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'Metal Gear,' 'The Witcher 3' lead game developers' nominees
You probably have a short list of favorite video games from 2015, but what do you think game creators would pick if given the chance? You don't have to wonder: the Game Developers Choice Awards has delivered its nominees, and there are a few clear front-runners this time around. For one thing, third-person action is definitely in vogue: Metal Gear Solid V and The Witcher 3 were both nominated for four awards each, including game of the year. A few other well-known games also received multiple nods, including Bloodborne, Fallout 4 and Splatoon.
Online multiplayer is free this weekend on PS4
Sony is lifting its PlayStation Plus requirement for online multiplayer access on PlayStation 4 this weekend. This means online multiplayer will be free for all PS4 players from Friday, December 11th at 12:01AM PT to Sunday, December 13th at 11:59PM PT. Playing online usually requires a PlayStation Plus subscription, which costs $10 monthly, $18 for a three-month bundle or $50 for an entire year. A Plus membership also guarantees at least two free games and a lineup of discounts every month.
Sony tempts gamers with two $300 PlayStation 4 bundles
Black Friday and Cyber Monday may be behind us now, but Sony wants to keep people's shopping momentum going. The tech company today announced two PlayStation 4 bundles at a new low price: $300 each, albeit for a limited time. First up, there's the The Nathan Drake Collection version, which includes a 500GB console and three remastered titles from the Uncharted franchise. Your other option is the Star Wars: Battlefront bundle, and this comes with the Standard Edition of EA's newly released game, a code to download four classic Star Wars titles, as well as a 500GB PS4 model. If you missed out on deal these past few days, this could be your chance to save cash on Sony's console. Both bundles will be available starting on Sunday, December 6th, through the 19th.
Recommended Reading: Marvel's 'Jessica Jones' is a different kind of hero
Recommended Reading highlights the best long-form writing on technology and more in print and on the web. Some weeks, you'll also find short reviews of books that we think are worth your time. We hope you enjoy the read. Marvel's Astounding 'Jessica Jones' Rewrites the Definition of Superhuman Mary McNamara, Los Angeles Times Marvel's Jessica Jones is now streaming on Netflix, and to properly prep for your marathon viewing season, take a look at a review from the Los Angeles Times. We've all heard the details about how this series differs from previous Marvel shows and movies, but it looks like what makes this show unique is also what makes it so good. Plus, we get a look at Luke Cage before he his own series.
Sony is adding PlayStation 2 backwards compatibility to the PS4
Sony and Electronic Arts have a Star Wars: Battlefront PlayStation 4 bundle available right now and with it comes a quartet of games from a long time ago and a galaxy far, far away (or at least as far as the PlayStation 2 era). Star Wars: Bounty Hunter, Star Wars: Jedi Starfighter, Star Wars Racer: Revenge and Super Star Wars come with the bundle via a single download code, and all bar one appear to be the original PS2 games running in emulation. The discovery comes via the tech-minded folks over at Digital Foundry who spotted a number of clues suggesting backwards compatibility had finally arrived. The evidence is in the details. As DF noted, the sophomore console's select and start buttons have been mapped to either side of the DualShock 4's touchpad, something only Sony, rather than Lucasarts Interactive can do.
Playdate: Crushing the Rebel scum in 'Star Wars: Battlefront'
Not too long from now, on a Twitch stream in the very near future, Sean Buckley and myself will be blasting Rebel scum in Star Wars: Battlefront. The sci-fi shooter's the topic du jour on the latest edition of Playdate and you can tune in starting at 6 PM ET/ 3 PM Pacific to catch two hours of the hot Empire on Rebel action across Sullust, Hoth, and who even knows where else? And since we streamed the game's beta on PlayStation 4 we're giving the full version a go on PC today. As always, you can tune in here on this post, the Engadget Gaming homepage or Twitch.tv/Joystiq if you'd like to join us in chat -- it's your destiny.
PlayStation 4 drops to $350 in the US
Sony is cutting the base price of its PlayStation 4 from $399.99 to $349.99 including a game. The drop has been heavily rumored following a similar cut in Japan last month. The new prices come into force tomorrow with the release of Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection, as you'll be able to pick up a PS4 bundled with the game. Following that, the next scheduled $349.99 bundle drops in mid-November with Star Wars Battlefront. The cut also applies in Canada with prices starting from CAD429.99, as the chart below illustrates.
'Star Wars: Battlefront' beta opens wide Thursday at 1PM ET
You watched our stream of Star Wars: Battlefront but you didn't win one of the early access codes we were giving away and you feel a little left out. That's understandable, but know this: Come Thursday at 1PM ET / 10AM PT, you can play for yourself regardless of luck. Make sure you have at least 8GB of free space on your PlayStation 4 and Xbox One or 11GB open on your PC's hard drive though. Word comes via the game's community manager on Twitter. Need something to do until the beta unlocks for you? The embedded Playdate video below will make your wait just over two hours shorter.
Playdate: Waging war in the 'Star Wars: Battlefront' beta
The wait is almost over, Star Wars fans: a new Battlefront is almost upon us. On Thursday, EA will open the Star Wars: Battlefront beta to all players, giving the gaming community it's first mainstream taste of online competitive multiplayer Star Wars since 2005. Can't wait? Tune in to Engadget Playdate at 6PM ET (3PM PT) on Twitch.tv/Joystiq, the Engadget gaming homepage and right here -- Tim Seppala and I made a deal with Jabba the Hutt and nabbed a few PC and PS4 beta codes early. Play your cards right (by answering stupid questions in our chat) and one could soon be yours.
'Star Wars: Battlefront' beta will be open to everyone, work offline
It seems like every time we see Star Wars Battlefront, it gets a little more exciting. Small, but epic missions. Huge multiplayer battles. Aerial combat with up to 20 players. Can this game possibly live up to its own hype? You're going to find out. Yes, you personally -- EA has announced that the Star Wars Battlefront beta is going to be open to everyone.
'Star Wars Battlefront' multiplayer test starts in early October
You won't have to wait until November to find out whether Star Wars Battlefront's large-scale online conflicts are all they're cracked up to be. EA and DICE have announced that Battlefront's multiplayer beta will launch in early October for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Windows PCs. This test run will include an epic 40-player Hoth battle, a two-versus-many fight on Tatooine and an as-yet-unexplained Drop Zone mode. At the same time, you should get a Companion Experience mobile app that includes both a card game as well as helper tools for Battlefront itself. It sounds like exciting stuff, although here's hoping that EA has learned its lessons from past betas -- you don't want to have your childhood dreams crushed by server connection problems.
Darth Vader PS4 bundles cater to your 'Star Wars' cravings
Between The Force Awakens, Battlefront and Disney Infinity, you're about to get your fill of Star Wars -- and Sony is determined to capitalize on that sci-fi feast with some special PlayStation systems. It's releasing two limited edition Darth Vader PS4 bundles that each include a distinctive 500GB console (emblazoned with the Sith Lord's face, naturally) and a controller whose red and white accents mimic Vader's chest panel. The core Battlefront Vader bundle includes both a Deluxe edition of its namesake shooter as well as a voucher for four vintage Star Wars games (Super Star Wars, Bounty Hunter, Jedi Starfighter and Racer Revenge). Head to Walmart, meanwhile, and you can spring for a Disney Infinity 3.0 Vader bundle that replaces Battlefront with Infinity and a matching figurine kit. And if you're just interested in software, there will be a plain PS4 bundle that includes Battlefront and the classic games.
'Star Wars Battlefront': a fine line between authenticity and fun
The Star Wars Battlefront franchise has a simple goal: to put players in the middle of huge, sprawling battles ripped straight from the films and wider fiction. Whether that's battling the AT-AT walkers on Hoth or an X-Wing squadron above Sullust, you're made to feel small -- just one of many soldiers fighting for the Rebel Alliance or Galactic Empire.
'Star Wars: Battlefront' gets 20-player aerial combat
Yes, slicing your enemies with a lightsaber is one reason to buy Star Wars: Battlefront, but it shouldn't be the only reason. At Gamescom 2015, Electronic Arts has revealed that it's adding in an aerial combat sim to the game, entitled Star Wars: Fighter Squadron. The title is a 20-player aerial combat mode that pits Rebel forces against the Empire's TIE Fighter squadrons, much like the Lucasarts classics of yore. 20 human players will also be joined by 20 computer-controlled ships, meaning that each glorious battle will see 40 craft zooming around at once.
These were E3 2015's best games
E3 is (thankfully) over, and that means the press that cover the event have recently cast their votes for what they thought were the best games from the show. You know those blurbs on box art saying "winner of over 90 awards" and the like? This is partly where they come from. Collectively known as The Game Critics Awards, the governing body for them is made up of staff from over 30 editorial outlets, including Engadget, that attended gaming's Paris Fashion Week. For a game to even be up for consideration though, it has to be playable -- a stage demo or non-interactive trailer won't cut it. What's it mean for you? In the end, a better idea about what it's like to actually play the biggest games from E3, because we got to go hands-on with them. Without further ado, the winners are in the gallery below. Spoiler: Fallout 4 was pretty successful.
Try hating 'Star Wars Battlefront' now that you've seen it
Star Wars Battlefront invades PC, Xbox One and PlayStation 4 on November 17th with large-scale multiplayer gameplay and a lot of classic series trimmings. We're talking lightsabers, X-Wings, AT-STs and more. You can see a lot of those in the gameplay video below, in a battle inspired by the Hoth sequence from The Empire Strikes Back, captured on PlayStation 4. It's pre-alpha gameplay (meaning incredibly early), but it looks bombastic with a sense of scale I haven't seen in a Star Wars game to date. The AT-AT feels like a monstrous, multi-story death contraption that could kill you underfoot if you walk too close to it.
The first look at 'Star Wars Battlefront,' a familiar multiplayer feast
With a new film on the horizon, there's a wave of excitement attached to the Star Wars franchise that hasn't been felt since the months leading up to the release of Episode I. Part of Disney's new plan for the $4 billion series includes a slate of new video game experiences over the course of a 10-year partnership with Electronic Arts.
'Star Wars: Battlefront' is coming in spring 2015
Sweden-based developer DICE -- best known for the Battlefield series -- is making Star Wars: Battlefront. Working closely with Lucasfilm, the game launches in spring 2015. Sadly, that's about all that EA and DICE had to say. You can check out the trailer from today's media briefing today after the break.
Star Wars Battlefront game under development at DICE (video)
At its pre-E3 event today, EA confirmed the Star Wars Battlefront franchise will return. The game is currently being developed by DICE and will use the same Frostbite engine that powers the Battlefield games. EA snagged the exclusive rights to develop Star Wars games after the end of game development at LucasArts, and this is a blend of IP and developer that certainly makes sense. A brief teaser trailer appeared to show off a battle on Hoth, we'll find out more details as they become available. Take a look at the trailer embedded after the break.
Star Wars Battlefront uses comic-style cinemas
The Star Wars Battlefront blog was recently updated with a video, revealing something your PSP Fanboy writers have known for some time: the cinema sequences in the game are drawn in comic form, akin to the style used in the Metal Gear Solid digital comics. "We knew that our storytelling method would have to be pretty simple, as we didn't have the time or budget for any sort of full-on FMV," Mike Rosser admits.The cinemas look sharp on the small screen, and with voice acting, they certainly feel adequately cinematic. We've been playing the game for the past few weeks, and although we can't reveal too much, we advise you to stay tuned for our impressions.
