WATCH | A New Trailer for Indie Hopeful Lifeless Planet

When indie dev David Board's PC and mobile game Lifeless Planet came to Kickstarter in late September, its goal was a modest $8,500. The project pitch site found him backers that would more than double that number.

OMG | Black Isle Studios Returns! ... With No One From Black Isle Studios Onboard

The KING of PC RPG's, Black Isle Studios, is BACK — is what we would be saying if Black Isle Studios didn't scatter to the winds aeons ago, its top talent now working in far flung pockets of the gaming industry.

But, Interplay seems excited about it.

WATCH | A New Far Cry 3 Trailer from gamescom

Taking a leap from their tried-and-true singleplayer FPS routine, Ubisoft revealed four-player co-op mode for their latest jungle island bullet romp, Far Cry 3.

Let the Left 4 Dead comparisons commence. Here's mine: One department in which Ubisoft has Valve beat is ethnic diversity.

WATCH | A New Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance Trailer from gamescom

Plenty of new trailers are coming out of gamescom today — take a look at this Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance trailer with all the fixins'.

Ever since Sons of Liberty in 2001, I figured a Raiden spinoff was inevitable. What I didn't expect was for it to feel like the hard-boiled ninja ballet from a Devil May Cry trailer. There's even a song (unfortunately in English.)

The only hint of Kojima's handiwork was that the trailer looked like it was wrapping up about two-thirds of the way through, to leave space for Kojima-esque last-second sensational and speculative reveals. This one was a robot dog companion. Good on ya'.

The Kojima Productions and Platinum Games collabo drops February of next year.

VIA: Kotaku

SOURCE: gamescom

What It's Like for Girl Gamers

Horrendous stock photo courtesy of Metro Creative Connection - I'm so, so sorry

By Elisa Meléndez
Slate.com 

I am a gamer and a geek. I'm at the computer writing this in a Star Trek T-shirt, in celebration of the recent Mars Curiosity rover landing. I've been a gamer for as long as I can remember, having had a Nintendo Power magazine thrust into my hands as soon as I could sound out the words on the page in order to be my older brother's co-pilot.

Since then, I have developed a fierce love of games. I have a tattoo of a Trivial Pursuit pie on my right hip. My haircut resembles one of my favorite characters, Lilith, from Borderlands. You can't tell me Revolution X wasn't amazing. You just can't.

This may sound like I'm trying to validate my geek cred. I shouldn't have to prove anything, you're right, but there are those determined to limit my rise in the gaming world. Though 47 percent of all gamers are women and though many of us are equal in our skills and drive to the men, we are often not welcome. The gamers who still aren't ready for us resort to online harassment to belittle, silence and drive us away from their precious boys' club.

LOOK | First Screen of Abe's Oddysee Remake Surfaces

Welcome to the future, Abe

Here we have the first shot of the Oddworld: Abe's Oddysee remake coming from Oddworld Inhabitants and Just Add Water.

So far, the project is pre-pre-pre-alpha, but this HD redressing is a thing, make no mistake. 

Hit the jump for a comparison shot...

WOW | Cliffy, Carmack, Newell Coo Over Impressive New VR Tech

Source: Kickstarter   

And now for something completely different.

Remember VR? Virtual Reality. If you were born in the early 90s, probably not. It was a big thing back in the day. Then again, so were Pogs.

Traditionally resigned to the lonely back corner of your local Dave & Buster's and several mainstream yet pathetic, failed hardware attempts (Virtual Boy, anyone?), Palmer Luckey a "pluckey" young dev from Oculus VR, is now receiving emphatic support from some of the biggest names in the biz.

[WATCH] Legend of Grimrock's Map Editor in Action

Just a couple months ago, Finnish dev Almost Human dusted off a trusty yet dated genre with as much style and panache as one would expect from a AAA blockbuster studio. 

Legend of Grimrock was a very well-written love letter to the ancient PC lineage of Dungeon Master and Eye of the Beholder. The crafty puzzles, frantic real-time combat and a wholly unique, enveloping atmosphere could suck in the older, nostalgic dungeon delvers and first-timers alike. 

The experience is about to become a lot more enveloping as Almost Human is getting ready to drop their streamlined dungeon editor toolset. You can watch a short tutorial in the video above.

[WATCH] 'Meet the Pyro', Then 'Meet the Source Filmmaker'

The last of Valve's Team Fortress 2 shorts was loosed unto the world today, almost five years after the game's release. If you haven't watched the above video yet - WHAT ARE YOU DOING IT'S HILARIOUS. 

"Meet the Pyro" lives up to the reputation established by all the previous shorts - slick, quality animation, gut-busting laughs and a Pixar-esque attention to detail and facial expression.

"But the Pyro has no facial expression!" you're saying. That allows Valve a unique direction in portraying everyone's favorite monstrous, muffled mongoloid.

But there's one more surprise for TF2 fans today - hit the jump to hear all about it...

[WATCH] The Dream Eaters in the New Kingdom Hearts: Dream Drop Distance Trailer

First, there was the Heartless, then the Nobodies; now, Kingdom Hearts: Dream Drop Distance introduces new, cute little beasties to wallop with a giant key. 

They're called the Dream Eaters and the above video suggests they'll be deeply customizable. Players can breed monsters (a lá Shin Megami Tensei's demon fusion system) to give them new abilites and "bond" with them through minigames or by petting their fruit cocktail-themed manes with a cold, plastic stylus.

Kingdom Hearts: Dream Drop Distance is set to drop for Nintendo's 3DS on July 31 at $39.99.

SOURCE: Joystiq

Square-Enix CEO Feels FFVII Is Franchise's Best

I feel like an age-old struggle is grinding away into dust - finally.

Some will tell you that when fanboys wage war, there are no winners. Final Fantasy VII fanboys, however, just won, big time.

At a recent shareholders meeting, Square-Enix CEO Yoichi Wada was asked about the public's ever-present clamor for a remake of 1997's JRPG classic. See? Even nameless, faceless moneybags who know nothing of the franchise want an FFVII remake. What's the holdup?

[WATCH] New CGI Footage That Shows... Thief 4!?

Here's the first semi-legit footage from Thief 4. EGMNow's wonderful Matthew Bennett sniffed this one out early today and although it's but a scant morsel, those familiar with the franchise will be very piqued.

This video comes to us from Goldtooth Creative, the talent behind Deus Ex: Human Revolution's exemplary CGI cutscenes. As Bennett reports, the studio seems to be in a bit of a scrape as development is rumored to have slowed. All the evidence suggests the revival of the Thief series could make a huge splash in the next generation.

It's pretty grainy but watchable. It appears to be from an intro of some sort, showing the titular thief, Garrett, suiting up and flashing his gadgets around.

Look cool? Let us know what you think. Which Thief title was your favorite?

SOURCE: EGMNow

[WATCH] 'Walter' the Water Droplet Melt Your Heart

With what appears to be a solid winner in the currently parched "cute and endearing platformer" genre, French indie studio Blossom Minds gives us some much-needed Walter. 

Did you know you're at least 80% Walter? 

You need as much Walter as possible. But, you'll have to stick it out until sometime in 2013, when Walter charms the pants off XBLA, PSN and Steam (which is unintentionally another satisfying water pun.)

Mmmm... refreshing!

SOURCE: Joystiq

[PREVIEW] Wii U Functionality in Pikmin 3 Was M.I.A.

As always, the unfailingly chipper Shigeru Miyamoto was on stage at Nintendo's E3 keynote. Last year he was showing Skyward Sword. This time, he brought a red Pikmin with him in the breast pocket of his jacket.

[FAN-MADE] Half-Life Revamp Not Dead Yet - Here's the Screens to Prove It

It's been eight long, worrisome years since the Half-Life community first started raving about Black Mesa: Source, a full-on redressing of Valve's classic opus.

Although all's been quiet on the dev front for some time but Kotaku caught the screenshots released this morning which could keep hope alive.

Hit the jump to see how Black Mesa is evolving.

[SUNDAY READ + WATCH] Sci-Fi in the Valley Con Brings Jedi, Vulcans to Ebensburg

Mike Mirobelli of Pittsburgh's Snake Eyes Gaming surveys the field during Sci-Fi in the Valley Con's "Warhammer 40,000" tournament play.

On Friday and Saturday, the North Central Recreation Center in Ebensburg was the epicenter of a splash of sci-fi, fantasy and horror subculture previously unseen in this area.

The first "Sci-Fi in the Valley Con" packed the rec center for two days of geeky communion.

The event wraps up today, yet many starships have landed, lightsabers have “vwoomed” and undead have shuffled alongside pirates and robots on the show floor - luckily, author Kirk Allmond put together a "Zombie Preparedness" panel.

[WATCH] The Visceral, New "The Last of Us" Trailer

OMNIpixel hasn't given Naughty Dog's hot new IP "The Last of Us" as much exposure as it probably deserves. 

Sure, post-apocalyptic settings are a dime a dozen nowadays. And make no mistake, TLoU is one of them. But it's less Fallout and more Cormac McCarthy's The Road. 

And that's a damn good thing. 

According to Kotaku's Stephen Totilo, TLoU makes much finer use of the human element in the "end of the world" scenario; just like McCarthy's beleaguered yet devoted father and innocent, defenseless son, making their way across a scorched America, in search of somewhere - anywhere - to call home.

Bruce Straley, the game's director, said that Naughty Dog wants players to feel the same emotions that Ellie and Joel feel as they try to survive in this strange post-apocalypse in the game. He talked about the game as a quest for survival, one that is inflected by a balance of power that causes enemies to adapt to Ellie and Joel's choices of weapons and tactics. Everyone is trying to live, he said.

The trailer above shows just how brutal and visceral that fight for life can get.

So, scope that fresh cinematic, then make sure you suck every ounce of marrow from Kotaku's preview at the link below.


SOURCE: Destructoid | Kotaku

[OMG] Tetsuya Nomura Talks FFVII Remake

Ok, I'll let you down slow, first. That headline is... rather misleading, yes.

When the premier Square Enix art director spoke to Japanese gaming pub Famitsu recently, he wasn't confirming that they were considering remaking one of the most beloved JRPGs of all time, he instead gave some insight into why it'll never happen. :[

Read on to see what the zipper-happy character designer had to say - there's also a previously unheard behind-the-scenes tidbit about FFVII that may interest you... :]

[OMG] Diablo 3's Dark, Disturbed Secret

See that image above? Fill your eyes. Cherish it.

Where we're going, the most depraved and desensitized are given cause to shudder.

User "Zerofire" on the European Battle.net brought this evil upon us. His mortal meddling in the demonic world of Diablo 3 has caused a rift, through which unspeakable horror creeps and threatens all.

Read on to see harrowing, unedited footage of Zerofire's discovery...

[FREE] One Weekend In The Old Republic

On tap for free MMO play this weekend: Star Wars: The Old Republic.

Starting Thursday, May 17 at 1:01 a.m. EST and ending Monday, May 21 at 3 a.m. EST, the Weekend Pass Free Trial allows previously unsubscribed players can play for free up to level 15.

From the SW:ToR website:

• No credit card is required to take part in the Weekend Pass Free Trial.
• You can play for up to four full days free.
• Characters you create during the trial will be saved to your account, so allowing you to continue on your journeys once you've purchased the game and redeemed the Game Product Registration Code at the Code Redemption Center.
• You'll be able to experience the first fifteen (15) levels of the game, allowing you to explore the Origin Worlds for each character class, as well as possibly seeing your faction’s Capital World.
• You will also be able to join other players take part in Player-vs-Player Warzones, or group with friends to take on one of the numerous Flashpoints in the game.

Perfect for the padawan on your Nubian cruiser!

SOURCE: Rock, Paper Shotgun via Bioware