchises. While he doesn't reveal any major details regarding the upcoming game, if you're eager for every scrap of information about the secretive project, it's well worth taking a look.
Google slides Prizes into beta, helps you get real paid
Come on down! You can be the next contestant on the Prizes site. That was overkill, we know, but it's a necessary introduction into a new world of online solution-based social gaming pioneered by the Slide team. Acquired by the Goog back in 2010, the low profile entertainment-driven app developer has been hard at work making the web 'more social' and filling its Big Daddy's pockets. Debuting in classic Google beta form, Prizes takes your Twitter or Facebook accounts and signs you up for cash prize-winning, user-created contest shenanigans. In case you missed that fine point, we'll reiterate -- users design the challenges, you post a solution (or vice versa). Like the $40 "Give my Dad a makeover!" competition we're completely unqualified to enter, or the $30 "Comprehensive 'get healthy' plan for living in a large, polluted city" game we're sure Al Gore could win in his sleep. It's a kooky idea, but we can definitely see the service having widespread appeal. Let's be frank here: Google + social gaming + prize money = solid user gold.
Blizzard: StarCraft 2 'marketplace' still coming
During BlizzCon 2009, Blizzard revealed plans to put a shopping interface inside StarCraft 2, which would allow players to purchase user-created maps, with revenue shared between Blizzard and the creator. The game came out in July 2010, sans marketplace, and that feature is still missing. During an interview with MTV Multiplayer, Blizzard's Frank Pearce asserted that the feature is still on the way. "But it's not necessarily something we have a specific timeline for," he said, "which is unfortunate because one of the things that we've found is, especially from our learnings from World of WarCraft, is that these audiences that play these games are very, very passionate and want to experience lots and lots of content. With the StarCraft 2 client and the StarCraft 2 map editor and the Battle.net platform, it creates an opportunity for the community to serve itself with content, if the mechanisms are there." To be fair, if it did have a timeline, it would be a Blizzard timeline, and therefore could only be specific to the year. Approximately.
Portal 2 getting user-created content 'on all platforms,' has two endings
Though mod tools for Portal 2 will only arrive on PC ("there's a bunch of dependencies that require the Windows platform"), Valve's Chet Faliszek confirmed during a recent interview that the fruits of those tools will make their way to "all platforms." Faliszek specifically noted that "the content that comes out is agnostic, and so we will be seeing that on all platforms." That said, the content may not be distributed the same way across all platforms. "Depending on the platform you're on, I should say, will depend on how we're delivering it," Faliszek said, also confirming that the PS3 version would get user-created content via Steam for PS3. In other Portal 2 news, speaking with VideoGamer, Faliszek revealed that each of the game's two campaign modes (single-player and co-op) will have their own individual surprise rewards for completion. "Both sets of credits [will feature something special], because we've got two credits," he explained. "So we had to do something twice as amazing." Presumably, Mr. Coulton has been hard at work on a hot new mix (mixes?) for GLaDOS. This time, we're holding out hope for a big dance number.
The Daily Grind: What do you consider "good" player-created content?
Star Trek Online might be the most recent game to prepare for the player-created content bandwagon, but it's far from the only one. Yet every time tools are released to allow players to make their mark, the same complaint arises -- there's no easy way to sort the good content easily from the bad. Which is a fair complaint, until you stop to realize that there's not really a good definition available of what would qualify as good content. After all, when you let players make anything, one man's trash will be another man's treasure. Some people like content that optimizes rewards, making the most efficient use possible of time for leveling a character toward the cap. Others prefer a well-crafted story, with no real consideration for whether or not the content is rewarding. And still others prefer a challenge, something harder than the official content, a chance to really see what players can accomplish when pushed to the limit. Whether it's in City of Heroes or Ryzom, what do you look for out of player-generated content? What do you think of as good content and what do you think of as bad? 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!
LEGO Universe content keeps building toward the future
With nothing stopping players save for what their imagination can come up with, the worlds of LEGO Universe have been exploding with content since launch. As a matter of fact, in the last month the moderation team has approved over 86,000 different player-created spaces that offer tons of unique and interesting LEGO Universe content so it can be shared with other players in the game. Add to that Netdevil's push for new content including the Frostfell holiday area, as well as special LEGO World Builder League zones, and there's quite a bit of new content in the game since launch. According to information from the LEGO Group and Netdevil, the plans for 2011 are even more ambitious. Future content updates will offer LEGO Unvierse players the chance to interact with the LEGO factional leaders and further help push the maelstrom forces back -- unlocking new worlds and storylines in the process. The other interesting thing of note is the plan to add an all-new LEGO IP into LEGO Universe in 2011. In the meantime, check out the new screenshots and video offering a look at some of the myriad creations players are already enjoying in-game. %Gallery-49493%
Guest Post: Into the future with user-created content
This article has been brought to you by Seed, the Aol guest writer program that brings your words to WoW Insider's pages. One wonders how long World of Warcraft will remain viable. It is quite possible that my warlock will still be going strong decades down the line. Of one thing, however, I am certain: I will be playing some sort of MMORPG for as long as I'm able to tweak my spec. But will that game be WoW? My friends and I muse about what it would take to switch to another game. That game would have to build upon WoW's legacy and offer something new and amazing to boot. Speaking of boots, I'd wager my Prelate's Snowshoes that the new game will be some incarnation of WoW itself, as Blizzard has proven so willing and able to adapt and grow with its fan base. What makes WoW so popular and enduring? For starters, the game is so accommodating, with plenty to offer noobs and leets alike. Players can feel a sense of accomplishment from merely questing, while others can savor the challenge of working through multiple levels of high-end raid content. I can feel the delight of one-shotting a low-health rogue sneaking around the lumber mill or experience the soul-destroying chaos of getting quickly roasted in arena. And those of us with creaking, overworked CPUs are able to take part in the fun.
Video: Skate 3 ramps up user-created content
If we told you that the user creation tools in Skate 3 were robust, we'd be selling the game short. From the highly customizable skate parks (that can be shared online) to the revamped graphics creator, there's no doubt that the devs at Black Box have upped the ante on user creation in a significant way. While there's always the worry that the Skate franchise could start packing in a bit too much (the Tony Hawk-ization of Skate, if you will), it looks like the folks in charge of improving the annual franchise know to keep the game focused on skateboarding culture and real physics. We'll be checking out the game this weekend at PAX East, so look for a more thorough opinion soon (and feel free to tell us in the comments below what you want to know about the game). %Gallery-77563%
Review: WarioWare D.I.Y.
Do you want a new WarioWare game, with the same kind of rapid-fire microgame play you've come to love since the first game? WarioWare D.I.Y. is that. If you want the world's easiest game design utility, WarioWare D.I.Y. is that. If you want the long-awaited Mario Paint sequel, WarioWare D.I.Y. is, surprisingly, pretty close. If you want a game about shaking up a bottle of root beer and using it as a firehose to extinguish a fire ... you'll have to make that one yourself. WarioWare D.I.Y. does for making games what the original WarioWare did for playing them. The series has always been about distilling the act of gameplay down to its simplest elements, so that a game can be learned and completed in five seconds or less. In this case, a simple, menu-driven interface, combined with the harsh time restrictions of the games, allows you to go from idea to full (but tiny) game in just minutes. %Gallery-83841%
Trials HD trailer displays disasters and triumphs of player-created content
Rather than play that silly old full-motion video arcade game with motorbikes -- you know, that one that only exists in the trailer above? -- the latest video from developer RedLynx encourages you to pick up Trials HD instead and hop right in to the level creation tools. Beyond the initially jarring brutal crashes and eviscerations, the latter half of the clip displays the subtle elegance at players' disposal should they master the physics-based controls to the pixel-perfect precision the game asks of its users (we're especially impressed by the double front flip). And though we haven't seen any DLC for Trials HD since the last one in late December, it's good to see the developer supporting its game so long after release. But let's be honest here -- we'd could always use some more DLC. %Gallery-64987%
