action
Latest
Stealth Inc 2 sneaks to Wii U eShop October 23
Stealth Inc 2: A Game of Clones will launch October 23 on the Wii U eShop, Curve Studios confirmed with Joystiq today. The game was announced as a Wii U exclusive in May and carries on the sneaky puzzle-platforming gameplay style set by the first game.The series began with the free PC game Stealth Bastard in November 2011 before the enhanced Stealth Bastard Deluxe hit Steam one year later. It received a name change in 2013 to Stealth Inc before arriving on consoles. Unlike Stealth Inc's linear level design, the sequel will adopt structures similar to Metroid and Castlevania series with a "fully explorable" overworld. The game has players infiltrating a cloning facility, obtaining equipment to unlock new areas as they go. Not only is Curve Studios promising a slick 60 frames-per-second presentation, but Stealth Inc 2 will also include a full co-op multiplayer mode in which one friend can use tools and skills on the Wii U GamePad to keep the player well-hidden. [Image: Curve Studios]
The Daily Grind: What did you accomplish in your games this weekend?
This past weekend I played a little Marvel Heroes, a lot of Space Engineers, a bit of War Thunder, and a few other things that I can't justify writing about on an MMO site. I gained some Storm levels in MH and got a few nice drops, but I had the most fun building up my outpost in SE and inviting a friend into my game to serve as my mining slave help me design and craft a few essentials. What about you, Massively readers? What did you accomplish in your MMOs or multiplayer games over the weekend? 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!
The Daily Grind: Have you branched out beyond traditional MMOs lately?
As I mentioned in this space last week, I've been suffering a bit of MMO burnout. I've still been gaming, though, mostly via single-player stuff but also a smidge of Marvel Heroes. I was never much for Diablo, which is why my ongoing MH fixation is somewhat surprising. Maybe I'm just an action RPG late-bloomer, and I'm curious to see if I might enjoy something like Path of Exile now, too. What about you, Massively readers? Have you branched out beyond traditional MMOs recently? How so? 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!
Sony's Action Cam Mini packs just as much power in two-thirds the size
While some users might not love everything about Sony's current adventure camera lineup, you can hardly fault the Action Cams for being too large. Still, when size and weight really matter, such as when you're mounting a camera on a helmet or a drone, it certainly wouldn't hurt to shave off an inch or two. That's exactly what Sony's done with its Action Cam Mini, which replaces the AS100V we first met at CES with a camera that's two-thirds the size. Fortunately, you won't have to compromise on image quality, and all of the former model's accessories work with the Mini, too.
Cubot is a fun, minimalist puzzler
For fans of shape-based slide puzzles, such as the Rubick's Cube and Tetris will enjoy Cubot. This game, at it's core, is simply rolling cubes around on a grid of squares, to a square that corresponds with a cube's color (the basic cubes are blue). But the difficulty comes in as cubes are added. Different colored cubes move in different ways. Even trickier, you can't simply move one cube -- all the cubes move, every time, which demands strategy and and thinking ahead. The game is broken up into 10 Episodes, each comprised of 10 puzzles. Many of the puzzles have interesting names, such as "Cube Orgy," "I love you," "Indiana Jones," and "Green Power Ranger," which I came to look forward to, as I made my way into upper levels. The increase in difficulty is gradual through the 5th episode, with the occasional introduction of new blocks that behave in different ways, and new apparatuses, such as elevators, split levels, and portals to other parts of the board. Difficulty takes a sharp turn upwards in the 7th episode. The real success in this game is its minimalism. Boards are simply comprised of grids of squares, free floating in white space. You can adjust the view of the board with simple one- and two-finger controls, and the 3D rotation of the board is very clean and exciting. Along with the minimal looks of this game is a beautiful, minimal soundtrack of ambient piano, reminiscent of Brian Eno's "Music For Airports." If there's a drawback with this game, it would be potential for repeat plays. While several of the later puzzles are challenging more than once, many of the puzzles are easily remembered. That said, the game does track your personal best, with the goal (like in traditional puzzles) being to solve in the fewest number of moves. As a whole package, this beautiful, minimal game is a ton of fun, gorgeous, and worth every bit of the $US.99 you pay for it, especially for those trying to expand their mind with very few bells and whistles.
PAX Prime 2014: Marvel Heroes is the industry's surprise success story
Meeting with Marvel Heroes' David Brevik at PAX Prime confirmed what I have been observing over the past year or so: This game has quietly and steadily become one of the bigger success stories in the online gaming industry. Brevik told me that the Marvel Heroes playerbase continues to grow, boasting four times as many players as it had nine months ago. What did Brevik attribute to the game's meteoric rise? The promotions and sheer mountain of new content that the team's been adding certainly helped, but he said that it really came down to terrific community relations. Brevik streams the game four nights a week and talks to the community members as though they were part of his family.
Get a glimpse of Rogue in Marvel Heroes' video preview
Few are the superhero fans who don't like Rogue, the saucy southern villain-turned-hero, and Marvel Heroes will soon be adding this powerful X-Man to its lineup. With her unique power-absorbing abilities, how will Rogue work in the game? Devs hosted a lengthy livestream to introduce the hero and show off her versatility. Of Rogue's three power sets, only one is pre-defined -- the Miss Marvel set with flight, strength, etc. The other two are customizable based on the powers players actually steal from friends! If you missed the stream, you can get full details on stealing powers (as well as forgetting them to learn others), in the hour-and-twenty-minute video right here. There's also some talk about Jean Grey and Ghostrider, who get a Dark Phoenix power and more single-target attacks, respectively. Fans can also discuss Rogue in her special forums on the official site. Rogue is available currently for pre-order.
Grow fighting power with gems, cards in Call of Challenger
Call of Challenger is an action/adventure game for iOS that uses the power of cards - for champions and powers - to build your fighting team, while still being fully interactive. The storyline is virtually the same one we've all heard before: a brave summoner (you) must embark on a journey to save a goddess and claim a treasure at the very end. Along the way, the summoner must win battles and unlock champions and various new powers to upgrade his fighting power. The game is free to play, but has many in-app purchase options. The game runs on all iOS devices running iOS version 4.3 or later. The beginning of Call of Challenger starts off a bit slow and confusing, but don't let this discourage you from playing because it improves after the first few battles. The summoner is placed on a grid-based map and you only get to see a small portion of it. Light illuminates the path you've traveled already, while everything that still needs exploring remains in the dark - a very clever design choice. Moving along this path introduces you to new people that will help along your travels, as well as enemies to battle. The game typically awards you cards after a victorious battle, but they don't play much of a role until a little ways in. Eventually you'll unlock Teemo, the first new champion. This is when cards start to come into play. A navigation menu will appear at the top of the game that lets you essentially pause the adventure to start using your cards and arranging your champions. If you tap a champion, buttons appear to evolve or upgrade the character. The champion card also displays a number of details like level, class and star ranking. The Arrange feature allows you to assemble a team of up to five different champions to fight at once. It's totally customizable, even letting you drag and drop champions into emphasized or deemphasized positions. Tapping "Upgrade" for any one champion shows you all the cards you've collected along the way to then apply to that champion. This becomes important for advancing in the game as giving champions new skills increases its ability to win battles when they become harder. However, adding cards to a champion costs gems, the game's form of currency. While gems are easy enough to earn to move forward in the game, it's even easier if you take advantage of the in-app purchases Call of Challenger offers. There are packages of gems ranging from $0.99 for 60 to a whopping $99.99 for 6,200. The fact that the $99.99 in-app purchase is more popular than the $9.99 one is pretty revealing about the addictive nature of this game. Graphics and performance are both solid. I experienced pretty much no lag or pauses performing variation actions in the game. The graphics are far from intensive, but they're pleasantly old-school. One small issue I had is the persistent border on the top and bottom of the iPhone version of the game. It seems to serve no other purpose than to fill in the gap that the larger-screened iPhone 5 created in 2012, but given how much time has gone by I'd prefer if the developers took better advantage of the bigger display by now. Call of Challenger is a fun action/adventure with seriously addictive properties. The more battles you win, the more cards you earn, the more gems you use up and ultimately the more gems you'll want to earn or buy. It's available for free in the App Store.
Marvel Heroes now featuring Operation Omega
Operation Omega is going on right now in Marvel Heroes. In fact, it's a week-long event that started yesterday, so it will be going on for some time. It features 24 percent server-wide boosts to XP, SIF, and RIF as well as harder enemies and more loot. Oh, and don't forget to collect those Omega access files and trade them in to Dum Dum Dugan for exclusive items and artifacts!
Pentumble really sticks with you
Pentumble is an exciting platformer where you face many dangerous obstacles in your race against time to get the most stars in each level. Players must avoid hitting spiky wheels of death, fire, and other such ominous elements in a quest to reach the star at the end of each level. This is a perilous journey most of the time as you must be very careful and strategic about your movement; overshooting a jump most assuredly mean death unless you are lucky. The game costs $1.99 and runs on all iOS devices with iOS version 7.0 or later. The pacing in Pentumble's 36 levels is interesting. There are some easy levels at the beginning which do a nice job of introducing players to the controls and obstacles fairly early on. By about level five, things start to get tense but then you are given a little breather with some easier levels. This pattern continues for some time until about the final 10 levels. Here the levels are much harder than before and you find yourself feeling stumped more often. The pacing makes Pentumble rewarding to play for long stretches of time because you feel very victorious when you complete a tough level. You become excited about the challenges awaiting you in every level that follows. If that is not enough motivation for you to keep playing, Pentumble also features a star rating system that rewards players for completing a level in a certain amount of time and this adds to the games replay value. Pentumble features a character that can latch onto platforms upside down, right side up, and even on the side. You can even walk on or around this platform and some levels require you to move your character on the platform to avoid obstacles. The controls are really fluid and you feel more in control of your actions because of this. Fluid controls also means that you have to think about your actions more. One wrong move could send your character jumping into a spiky wheel. This was an unexpected challenge, but a welcome addition as it makes the game feel more responsive and fun. The platforms themselves were creative as some could be simple panels that move in two directions. Others were bubbles that pop if you stand on them wrong. These platforms test players' skills and adaptability to the changing environments as they can show up in any combination and order. In a couple of the later levels there were some collision problems when trying to move over certain objects, such as a pipe. The character would get stuck in the object and sometimes the ground. You can get the character unstuck, but this takes some time and you are better off restarting the level. This was the only real problem I ran across while playing and it didn't deter me from playing again, it was just an annoyance. The art style in Pentumble is clean and not extravagant which works very well for this game. Even the typeface and user interface elements echoes this same clean appearance. It is visually very attractive. The music also fits very well with the overall theme. It is fun and quirky, which makes the game more enjoyable to play. Pentumble is a great platformer that features interesting platform challenges as well as a fluid control scheme and it is recommended for those who would like to test their skills with new challenges in platforming.
Sentinel 4: Dark Star is a tower defense star
Strategy and upgrades are at the forefront in Sentinel 4: Dark Star, a tower defense game that challenges players to think on their feet in campaigns. There are 26 maps in the game, each with their own interesting challenges. Some of these challenges include limited locations to set turrets up at and other unique strategy requirements. Sentinel 4 is compatible with iOS devices running 5.1.1 or later. There are two modes in Sentinel 4: campaign and endless. Each mode can have one of four difficulty levels (easy, medium, hard, and psycho). Easy mode is a nice introduction to the gameplay and enjoyable for people new to tower defense type games or those just wanting to play a less challenging level. Medium mode is a good intermediate mode and a stepping stone in difficulty between easy and hard. Enemies become stronger in hard mode and this increase in strength seems natural, adding a new challenge. This is especially noticeable if you are replaying a level you recently beat in one of the easier modes. In psycho mode, each enemy is much stronger and they take a lot more hits to be taken down. It is much harder to get a good defense started and also harder to continue building up that defense. Sentinel 4 rewards players with more weapons, upgrades, and enemy types when they continue to beat levels and progress in the storyline. There are four categories for the weapons (turrets, path, sentinel, and stronghold). The turrets are the basic line of defense for your base and they become stronger the further along in the game you get. The next category of weapons is path, these are droids that can be used in the middle of pathways to block enemies from progressing very far without being damaged. Sentinel weapons are used by the sentinel to attack enemies with more powerful blasts and repair structures and turrets. Finally, the stronghold weapons are similar to the sentinel weapons but is usually stronger and takes longer to charge. All of these weapon categories can be upgraded with anything from auto-repair to increased range and duration of attacks. The upgrading in Sentinel 4 is a lot of fun and enhances the gameplay considerable as it makes the strategy more important. Sentinel 4 features stunning visuals and effects as well which accents the gameplay nicely. The way the lava moves is visually interesting and the lighting looks very natural with the setting of the game. Level progression flows very nicely and fits well with the storyline. However, even though the story fit with the gameplay, defending the base seemed more exciting. Each commander you pick has its own special abilities. For example, the Hyperion, which can be unlocked after completing some campaigns, has the ability to convert enemies killed within its range to energy to charge up your Sentinel. You can upgrade each commander's strength, guns, and tech capacities each with their own benefits depending on how you will be using the commander. Depending on what the level's layout and enemy patterns are, you have to be prepared to adapt your strategy and be conservative with your efforts as a lot of the time you will be limited in your resources and have to make tough decisions. When a level has more than one gate protecting the Sentinel, sometimes you have to make the conscious effort to let the first gate fall in order to protect another area that is getting overrun if you only have enough money to build one turret. Building strong but agile strategies is crucial in this game and with so many options for upgrades Sentinel 4 feels more challenging and addictive than some other tower defense games. Sentinel 4: Dark Star is available on the App Store for US$4.99 and I would highly recommend picking up this addictive game.
Open-world skiing game Snow drifting to PS4, Oculus Rift
Swedish developer Poppermost will bring its open-world skiing game Snow to PlayStation 4 as well as PC, which gets additional Oculus Rift support. Snow arrived on Steam's Early Access service in October and is expected to move into a closed beta phase by the end of the year as a free-to-play game. The game is console-exclusive to the PS4. Those that want to check out the Early Access version on PC can pick up founders packs with alpha passes and in-game items, ranging from $15 to $60. Poppermost crammed eight square kilometers of open space and alpine terrain into its first game, which is powered by Crytek's Cryengine. In Snow, players thumb through hundreds of items in the game's catalog to equip their riders with 11 pieces of gear simultaneously before hitting the slopes to perform tricks. [Image: Poppermost]
Marvel Heroes unleashes Cosmic Chaos Week
Bad things to unleash include krakens, tempers, and the hounds. Good things to unleash include puppy parades and Marvel Heroes' new Cosmic Chaos Week. This soon-to-be monthly event features a week full of double boss loot drops, double prestige earned, and cosmic doops as far as the eye can see. There will also be opportunities to save up for special rewards and to buy certain galactic-themed heroes for a discounted price. The event is currently live and will go until the patch next week.
Marvel Heroes celebrates Guardians of the Galaxy
Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy film hits theaters on August 1st, and Marvel Heroes is counting down with its 10 Days of Guardians of the Galaxy in-game event. Players can complete three shared quests once per day to max out their allotment of Planet X Bark, which can then be redeemed for loot boxes with varying levels of unique rewards. There's also a daily login reward, so head to the official Marvel Heroes website to read all about it!
Neverwinter unveils the Dragonborn Pack
Were you worried that Neverwinter's fourth major update, Tyranny of Dragons, would feature too few dragons? We're not sure how you could have been worried about that, but the good news is that you can bring even more dragon into your play experience by playing a Dragonborn. No, not that kind of Dragonborn; the kind that's literally half-dragon. Or all dragon, but... humanoid dragon. You get the idea. And you can play one. Buying the game's Dragonborn Legend Pack unlocks the new race as well as a set of cosmetic armor for your new man-dragon, the special Heart of the Red Dragon artifact, and a variety of other rewards including a race change token. The pack is on sale until August 18th, allowing players a chance to get in on the race at a discount. Whether you want to just one-up roleplayers claiming to be half-dragon or can't get enough lizards in your gameplay, you can pick up the pack now if it's your sort of fun.
Massively Exclusive: Grand Chase goes live on Steam tomorrow
Grand Chase is pursuing its way onto Steam on Thursday, July 17th, and you know what that means: welcome events. After all, when a free-to-play game shows up on a popular digital service, there will be a lot of new arrivals. New players can look forward to the Welcome Heroes event, which provides a free bundle of prizes to any one character on a player's account. They can also take advantage of the Character Jumping event, which allows everyone to kick a character straight to level 70 (the current cap is 85). A Steam-specific stat-boosting title is also available to everyone, along with new item packages. These packages include a new set of equipment with stats and a new pet, both of which have never been available elsewhere. If you're a long-time Grand Chase player or just can't wait to get a free-to-play brawler on your hard drive, take heart because the game will be available tomorrow. [Source: KOG Games press release]
Neverwinter shows off the Scourge Warlock for Tyranny of Dragons
Do you want to fight some dragons? The next expansion to Neverwinter is all about fighting dragons, hence the title Tyranny of Dragons. Would you prefer to do so whilst conjuring up forbidden and evil magic from beyond to help smite your foes and empower your party? Then the Scourge Warlock is right up your alley. You can check the new class out in the trailer just past the break. Scourge Warlocks are casters who can summon a Soul Puppet from the beyond, using their magical prowess to leech health and empower allies while leaving enemies as shambling shells. They also have access to a new paragon path, Hellbringer, which... well, it doesn't summon bunnies and stomach rubs. Take a look at the official development blog for a clearer picture of what these casters are capable of, and watch the trailer to see the class in action before Tyranny of Dragons goes live on August 14th. [Source: Cryptic Studios press release]
A preview of the third closed beta for wuxia MMO Moonlight Blade
Would you say there's a distinct lack of wuxia MMORPGs in your life at the moment? Then you might be interested in learning more about Moonlight Blade, a wuxia game published by Tencent and currently in the midst of its third beta test in China. Steparu recently discussed the beta test, covering everything from missions and quests to character customization, with the caveat that the author doesn't speak a word of Chinese and has muddled through much of the game with the help of friends. Moonlight Blade features three different combat modes based on player preference, ranging from traditional point-and-click gameplay to fully active combat. While the game looks gorgeous, according to the beta review it's still very buggy and the combat lacks some satisfying impact. Check out the full piece if it seems like something you'd be interested in; there's no word on a Western release, but showing interest can't hurt.
Marvel Heroes has great plans for you this Fourth of July weekend
Do you have a few days off this weekend for superhero action? Marvel Heroes has a trio of events lined up for players this weekend who have an abundance of time on their hands. The main event this weekend is a "Red, White, and Loot" boost to rotating game modes. Marvel Heroes will increase loot drops between four game modes depending on the time of day. There will also be BBQ-themed drops all over the game (because HULK LOVE HOT DOG!) and an extended Soccer Showdown event that neatly coincides with the World Cup.
Marvel Heroes' super first year
In a game focused on super heroes with super powers facing super villains, you wouldn't expect a birthday bash to be just ordinary, would you? Of course not; it should be super! Gazillion agreed: Marvel Heroes just wrapped up its mega month-long first anniversary celebration this past weekend. From multiple buy-one-get-one-free offers to plentiful buffs and boosts to 365 birthday gifts for each player, the event was filled with festivities fit to bear the "super" moniker. The celebration itself capped off a year of growth and expansion for the action RPG; the Marvel Heroes of today is not the Marvel Heroes that players logged into back in June of 2013. Even before the big release of Marvel Heroes 2015, which kicked off the anniversary festivities on June 4th, the game had already evolved quite a bit. How has it changed over the last 12 months? Let's take a hop, skip, and super leap down memory lane for a look.
