Not much to go on, a preview it seems of what is coming at E3. Could be good. Could be bad, no way to tell yet.
DOTA 2 will be F2P
After remaining coy on the subject for quite a while, Valve confirmed months of speculation by announcing Dota 2will be free to play. That means upon release, you’ll be able to download and play the game free of charge, with microtransactions being the way Valve makes money off of it. As is usually the case in these situations, the developer is claiming you won’t be able to pay to win, a common concern among free-to-play game players who don’t want their ability to succeed determined by the size of their wallets. Unlike many other cases, it’s very clear Valve has a point here as the only things which can be purchased with real-world money are cosmetic items.Dota 2 Primed to Dominate the Competition as a Free-to-Play Game
(PC)
Unlike fellow F2P game League of Legends, all of its characters will be freely available.
It may sound like a gamble to bank purely on players’ desire to customize their look, but Valve does have experience with the free-to-play model. Team Fortress 2 went free last summer following the addition of an in-game store in September 2010, while the game still costed money to purchase. While it may be best known for the hats it sells, where TF2’s store differs from Dota 2’s is in its sale of in-game weapons and items. You’re able to spend real-world money to acquire guns, shields, jars of urine (yes), and the many other items at players’ disposal.
A key point to remember, however, is that all of these items (save for keys used to unlock crates, which contain various items inside) can be obtained through random drops while playing the game. This means you don’t have to spend money in order to stay competitive, although these unlockable weapons and items are not always definitively better than the standard ones they replace anyway.
In an FAQ meant to clear up any confusion and make it clear “free-to-play” is not synonymous with “pay-to-win,” it’s stated that items from the Dota 2 Store — which is open now and offers cosmetic items, Couriers, and Battle Point bonuses — can be earned without spending money. Details are scant, but among the ways to unlock items will be playing the game, trading with other players, and increasing your Battle Level (which is done by completing matchmaking games, thereby earning you Battle Points).
An answer to a question about why the F2P model was chosen reads, “We think it fits the way we build and iterate on our games over time. We (Valve and the Dota community) will be building lots of interesting things in the coming years, and learning every step of the way. The more people we have generating ideas and providing feedback, the better Dota will become.”
With Valve’s backing and the involvement of IceFrog, the longtime developer of the original Warcraft III mod, Defense of the Ancients, Dota 2 was inevitably going to pose a major threat to competing DotA/MOBA (Multiplayer Online Battle Arena) games, and that is only more true in light of this latest development. League of Legends developer Riot Games could have potentially held an edge against Valve if Dota 2 had been made a premium-priced game, as LoL is free to play. With Dota 2 also adopting that model, Riot not only loses that edge, it now looks inferior in at least one way: Whereas Dota 2’s store offers only cosmetic items, many of LoL’s champions cost money to use (or need to be purchased with Influence Points earned by playing the game). The game consistently rotates through a cast of ten free champions which can be used by anyone; those who want to ensure they have access to certain ones need to pay for that access one way or another.
“We believe restricting player access to heroes could be destructive to game design,” the Dota 2 FAQ reads, “so it’s something we plan to avoid.”
This makes it sound as if the possibility hasn’t been completely ruled out for the future. Acknowledging the effect that locking away characters can have and then proceeding to lock them away would not look good, though, which bodes well for the chances of them being freely available for good. The appeal of a DotA game with all of its characters unlocked may bring in enough players from LoL and others games that cosmetic item sales can comfortably sustain it. So, in effect, starting out with all heroes being playable could end up being the reason why they are able to remain free.
Again reflecting the influence of Team Fortress 2, fans will be able to create and submit content (armor, weapons, and clothing, for instance) that could end up in the game. Steam Workshop support has been added to Dota 2, and submissions can now be made for other players to vote and comment on. The best of these submissions will be taken by Valve and released through the in-game store, where their creators will be entitled to a cut of the sales — and as an example of what kind of money we’re talking about, it’s noted $3.5 million was paid to TF2 content creators in the first year that those user-created items were sold.
An official release date for Dota 2 is still unknown; the FAQ claims what’s going on now isn’t a beta per se. Because of that, players are encouraged to start spending money on the store now — any purchases made prior to the proper release will be carried over. In the meantime, the game’s server infrastructure still needs to be increased to support everyone who wants to play the game. This was described as the “primary bottleneck” for allowing everyone to play.
What this means is if you’re still waiting for an invite, which you can sign up for here, you’ll need to hope a friend who is already in still has an invite to share. Alternatively, you can purchase the $40 Early Access Bundle on the store now, which will grant you access to a number of things including an early access pass to the game.
Ultimately, Dota 2’s ability to become the preeminent game in this sub-genre will come down to Valve’s ability to properly balance it and react to the community as needed. DotA fans are a hardcore bunch, and it’s unlikely they’ll stick with a poorly-balanced game for long merely because a subset of players can make money by creating items or because the entire roster of characters is freely available. With those elements, in place, however, League of Legends, Blizzard’s own DotA game (now called Blizzard All-Stars), and all the rest will have an uphill climb in competing with Dota 2 so long as Valve provides the game — and its community — with the attention and care they need.
I love DOTA styled games, Awesomnauts is proof enough of that, though I am not big on League of Legends. To see the original be reinvented and come back is going to be a treat, especially in Valve’s multifaceted and capable hands. Free to Play is awesome too, as League of Legends requires you to purchase some characters, this won’t, cool stuff.
Epic is Awesome, Hires Majority of Big Huge Games
‘Epic Baltimore’ rises out of the ashes of Big Huge Games
Many of the roughly 80 employees of Big Huge Games who found themselves suddenly out of work when Curt Schilling’s 38 Studios imploded in May will be starting new jobs soon as employees of Epic Games, Epic confirmed to Polygon today.
In a letter sent to employees today, Epic Games president Michael Capps said that the former Big Huge Games leadership team contacted them on Wednesday.
“They wanted to start a new company and keep together some of the key talent displaced by the layoff, and hoped that they could use an Epic IP as a starting point for a new game,” he wrote in the letter, which was provided to Polygon. “We loved that they all wanted to keep working together, but it was pretty clear they’d have trouble building a demo and securing funding before their personal savings ran out.
“In one of life’s coincidences, Epic’s directors had spent the morning discussing how we’d love to build even more successful projects with our growing team, but that we’d need a dramatic infusion of top talent to do so. Which, we all knew, was impossible.
“So now we’re planning to start an impossible studio in Baltimore. :)”To speed up the lengthy process of starting up a new studio, Capps said that they will be bringing some folks over to Cary as soon as possible to get them started as contract employees.
While Capps said he doesn’t know how many people they will be able to hire, sources tell Polygon that a significant portion of the studio is getting picked up to form the new Baltimore studio.
A portion of the remaining employees were picked up by Zynga East, and ZeniMax Online, according to the letter.
“The way we see it, there’s been a big storm in Baltimore, and we’re taking in a few of the refugees — as are the awesome folks at Zynga East, ZeniMax Online, and other southeastern studios,” Capps wrote. “Epic’s in a situation where we can do this, and it very clearly fits with our company values, so we’re going to give it a whirl.”
The new Maryland studio, nicknamed Epic Baltimore, will likely work on a new action role-playing game in the vein of Kingdoms of Amalur, sources say. The game will likely be a completely new IP for Epic Games.
The hiring binge comes days after Epic Games was awarded $4.45 million in damages in a case that pitted Canadian developer Silicon Knights against Epic Games. In that case, the jury rejected all of Silicon Knights’ claims, but found in favor of Epic’s counterclaims.
Big Huge Games was purchased by 38 Studios in May 2009. At the time the purchase was heralded as a critical step in 38 Studio’s push to deliver a “broad range of entertainment products” built around the company’s growing fantasy mythology, Amalur.
The Maryland-based developer released Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning through publisher EA in February. The game reportedly sold 1.2 million copies in its first 90 days on market, according to Schilling, and was positively received by critics. Last month, 38 released a downloadable expansion pack for the game titled “Teeth of Naros.”
In May, Schilling’s 38 Studios missed its second payment to Rhode Island, which had signed a $75 million loan guarantee for the developer.
Over the course of the month it became clear that the studio was in dire straits and on May 24 the studio laid off its entire staff, shutting down both its Rhode Island office and Big Huge Games.
Schilling has said he is still trying to find investors for 38 Studios, but sources told Polygon that several publishers passed up on investing in or purchasing the company.
You can read the entire letter below:
Our heart goes out to the people affected by the unfortunate events surrounding 38 Studios and its subsidiary in Baltimore, Big Huge Games. Through it all, the team stayed together in a way that’s been really heartwarming to see. The team kept working, hoping that there’d be a way to secure last-minute funding and save the company. People brought extra food into the office to help those unable to pay their bills. And last week, in bittersweet irony, Big Huge Games was named to Game Developer’s Top 30 studios in the world list.
You may be wondering why I’m writing all this - and it’s because Epic is going to do something to help them, and we want people to understand why we think it’s the right thing to do.
On Wednesday, the ex-BHG leadership team contacted us. They wanted to start a new company and keep together some of the key talent displaced by the layoff, and hoped that they could use an Epic IP as a starting point for a new game. We loved that they all wanted to keep working together, but it was pretty clear they’d have trouble building a demo and securing funding before their personal savings ran out.
In one of life’s coincidences, Epic’s directors had spent the morning discussing how we’d love to build even more successful projects with our growing team, but that we’d need a dramatic infusion of top talent to do so. Which, we all knew, was impossible.
So now we’re planning to start an impossible studio in Baltimore. :)
It’ll take a while to find space, set up desks and PCs, purchase sufficient Nerf weaponry and Dr. Pepper, etc. But some of these folks have been going too long without a paycheck to wait for that. So, as soon as we can, we’re going to try to get people working down here at Epic headquarters in Cary, NC as contractors.
There’s a million things to work out. How many of the team can we hire? What will it be called? What will they be working on? We don’t know all the answers yet. Please give us some time to figure it out; we hope to have more to share soon.
The way we see it, there’s been a big storm in Baltimore, and we’re taking in a few of the refugees — as are the awesome folks at Zynga East, ZeniMax Online, and other southeastern studios. Epic’s in a situation where we can do this, and it very clearly fits with our company values, so we’re going to give it a whirl.
Dr. Michael Capps
President, Epic Games
I am going to be honest here. I didn’t really play Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning. I tried the demo, and it didn’t grasp me. The graphics didn’t look good, and the hack and slash style felt…old. I hear the game was far better than that, and the design was really neat for a ton of the levels past the origin. I will probably pick it up as a bargain buy later this year. Either way, the studio seemed talented and for the events going on now has been difficult to read about, but in comes Epic, showing off how wonderful a studio they are, by doing this crusading effort. Good on them, if they keep this up, and end up having the team make a fantastic RPG, they may replace BioWare as my favorite Studio in games.
Wii U Pre-E3 Show Stealing..kinda…
The final Wii U: What’s new, different, gone
Nintendo president Satoru Iwata unveiled the final product version of the Wii U in today’s pre-E3 Nintendo Direct livestream, and while you can get a look at it here, we wanted to point out the major differences between it and the prototype.
The product version has two full analogue sticks that are clickable, replacing the prototype’s circle pads. The back of the WiiPad (seriously, that is what we’re calling it) has rounded grips and the buttons and direction pad have been shifted toward the screen “to maximize comfort even if you are playing for a long period of time,” Iwata said.
The final Wii U has near field communication technology on the left side, under the D-pad, for scanning applicable real-life objects into games.
The product version also adds a TV button, positioned next to the power button, that turns the Wii U into an infrared TV remote, Iwata revealed.
Control still looks neat, but I am more concerned with 3rd Party titles, not how the control looks as we got a good feel for it last year and this is all aesthetic.
http://www.joystiq.com/2012/06/03/black-wii-u/
Black Wii U shown during Nintendo Direct presentation
It took some time before we had the Wii in diverse colors, but it appears Nintendo plans on offering two colors with the Wii U console close to launch. During today’s Nintendo Direct presentation, during an extended and awkward vignette, the company showed off a black console – along with video chat.
Black is nice, but the White looks a bit cleaner, maybe that is just me, but I am a guy who has a white iPhone and iPad too.
http://www.joystiq.com/2012/06/03/wii-u-pro-controller-unveiled-looks-awfully-familiar/
Wii U ‘Pro Controller’ unveiled, looks awfully familiar
Beyond the WiiPad’s big unveiling during Nintendo’s pre-E3 presentation this afternoon, president Satoru Iwata also briefly showed off the Wii U “Pro” controller. As you might imagine, it looks awfully similar to the Wii’s “Pro” controller, not to mention the Xbox 360 controller we’ve all gotten so used to.
Wow, uh….that looks extremely familiar. Not sure about the analog stick placement. But hey, if it works, it works.
SimCity Release Date is More Concrete
Simply Wonderful: SimCity Dated For February 2013
By Nathan Grayson on June 2nd, 2012 at 10:00 am.
The pre-E3 news volcano keeps on spewing molten infobits, as is its over-exuberant wont. EA, for whatever reason (perhaps, you know, E3) is saving its trailers until next week, but it’s seen fit to toss a rather important morsel in hungry fans’ direction to tide them over. Namely, via an email touting the publishing kingpin’s trade show lineup, it pegged SimCity‘s grand opening for February 2013. Previously, all we had to go on was a vague “2013.” Now then, here’s hoping that actually goes according to plan – given the precedent set by a certain other recently launched “always online” game.
Maxis, meanwhile, has promised a grand unveiling next week – far beyond rough-around-the-edges tech demos. Most crucially, multiplayer’s apparently a lock for the show, which means we’ll finally understand how EA’s admittedly less potent connected tech will improve our experiences. So then, chatter excitedly amongst yourselves. Preferably in Simlish.
I can’t tell you how excited I am for a new SimCity game. I haven’t played a good one since SimCity 3000, and even that was not as good as it’s SimCity 2000. This sounds fantastic with the promise of online trade with other SimCity players so each City can specialize and support each other. It takes the trade system in SPORE to a whole new and exciting level that I cannot wait to experience.
Small Details on Dragon Age III, Pre-E3
I was reading through the latest PC Gamer magazine and I saw a small blurb about Dragon Age III in the magazine, but the small blurb did give a ton of detail, including the locale of the next game. I screenshot the article on my iPad to upload for you all to see.
Sounds like good news so far, as fixing locales, companion gear customization, and removing reused dungeons will fix 70% of my woes with Dragon Age II. Now if they can fix the story…this game will be the best entry, if not better if they keep the same combat system, than Dragon Age: Origins.
Windows Phone 8 Builds show, possible, amazing displays
New Windows Phone 8 OS builds & WXGA display resolution spotted in the wild
Posted on Thu, 31 May 2012 11:12 am EDT by Daniel Rubino
Windows Phone 8 concept
In mid June, Microsoft is expected to start revealing info on the much anticipated Windows Phone 8 OS (aka Apollo) but until that day, we have just crumbs of data to work with. One of those sources comes from peeping OS builds that various developers “see” when looking at their app data usage.
Such an example is illustrated by Marios Karagiannis (aka Karios) developer of the popular (and Windows Phone Central favorite) MonsterUp. In a recent blog post on his site, the developer listed some new OS builds that apparently come from Windows Phone 8 devices:
- 8.0.9698.0 69
- 8.0.9697.0 35
- 8.0.9696.0 4
- 8.0.10101.0 4
- 8.0.9691.0 4
- 8.0.9695.0 2
- 8.0.9699.0 1
Likewise, our own Rogue Code, who makes Ffffound as well as Pocket Meme, has also seen similar numbers in his apps including 8.0.9673, 8.0.9644, 8.0.9627 and 8.0.9699.
We assume by this point that Microsoft has to be testing Windows Phone 8 and seeing OS builds floating around probably should not be too surprising. Unfortunately, more info cannot be gleaned from such build numbers making this observation more entertaining than revealing.
Turning to our own Google Analytics for this site, we can discern some interesting tidbits as well. Specifically under our “mobile visits” we now have 768x1280 resolution devices running Internet Explorer 10 making rare but occasional stops to our site. Display colors were set at 24-bit (a bump from 16-bit that we usually see) and many pings originate from Redmond, WA.
Google Analytic data from WPCentral.com showing supposed WP8 devices (click to enlarge)
Furthermore, we can officially confirm with other independent sources that 768x1280 will be a supported resolution in Windows Phone 8 in addition to three others including 480x640, 480x800 (current WP7 resolution) and 720x1280.
While a WXGA resolution may seem a bit odd, in Jul 2011 Samsung were reportedly working on a mobile phone running that exact screen resolution, albeit sporting Android. To put such a resolution in perspective, as Phone Arena notes ”…on a 4.5 inch screen, the pixels per inch would come in at 332, topping the 326ppi reading of the Retina Display on the Apple iPhone 4”. No doubt an impressive statistic.
Of course we’ll just have to wait and see what Microsoft officially tells us in the coming months. Until then, the above info should be treated as rumor/speculation as things like emulators (versus actual hardware) may be playing a role.
Still, we think the info presented above is accurate and will be the path for Windows Phone 8.
I may be an iOS user, but I love Windows Phone, it is easily the most intuitive, fun platform for smartphones at the current moment. I adore it, but I feel the ecosystem is still lacking, and I have already made a heavy investment in the iOS platform in it’s apps, so moving is difficult, but if it had a great display on top of it’s amazing OS…I may have little choice.
Could Facebook be Integrated into iOS 6?
Facebook May Be Built Into iOS 6
Facebook was once rumored to be built into iOS 4 but that never happened. And then when iOS 5 came around, it was Twitter that got the integration nod and not Facebook. But now it looks like third time’s the charm because TechCrunch is reporting that Facebook will finally be integrated into iOS 6.
What does that exactly mean? Well, no one knows yet. Judging by what Apple did with Twitter, it seems like integrating Facebook to iOS 6 means that iPhone users would be able to post and share stuff to Facebook from core iOS apps like Safari and photos. Also, it’d presumably make handling permissions on what can access your Facebook account much easier and fluid (the current method is a clunky web page). Makes a lot of sense! Hopefully we’ll find out at WWDC.
I would like to have it integrated into the new iOS. I like Twitter in iOS 5, being able to go in any app really and export a link to, send a picture to, or what have you, to Twitter is incredible. Having Facebook as well seems even more relevant for sharing with family and friends especially as opposed to the internet as a whole.
Gears of War: Judgment, or 4, to be unveiled in next GI.
Baird and Cole Train Will Be Back In Gears of War: Judgment
Game Informer Magazine has revealed that the new Gears of War game teased earlier this week will be called Gears of War: Judgment, and will feature franchise characters Baird and Cole, possibly in more central roles.
From Game Informer:
The new installment in Epic’s million-dollar franchise is Gears of War: Judgment. The July cover of Game Informer shows series mainstay Damon Baird shackled as the Locust hordes rage around him. Augustus “Cole Train” Cole, soldier and world-famous Thrashball player, dons our second cover image in the same precarious situation.
As Stephen points out, Gears of War: Judgment makes for a pretty excellent acronym: “GOWJ,” which can be read like a more badass way of spelling “Gouge.”
Here’s the second cover, featuring Cole Train:
I have loved every entry into the Gears of War franchise to date, and even though I felt the story was successfully closed at the end of Gears of War 3, I would love to continue playing in the shoes of the COGs again and again and again. It still sounds like it is taking place in between Gears 2 and 3, or even between 1 and 2 depending.
(Source: kotaku.com)
Injustice is T-Rated, but still “Brutal”
Batman Can’t Be Decapitated in Injustice, Because There Are Limits
You wouldn’t know it from reading many popular DC Comics, but there are limits to how violent the adventures of Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman can be. At least in video games, and probably movies too.
That puts Ed Boon and his team of Mortal Kombat makers in the kind of conundrum classic to video games. These are creative people known for having characters who rip the spine from other characters. And the last time they made a fighting game with Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman, they didn’t go that far. Some people thought that was weird.
They’re making a new fighting game with DC heroes now. So how far will they go?
“DC understandably will never let us cut Batman’s head off,” Boon recently told me. “They’re never going to let us stab Wonder Woman in the face… In this format they’re never going to do something like that.”
In Injustice you can smash Batman with a car and you can kick Wonder Woman—or any other character—on an upward, slightly diagonal trajectory, through the floors of a skyscraper.
There’s no spine-ripping in this game, it seems.
“Violence is replaced with crazy, over-the-top action,” Boon said. “We’re making big, action-movie, over-the-top, kind of Transformers, Dark Knight, Spider-Man-type [action]. All the events you see in those kinds of movies is what we’re trying to capture in this thing.”
The father of Mortal Kombat understands that people were thrown by 2008’s Mortal Kombat vs. DC, a T-rated game from a bunch of fighting game developers who were known for making M-rated, blood-splashed spectacles.
(Scene from DC Comics’ Earth 2, published in May. You probably can’t do that in the game, either!)
“I think there’s an expectation when you see the words “Mortal Kombat Vs.”—and you instantly put it in this category—that it’s going to be bloody,” Boon said of the 2008 game. “And you can’t fault anybody. We’ve been doing that for 20 years. You’d be crazy to think we’d not be associated with that. And so I think that everybody’s expectation was: it was going to have this level of violence.” But like he said, DC just wouldn’t ok that kind of thing, not in a video game.
The new game, Injustice, will be T-rated, just like MK vs. DC. This time, however, Boon says they’ll push that rating. “It’s going to be a pretty brutal experience,” he said. “Our goal is to push that envelope of what we can do.”
The first piece of news to worry me has arrived. It looks like Ed Boon is trying to tell people it isn’t going to be as bad as MK vs DCU, and maybe it won’t be given we don’t have an MK cast and thus the expectation of fatalities are gone, but it still makes me feel like the game will be less “brutal” than the claims make it appear to be. If this is an alternate universe game anyway (part of the DC Multiverse with the different Earths and the like anyhow), why not go all the way?
(Source: kotaku.com)
Lords of Shadow 2 trailer is out, and it looks cool, i’ll probably get it. I enjoyed Lords of Shadow, even with the glitches, bugs and platforming issues, the game was still fun. If they fix those bugs, this could be the first fantastic 3D Castlevania game.
ve
Trailer looks fun, I love DOTA games, Awesomenauts being a prime example, and if this follows the same formula it could be good…but I don’t have reason to believe it will be good until it is released. LOTR games have a tendency of being bad.
This song is an incredible fusion of Punk and Metal. Buy this guys stuff, he does good work.
(Source: Spotify)
[Flash 9 is required to listen to audio.]
- Track: Anamanaguchi - My Skateboard Will Go On
Amazing song from the best Chiptune band in existence. Hope these guys pick up more work soon. The Scott Pilgrim Game Soundtrack was too incredible to allow their awesome tunes to end there.
Also, COME BACK TO GROUND KONTROL!
Can You Watch 5,535 Hours of the Olympics?
According to The Verge NBCUniversal will be broadcasting 5,535 hours of coverage during the 2012 London Olympics. This is going to be done through broadcast TV and streaming options via the Internet and mobile devices. The highlight here is going to be NBCOlympics.com which will, according to NBC, stream every sport, every event, every medal.
This comes with a stipulation of course, if you subscribe to cable or satellite you cannot stream some of the events, which seems weird to punish the people who help pay for you to exist, but that is just my opinion on that.
Network broadcasts will have about 273 hours of programming about the Olympic games, which should cover many “main” events and highlights of events, which is cool. The big news on this is that Panasonic has joined forces with NBC to get us 242 hours of 3D Broadcast, which will be a lot of fun for those who have those 3DTVs that are not using their given talents.
Look forward to the content, site, and apps when the Olympics kick off, July 27th.
