Monthly Archives: February 2015
App Store Update: February 25
Every day hundreds of new apps make their debut on the App Store, and hundreds more are updated or reduced in price. We have sifted through the noise and highlighted those select few that might be worth your attention.
Note: The prices and deals compiled below are accurate at the time we published this story, but all are subject to change.
Yet It Moves – (Free, Down from $2.99)
Yet It Moves just made the move to the App Store two weeks ago, and now it's further moved into the territory of iOS freebies. Grab it today!
LA Cops Coming to Xbox One Soon
LA Cops, the top-down shooter with a 70s vibe, is coming to Xbox One soon, developer Modern Dream announced.
LA Cops is already on PC via Steam Early Access, with five levels, six cop characters, five weapons and a little more than one hour of play. Modern Dream, developer of indie games such as Typing of the Dead and The Button Affair, is bringing the shooter to Xbox One and PC, in full, on March 15.
Much like Hotline Miami and its sequel, LA Cops uses a simple targeting system from a bird's eye view, with the ceiling removed from interior settings. Environments are destructible, and cutscenes tell the story of several officers in the city of angels, complete with 70s archetypes and cop-movie clichés, as they go up against the big boss, Hawaiian Mo.
Sony Says PS Plus Version of Driveclub Coming ASAP
Contrary to what you may have heard as recently as yesterday, Sony is still committed to bringing the PlayStation Plus version of its PS4 racing game to your living room.
A Sony spokesperson told Eurogamer that the company is "continually working on improving the server capacity to enable us to launch the PS Plus Edition as quickly as possible." The statement contrasts with one made yesterday by Sony Computer Entertainment Europe president and CEO Jim Ryan.
In an interview with Metro, Ryan answered "That’s still being looked at," when asked about whether the PS+ version fo Driveclub was still planned.
Sex Criminals Snatches a TV Deal
Comic book writers and married couple Matt Fraction and Kelley Sue Deconnick have signed a two-year deal with Universal Television to bring their creator-owned comic books to TV. The first adaption will be Sex Criminals by Fraction and artist Chip Zdarsky.
Deadline reports that the duo will use their Milkfed Criminal Masterminds production company to adapt the work of other comic creators to TV, as well. Former Marvel editor Lauren Sankovitch has been hired as their Managing Editor.
Destiny Update Rebalances Weapons
The new Destiny 1.1.1 Update is out now, introducing some major changes to weapon balance, a heavy ammo fix, and more.
Among the Destiny weapon tweaks is a 2.5% reduction in base damage for Auto Rifles and a 9.7% increase in base damage for Pulse Rifles.
Matchmaking for weekly Heroic Strikes in Destiny is now mandatory as well.
Some UI changes were also made, such as improved notifications for Destiny players.
Find a full list of Destiny Update 1.1.1 changes in our Destiny wiki
For PVP tweaks, all playlists (Control, Clash, Rumble, and Skirmish) are unlocked at the same time after the Crucible is unlocked, and defeated Guardians don’t drop heavy ammo anymore.
Velocity 2X Coming to Multiple New Platforms
FuturLab is partnering with Sierra Games to bring Velocity 2X to PC, Mac, Linux and Xbox One. No release date was given, but a blog post on Activision's Games Blog states that the ports will be released this summer.
"Self publishing is HARD. I spent more time doing PR and marketing on Velocity 2X than I spent designing levels." Said FuturLab's James Marsden. "I became a bottleneck for the whole project. That was far from ideal."
"Thanks to blogging it’s now common knowledge that marketing is just as important as making a great-innovative-artistically-stunning-multiple-award-winning-GOTY (some people might say more important). So, given that marketing is vital to success, who could be better suited to hold aloft our creations than Sierra? The best bit is that we retain control of our IP."
Motorola’s Refreshed Moto E Is Heavy on Features, Light on Price
In advance of next week's Mobile World Congress, Motorola has announced a second-generation version of its Moto E. The revamped budget smartphone now supports LTE, and has a 1.2GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 410 processor, a slightly larger display than its predecessor (4.5" vs 4.3"), and more onboard storage (8GB, up from 4GB). Motorola's also offering a 3G-only version of the phone with a 1.2GHz quad-core Snapdragon 200 processor. Both versions feature Android Lollipop (5.0) as their operating system.
Overall, the new Moto E doesn't stray too far from its predecessor in looks and design; the main change is the swap of a removable back for a interchangeable textured band that goes around the phone's edge. (The bands included with the Moto E are black and white; you can also opt to purchase additional ones or a "Grip Shell" case.) It also hews pretty closely to the first-gen Moto E's pricing: you'll fork out just $119 for the unlocked 3G version and $149 for the unlocked LTE version. If that's piqued your interest, you can check out more specs below.
Battlefield Hardline EA Access Trial Allows 10 Hours of Gameplay
Xbox One owners will be able to play Battlefield Hardline for ten hours before it's released, thanks to EA's subscription service, EA Access.
The trial will begin for Access subscribers on March 12, five days before Battlefield Hardline's official release date. The trial includes full access to the game's multiplayer, as well as the prologue and first chapter of the TV crime drama-inspired campaign. As always, progress made in the trial will carry over to the full game, should you choose to purchase it.
We previously learned EA's shooter will be available early via EA Access, however Hardline's trial is unique in that it offers ten hours of game time. Previous trials, such as Dragon Age: Inquisition's, only allowed for six hours.
Hotline Miami 2 Coming March 10th
Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number’s official release date is now confirmed for March 10th. It launches on PC, Mac, Linux, as well as PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, and PS Vita for $15.
Pre-ordering, available on Steam, Humble, and GOG, saves you 10%.
The official Hotline Miami Twitter posted a mysterious phone number earlier this month, which brought callers to a voice mail hinting at the March 10th release, but this is indeed the conclusive date.
Both the standard edition of Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number and the Digital Special Edition, which comes with the game’s Remix EP, are available to pre-order for the discount.
Uncovering the Secrets of this Year’s Blockbusters
Awards season is officially over, which means Blockbuster season is about to begin. Running from April to December, admittedly it's less of a season and more of a relentless barrage of cars, superheroes, dinosaurs, and robots. Awesome.
As always on IGN, we like to analyse new trailers, scouring them for clues, fun easter eggs, and possible secrets. Below we've collected together what we think is our best detective work on this year's biggest movies.
We've got a theory about his role in the new movie and what it might mean for the future of the long-running series.
Release date: 2 April (AU), 3 April (UK/US)
We now know that a Black Panther film is coming – something we didn't know when the first trailer was released – but the more we watch these teasers the more we're convinced that the Prince of Wakanda might even put in an appearance.