I hope everyone enjoyed their long holiday weekend. Mine was great, especially since I took Friday off after watching the Utes beat Montana State. Go Utes! With nothing to do Friday but get hydrated for my Salt Flats 10k on Saturday I finished my evil Cole run on inFamous 2. I don’t want to spoil it for anyone, but I was a little surprised by the ending. I haven’t done the good guy run yet (I’ll start that as my hard run this week) but I think I know what to expect from that ending as well. In either case, I’d have to guess that this is probably the last title in the series. I suppose a third one is possible, but there would need to be major changes – especially if the good Cole ending is as definitive as the evil one. I don’t expect to see enough vagueness to allow for a single continued story. Either way, on to the news:
I mentioned some time ago that Rockstar had plans for another DLC package with Red Dead Redemption. Details for “Myths and Mavericks” are out now. The important details are that the package will launch around September 13th and it will be free. What you’ll get is 10 new locations with one to four modes for each one; the addition of stronghold mode at Armadillo, Chuparosa, and Tumbleweed; Shootout and Gang Shootout at Rio Bravo; and eight new player characters (including Uncle and Landon Ricketts). This is Rockstar’s thank you to all of the players who continue massacring one another online in their fantastic western. You’re welcome, Rockstar. And thank you.
If you’re hungering for more news about Street Fight x Tekken, I can give you two more characters that will appear. Capcom’s pattern of awful teaser trailers most recently showcased Rolento (Final Fight, Street Fighter Alpha) and Heihachi Mishima (Tekken). Mishima was to be expected, Rolento is worth a widening of the eyes and a nod, but nothing shocking. If you want more, check out the just released cover art:
Can’t get enough plundering with Dungeon Siege III? Of course not. Which is why Square Enix is expanding the title with the “Treasures of the Sun” DLC. The add-on brings hours of new quest content, new monsters, more loot, and new location, The Aranoi Desert. You’ll also unlock new abilities as you work towards the new level cap of 35. And if the extra five levels aren’t enough, they’ve added the ability to reallocate points at any time in the campaign. The expansion is scheduled for October 2011, and is listed at $9.99.
Another game set for DLC in October is Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine. The game just came out today, but they weren’t able to include co-op for the retail release. Never fear, they plan to add it for free in October. The “Exterminatus” add-on will allow squads of up to four players in three classes. You’ll also get leaderboards, “dynamic challenges,” and “score modifiers.”
Activision finally outlined their premium tier of Call of Duty: Elite at their XP weekend. Plenty of players were skeptical and ready to have a fit over the pricing and content, but it turns out this is actually a good deal for hardcore multiplayer fans – especially if buy all the DLC. For $50 a year you’ll get access to the premium service. Seems steep at first. If all you’re getting is more video storage, virtual prizes, clan levelling, and “Elite TV” then the price just seems excessive. But what if it includes $60 worth of DLC? See what I mean? If you were going to buy all of the DLC anyway, save yourself ten bucks and get the membership. Or, better yet, save yourself another ten bucks and buy the Hardened Edition of Modern Warfare 3 for $100 and get free membership (plus Founder status for life, if that turns out to do you any good).
Next story, are you kidding me? More DLC? And in October too? Apparently Fall is no longer content to destroy your wallet with top shelf retail releases, the season wants to destroy virtual billfold as well. Deus Ex: Human Revolution is getting its “Missing Link” next month. Honestly, I’m a little lost and don’t to report it wrong, so here’s what they say on the official website:
The Deus Ex: Human Revolution conspiracy grows deeper in The Missing Link. During Adam’s quest for the truth in Deus Ex: Human Revolution, he mysteriously vanishes for three days. Where was he? What did he find out? The Missing Link reveals it all.
After being tortured by Belltower agents and having his augmentations disabled, Adam Jensen must rely solely on his basic capabilities to escape from a freighter, destined for an unknown location. While fighting for his survival on the ship, he uncovers another layer to the conspiracy that he never would have suspected. As Adam, befriend new, mysterious allies and fight ruthless enemies to discover what was happening in the shadows during the events of Deus Ex: Human Revolution!
New layers of conspiracy unveiled – Sprawling new environments, brand-new characters to interact with… Rebuild Adam’s augmentation set from scratch. Build up a brand new Adam!
Over on the US Playstation Blog they’ve announced the September bonuses for Playstation Plus Members. It’s months like these that make the program worth it. Click the link for the full list, but I’ll give you some highlights: Plants vs. Zombies and Altered Beast are free – and you can really get caught up on your zombie-slaying with free PSOne classics Resident Evil: Director’s Cut; RE2; and RE3 Nemesis; plus 50% discounts on RE4 and and RE Code Veronica X HD. Seriously, click the link to see the whole update. And this all just for September. I waited a full year before getting on the PS+ bandwagon and I feel like I missed out.
And that looks to be it for today. Plenty of DLC news and some other interesting tidbits. I hope I didn’t miss anything important, but I am thrown off a little by the long weekend. I even completely skipped my “In Stores this Week” column I normally write up. Which is kind of a shame because it was one of the best weeks we’ve had recently with Resistance 3, Driver: San Francisco, and Dead Island all coming out today. Oh well. Come back on Friday for more Video Game Quick Hits.