Focus Home Interactive and Spiders Studios are releasing what they are describing as “the most ambitious RPG yet” for Xbox 360, PS4, PS3 and PC this year. Exploring the world of Vertiel will allow you to interact with hundreds of characters find, craft, and utilize stacks of items, and of course, play through a legendary story. The next trailer will show the combat system which looks to be phenomenal! Trailer below, and press release after the jump.

 

BOUND BY FLAME – ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW IN ONE VIDEO

 

A new trailer for everyone who’s dying to know more!

Bound by Flame, the most ambitious RPG to date from Spiders studios due for release on PlayStation®4, PlayStation®3, Xbox 360® and PC in Q2 2014, is revealed today in meticulous detail in a new video! After a thrilling Epic Story Trailer that described the universe and the back story of the title, this trailer focuses on the game mechanics, the hero’s human/demon duality, combat, the bestiary, the “craft” system and much more.

In this overview of the many possibilities Bound by Flame has to offer, we discover the great freedom of action given to the player, where the various decisions and different choices he makes during his quest or his attitude to the other characters will affect his experience in the game and the world around him. The player’s reaction to the flame demon that possesses him and his tendency to reject its influence or allow it to consume his soul to gain more power will also significantly affect his experience during the adventure and exert a strong influence on his relationships with his companions and his approach to combat.

This latest video also uses numerous gameplay sequences to reveal a little more of the spectacular and tactically complex combat in Bound by Flame. The battles will also be the focus of the next Bound by Flame video trailer to be released in the coming weeks!

Bound by Flame will be available on PlayStation®4, PlayStation®3, Xbox 360® and PC in Q2 2014.

About Bound By Flame
Bound by Flame lets you play a mercenary possessed by a flame demon. As a victim of this demonic influence, players will have to choose between the powers offered by their host, or to keep their humanity, developing heroic talents instead. Dangers and enemies, becoming more terrifying and fearsome in battle, will be temptations to acquire more power by giving up part of the hero’s soul to the demon. Progression of the demonic influence will be reflected by the transformation of the hero’s body.

Depending on the choices made by the player and the influence of the demon, some chapters will offer different scenarios and a different experience, adding important replayability to the game. Real-time battles are impressive and dynamic. If the player begins the game knowing only the basics of combat, fire magic and assassination, he will be able to specialize by unlocking and improving many skills and powers through 3 different skill trees.

Bound by Flame lets the players customize their character. During the creation of their hero, players will be able to choose their gender and facial characteristics. This will of course have an influence on the demon’s appearance. Bound by Flame also includes a crafting system, allowing players to create and improve equipment, including their armor and weapons. Several companions will join the player during his quest, and will, depending on the player’s actions, develop friendship, romance or rivalry.

Finally, the bestiary of Bound by Flame is rich and spectacular. Players will get to fight many impressive creatures: shadow dragons, liches, undead, ice creatures… epic confrontations abound. Which path will the players take? Will they lust after the demon’s power and magic to annihilate their foes, or will they favor their combat skills and their bravery?

About Focus Home Interactive
Founded in 1996, Focus Home Interactive is an independent French publisher based near Paris, France. Known for the quality, diversity and originality of its catalogue, Focus has published and distributed original titles that have become benchmark titles worldwide – such as Blood Bowl, the strategy games Wargame, Sherlock Holmes, TrackMania, Runaway, Cities XL and also Cycling Manager and Farming Simulator.
http://www.focus-home.com

About Spiders Games
Spiders is an independent video game development studio based in Paris, France. Founded in 2008 by several industry veterans who worked most notably on the Silverfall game and its add-on, the studio is mainly specialized in the creation of action/RPG games on PC and next gen consoles, but also has the capacity to realize or participate in the realization of PC ports on consoles. To date, Spiders developed and released Faery: Legends of Avalon, an enchanting RPG on PC, Xbox Live Arcade and Playstation Network, as well as the console ports of the Sherlock Holmes vs. Jack the Ripper (Xbox 360) and The Testament of Sherlock Holmes (PS3, Xbox 360) adventure games. Spiders has also developed Of Orcs and Men, an RPG for PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 designed and produced by Cyanide, and Mars War Logs (PC, XBLA, PSN). Spiders is currently developing Bound by Flame for PC, PS3, PS4 and Xbox360.
http://www.spiders-games.com

 

You should have been eyeing this first-person survival horror game from its very first announcement, but if you haven’t this is the chance to jump on. “Dying Light” will be releasing for Xbox 360, Xbox One, PS3, PS4, and PC this year. You can pre order at DyingLightGame.com to receive exclusive DLC. Looks like next gen consoles will have something rad this year.

The PlayStation Blog confirmed today that the slimmer Vita that was shown at Tokyo Game Show will officially move into North America this spring. It will release with the “Borderlands 2” Vita Bundle, that will include the game and 6 DLC packs for Borderlands and an 8 GB micro SD Card. It will retail for $199.99. It may finally be time to upgrade for us out here that have been waiting for cool stuff since day one.  

It is also worth noting that the Vita will be receiving a God of War Collection on May 6, 2014 that will contain God of War 1 and 2. If you haven’t played these in the multiple facets that these are available this is yet another chance to do so. If you don’t you probably hate the human race. If you’re more into the sneaking and thieving style of gaming, then you can also grab the Sly Cooper bundle that was announced today very soon. These are a few more reasons to snag a Vita, but even if you bought it at launch this seems to be a tempting upgrade offer.  There you have it folks, a lot of news from Sony today, what do you think?

Transformers Universe is launching this year, and is being described as a Massively Online Tactical Action (MOTA) Game. The beta is available for sign up here, and the trailer has definitely peaked my interest. Maybe Transformers games are going to make a comeback? Based on the rap metal and explosions, this is a good possibility. Video is below and the press release just after!

2014 is the launch year for Transformers Universe and the start of an epic journey as you#testyourmetal. A Massively Online Tactical Action game (MOTA), Transformers Universe offers fast-paced, battle-centric, tactical action with game modes for core gamers, casual gamers and Transformers enthusiasts alike. As Commander of a new squad of bots, you will recruit, maintain and battle others with a unique collection of Transformers warriors created in collaboration with our friends at Hasbro.

 

Transformers Universe is set to launch this summer, you can sign-up for the BETA now at www.transformersuniverse.com

Konami has begun releasing a series of mini-trailers to prepare us fro the release of “Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2” on February 25. This new trailer focuses on the Void Sword, which is another weapon in Gabriel/Dracula’s arsenal. This reimagining of the Castlevania origin has been a great ride thus far, and we here at BSR! are stoked to see the ending. Check the trailer out below!

We have a preview of “Eschalon: Book III” from Basilisk Games! It is waiting to be green lit on Steam, and can be purchased via their website here.

This game is made for classic RPG fans. Everything from character creation to combat mechanics is reminiscent of “Icewind Dale”, “Baldurs Gate”, and other classic RPGs. Check the video below and share with your friends.

Image via – Conceptibot

Bryan Young and Thomas Winkley both contributed to this report.

According to the Wall Street Journal, Disney is expected to incorporate characters from Marvel and “Star Wars” into their line of Infinity games.

They spoke to an unnamed source for an article about layoffs at Disney’s Interactive Media unit, but sources said it would not affect the production of Infinity whatsoever.

Buried in the Wall Street Journal piece was this sentence:

New versions of “Infinity” featuring characters from Disney’s Marvel superhero unit and the Star Wars universe it acquired along with Lucasfilm in 2012 are being developed, one of these people said.

While this is not a confirmation in any way from Disney or Lucasfilm, the Wall Street Journal is not one to report erroneous details in their stories. And it seems like an obvious move. Infinity might be the best thing in gaming right now, where you’re buying individual action figures for their abilities to use in the game. If there’s one thing Marvel and “Star Wars” already sell well is action figures, combining them into the game seems like a no-brainer.

There’s already a thirst for it. The picture accompanying this article was a bit of fan art easily found on the Internet. (This particular piece came from a DeviantArt account for Conceptibot.)

If Disney is truly shying away from the prequels and looking forward, I’d expect to see “Star Wars: Rebels” and the classic trilogy take center stage for the first wave of Infinity figures. And for Marvel, “The Avengers” and the “Guardians of the Galaxy” seem to be good first choices.

But anything is possible.

UPDATE: We’ve independently confirmed from other sources in the technology and video gaming industry that Marvel is, indeed, heading to “Disney Infinity.” Still no word on “Star Wars.”

Microsoft Studios acquired the rights to the “Gears of War” franchise today.  In an announcement via The Xbox Wire, they detail acquiring the rights to all “all games past and present, entertainment experiences, and merchandising”.

Development of the franchise has been entrusted to Black Tusk Studios in Vancouver, British Columbia. Along with the rights of the series Microsoft Studios is also bringing Rod Fergusson, former director of production for Epic Games on to “play a key studio leadership role at Black Tusk on development of the franchise going forward.” Microsoft Studios will still be working closely with Epic to guarantee use of the Unreal Engine 4 for future titles.

Microsoft’s Phil Spencer had this to say about the matter:

It all comes back to our commitment to Xbox fans. The “Gears of War” franchise has a very strong, passionate and valued fan base on Xbox. Over twenty-two million units have been sold across all “Gears of War” titles worldwide, grossing over $1B dollars (US). This franchise, and these fans, are part of the soul of Xbox. By acquiring this franchise, Microsoft Studios will continue to offer them more of their favorite games and entertainment experiences from the “Gears of War” universe.  

 So there you have it, we will continue to see Gears as an Xbox exclusive for years to come under a different development, I wonder if a new title will be announced at E3?

Blizzard moved their free-to-play card battling game “Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft” to open Beta yesterday. Players can download the title for PC and Mac here, and begin playing instantly. Any decks purchased in game during the open beta will be available once it launches, and will also give the user extra items and cards in the final build. If you like fantasy and you like cards give this a shot. You can bet BSR will be playing.

This interview/trailer with the games lead designer and the voices of Riley and Ellie shows different cinematic sequences, and gives us insight into the story before release. The relationship between the two girls seems to be the key focal point of the story, and I’m sure something terrible will happen to keep the dark tone of the game going. February 14, 2014 needs to hurry up!