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Steam sales arrrrr pirate-themed today
Ahoy, ye scurvy dogs! In honor of National Talk Like A Pirate Day, the landlubbers over at Valve have instituted a sale on pirate-themed games via Steam. Monkey Island, Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag, the Risen series and more all get their chance to come aboard your Internet-sailing vessel. Even space pirates - distant cousins though they may be - have slashed their prices with the buccaneer blade of savings. Aye, tis a good thing. Ye'll have to be quick to snag these beasties though, me lads and lasses; at the time of this decree, there be just more than a day's worth of hours left on these sales. Avast and draw the main sail; set course for Steam! [Image: Ubisoft]
Deals With Gold: MGS5: Ground Zeroes, Titanfall, Risen
Microsoft's weekly Deals With Gold promotion has returned with discounts on Metal Gear Solid 5: Ground Zeroes, Titanfall and, to celebrate the launch of Risen 3: Titan Lords, the first two entries in Deep Silver's roleplaying franchise. On the Xbox One side of things, both Ground Zeroes and Titanfall have received 50 percent discounts. Ground Zeroes is now available at $15, while Titanfall can be purchased for $25. Titanfall's Expedition DLC has also been discounted to $7. Discounts on Xbox 360 games are more numerous, with a number of Square Enix games receiving a 50 percent discount, including Final Fantasy XIII-2 and Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII. Following the August 12 debut of Risen 3: Titan Lords, both Risen and Risen 2 have had their prices slashed by 75 percent. For a full list of discounts available this week, visit Major Nelson's blog or the Xbox Live Marketplace. All discounts are valid until August 18. Edit: This article initially stated that the Titanfall Expedition DLC was now priced at $10, when it is actually now priced at $7. [Image: Konami]
Dog bites man, man clubs dog in Risen 3 CGI teaser
Attach a Sarah McLachlan song to this new Risen 3: Titan Lords teaser and suddenly that ferocious hellhound becomes a cuddly, misunderstood puppy, lost in a world of dark magic and knights who taste remarkably like snausages. [Image: Deep Silver]
Report: Risen 3: Titan Lords leaves the sea in favor of medieval fantasy [Update]
Furthering the gaming industry's ongoing fascination with the word "titan" comes Risen 3: Titan Lords, a newly-revealed entry in developer Piranha Bytes' cult-favorite dark fantasy roleplaying franchise. German magazine PC Games has revealed the existence of Risen 3: Titan Lords via a preview image of the magazine's next cover. Scant information on the game was offered alongside this teaser, though we do know that Risen 3: Titan Lords will return to the medieval fantasy setting seen in the original Risen, in lieu of reviving the high seas, piratical adventures of Risen 2: Dark Waters. There is currently no word on when Risen 3: Titan Lords might debut. It seems certain that the roleplaying game will come to the PC, though any platforms beyond that remain a mystery. Update: Piranha Bytes sent over its official announcement for the game, found after the break. [Image: Piranha Bytes]
Humble Deep Silver Bundle adds Metro 2033, Sacred Citadel, Risen
The Humble Deep Silver Bundle recruits Metro 2033, Sacred Citadel and Risen today. These new additions are free for anyone who's already purchased the bundle, while new customers must pay over the average price (currently just shy of $5) for the trio. Calling the Humble Deep Silver bundle successful is perhaps an understatement: It has sold over 340,000 bundles and earned in excess of $1.6 million since its introduction last week. The pay-what-you-want lineup consists of Dead Island: Game of the Year Edition, Saints Row 2, Sacred 2: Gold Edition, Risen 2: Dark Waters and Saints Row: The Third and all its Full Package DLC. Paying more than $25 also secures a copy of Dead Island: Riptide. The Humble Deep Silver Bundle has little less than a week to go before closing its virtual doors. It's also worth noting that these games are provided as Steam codes, so you'll need Valve's digital distribution platform to run them.
Become a pirate of Dark Waters in Risen 2
Piranha Bytes is lifting its Risen series out of generic fantasy land, and dropping it into the high seas. Risen 2: Dark Waters, coming to "consoles and PC," is a seafaring RPG set in a destroyed world, years after the end of the first game. The hero sets out to discover what's causing monsters to rise out of the sea, sailing from island to island and getting mixed up with pirates. Players can expect the same kind of open-world RPG gameplay, but now on a series of islands. The sequel "maintains the most immersive features of the original Risen, with multiple approaches to every challenge allowing players to shape the game world based on their own decisions." Let's hope Piranha Bytes shapes its own game world the right way the first time, so it doesn't have to rebuild the console game as it did the original.%Gallery-117292%
Impressions: Risen's second chance on Xbox 360
click to enlarge Piranha Bytes' RPG Risen is getting a second chance in America. Originally released in Europe on October 2009, reviewers slammed the game as "unfinished and unrefined" and "a technical mess" -- for good reason, too. The original retail release of Risen on Xbox 360 was largely a "beta" version of the game. Four months later, Piranha Bytes is putting the true finishing touches to the game, and the improvement is immediately noticeable. The European game's framerate was inconsistent at best, but this revised version is -- dare we say it? -- playable. In fact, aside from the occasional hiccup, the experience is rather smooth. According to the developer, Risen now boasts higher resolution textures, denser vegetation, better lighting, sharper fonts and brightness controls. Visually, this is pretty much a different game altogether. Unfortunately, that still doesn't place Risen in the same league as games like the graphically underwhelming Dragon Age Origins. This is still a visually dated product, but at least this time around, the game is playable. %Gallery-84177%
Deep Silver publishing Risen on Xbox 360 in February
Piranha Bytes' Risen will release this February on Xbox 360 in North America. Speaking of rising, that's likely something the review scores could use after the North American release. The PC version is currently scraping by with a 77 on Metacritic and the Xbox 360 version, which has raided Europe, is sporting a frighteningly low score of 58. Under normal circumstances Risen might stand a chance with a February release -- despite its review scores. But, as has become disturbingly clear to other publishers, 2010 is just full-up with solid launches, that everyone has to bring their A-game to survive this year's release schedule. %Gallery-47713%
Risen is gold for PC on Oct. 2, Xbox 360 version delayed until 2010
Piranha Bytes' Risen will make its scheduled PC release on October 2; however, the Xbox 360 version has been delayed until "early next year," a release window that's just begging for more. (Also, let's just ignore that our GameFly account deems the console version as "canceled.")Sporting a solid voice cast, the fantasy RPG by the developers of Gothic 3, is a toss-up in the quality department -- which means that Australia was either punished or spared by the game's "banning."%Gallery-47713%
Risen banned in Australia for incentivizing sex and drugs
RPG Risen has been refused classification by Australia's OFLC, meaning it can't be sold at retail on the continent. Kotaku was informed by the game's Aussie distributor that the board was concerned by "sexual activity and drug use related to incentives or rewards." Ignore the fact that both of those concepts are directly related to teaching children how to succeed in business. Why are we talking about children? Well, it's because Australia only rates games that are appropriate for children 15-years-old and younger. The US's ESRB summary of Risen notes that sex is implied but never depicted, while "wood reefer" can be bought, sold and used. That sounds a lot like high school. %Gallery-47713%
Risen rising to retail rOctober recond ... argh, second
Developer Piranha Bytes has announced that its RPG, Risen, will try to take a bite out of retail on October 2. Big Download took note of the press release's proud statement that the game is completely done and going through three separate quality assurance teams. That last bit likely has a little something to do with the developer's most recent game, Gothic 3, being a tad buggy. Three months will, hopefully, be enough time to work any issues out.%Gallery-47713%[Via Big Download]
Breakfast Topic: How does a raiding guild avoid the fate of Death and Taxes?
So it's been a day or so since we first heard that Death and Taxes was disbanding, and since then, DnT member Xi- has posted a somewhat lengthy explanation as to why. In the end, the biggest reason Xi- gave is pride. Many people, he says, just stopped thinking about the raid and the guild as a whole, and were more focused on their own advancement and their own needs, and became impatient when a boss did not fall easily. When it was time to progress, many of them, even officers, would disappear and stop supporting them. He also does get in a few Risen style digs about how none of the BC content was half as good as Naxxramas up until Sunwell Plateau, but he did manage to sound a lot more classy than Risen did. But the point about pride, about guild members who disappear for a while and expect to pick back up where they left off when they return, and about people who never show up for progress kills, or show up and complain if the boss doesn't fall after one or two tries, that rings true with me, as I am sure it rings true with a lot of current and former MMO raiders, whether from WoW or other games.
Breaking News: Death and Taxes guild disbands [Updated]
Something strange is afoot in the wee ours of the morning here, as Nihilum is reporting that the Death and Taxes guild on the Korgath US PvP server has disbanded. This guild has long been considered perhaps the premiere raiding guild of the US Servers. As of this writing, there is no further word on why they have disbanded, only that they have and that some of them will reroll Horde. The front page of the official Death and Taxes site does not have any sort of news post on the issue, but does have a banner that reads "Rest In Peace Death and Taxes, Beta 2004-May 2008," and has a list of their world and US first kills. The forum's name has been changed to "Death and Taxes - Keep in Touch," though there does not appear to be a forum post accessible by a basic account that gives any insight or information as to the disbanding. Hopefully more information is revealed soon. Death and Taxes has been hot on the raiding scene for some time, gaining US and world firsts starting in AQ40 and Naxxramas, and continuing into the Burning Crusade, including their most recent US first kill of Illidan Stormrage and a few key PTR kills in the Sunwell Plateau as well. For now, we'll watch and see if more information comes forth. Perhaps they may be like Risen, believing the end-game progression is worthless but possibly reappearing in WoTLK. Either way, their achievements were many, and they will be missed. Thanks to Liam for tipping us off on this. Update: A poster called Flux (who is not a DnT member but claims he has talked to some), posting on Nihilum's forum thread on the disbanding, claims that they were having trouble retaining guild members due to the long stretch of time between Illidan's downing and any new content, and that the first week of Sunwell raiding was difficult. After attempts to mass-recruit to fill holes ended in a lower level of raiding ability than they were used to, DnT's leaders decided to disband. Apparently, many DnT members will be rerolling Horde on Blackrock. You might want to take this information with a grain of salt, but it's the best we have for now. Behind the cut is a list of Death and Taxes' world and US first kills.
Guildwatch: Years between bosses
Here at GW, we love even the small downs (heck, this week, we reported on a downing in the Stockades -- although it was by the Horde), but when other guilds are able to clear out the whole endgame in the time it takes you to go from one endgame boss to another, it's probably not the best idea to go on to the forums bragging how great your progression is.That story and many others in this week's GW, which starts right after the break. Your tips fuel our column -- please send any and all tips about drama, downed, or recruiting guild news to wowguildwatch@gmail.com. Click the link below to read on.
15 Minutes of Fame: ORLY warrior made of win and wooden shoes
15 Minutes of Fame is our look at World of Warcraft players of all shapes and sizes – both the renowned and the relatively anonymous.In the course of interviewing WoW players from the mainstream to the niche and from the casual to the hardcore, 15 Minutes of Fame has developed an intriguing little theory: players who confess to being "obsessed" with WoW actually have a pretty down-to-earth approach to the game. Oh, they love WoW, it's true, and devote hours and hours to it on a regular basis. But it seems that the players who profess their love for the game the loudest have given themselves permission to indulge in WoW as a hobby. While they dive into the game and related activities with complete abandon, they also seem to recognize that it's merely one part of their lives (albeit a fairly big one). In a nutshell, these aren't your fabled antisocial basement geeks; in fact, we find they tend to be downright warm, funny folks with a lot of interesting ideas and activities on their plates.Take Kooz, the main tank of Fractured on Euro realm Bloodscalp and one of the creators of the O'RLY Show (seen at WoW Radio, along with the WoW Insider Show). Kooz's energy virtually leaps off the page, even long distance from The Netherlands – he's a fun guy to talk to who sounds as if he's building himself a fun life centered around his passion for gaming.
The best of WoW Insider: March 5-11, 2008
Time once again to bring you the hottest stories from Azeroth, where Joystiq sister site WoW Insider is covering all the news out of the biggest MMO ever, World of Warcraft. From Arthas to Zul'Gurub, we've got it covered. News Inscription hidden in patch 2.4Blizzard is laying the groundwork for Inscription, one of the biggest features of Wrath of the Lich King. Risen is mad as hell, and they aren't going to take it anymoreOne of the game's biggest guilds decides to call it quits until the expansion, claiming the game has gotten too casual. Kalgan offers a possible WotLK sneak peek for WarlocksA dev gives a little insight as to where one of the most popular classes in the game might be headed. Best Arena Hunter in the world now banned?Did a well-known PvPer get banned for posting arguments against Blizzard on the forums? The great Panda debateFact and fiction about why Blizzard hasn't added the Pandaren race to the game yet. Features Know Your Lore: Grim BatolFind out the lore behind the scary dwarven castle on the hill. Insider Trader: Rounding up 2.4 profession changes, part 2More updates for crafters in the upcoming patch. Totem Talk: Use the totems wiselyHow to make the most of the defining feature of the Shaman class. Reader UI of the Week: AdoruOne of our readers runs down what they put in their addon folder. Talents you hateLet's do a little ranting about useless talents, shall we?
Risen is mad as hell, and they aren't going to take it anymore
You may remember the raiding guild Risen, from the Alleria server, for their work in Naxxaramas back before The Burning Crusade, being among the first to grab Atiesh and the Corrupted Ashbringer. They're back at the forefront of WoW news again, but this time for a different reason. They've decided to tap out of raiding until WoTLK, and they aren't being very shy about telling us why, with a post on their website under the oh-so-witty title "World of Casualcraft."
Risen assembles worldfirst of Atiesh, Greatstaff of the Guardian
Ratherbrute sends along a tip that Risen, a guild over on Alleria-A, has reassembled the legendary Atiesh, Greatstaff of the Guardian Medivh, not seen since the destruction of Dalaran. Unfortunately, their website is bombed out at the moment, leaving us without their pics of the forming, but a few are floating around, and we're sure lots more will show up as word spreads.Congrats to Failure, who, after recieving the world first of the item, immediately used it to port everyone in Ironforge to Karazahn, which ended up killing a bunch of 1st level alts (who had actually made a guild called "Failure's Atiesh Fanclub"-- you can see a "zomgatiesh" guild in the pic above, too). That's what you get for trying to follow in the footsteps of Medivh, fools! Congrats to Risen and Failure on picking up the world first of this incredible staff.[ Thanks, Ratherbrute! ]Update: A previous version of this post had the wrong server listed for Risen. Apologies and grats again.
