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PSN adds Call of Duty: Ghosts, three other games to PS4 pre-order list
In its ongoing efforts to push players toward the PlayStation 4, Sony has added four new games to the PlayStation Network Store, all of which can be pre-ordered right now. This initiative kicked off last week, as Knack and Warframe pre-order options appeared on the PlayStation Network Store. Today, these games are joined by Assassin's Creed IV, Battlefield 4, Call of Duty: Ghosts and Killzone Shadow Fall. Additionally, the PSN also offers pre-orders on the limited Gold Edition of Assassin's Creed IV, as well as the Hardened Edition of Call of Duty: Ghosts. As you'd expect, these special versions cost more than their standard counterparts, but they also include physical bonus items for truly dedicated fans. Alongside this news, Sony has also revealed that those who have already pre-ordered current generation versions of Battlefield 4, Assassin's Creed IV or Call of Duty: Ghosts can upgrade their pre-order to the PlayStation 4 iteration of those games for $10. You can find full details on how this process works by visiting Sony's upgrade page, or you can visit the Sony Entertainment Network to place your pre-orders.
Swordsmith forges iconic blades from Assassin's Creed IV
Master swordsmith Tony Swatton has a knack for building fictional weapons, and for his latest YouTube video Swatton has set his sights on Ubisoft's Assassin's Creed IV. In the course of the nearly nine-minute-long video, Swatton walks viewers through the process of creating a pirate's cutlass as well as the Assassin's Creed series' trademark assassin's blade. The former is a relatively simple forging process, but the mechanisms involved in the largely-fictional hidden wrist blade weapon require more meticulous effort. Impressively, the end result looks even more sinister in our reality than it does when plunging into the necks of your virtual foes. While watching this video, please keep in mind that Swatton is an expert. Unless you, too, are a master swordsmith, please don't try this at home.
Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag digs up a launch trailer
We're in danger of parroting this info, so let's cutlass right to it: Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag is pegged to board PS3, Xbox 360, and Wii U on October 29, before cannoning onto PC on November 19. You can take your picaroon of next-gen versions at the console launches: November 15 for PS4, and November 22 for Xbox One.
Report: Assassin's Creed series has sold 6.6 million in UK
Stealthy murder is apparently big in the UK, as the Assassin's Creed games have combined to sell over 6.6 million units in the region. "The Assassin's Creed franchise has already sold over 6.6 million units in the UK and over the past few years it has become a staple in gamers' diaries," said Ubisoft's UK brand manager Omebline Wallon, in an interview with MCV, before revealing why Ubisoft has chosen now to highlight its sales numbers. "Since we announced [Assassin's Creed IV Black Flag] in March, we have supported it at every beat of the campaign. We will be increasing our media presence as we near launch," added Wallon. As Wallon mentioned, Ubisoft hopes to substantially increase that "6.6 million" sales figure with the release of Assassin's Creed IV Black Flag, though more importantly, the company hopes that the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 iterations of Black Flag will prove especially lucrative. "This year the anticipation is high, especially with the game coming on PS4 and Xbox One," noted Wallon.
Report: Gamestop's Black Friday has exclusive bundles, blue PS3
Gamestop's Black Friday circular has supposedly leaked its thick, viscous deal-goo all over the internet, exposing the retail chain's plans for the most excruciating shopping day of the year – just don't expect any deals on that new PlayStation 4/Xbox One hotness. For everyone staying in this console generation, though, there's some cool stuff going on if you think leaving the house on Black Friday is worth it. You can have your choice of 250-gig PlayStation 3 or Xbox 360 for $199.99, the former bundled with The Last of Us and Batman: Arkham Origins, and the latter bundled with Halo 4 and a download code for Tomb Raider. Meanwhile, a Gamestop-exclusive Azure Blue 250-gig PS3/Jak and Daxter Collection bundle can be had for $249.99. For 360 owners, there's also a Gamestop-exclusive Batman: Arkham Asylum and Arkham City boxed set, Dishonored and Splinter Cell: Blacklist at $24.99 each. PlayStation 3 owners can snag Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag for $40 and a year of PlayStation Plus for $29.99. The chain is also running a buy-2-get-1 free promotion on all pre-owned items, provided the free thing you pick out is of equal or lesser value. Gamestop is also granting an additional 30-percent in-store credit on all trade-ins, though whether these two offers stack is unknown. There's a lot of other stuff on sale, so while we check on the trade-in value of a human soul, click all up on this to check out the full 12-page circular for yourself.
Assassin's Creed 4 PS3, 360 release date goes global, October 29 for all
Second star to the left and straight on 'til morning: Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag docks on PS3 and Xbox 360 consoles worldwide on October 29. The game was due in the UK and Europe on November 1, but Ubisoft got its Oprah on and decided everyone gets to plunder and pillage starting two weeks from now. Well, not quite everyone. European Wii U and PC owners still have to wait until November 22 to nab AC4, as do prospective PS4 and Xbox One owners. As for North America, the Wii U version is due October 29, the PC version November 19, and the PS4 and Xbox One versions on the consoles' respective launch dates.
Assassin's Creed 4 DLC not coming to Wii U version
Ubisoft is not bringing DLC to the Wii U version of Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag. After the Wii U was left out of the game's season pass plans, the publisher told GamesBeat none of the game's DLC would be coming to the platform. When approached, a company representative simply confirmed to Joystiq "there will be no DLC for the Wii U version." We'd asked for an explanation, and to confirm the DLC would definitely not arrive on the platform at a later point, but he offered no other comment. It's a curious turnaround by Ubisoft, having released DLC for the Wii U version of Assassin's Creed 3, albeit typically a while after it had arrived on other platforms. Assassin's Creed 4 itself safely docks on Wii U, as well as PS3 and Xbox 360, on October 29. It then sets sail for PC on November 19, and the Xbox One and PS4 at their launches.
Assassin's Creed 4 has five hours of modern day play, most of it optional
Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag will let you choose how much of the present day you want to explore, to a point. Game Director Ashraf Ismail revealed via the Ubiblog that the game will feature "a solid three to five hours" of gameplay that takes place at Abstergo, the sinister mega-corporation antagonist of the series. Most of the modern day gameplay is optional, however; only roughly 20 minutes will be required. "You leave the Animus five times during the game's main path and each time you're there for about three to four minutes," Ismail told the Ubiblog. While in the game's modern day setting, you'll play as an Abstergo programmer, researching protagonist and assassin-pirate, Edward Kenway. Dig through the company's files, and you can uncover information, including what's happened to Desmond. "You get to see what Abstergo Entertainment as a company is doing with your research. You get to see the progression of what they're trying to do, which is really fun," Ismail said. Software programmers and pirates don't tend to get along in the real world, but in Assassin's Creed 4, they apparently go together like peanut butter and jellyfish. No wait. Jelly. Just regular jelly.
These are the PlayStation-only goodies for Assassin's Creed 4
Aveline, star of last year's Vita tangent Assassin's Creed 3: Liberation, returns for about an hour's worth of PlayStation 3/4-exclusive content in Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag. She and her machete will chop people up over three missions, according to this latest trailer from Ubisoft.
Ubisoft reveals Assassin's Creed 4 Season Pass content
Ubisoft revealed the contents of Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag's Season Pass launching alongside the game's release next month for the PlayStation 4, Playstation 3, Xbox One, Xbox 360, and PC platforms. The game's Season Pass will grant access to "Freedom Cry," a nine-mission, single-player story starring protagonist Edward Kenway's first mate Adewale. Season Pass buyers will also receive "The Exclusive Kraken Ship Pack," which features several ship-building personalization elements. The Season Pass will additionally host a variety of single-player missions, weapons, skins, and collectibles, along with new maps for the game's multiplayer component. Assassin's Creed 4's Season Pass will be priced at $19.99, providing a 20 percent discount over buying each piece of downloadable content separately.
Assassin's Creed celebrates its heritage in new collection
There has been a whole mess of Assassin's Creed games leading up to this year's Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag. In an attempt to catch players up on the battle between assassins and templars, Ubisoft is releasing the Assassin's Creed Heritage Collection in Europe. The Assassin's Creed Heritage Collection bundles together Assassin's Creed, Assassin's Creed 2 (the Game of the Year edition which includes the Battle of Forli and Bonfire of the Vanities add-ons), Assassin's Creed Brotherhood, Assassin's Creed Revelations and Assassin's Creed 3. The Heritage Collection will launch in the UK on November 8, for Xbox 360, PS3 and Windows PC. When asked whether this bundle would come to the US, Ubisoft reiterated that it was for Europe only.
Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag Video Preview
With Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag, Ubisoft Montreal steers its historical action-adventure franchise into the calming blue seas of an 18th century Caribbean. The tranquility lasts until new protagonist Edward Kenway spies a ship in his telescopic glass – prompting a new piratical opportunity to shoot it, sink it or swing onto its deck and run those fretting sailors through. We discuss the successes of sailing in our video recap above, along with Kenway's on-foot encounters with assassination and shrub-based stealth. There's also a strong implication of which aquatic animals are best suited to crafting holsters. Okay, it's the sharks. We just don't like the sharks.
Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag sets sail for PC on November 19
Ubisoft announced that the Windows PC version of Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag will premiere on November 19, launching alongside releases for the Xbox One and PlayStation 4. Black Flag tracks the swashbuckling life of Captain Edward Kenway, who heads up a high-stakes heist in the Caribbean. The new trailer above features Kenway's accomplices, introducing his shipmates Blackbeard, Anne Bonny, and Charles Vane, among others. Assassin's Creed 4 will hit the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and Wii U on October 29.
Shadow Assassin's Creed 4's Captain Kenway for 10 minutes
This narrated demonstration for Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag really packs in a ton of the gameplay elements from the coming swashbuckling adventure. Observe as Captain Kenway picks a fight, synchs the map, dives for treasure, gets bitten by an eel, infiltrates a pirate den and more.
Best Buy offers $10 Xbox One upgrade on select games
Best Buy has rolled out a program offering $10 next-gen upgrades for a handful of coming games, similar to systems put in place at Gamestop and Amazon. Included in the list of eligible games are FIFA 14, Assassins Creed IV: Black Flag, Call of Duty: Ghosts, Battlefield 4 and Watch Dogs. Exactly how you score your cheap upgrade is where things get complicated. According to Best Buy's official site, if you purchase one of the above games within a set period after its release (most can be picked up as much as a month after release day), you'll be given a $10 coupon to be put toward your game's Xbox One incarnation. When you want to upgrade, you must present this coupon as well as the Xbox 360 game. Best Buy will then give you $40 store credit in exchange for the game, reducing the final cost of your new Xbox One game to $10 (unless the Xbox One version has a retail price greater than $60; in that case you'll be paying the remainder as well). If this scheme sounds intriguing, you should also note that all such upgrades must occur by December 31. Full legal details and all the fine print you can digest can be found on Best Buy's official site.
Assassin's Creed 4 gameplay trailer sails through hostile fort acquisitions
The country of Jackdaw sets sail to take on a fort and, through hostile relations, acquires it for its citizens. This gameplay video for Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag gives a better sense of variety in the game's naval operations.
Ubisoft and Nvidia form 'alliance' to give PC gamers a visual edge
Watch Dogs, Splinter Cell: Blacklist and Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag are going to look best on PC, thanks to an "alliance" formed between developer/publisher Ubisoft and graphics card manufacturer Nvidia, the two companies have announced. Tony Key, senior vice president of sales and marketing at Ubisoft, said that the partnership will allow Ubisoft to deliver "stunning" performance for new and upcoming games. "The PC remains one of the world's most popular gaming platforms, and we're committed to offering PC players the best possible experience with our games," Key said. So what does that mean for PC users? Fancy techno-jargon graphics options! Enjoy TXAA antialiasing, soft shadows, horizon-based ambient occlusion, and advanced DX11 tesselation! Need to upgrade your graphics card to take advantage? You can pick up Blacklist as part of a bundle when you purchase a qualifying GeForce GTX 660, 660 TI, 670, 680, 760, 770 or 780 graphics card. So there you have it: Ubisoft wants to give PC gamers the best versions of their games, and they've partnered with a major player in the hardware market to make it happen. Because they care.
Sony: PS3 to PS4 upgrade pricing set by publishers
During Sony's Gamescom press keynote, president Andrew House revealed a program that would allow consumers to upgrade from select PS3 titles to their PS4 counterparts for a "significantly discounted price." UK managing director Fergal Gara told Digital Spy that the pricing will be dictated by publishers. "What will happen is, the PS4 digital file will be made available on the PlayStation Store - as it would be anyway - at launch, and the PS3 discs will be sold through retail. What the consumer can then do, for a premium to be defined by the publisher, is access the PS4 digital game and then provided they still have the PS3 disc, they will be able to play the PS4 version when they decide to buy the next gen." Call of Duty: Ghosts, Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag, Watch Dogs and Battlefield 4 are the first games eligible for this promotion. GameStop and Amazon both announced they will offer similar upgrade options for Xbox 360 to Xbox One games, though nothing has been announced from either retailer regarding PS3 to PS4 upgrades.
Sony to offer 'discounted' upgrades to PS4 software on select titles for a limited time
During Sony's Gamescom briefing, Andrew House announced that PS3 players who purchase select software will have the ability to upgrade to the PlayStation 4 version for a "significantly discounted price." House confirmed a number of games will be available for the "limited time" offer, including Call of Duty: Ghosts, Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag, Watch Dogs and Battlefield 4. Activision, Ubisoft, EA and Warner Bros. were noted as publishers partnering with Sony on the upgrade initiative. It's unclear if the program will be available worldwide. Unlike similar retailer offers revealed for Xbox One software earlier this week, Sony's plan is to offer the discounted games through its own digital storefront. PlayStation 4 launches in North America on November 15 and in Europe on November 29.
Amazon also offering Xbox 360 to Xbox One game upgrades
GameStop isn't the only establishment offering Xbox One upgrades. Amazon has announced it too will allow users to upgrade from their Xbox 360 game to the same version on Xbox One, for a $10 fee. Each eligible Xbox 360 game traded in to Amazon prior to December 31 will be valued at $25 and, as part of this promotion, Amazon will tack on another $25. That leaves you to make up the $10 in-between. Amazon will support eight games over GameStop's five: Battlefield 4, Need for Speed: Rivals, Madden NFL 25, Call of Duty: Ghosts, FIFA 14, Watch Dogs, NBA 2K13 and Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag. Just make sure you read the full terms and conditions before you start boxing up your games. okay?
