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Binding of Isaac may still survive on Nintendo 3DS
Nintendo 3DS owners may yet help a kid survive his mom's attempt at ritual sacrifice, Legend of Zelda-style. Binding of Isaac creator Edmund McMillen gave Nintendo portable players new hope in a Sunday post to Tumblr. "Has Isaac on the 3DS definitively fallen off the monkey train of possibility?" asked one intrepid follower. "No," was McMillen's succinct response. The question is certainly warranted. The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth, a full remake of McMillen's game, is expected out on PlayStation 4, PS Vita and Steam sometime this year, letting folks guide a terrified pink blob of a boy through a horrific basement hell. Back before Rebirth brought co-op, a new art style, and a substantial expansion to the 2011 original, there was talk of Isaac getting a Nintendo 3DS version. In February 2012, though, talks with Nintendo broke down and the 3DS port of Isaac was scrapped because of "questionable religious content." When Rebirth was announced in 2013, possibility of a Nintendo 3DS or even Wii U version emerged as McMillen said he was in talks with Nintendo again. As of early 2014, though, an updated Rebirth FAQ said that the game's religious themes were still causing friction with Nintendo. "We want to release on 3DS, and will if given the option," read the FAQ. "Isaac currently goes against Nintendo's publishing rules due to its religious aspects. But stuff might change, you never know." [Images: Nicalis]
Adam Boyes would like to give Early Access to the PS4
Sony Computer Entertainment of America VP of Developer and Publisher Relations Adam Boyes (man that business card must be long) is interested in making an Early Access-style program for PS4 developers, according to a recent interview with Gamasutra. When asked if Sony was considering making a game available while said game was still in development, Boyes responded, "That's one of the massive conversations we have internally; that, at what point does [a game meet standards of release]? We still at some point ensure that we're being mindful of the consumer. We don't want somebody to stumble across that title and expect a full product, and have a negative experience." "We're figuring out what's ok," Boyes added. "We obviously have our tech requirement checklist that people have to adhere to. So we're internally discussing, what does that list look like? What are the caveats? Stuff like this. So it's still a project that a lot of minds are considering. No details yet, but it's something on the top of my mind every day." In other words: no early access for Boyes' vision of early access on PS4. At least for now. [Image: Sony]
PS Plus subscribers get free Powers in December
The PlayStation Network will be bitten by a radioactive crime drama series later this year; Powers, a live-action adaptation of the comic of the same name, will be available via the PSN starting in December, with the debut episode available for free. Meanwhile, PlayStation Plus subscribers will be able to view the entire series at no charge. David Slade (Hannibal, Breaking Bad) will direct the first two episodes of the show, which focuses on detectives who investigate cases involving people with superhuman powers. The original comic, published by Image until 2004 and currently by Marvel, is written by Brian Michael Bendis (Ultimate Spider-Man, Guardians of the Galaxy) and illustrated by Michael Avon Oeming (Judge Dredd, Catwoman). [Image: Marvel]
Entwined coming to PS3, Vita in 'very near future'
Entwined's pursuit of love is beautiful and challenging, but with Vita and PS3 versions on the way, it's about to add "portable" to its list of adjectives. Developer Pixelopus' Dominic Robilliard posted an introspective of the twin-stick matchmaker on the PlayStation Blog, which concluded by mentioning Pixelopus' intention to get both versions to fans "in the very near future." Weekend Editor Sam Prell's review notes that Entwined's strengths lie in its "sense of serenity and peace" rather than competing on leaderboards, which sounds like a healthy mindset for a relationship-focused game. Still, Prell noticed a problematic hiccup with Entwined's visuals when an attempt to pair its characters is botched: it's something that "persists for only a fraction of a second, but it makes lining up your targets difficult, and is enough of an annoyance that it becomes frustrating." [Image: Pixelopus]
Pinball Arcade's Season 3 tables reaching PSN, Addams Family Kickstarter coming
Patrons of Pinball Arcade's PlayStation wing are about to have a few new score tallies to rack up, thanks to an incoming batch of tables for Arcade's PS3, PS4 and Vita versions. A PlayStation Blog update from FarSight Studios' Mike Lindsey states that Black Knight 2000, WHO Dunnit, High Speed and Junk Yard will be available in the PS3 and Vita versions' collections on July 15, with a July 22 arrival for the PS4 version. Even though we're talking about Season 3 content, Season 2 is still coming to PS4, though Lindsey's post didn't offer a release date. Responses to fans did specify that PS4's Season Two tables won't be cross-buy compatible however, so if you're looking to rebuild your collection on your new console, know that you'll pay full price to do so. Lindsey's update also adds that FarSight has "agreed upon terms with all of the major licenses and clearances" needed to add Bally's Addams Family table to Arcade's collection. Cutting through red tape isn't the same as finding a budget though – FarSight expects to launch a Kickstarter for the project sometime this summer. [Image: FarSight Studios]
PlayStation Store Flash Sale offers up 99-cent deals
Surprise sales are always nice, especially when you've got a weekend to spend with whatever you pick up from them. The PlayStation Blog has detailed the PlayStation Store's latest Flash Sale, which offers a range of PSOne and digital-only titles at an impulse-friendly 99 cent pricepoint. Highlights from recent times include Papo & Yo, Machinarium, Double Dragon Neon and separately-offered PS3 and Vita versions of Thomas Was Alone. There's some love for the original PlayStation's library as well, with Dino Crisis 1 and 2, Legend of Dragoon, Harvest Moon: Back to Nature, Wild Arms 1 and 2 and the Syphon Filter trilogy up for grabs. You could always re-fuel some of your long-standing arcade rivalries with Virtual Fighter 2, too. If you're a shrewd shopper no matter how low a price is, you've got plenty of time to decide – the Flash Sale runs until 3 p.m. EST on July 14. [Image: Sony]
The Walking Dead's next episode is bloody, standoffish
Episode 4 of The Walking Dead's second season is dubbed "Amid the Ruins," but we doubt it takes place in an ancient Mayan temple or anything like that. Two new screenshots from the episode depict tense, mid-battle scenes: One shows Clementine splattered in blood and wielding an axe while surrounded by zombies, and the other has her back-to-back with other survivors, pointing a gun at someone – and not looking very pleased about it. Amid the Ruins should be out this month. On today's photo feast, Telltale says to look out for news next week regarding the episode's launch. [Images: Telltale]
Samurai Warriors 4 conquers PlayStation platforms Oct. 24
Omega Force's Sengoku-era beat-'em-up Samurai Warriors 4 will premiere for the PlayStation 4, PS3, and PS Vita on October 24, publisher Koei Tecmo announced via a newly launched website. Featuring 55 playable historical figures, Samurai Warriors 4 includes the new Chronicle mode, allowing players and their co-op partners to take on quests using custom characters. The upcoming release heralds the franchise's return to PlayStation platforms following the Wii-exclusive Samurai Warriors 3, and marks the first time the series has appeared on the PlayStation 4. [Image: Koei Tecmo]
The Last of Us: Remastered now available for pre-order on European PSN
The Last of Us: Remastered is still a few weeks out, but now European PSN users can plunk down the cash for a digital pre-order of the prettied up post-apocalyptic adventure (just like their North American cousins). Not only does The Last of Us: Remastered include a full, 1080p remake of one of the few games that we've awarded a five-star review score, it also includes a host of digital bonus items, aptly dubbed the "Survival Pack." This pre-order incentive grants players extra starting cash, new costumes for protagonists Joel and Ellie, upgraded healing, crafting and reloading speed and bonus experience points in multiplayer, among other additions. [Image: Sony]
Neversoft nevermore, team now fully merged with Infinity Ward
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater series creator Neversoft is no more, as remaining team members have now merged with fellow Activision studio Infinity Ward to work on current and upcoming projects. Neversoft's Matt Canale posted the above image via Twitter, bringing the studio's 20-year run to a fiery end. After being acquired by Activision in 1999, Neversoft went on to create standout games like 2000's Spider-Man, Xbox 360 launch title Gun, and several entries in the Guitar Hero franchise following the departure of series creator Harmonix. Neversoft worked closely with Infinity Ward in developing its final project, the "Extinction" gameplay mode in 2013's Call of Duty: Ghosts. Infinity Ward is one of three studios devoted to the Call of Duty series, and is slated to produce a new entry in 2016 following this year's release of Sledgehammer Games' Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare and a 2015 follow-up project from Treyarch. [Image: Matt Canale]
World's largest fighting game tournament, Evo 2014, begins today
Today marks the debut of the Evo 2014 fighting game tournament in Las Vegas, but those who didn't book airfare to the City of Sin won't be entirely left out thanks to a bevy of broadcast streams covering all the virtual fisticuffs. Eight top fighting games are officially represented at Evo 2014: Ultra Street Fighter 4, Super Smash Bros. Melee, Ultimate Marvel Vs Capcom 3, Killer Instinct, BlazBlue: Chrono Phantasma, Tekken Tag Tournament 2, The King of Fighters 13 and Injustice: Gods Among Us. Capcom's official "Capcom Fighters" stream on Twitch has you covered for all the Ultra Street Fighter 4 matches, while Shoryuken offers two streams to cover the remaining games: SRKEvo1 and the similarly-titled SRKEvo2. The official Twitch streaming schedule offers a full rundown of what games will be shown. Today is a dominated by Ultra Street Fighter 4, Tekken and Injustice, but tomorrow features the more esoteric King of Fighters, Killer Instinct and BlazBlue tournaments. [Image: Capcom]
Destiny beta grants three download codes for each player
Platform selection for the Destiny beta is live today. The beta itself is still a few days out, but eager Guardians are already getting some good news: Beta participants will be given three download codes for the platform of their choice. Whether you're planning to play on Xbox 360, Xbox One, PS3 or PS4, you'll be able to fight wizards from the moon with two buddies, whether they've pre-ordered the game or not. Talk about viral marketing... If you haven't done so already, you can redeem your 9-digit pre-order code at Bungie.net/beta, after which you can select your platform. The beta kicks off on PS4 and PS3 starting July 17, followed by Xbox 360 and Xbox One on July 23. Oh, and if you haven't pre-ordered Destiny, keep an eye on Joystiq. We'll be giving away hundreds of beta codes in the very near future (no, really). [Image: Bungie]
Joystiq Discussion: Should consoles have early access games?
The age of early access is upon us! No longer the domain of PCs, the alpha build is becoming a central tenet of the modern game industry, even on consoles. "We have a global strike team, plus an SCEA strike team, who are in charge of trying to figure out how to look at what's happening with early alpha access, or paid betas," explained Adam Boyes, Sony VP of developer relations, in a new interview with Gamasutra. The merits of early access game design are plain. The risk of prolonged game development is mitigated by an influx of consumer cash before the game's even complete. What's more, an audience can be built gradually over time rather than all at once through sheer force of marketing. Early access design is, however, contrary to the spirit of game consoles. The whole point of a game console is ease of use and standardized quality. They are not PCs, variable and in need of constant tweaking, so games should presumably be ready to go as soon as you put it in the disc slot or have it installed. Even in the decade since Xbox 360 brought beta testing, DLC, and content patches to the consoles, that's remained true. Does early access gaming have a place on consoles? Take our poll and discuss in the comments. Should consoles embrace early access game development? [Images: Mojang]
Limited edition Frozen PS4 only announced for Japan, let it go
If you're a fan of Disney's animated musical Frozen, the sight of Sony's new limited edition PS4 might make you want to sing with joy - give us a sec to get the earplugs. Unfortunately it's currently limited to Japan, where the Frozen-covered system will be available on July 16 for 42,980 yen (around $424). If you're wondering, the answer is no, it doesn't come with a copy of Frozen - that would make too much sense. If you're surprised to see Frozen of all things on a PS4 in Japan of all places, the film's been the country's box office number one for the 16 weeks prior to this one. The film that finally toppled it? Disney's Maleficent. [Image: Sony]
Battlefest starts this weekend with bonus Battlefield 4 XP
Just in time for the July 15 debut of Battlefield 4's Dragon's Teeth DLC, EA kicks off Battlefest, a month-long promotion designed to reward those loyal virtual soldiers who've stuck with the shooter despite its infamous track record. Battlefest begins on July 12 with a two-day, double experience point bonus for all players. From there, EA will offer new content on a weekly basis, including free camo unlocks and Community Missions that force players to work together to reach a formidable goal. Assuming players complete the mission, everyone who logged into Battlefield 4 during the event will receive a free Gold Battlepack. Finally, EA is launching a month-long stunt competition. If you've got awesome footage of ramping a motorbike off a pile of rubble into a helicopter like some poorly planned Die Hard sequel, send it in to EA. The top three most impressive clips will be awarded what EA calls, "a massive prize." [Image: EA]
Dragon Age Inquisition: Eight romances, no deadly war hounds
Following a lengthy Raptr Q&A session hosted by the developers of Dragon Age: Inquisition, we've learned a number of new things about BioWare's upcoming roleplaying epic. While combat has been expanded to add new abilities and spells, and to grant the use of bows to all rogues, fans should not expect to fight alongside the noble mabari. According to BioWare, the faithful war hounds will not appear in combat in Inquisition. The game will feature numerous chances for amoré, however: eight in total, two of which require players to meet race restrictions. For those who feel that dipping one's pen in the party's virtual ink is strictly verboten, you can seek affection outside of your crew of like-minded heroes as BioWare is including "at least one" relationship option outside of your companions. Games.On.Net has a bullet list round-up of the remaining information. There's a lot there, and while it qualifies as "miscellaneous" at best, and offer no details on the game's plot, it should prove informative to fans of the series. [Image: EA]
Ubisoft reports first-quarter growth of 374%, bolstered by Watch Dogs
Ubisoft announced its financial results for the fiscal quarter ending on June 30, revealing that it has shipped more than 8 million copies of its hacking-themed sandbox action game Watch Dogs to date. Reporting €360 million (approximately $490 million) in sales for the first quarter of 2014-2015, Ubisoft notes a year-on-year improvement of 374 percent compared to the €76 million recorded for the same quarter last year. The publisher attributes its growth to the release of Watch Dogs and a strong showing in its digital segment with recent games like Valiant Hearts, Child of Light, and Trials Fusion. Ubisoft previously reported a 32 percent jump in year-on-year digital sales for the 2014 fiscal year. More details regarding Ubisoft's first-quarter financial performance will be available soon. [Image: Ubisoft]
Watch Dogs ships 8 million copies
Ubisoft has shipped 8 million copies of Watch Dogs since the game's launch in May, the company announced in its Q1 2014 – 2015 financial report. Sales for the quarter were above expectations, hitting €360 million of an expected €310 million, and that's thanks in large part to Watch Dogs, Ubisoft says. In its first week at retail, Watch Dogs sales hit 4 million, making it Ubisoft's "best-selling game ever in week one." It also broke the publisher's day-one sales records. "The success of Watch Dogs and the quality of our games portfolio presented at this year's E3 highlight our strategic positioning as well as our continuous drive for innovation, and affirm our long-term approach," Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot said in today's report. "Watch Dogs is now well-positioned as a major franchise and we will be able to replicate and build on its success in the coming years. Its sales performance testifies to Ubisoft's expertise as a creator of blockbuster brands." [Image: Ubisoft]
Dead Island 2 collector's edition contents up for public vote
Deep Silver is polling Dead Island series fans to determine the contents of the Dead Island 2 Collector's Edition prior to the sequel's multiplatform launch next year. Available options range from standard fare (art books, character figurines, digital content) to the unexpected (back scratchers, beer coolers, alarm clocks, character-themed maneki-neko) to the outright impossible ("a real zombie"). Dead Island: Riptide's controversial torso statue is not an option, unsurprisingly. Voting ends July 14, so make sure you vote for the "real zombie" option before then. Assuming their bio-technology is able to keep up with production, Deep Silver could make a real-world zombie apocalypse happen, and you can help. [Image: Deep Silver]
Behind the mic drop: Sony re-wrote E3 script after Microsoft backlash
Sony's E3 2013 press conference was the definition of mic drop – Sony Computer Entertainment of America CEO Jack Tretton stepped on stage and devoted his finale speech to tearing down the contentious DRM, always-online and used-game restrictions that Microsoft had just announced for the Xbox One. He never mentioned Microsoft by name, but instead simply listed the things that the PS4 would allow. And the crowd went wild. Sony Computer Entertainment head Andrew House re-wrote that speech the weekend before E3, after witnessing backlash to Microsoft's policies, he said during the Develop 2014 conference (as reported by Eurogamer). "I remember reading an article literally the weekend before E3 that was basically saying that this is the direction Microsoft was taking and that it was only a matter of time before Sony adopts the same approach," House said. "That sort of put me on the back foot and I went and re-wrote portions of my E3 presentation script that weekend and we re-crafted the presentation because there was now an onus on us not to be seen to be going down the same path." House said Sony's policies never changed; only the messaging did. One week after E3 2013, Microsoft reversed the most scandalous of its Xbox One DRM policies. A few of Sony's promised features for the PS4 haven't yet materialized – such as sleep mode and the ability to let a friend take over your game online – but Sony is "working on it."
