My apologies for missing last week’s late edition. The vitals are still here, and it’s a slow time of year for news anyhow. I’m actually pondering a shift to a once a week format through the end of summer. But some of this news is already late, so let’s get to it:
Things have been shifted around a bit with the Max Payne 3 DLC. The “New York Minute” co-op pack is being rolled into the “Deathmatch Made in Heaven.” The “Trickle Down Economics” pack is fitting into one of the remaining packs, but not the first one. I’m not clear on where it will end up right now, but I’ll clarify if/when the information comes. According to the new schedule:
- Disorganized Crime Pack: August – FREE
- Hostage Negotiation Map Pack: September – $9.99
- Painful Memories Map Pack: October – $9.99
- Deathmatch Made In Heaven Mode Pack: October – $9.99
Left 4 Dead 2’s “Cold Stream” DLC that was delayed from July 24th has a new release date, last Friday. This is where it sucks to have missed the late edition. If you check your download service regularly you already knew about this. If you only check it once a week like I do, this still news. Yay. It’s 560 MSP.
Capcom has announced a new mode for Resident Evil 6. “Agent Hunt” will be unlocked after you’ve completed the single player campaign. In this mode, you’ll spawn as one of Umbrella’s hideous mutations to hunt down the game’s heroes, Leon, Chris, etc. Players in the “Mercenaries” match will be notified that a player controlled monster is in the field, but they won’t know which one it is. The monsters will have voice chat available, which seems a little far-fetched for virus-mutated zombies. On a related note, the Ada campaign previously thought to be DLC has been confirmed as an unlockable within the game. Hopefully it won’t be as ridiculous as unlocking Hunk’s mission. Release is still scheduled for October 2, 2012.
Despite rumors that it’s moving next-gen, and no release date announced at a recent investor call, Grand Theft Auto V is still “in full development and showing substantial progress” according to Strauss Zelnick (CEO, Take Two). 2012 was mentioned when the game was announced, but a lack of detail to date makes this a doubtful time frame. If you’re hungry for more news from Rockstar’s twisted parody of the world, check out the spoof religious site for Epsilon Program. You can also subscribe to their Twitter feed. It looks like a great religion with some solid tenets: “Trees talk, but only some people hear them – FACT!”
Speaking of Grand Theft Auto, you may be wondering what happened to Grand Theft Auto III‘s release on PSN. turns out things weren’t so smooth as we thought. One song in the game’s soundtrack, we don’t know which one, apparently has some licensing issues. They’re reviewing it now to determine the best solution. I assume that means either pay the license (possibly expensive) or delete it from the game (probably more difficult than it sounds). VGQH will get the update as soon as I do.
Speaking of in-game music, I’m a big fan of crossing media. A Doctor Who video game? The Avengers as a movie? E.T. as a video game? All good ideas. Except the E.T. thing. That was terrible. What I’m not sure about is video games cross breeding with the music industry. Sure, a good soundtrack has always been a part of a good game. The original Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater comes to mind. So does the PS2 era of SSX. But does that mean we should have Jay Z as an executive producer on NBA 2K13? That role has him handpicking the soundtrack for the whole game. It might be apropos, both are about as culturally relevant as the other, but it just seems odd. Also, isn’t is a little self-serving to have six of the 24 tracks be songs from your executive producer? Kanye West is the next most-represented artist with three of the 24 tracks. Here’s the full list, the game releases October 2, 2012:
- The Hours – Ali in the Jungle
- Too Short – Blow the Whistle (Main)
- Eric B. and Rakim – I Ain’t No Joke
- Phoenix – 1901
- JAY Z – Pump it Up (Freestyle)
- Puff Daddy and the Family – Victory (feat. Notorious B.I.G. & Busta Rhymes)
- Daft Punk – Around The World (Radio Edit)
- Santigold – Shove It (feat. Spank Rock)
- Kanye West – Amazing
- JAY Z – Run This Town
- The Dirty Projectors – Stillness is the Move
- Nas – The World is Yours
- Coldplay – Viva La Vida
- Roy Ayers – We Live in Brooklyn, Baby
- Justice – Stress
- JAY Z – The Bounce
- Kanye West – We Major (feat. Nas & Really Doe)
- Mobb Deep – Shook Ones, Pt. II
- Meek Mill – Ima Boss – Instrumental
- Kanye West – Mercy (feat. Big Sean, Pusha T, and 2 Chainz)
- U2 – Elevation
- JAY Z – On To The Next One
- JAY Z – Public Service Announcement
- JAY Z – H.A.M. (Instrumental)
If you’re looking for a reason to dust off your PS Move, Lights, Camera, Party! has been announced for release on August 28, 2012. The game show set up, featuring the Funzini family, is a lukewarm attempt at throwing some story into the 24 (out of 50 total) minigames you can play over five rounds. Story mode will allow up to four players, while other modes can get up to eight. Looks ridiculous, but min-games can be fun, especially for family play.
THQ’s announced a survival arena mode for Darksiders II. The mode includes up to 100 waves of challenges. After each set of five you’re given the option to quit and receive your reward. Going further increases the value of the reward, giving the ultimate prize at the 100th wave. They’ve also confirmed a New Game+ mode to carry your leveled up Death into a new campaign and a reward for anyone who also played the first Darksiders on the same console. While you should probably keep your save file around just in case, don’t think you can download one and load it up to get the bonus. Apparently the sequel will be reading your trophy / achievement information to reward your bonuses. Merely having played the first game will unlock the level five Pauldrons of the Horsemen for Death. If you beat the first game, you’ll also get the level one Chaos Fang scythe, loosely based on War’s Chaoseater sword. If you haven’t quite passed that first game get on it. The sequel releases August 14th.
SEGA has confirmed a “bonus edition” available for pre-order of Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed. Looks like it’s a free upgrade for early adopters and nets you a bonus track (with time trial and challenges) and character. Pre-order now so you can race Metal Sonic with his levitating kart down the Outrun inspired track. The bonus edition will also unlock some of the in-game rewards early. It’s out November 20, 2012.
Army of Two: The Devil’s Cartel has been confirmed as the third entry for the series and it’s under development at Visceral Games. This is sort of a reset for the series, letting two players take control of Alpha and Bravo, agents for Tactical Worldwide Operations (T.W.O), as they drop into a Mexican drug war. Online and split screen co-op will, of course, be returning. Customizable characters will make your Alpha or Bravo more unique. It’s scheduled for March 2013.
If you can’t wait to get your hands on PlayStation All-Star Battle Royale then keep your eyes and ears open for the public beta announcement coming this fall. No official date yet, but it is offcially announced. As for the leaked roster you saw last week, Superbot’s president, Chan Park, says “We’ve enjoyed reading all of the fan reaction and are thrilled that so many of you are excited to learn more [of] our character roster and level mash-ups, however we are still in development and the leaked content does not fully represent the final product nor the incredible efforts that were made to make these elements truly spectacular. This will be evident in the coming weeks as this content is officially revealed, beginning with our next character announcement at Gamescom in a couple of weeks.” I can’t help but notice he simply referred to it as a leak, not an inaccurate one. It sounds to me like the information is correct, but not complete. All will be answered when the game’s release comes October 23rd.
More DLC is coming for Mass Effect 3, story and multiplayer. Bioware has confirmed that “Leviathan” ($9.99) is coming this summer. This new single-player chapter takes place during the course of the main game, sending players to new areas of the Citadel as well as new areas of the galaxy. Shepard and company will be on a mission to locate a mssive weapon, thought to be powerful enough to take down any reaper. Naturally, the Alliance won’t be the only interested party. The add-on will feature new cahracters (possibly squad members?) and at least two weapons, the AT-12 Raider shotgun and M-55 Argus Assault Rifle. On the multiplayer front, check your store today. The “Firefight” weapons pack is available today for 160 MSP ($1.99).
Been itching to get a little Sackboy on your vita? Well, despite how dirty that sounds, at least we now know when it can happen. LittleBigPlanet Vita will be coming September 25, 2012. Preorder now for Knights of the Old Republic and Bioshock costumes. LittleBigDaddy on a LittleBigScreen? Does it get any better? Probably not, but the concept is definitely better than my awful puns.
Are you a fan of good voice over work? This one’s for you. Bethesda has revealed a star-filled cast for Dishonored (October 9, 2012). I don’t follow v/o work very heavily, but this list changed the game from a maybe to a very likely:
- Susan Sarandon as former aristocrat, Granny Rags
- Michael Madsen as Daud, an assassin
- Brad Dourif as the inventor, Piero
- Mad Men‘s John Slattery as Admiral Havelock
- Carrie Fisher, who needs no introduction, broadcasting propaganda
- Chloe Moretz as Lady Emily, daughter of the Empress
- Lena Heady as Emily’s caretaker, Calista
One of the biggest stories of the week is sort of a non-story. Microsoft’s General Manager, Brian Hall, let slip the words “new XBox” when discussing upcoming products with The Verge: “We’ve had Hotmail and operated Hotmail for about 16 years, we obviously have Exchange, and Outlook, that people use at work. We just decided it was time to do something new and bring the best from each of those and put them together and release it right in time for the new wave of products that we could have coming out with Windows 8, with the new version of Office with the new Windows phone and the new Xbox.” The idea that Microsoft has nothing in the oven for a new console is absurd, so mentioning it shouldn’t be big deal. But they’ve yet to reveal it and seem to have been hiding the concept by shutting their own eyes instead of ours. This is the first real mention of the product coming, and even ties it to the new Windows 8. Rumors of a 2013 release are still rumors, but this does validate them a bit.
God of War is getting a third HD collection on PS3 this month. This one comes with the remastered PS2 titles, the HD versions of the Origins collection, and God of War III. There will also be some “exclusive bonus content” and a voucher for one free month of PS+. It’s a bit overkill to have a new package, but five triple-A games for $29.99 is a great deal. If you’ve skipped the franchise, or haven’t upgraded the older titles, you’re kind of insane not to do it on August 28th.
Also releasing August 28th is another Sony collection. The inFamous Collection will bundle both of the reatil titles and the downloadable Festival of Blood with new missions, costumes, power-ups, and weapons. This one’s also only $29.99. Again, if you’ve skipped the series, do yourself a favor! Both games were strong contenders for game of the year in their respective years and Festival of Blood more than earned that title in the downloadable category. You know you’re looking for something to kill time until October anyway.
EA has revealed a few details about their 2013 season ticket program. It’s not cheap at 2000MSP ($24.99) but it reportedly includes over $100 in content. To get the full benefit, you’ll need to be an avid sports gamer with the intention of purchasing multiple titles in EA’s sports franchises. In addition to the included DLC packs, you’ll also get 20% off any extra add-ons. Some of the content includes 1 Legendary Pack and 24 Pro Madden Packs ($30+), 24 NHL Premium Gold Packs ($30+), and 24 FIFA Premium Gold Packs ($30+). Additional content for Tiger Woods 14 and NCAA 14 will be announced soon. The season ticket begins with Madden NFL 13 on August 28th.
Looks like that’s it for Tuesday’s edition. For now it looks like there should be a late edition this week. So check back on Friday for more of the latest gaming news.