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Nicolas Cage visits the Xbox One in Project Spark P.T. spoof
If PlayStation 4-exclusive horror game teaser P.T. was missing any one element, it was certainly actor Nicolas Cage – a problem rectified by R.T., an homage crafted in Microsoft's Project Spark. R.T., like P.T., is less a game and more a frightening experience. Both are a series' of eerie areas, flickering lights and oppressive scenery that could potentially hide something monstrous. Something horrifying. Something like Oscar-winning actor Nicolas Cage. Apparently the creator of R.T. decided to use scenes from 1999's 8MM to pad out cinematic sections of R.T. It's slightly jarring the first time the guy from Moonstruck appears to lend weight to the ongoing horror, but Cage has a knack for the unhinged, and shrieking in mind-rending terror is comfortably within his manic wheelhouse. Those of you with an Xbox One and access to Project Spark can download and play R.T. this very minute. If you don't have access to the game-building program, you can get your daily recommended allotment of Nicolas Cage in the trailer beyond the break. [Image: Microsoft/Kavinskeez]
Joystiq Weekly: Vib-ribbon launches, Driveclub Review, RE: Revelations 2 preview and more
Welcome to Joystiq Weekly, a "too long; didn't read" of each week's biggest stories, reviews and original content. Each category's top story is introduced with a reactionary gif, because moving pictures aren't just for The Daily Prophet. "Better eight years late than never," PlayStation Network users probably said during this week's return of Vib-ribbon. Sure, we're not exactly in drought season, but what's stopping you from impulsively bailing on 2014's release calendar to revisit a 1999 cult classic? Beyond money and life's responsibilities, anyway. If Vib-ribbon is fair game for a 2014 appearance, can we go ahead and get our hopes for comparably-unlikely surprises? Sure, StarCraft: Ghost's indefinitely-on-hold status is probably irreversible at this point, but if Blizzard felt like continuing development in secret for years and launching it without warning, we wouldn't be upset. Valve, you're more than welcome to do the same with fresh installments in the Half Life or Left 4 Dead series. There was more to this week than feeble wishes though, including resolution news for Halo: The Master Chief Collection and Assassin's Creed: Unity, reviews for Driveclub and Neverending Nightmares, and previews for AC: Unity and Resident Evil: Revelations 2. All those and more are tidied up for you after the break!
PSA: Project Spark ignited on Xbox One
Project Spark, Microsoft's ... hold on, we've got that around here somewhere. Microsoft's content creation platform is officially available now on Xbox One for free. The platform's payment system went through some changes several months back into a more subscription-based service. The game creator also comes in a retail "starter pack" available today for $40, which has "$85 worth of content on the disc" according to Microsoft. It includes a co-op adventure that introduces Project Spark concepts, along with a month of premium membership to gain credits twice as fast.
Microsoft's Project Spark game creator comes to Xbox One and PC
If you enjoy the creative part of building games but not so much the coding, Microsoft's Project Spark is now available for Xbox One and PC (Windows 8.1 only). That marks the end of a six month beta period that saw over a million testers create 70,000 game levels, according to Microsoft. As a reminder, Spark lets you build games with relative ease by using onscreen tools to add monsters, geography, game dynamics and logic. You can also use a Kinect HD on either platform to capture your own movements and facial expressions for game characters. Download it now for Windows 8.1 and Xbox One for free, or as Microsoft helpfully suggested, buy a starter disk with content for $39.99. Otherwise, fresh content can be earned during gameplay or by purchasing tokens.
Microsoft's 'Project Spark' game creator headed for October release
Microsoft's Project Spark has already been available to early testers for the better part of four months, but gamers have been kept in the dark over when it'll finally go on general sale. Until today. The company has announced that the retail version of its game-creation title will hit Xbox One and PC in October as part of a phased worldwide rollout. It'll be available first in the Americas on October 7th, then make its way to Asia-Pacific countries on October 9th before hitting Europe on October 10th. Microsoft is pricing the Project Spark Starter Pack for Xbox One at $39.99/£29.99 and will include packs full of sounds, effects, animations, props and "advanced creator features" that will help you create a virtual world that you (and hopefully others) can be proud of. It'll also feature the first sci-fi pack Galaxies: First Contact, Champions Quest: Void Storm, special characters and the first episode of what the developers are calling an "epic campaign adventure." The good news is that there's plenty of time enjoy the open beta , check the source links below to get involved (and earn achievements in the process).
Project Spark dreams up October release date
Microsoft's robust game creation tool Project Spark is slated to launch in October, the publisher announced today. The final version of the game maker will arrive on October 7 in the Americas, October 9 in Asia-Pacific countries and October 10 in Europe. The developer, Team Dakota, opened Project Spark's beta up to Xbox One owners in March following its closed beta for PC players in December. During its beta phases, Project Spark went through a few changes, namely in the removal of its "Spark Time" microtransactions. The $40 "Starter Pack" for the Xbox One version of Project Spark will include a host of add-on content, such as the Galaxies: First Contact sci-fi pack, Sir Haakon "Hawk" the Knight, the first episode of the Champions Quest campaign as well as "immediate access" to "paid content, features and add-ons in a single package." Microsoft says the disc-based Starter Pack content will also be available digitally to Xbox One and PC players when Project Spark launches. [Image: Microsoft]
E3 2014 round-up: Weird tales from Los Angeles
Had you been on the floor of the Los Angeles Convention Center this year, you would have heard one question, echoing from journalist to journalist: "This year feels a little ... weird, don't you think?" It's hard to put a finger on exactly why E3 2014 gave off a strange vibe, but darn it all, we're gonna try. Here are some of the most eccentric, the most peculiar, most "hmm"-inducing stories of E3:
Conker teases an unexpected appearance in Project Spark
Furry hero Conker made a surprising cameo in Microsoft's Project Spark trailer at today's E3 conference. After slicing up the Project Spark logo, the Rare squirrel of yore told viewers to make their own game starring him in the content creation title. So apparently he'll be available in Project Spark, although it's not really clear how. Watch this space, folks. There was no further news on a full release for Project Spark. The open beta came to Xbox One earlier this year after launching initially on PC.
Linkin Park's 'remixable' music video created in Project Spark
Musical group Linkin Park is now one step closer to the world of video games thanks to Project Spark developer Team Dakota. The developer created a "remixable" music video for Linkin Park's "Guilty All The Same" in Project Spark, which includes an audio remix station so players can build anything they want in the level. Project Spark is a robust game creation tool currently in beta for PC and Xbox One. The "Guilty All The Same" level isn't the first time an interactive game experience was built around an existing piece of music. Just last month, Radiohead launched an experimental iOS and Android app called PolyFauna for imagery and sounds from its song, "Bloom." Microsoft opened Project Spark's beta version to all Xbox One owners this month and also removed the game's Spark Time microtransactions. [Image: Linkin Park]
Project Spark loses Spark Time microtransactions, introduces Spark Premium
In previous versions of Project Spark, players were allotted 40 minutes of free Spark Time every day. Spark Time, despite its perky name, was limiting: you could only play user-made levels built with paid content you hadn't purchased or features unlocked above your current level for 40 minutes each day. If you wanted to play more, you could use in-game credits or pay real world cash for tokens to buy more Spark Time. Purchased Spark Time came with bonus XP and bonus credits, but those would-be customer loyalty perks still rankled players that felt that they were blocked from content for insidious reasons. No more. Eager to respond to negative feedback, Microsoft announced changes to the game on Tuesday that should mollify fans upset with pay gates in the upcoming Xbox One and PC video game builder. Just as the Xbox One Project Spark beta opened up to all players, developer Team Dakota completely removed Spark Time from the game. Other microtransactions were transformed rather than excised. Spark Power remains on sale in Project Spark, though it's now called Spark Premium. Spark Power allowed you to play levels with DLC or level-blocked content indefinitely with no need to worry about Spark Time, and it granted a 200 percent boost to experience and credits earned. As Spark Premium, players just get the experience and credit boosts, making it easing to unlock new content in the game. Microsoft's added 3-month, 6-month, and 12-month Spark Premium purchase options to the existing 1-day and 1-month options, making Project Spark into a more subscription-centric experience rather than one defined by piecemeal purchases. [Images: Microsoft]
Project Spark Xbox One beta opens up to all
All Xbox One owners can try out the game-crafting playground of Project Spark, after Team Dakota opened up the platform's beta this week. A closed beta began earlier in the month, but now players won't need a beta key to jump into the sandbox. One of the biggest strengths of Project Spark looks to be the sheer variety of things you can create in it, and just how flexible its tools are. We've seen in the hands of the developer everything from visually authentic recreations of Limbo to fully working synthesizers, while an Xbox One beta montage trailer shows users are displaying their creative finesse too. [Image: Microsoft]
Project Spark launches Xbox One beta today
Microsoft is inviting Xbox One players to give Project Spark and its game-crafting tools a test run in a new beta that launches today. The beta is global, and requires players to sign up to receive an invite - those who've been on the Windows 8.1 closed beta automatically get access to the Xbox One beta. On Xbox One, players can use Kinect to animate characters using motion capture as well as give them triggered vocals, and Team Dakota's Sax Persson previously said the studio is also considering implementing gameplay control via Kinect. "Part of the reason why we're in beta is to hear what people want to make," Persson told us last year. "If everybody tells us that we need to make it so I can play my Kinect games, then that's the next thing we do." [Image: Microsoft]
Xbox One beta for Project Spark pushed back to next month
The Project Spark Xbox One beta starts in February, meaning system owners have to wait a bit longer than expected to check out the game-making game for themselves. The beta was due this month, but Microsoft Game Studios confirmed the new ETA via Facebook today. The news comes after Microsoft sent out a whole new batch of invites to the Windows 8 beta, which has been running since December. If those beta players want to take things to the betamax, the good news is they'll also be receiving an invite to the Xbox One phase. Project Spark looked strong in demos we saw last year, albeit in the hands of Team Dakota. At Gamescom we saw Dakota devs effortlessly create and customize beautifully rendered game worlds in a host of impressive ways, such as using Kinect motion capture to animate characters with a distinctly personal touch. It'll certainly be interesting to how well Joe Public takes to next month's Xbox One beta, and to the full game whenever it eventually arrives on Xbox One, Xbox 360, and PC.
Project Spark closed beta begins today on Windows 8.1
Game-crafter Project Spark's closed beta on Windows 8.1 starts today, with Microsoft announcing this morning it has begun inviting those who've previously registered on the game's site. The company claims to have had "hundreds of thousands" of sign-ups since the program's announcement at E3. The beta will begin on Windows 8.1 and was previously reported to begin on Xbox One in January, but is now defined as "early next calendar year." If you're looking for a deeper dive on what Project Spark is exactly, here's 40 minutes of gameplay.
Project Spark won't require Xbox Live Gold on any platform
Project Spark, Microsoft's game-creation app for Xbox One, Xbox 360 and PC will not require a Gold-level Xbox Live subscription to play. The news comes from community manager Mike Lescault, who said in a Reddit thread that players "will not need a gold subscription to play Project Spark for free on any platform." The game will enter its Xbox One beta phase in January, and the PC beta program is expected to start this month. Project Spark players will be able to use Kinect as a motion capture device, and may eventually implement gameplay control using Kinect as well.
Project Spark expected to add Kinect gameplay too, says producer
At Gamescom, Team Dakota gave me a quick demonstration of how to animate characters using Kinect motion capture in the Xbox One game-maker Project Spark. I've got to say, there are few things that have given me more pleasure in Cologne than watching a game designer pretend to be a troll, stomping his feet and gesturing angrily at the screen – the irony wasn't lost. The demo worked great, the on-screen troll reflecting software engineer Eddie Parker's exaggerated stomping with a palpable accuracy. The mo-cap is just another facet of Project Spark, and the Xbox One, Xbox 360, and Windows 8 game continues to ooze potential. At the demo I saw a visually authentic recreation of Limbo, one that Team Dakota was able to seamlessly switch from black-and-white 2D platformer to lush, tropical-looking first-person adventure with just a few clicks. As closed alpha has shown, people can make all kinds of things in Project Spark: third-person RPGs, shooters, even god games. Parker told me one member of Team Dakota put together a Sim City-like game. Given the Kinect integration and the game's apparent flexibility, I asked executive producer Sax Persson if Team Dakota was considering implementing Kinect for gameplay control too. Sure enough, the studio is, and has explored the idea recently. "We expect over time that we're going to add that," said Persson, although he stipulated that mo-capping character animation was first priority. "When I saw the new Kinect and the specs for it, and got to try it the first time, for me it was obvious that I wanted to put myself in the game. You know, I wanted to be able to make movies with it. We tried to find what's the lowest barrier for entry for people to express themselves, right. Getting up and acting out a scene and making machinima has been a great avenue for people to express themselves for a long time." At Gamescom, Team Dakota announced Project Spark will enter its beta phase on Windows 8 in October, and then on Xbox One in January. That beta will help guide which new features, like Kinect gameplay, will come to the game. "Part of the reason why we're in beta is to hear what people want to make," said Persson. "If everybody tells us that we need to make it so I can play my Kinect games, then that's the next thing we do."
Project Spark Xbox One beta arriving in January
The game creation sandbox Project Spark will launch its Xbox One beta in January 2014. A Windows 8 version of the beta is due to arrive in late October 2013. According to Digital Spy, Microsoft Game Studios general manager Dave McCarthy claims everything will be fully playable during the next-gen console beta. You can register for the beta here. "You'll be able to either use that Crossroads mode to build something really quickly through story choices, you can do the blank slate editor, or you can take games that other people have built and then just edit them for yourself," he said. Project Spark is coming to the PC, Xbox 360 and Xbox One. The Xbox One version will include exclusive features, including the recently announced ability to use the software and Kinect as a living room "mocap studio."
Project Spark lets you build the game, add character with Kinect (eyes-on)
Here at Gamescom -- as you might expect -- you're gonna see a lot of games. Not all of them are finished, but even the beta versions come with complex worlds, and shiny new physics engines. Amongst all of these creations, jostling for our attention, was something a little different. Something we heard about back at E3 initially, and something we've been itching to see in action ever since -- Project Spark. We made sure we got to have a look at how it works, and some of the new features. So, click past the break if you want to know too.
Project Spark, Kinect create mini mocap studio in your living room
Up next from the "could be cool but will inevitably get real creepy, real fast" research team at Microsoft comes the news that Project Spark will be able to use Kinect to bring your likeness and even your voice into the game. Speaking at Gamescom, Team Dakota demonstrated how Kinect can accomplish facial motion capture and have it applied to an in-game character, how full-body captures could create new animations, and how audio could be recorded and modulated in a number of ways. You can just go on ahead and start counting the minutes until this is used for a particularly nerdy marriage proposal and/or breakup. (Though, breaking up by animated cutscene? Almost worth it.) Team Dakota also revealed that invitations will by flying out to Project Spark's registered beta participants at the end of October for Windows 8 devices and in January for Xbox One owners. You can register for the beta here. Revealed at E3, Project Spark is a user-creation driven game that Microsoft has described as an "open-world digital canvas that allows you to create your own games, stories, worlds, and share them with everyone." You can check out 40 minutes of Spark in action here.
Watch 40 minutes of Microsoft Studios' Project Spark
Microsoft Studios streamed 40 minutes of its E3 Windows 8 build of game-crafter Project Spark last night, and the video is now up to watch. Spark, described in the stream as an "open-world digital canvas that allows you to create your own games, stories, worlds, and share them with everyone," was announced at E3 for Xbox One, Xbox 360, and Windows 8. At E3, manager Michael Saxs Persson told us how the game evolved from the programming language of Kodu Game Lab. In Spark, players can create and manipulate worlds, like the lush island setting made in the stream, and then within those worlds use the programming toolset to create all manner of things, similar to LittleBigPlanet 2. Speaking to OXM, Saxs Persson said studio members have used Spark to recreate The Force Unleashed and X-Wing vs. TIE Fighter, the latter with a "fully functioning" X-Wing and every power-up included. Of course it can do things other than Star Wars, but we'd have started there, too. Project Spark is scheduled for Xbox One's launch window.
