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Commander, watch the Master Chief Collection, Mass Effect SDCC panels
If you weren't able to attend, Microsoft and BioWare have published full video of their respective San Diego Comic Con panels on Halo: the Master Chief Collection and the next Mass Effect. If you've got 90 minutes spare, you could do worse than perching right here and checking them out - the Halo video's up top with Mass Effect below the break. If you've been lost in space for the last month and this is the first you've heard of either of these things, let's fill you in. Halo: The Master Chief Collection is a remastered compilation of Halos 1-4, and it's coming to Xbox One on November 11. It also includes access to the Ridley Scott live-action Halo: Nightfall series, as well as the Halo 5 multiplayer beta, due to begin in December.
The next Mass Effect might be about you and yours
The next Mass Effect will not revolve around Commander Shepard and crew, according to a BioWare Comic-Con panel. However, Phil Hornshaw of GameFront tweeted that the game's hero will have "something to do" with N7, the military designation for special forces soldiers with the highest levels of proficiency in badassery, which Shepard was a part of before becoming savior of the galaxy. So if the game isn't about Shepard, who is it about? Andrea Rene of The Escapist snapped some offscreen pics of a customizable hero labeled "your hero," as well as a picture of a new version of the Mako landrover from the original Mass Effect. Interestingly, this Mako was referred to as "your Mako." Does the "your" imply customization options? Are we playing as ourselves? Unfortunately, such questions won't be answered for awhile, if ever. Hornshaw reports that the BioWare panelists caution that the game is years away, and things can change between now and then.
Revolution 60: All-female action adventure
What happens when a mostly female development team comes together to create an action-adventure game staffed entirely by female characters? Revolution 60 by Giant Spacekat (US$5.99/try-then-IAP-buy) happens. It's a touch-based iPad story-driven take on Heavy Rain and Mass Effect. You play Holiday, an assassin faced with a more morally complex landscape than you normally encounter in gaming titles. Should Holiday support her friends or fix her attention on the mission? It's a little bit transgressive, a little bit feminist. The stakes are high. I was particularly drawn to this title based on its feminine novelty. A mom to girls, I found the notion of a female actioner exciting. Although the reality was a little more boobs-and-bullets than can-do girl-power, I found Revolution 60 entertaining and well made. The acoustics of the game are superb. iOS has a bit of a bad rep for users switching off sounds. Do that in Revolution 60 and you'll be missing out on one of the game's highlights -- a well designed audio system that really brings the game to life. It helps you feel the experience as well as see it. The character graphics are really well done, built with full facial animation using the Unreal engine. Holiday's hair swings around as she walks, and her interaction with her world feels solid and multi-dimensional. The sets are nicely detailed, if a bit generically textured, and you feel immersed in an exciting drama. Where the game fell flat for me was its combat system. Admittedly, I played on the easiest level in order to progress as quickly as possible. The touch-based fighting felt tedious and I never really enjoyed those moments. However, the strength of the story outside of the combat kept me invested in following through with the adventure. The novelty of building emotional connections with characters provided the best part of the experience. The game offers excellent replay as your choices drive the story. Revolution 60 (iTunes link is not yet live) will be released on July 24th. You can try the basic game for free. A single in-app purchase of $5.99 unlocks the the full title. Giant Spacekat will also sell a companion book, "Revolution 60: The Chessboard Lethologica" in the iBooks store (iTunes link, not yet live, $3.99).
EA / Ubisoft E3 2014 conference round-up: Prototypes and push-ups
The big three console manufacturers aren't the only ones having all the fun at E3; Ubisoft and Electronic Arts are known to get in on the party as well. These two publishers can do many things, but one thing they can't do is take you back in time in the event that you missed their press conferences. Fortunately for you, Joystiq does what reality don't. Ready to travel with us and wrangle up all the news from the Ubisoft and EA pressers? Let's go!
EA's BioWare touches on new Mass Effect, new IP at E3
Fans hoping to learn more about the new Mass Effect didn't have much to go on from EA's E3 conference, although BioWare did reveal it's working on a new IP. In a short video on the sci-fi follow-up, BioWare devs talked about new worlds, characters, and potential lovers in a "whole new region of space," rendered by the power of the new consoles. While BioWare Montreal is working on the new Mass Effect, the team at BioWare Edmonton is developing a "completely new IP." Again the discussion was nebulous, but the studio said it wants to take on "very contemporary stories" while realizing worlds that compare to the scopes of previous BioWare games. Along with those two projects, BioWare also has Dragon Age: Inquisition in development, and it's set to launch on October 7.
Chilean retailer lists Mass Effect Trilogy for PS4, Xbox One
Little Timmy Robinson is still waiting for BioWare to respond to his letter asking for a current-gen release of Mass Effect Trilogy, but we know the studio is busy making universes and stuff. Maybe Timmy won't need to wait on BioWare to pipe up, though - Chilean retailer Zmart Games has listed Commander Shepard's trilogy for the PS4 and Xbox One. Release dates and prices are absent from both pages, though customers can sign up to be notified for when the supposed Trilogy port becomes available. Retailers occasionally let the Rachni Queen out of the bag regarding new projects, as was the case with this year's worst-kept secret, The Last Of Us: Remastered. Maybe we should get Little Timmy to write another letter asking for a release window and for the inclusion of DLC absent from Trilogy's original release. They can't say no to a kid, right? [Image: Zmart]
Xbox 360 Ultimate Game Sale Day 2: Farming, fighting, F1-ing
Eight more games are on sale for 24 hours in today's Xbox 360 Ultimate sale, including a few big names from a few years back. If you missed them back in the day, Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood, Lost Planet 2, and Darksiders 2 are all on offer, as are Arcade offerings Hell Yeah! and Fruit Ninja Kinect - check out the full list of discounts on Major Nelson's blog. In terms of more recent games, there's an eclectic mix to choose from. For starters, you can rake in a half-price Farming Simulator at $15/£15/20 euros, or if you'd prefer something a little faster, F1 2013 is two-thirds off at $16.49/£13.19/21.44 euros. Finally, we saw Soulcalibur 2 HD Online go on sale over on PSN recently, and the Xbox Games Store follows suit with a whopping 75 percent discount. That means you can pick up the re-released fighter for just $5/£4/5 euros. Don't forget, there's a bunch of games staying discounted throughout the week. The full list of them is here, but today we'll point your eyes towards the original Mass Effect. BioWare's sci-fi RPG started us on a path that's left us with hours upon hours plunged into deep space shooting, negotiating, and wooing, and if you've somehow avoided it over the last six years or so, it's a steal at $3.74/£3/3.74 euros. [Image: Focus Home Interactive]
Study shows intense gaming can cause changes in real-life perception
A new study published in the International Journal of Human-Computer Interaction has linked changes in visual perception and "pseudo-hallucinatory experiences" with intense video gaming. According to the study, intensive playing can cause the player's mind to perceive real-life objects through a gaming lens and can also create a situation in which the mind generates visual distortions based on gameplay. Examples offered in the study, which was done by gathering 656 posts from 54 different forums, include a subject seeing the Mass Effect dialogue wheel in his or her mind during conversations and another mistaking in-flight airplanes for Modern Warfare 2 UAVs. Mentioned as a basis for the study are the visual "waviness" some gamers experience after long sessions with Guitar Hero, the "Tetris effect" that involves seeing how real-life items could stack after playing the famous puzzler, and "Minecraft sickness" in which gamers see square-shaped themes in everyday objects. The full study breaks down a number of different types of gaming after-effects as reported by participants and proposes that the effects can be caused by "the interplay of physiological, perceptual, and cognitive mechanisms."
The Daily Grind: Are you (still) interested in a Mass Effect MMO?
I just finished playing through Mass Effect 3 for the second time, though it was my first time through the extended cut ending and all of the DLC. Speaking of, thanks for reminding me what it's like to enjoy BioWare games via that sugary sweet Citadel story, guys. Much appreciated. Anyway, we've talked about a possible Mass Effect MMO before, of course. But it's been a while and it's obviously fresh on my mind. So how about it, Massively readers. At this point in time, would you be interested in a Mass Effect MMO? Why or why not? 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!
Weekly Roundup: Xbox One and Nokia Lumia 2520 reviews, the future of EA Games and more!
You might say the week is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workweek, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Weekly Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past seven days -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
BioWare offers coy tease of next Mass Effect
BioWare celebrated its self-imposed Mass Effect holiday "N7 Day" yesterday with special Mass Effect 3 multiplayer sessions and livestreams. The game's developers also took to Twitter, compiled in one Storify post, to tease the next game in the series. There are five teaser images in total, though gameplay designer Manveer Heir noted on Twitter that there are "10 other pics on the internet from BioWare devs." The images show developers working on the next game's character and location designs as well as omni tool equipment. It's hard to glean anything worthwhile out of the images other than a reminder that another Mass Effect game is definitely in development and we should all be excited for that.
Weekend deals: RPG bundles, Deep Silver sale, Xbox Live points, Injustice
PC owners with an itch for leveling up and a lot of free time are in luck this week - Gamefly has several bundles with some deep discounts, so long as you use the promo code GFDOCT20 during checkout. The Witcher series can be collectively snagged for $17.99, both Torchlight games can be looted for $13.99, and the Mass Effect Trilogy's price tag has gone Paragon at $13.99. Dragon Age: Origins Ultimate Edition (and a sadness simulator) can also be had for $9.99, while Deus Ex and Deus Ex: Invisible War can be had with couch change at $3.49. If you're a Steam user, you have until tomorrow to pick through the sale for publisher Deep Silver's catalog. Offers include Saints Row 4 at $24.99, the Metro franchise and its DLC for $36.84, and the Dead Island games and their DLC for $33.49. If you need to gear up for the Xbox One launch, GamerDeals found an Amazon promotion that pairs a $20 code for Xbox Live with the purchase of a 12-month Xbox Live Gold subscription. The offer is good until November 9, so if you don't have the cash now, no worries! Lastly, console owners can gruesomely rip a chunk off the price tag for the 360, PS3 and Vita versions of Mortal Kombat: Komplete Edition for $14.99. If you'd rather spout comic-worthy one-liners while dealing out death, Injustice: Gods Among Us is on sale for the 360, PS3 and Wii U for under $40.
Next Mass Effect abandons Shepard, but won't 'feel like a spin-off'
When the next entry in the Mass Effect franchise inevitably arrives, it will feature a brand new story unrelated to Commander Shepard and his or her crew of sexually promiscuous extraterrestrials. Mac Walters, lead writer for the franchise, was asked by Complex where BioWare plans to take the series' plot now that it's been revealed that Commander Shepard is no longer leading things. "... the idea is that we have agreed to tell a story that doesn't relate necessarily to any of the Shepard events at all, whatsoever," replied Walters. "But throughout it all, one of the key things is that it has to be Mass Effect. It can't just feel like a spin-off. It has to feel like a Mass Effect game at its heart, at its core." "Just without the Shepard character or the Shepard-specific companions," added Walters. The writer was then asked for his opinion on fan backlash toward the ending of Mass Effect 3, a response that gave Walters and his colleagues at BioWare a greater appreciation for just how much people care about the pixelated people he writes. "I think that's one of the things we really underestimated, which was how much ownership people would take over a character that they could do that," said Walters. "You know, you've been given free choice to make all these decisions with this character, with the fates of millions of people, and then, you don't get to choose your own fate." "I'm not saying that our decision was wrong or right," said Walters. "I think we just underestimated the impact that would have on certain players."
Mass Effect texture pack lands on Minecraft Xbox 360
Mass Effect is the first mash-up pack coming to Minecraft on Xbox Live Arcade, including 36 Mass Effect skins, 22 songs from Mass Effect 3, a pre-build Mars Facility world, and a Mass Effect texture set and UI. It's a massive amount of Mass Effect. The mash-up pack hits XBLA on September 4 for $4.
Hollywood producer Avi Arad talks Uncharted, Mass Effect, Metal Gear films
The Uncharted, Mass Effect, and Metal Gear Solid films are all coming along, albeit slowly, Hollywood producer Avi Arad revealed to Kotaku. Arad has had his hand in many successful comic book adaptations, such as Blade, Spider-Man, X-Men, and Iron Man. Now, he believes that it's time video game adaptations have their turn in the spotlight, and who better to lead that charge than handsome treasure hunter, Nathan Drake? "I think Uncharted will be very successful," Arad said. "Now, the script has a lot of character [and] I think that has a shot at being the first one [to succeed]." The Uncharted film does not have a projected release date, and is currently listed as "announced" on IMDB. Arad also said that when he looks at Metal Gear Solid, he sees the story of Cain and Abel. It's pretty obvious Arad meant the remark not to be taken literally, but it does make the Cain and Abel story seem just a bit cooler if you imagine them as cloned super-soldiers with giant, nuclear dinosaur robots. Arad told Kotaku he would be sitting down with Kojima soon to discuss the film and negotiate further details, but its release is likely three or more years away. Lastly, Arad touched on the Mass Effect film, which is "getting there," though the final release is likely five or six years away. "It's a big idea, that we, humans, are the least developed, the least trusted, it's an interesting mirror image of our world, we are the aliens now," Arad said.
Clearing the 'hump of assumptions' in making LGBT inclusive games
A "hump of assumptions" can stand in the way of creating and including lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender characters in video games today, said David Gaider, lead writer for the Dragon Age series at BioWare. Speaking on an EA-populated panel at GaymerX in San Francisco today, Gaider and colleagues addressed the importance of heeding the demand for diversity and, more plainly, "reflecting humanity" in modern games. Hesitation over tackling LGBT issues, Gaider said, can come from pessimistic assumptions made – both by creators and marketers – about how the audience will react. One of BioWare's earliest gay characters, Juhani in Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, was practically snuck into the game. "I think for a long time it was just assumed that nobody would accept it," he said. "That's what the mentality was. It's not like we went and tried to ask permission or anything - we kind of hid it. She never says, 'She was my lover.' She just says, 'We are very close.'" Not explicitly addressing the topic, however, "seemed like a very obvious exclusion" to Gaider. BioWare's next role-playing game, Jade Empire, was less subtle in its depiction of a same-sex relationship, and it faced far less resistance than the team had assumed. There was no long conversation after the team asked, "Why don't we just make the romances available to both genders?" According to Gaider, "that was the whole conversation."
New Bioware universe coming from Mass Effect and KOTOR creators
That new fictional universe in production over at BioWare Edmonton has some pedigree behind it, namely the folks responsible for critically acclaimed Xbox classic Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic. "Most of our core team that worked on SWKOTOR has been together throughout the Mass Effect series, and now our new IP project," Mass Effect producer Casey Hudson tweeted earlier this week. Hudson initially announced the project during a PAX East panel last March, but beyond the fact that it exists and is being worked on by an RPG-centric team, nothing else is known about the new property.
Gears of War: Judgment senior producer leaves Epic for BioWare
Chris Wynn, senior producer on Epic Games' Gears of War: Judgment, is now senior development director on the next Mass Effect game from BioWare, he announced in a tweet. Wynn started working at Epic in August last year, but before that he was a lead producer at Microsoft for two years, minding the gears of that War game. Wynn also worked for BioWare owner EA as a development director for six years starting in September 2003, where he specialized in EA Sports franchises (according to his LinkedIn profile). Not much is known about the next Mass Effect game, save that it's powered by Frostbite 3 and helmed by Executive Producer Casey Hudson. Wynn follows a few recent departures from Epic Games, including Director of Production Rod Fergusson, who left to join Irrational Games; President Mike Capps; Design Director Cliff Bleszinski; and three people from Epic subsidiary People Can Fly, who formed The Astronauts.
Ex-BioWare writer reveals alternate endings to Mass Effect trilogy
Potential Spoiler Warning Mass Effect fans! Toronto's AM640 did a radio interview recently with former BioWare scribe Drew Karpyshyn, in which he chatted about some of the alternate story theories and endings that BioWare tossed around for the Mass Effect series. Eurogamer has the highlights, including the theory that the Reapers were trying to stop organic life because they were somehow making use of "Dark Energy" (an element only mentioned briefly throughout the series) to bring about the end of the universe. "It's very vague and not fleshed out," says Karpyshyn, adding that "it was something we considered but we ended up going in a different direction." BioWare also played with the idea that Shepard might be an alien at one point, though eventually deemed that too close to the story of Revan in Knights of the Old Republic. Karpyshyn also says BioWare thought about turning Shepard into some combination of organic and cybernetic, a theme that did eventually get generally included in the ending of Mass Effect 3. But in the end, says Karpyshyn, these ideas were just ideas, and should be judged as such. "It's like vaporware," he says. "Vaporware is always perfect, anytime someone talks about the new greatest game. It's perfect until it comes out." Karpyshyn says that even if fans are disappointed with the story as it is, a story that included these other considered ideas, "whatever we came up with, it probably wouldn't be what people want it to be."
GameFly summer PC sale includes super-cheap BioShock Infinite, Mass Effect Trilogy, Walking Dead
GameFly has a pretty legit sale going on right now for PC games on Steam and Origin -- deals that, when coupled with this 20-percent off coupon, can lead to some decidedly redonk savings. BioShock Infinite, for instance, can be yours for $28 after using the coupon code. Meanwhile, The Walking Dead, Hitman: Absolution, Deus Ex: Human Revolution, Torchlight 2 and Sleeping Dogs are all available for less than $10, and that's before the coupon. Borderlands 2, Mass Effect Trilogy, XCOM: Enemy Unknown and a whole mess of others are in there as well at varyingly steep discounts. This may be the excuse you've been waiting for to finally justify Euro Truck Simulator 2.
