Monthly Archives: December 2016
Knack 2 Tries to Fix the Original’s Shortcomings
The original Knack received some mixed reviews. It was colorful and worked well enough as a showcase for what PS4 was capable of, but it ultimately felt more like a tech demo than a fully fleshed-out game.
Knack 2 is trying to fix that problem. The game openly acknowledges the shortcomings of its predecessor (one character says to Knack, “it’s hard to believe you saved the world. All you know are three punches and a kick”) and has actually added a pretty robust moveset for combat and platforming.
Knack does still have the aforementioned punches and kick, but he’s also learned a few new tricks. He can switch between a small version and large version of himself at any point (which comes in handy for platforming sections) and he has a shield for deflecting incoming projectiles or generally blocking damage. His other abilities include a dash, body slam, multi-punch, jump kick, and a few other basic combat moves.
UK Deals: Win a Copy of Football Manager 2017 or Civilisation VI
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IGN have teamed up with SCDKey to offer readers a chance to win a copy of either Football Manager 2017 or Sid Meier's Civilization VI. This competition will run until Wednesday December 7th 2016 at 3PM. See Terms and Conditions here.
New Street Fighter World Champion Crowned
Du "NuckleDu" Dang has become Street Fighter World Champion, beating Ricki Ortiz in the all-American final of this year's Capcom Cup.
In addition to the title, NuckleDu receives $250,000 prize money, while Ortiz takes home $60,000. Japanese players Ryota "Kazunoko" Inoue finished in third, and Tatsuya "Haitani" Haitani fourth.
This year's Capcom Cup featured 32 players and took placed across two days at PlayStation Experience in Anaheim, California. It was the first time the tournament had been fought using Street Fighter V.
Netflix’s Sense8 Season 2 and Christmas Special Announced
Netflix has announced the release dates for the Christmas special and second season of Sense8.
Sense8: A Christmas Special is a two-hour event and will make its debut globally on Netflix December 23.
It tells a standalone story about the series' eight main characters, as they learn how to better connect with one another while learning each other's deepest secrets.
Season 2 premieres May 5, 2017. The story picks up right where the first season left off, with the main characters coming together both "physically and mentally," while also running from Whispers.
The Last of Us: Part II Story Details Revealed
Following today's announcement of The Last of Us: Part II at PlayStation Experience 2016, Naughty Dog director and writer Neil Druckmann shared a few details about its story and how it differs from the first game.
During a panel for the highly anticipated sequel at PSX, Druckmann said "Ellie is the star" this time around. He also revealed that Part II takes place several years after the first game, with Ellie now 19 years old.
Druckmann also discussed narrative direction of Part II, noting that while the first title was a story about love, the sequel will serve as a "counter" to that. In fact, the director went so far as to say, "this story is about hate."
Playing as a Bird Is a Great Way to Explore an Open World
Being a bird must be nice. When the sky is literally your limit, there are suddenly a lot fewer obstacles to get in your way, which comes in handy when you want to go on an adventure.
While you’ll control multiple forms in Vane, an upcoming exploration game from studio Friend and Foe Games, flying as a bird is surely the most freeing. In a brief demo at PSX, we soared high overhead above a vast desert and dove deep into caverns burrowed through the sand, all with only a single button press.
The control scheme in Vane is simple -- one button lets you beat your wings to speed up, and another has you lift your wings to slow down. The only other input will let you “caw” at fellow birds, and beyond that you simply control the direction of your flight. Vane will automatically slow you down as you approach the ground, so don’t worry about any beak-over-butt crash landings.
Destiny Sparrow Racing League Coming to Private Matches
Sparrow Racing League will remain available as part of Destiny's private match system, IGN confirmed at PlayStation Experience 2016.
The Dawning winter event, which ushers in the second year of Sparrow Racing League (SRL), will conclude on January 3, 2017, but the game's executive producer, Scott Taylor, confirmed it will continue to be available as part of the private match system.
This is important for Destiny players, not only because the game has entered its "long winter" of fewer content releases for Rise of Iron, but because the new exotic machine gun quests are tied to the Sparrow Racing League. As part of The Dawning event, Bungie's live team has introduced two alternate versions of the Thunderlord exotic called "Abbadon" and "Nova Mortis." Respectively, they are solar and void versions of the fast-fire machine gun.
Death Stranding Will Run on the Horizon Zero Dawn Engine
Death Stranding, the debut game of Hideo Kojima’s new development studio Kojima Productions, will be powered by the Decima engine, developed by Horizon Zero Dawn studio Guerrilla Games. The news was announced earlier today at PlayStation Experience, during an interview between Kojima and Geoff Keighley.
PlayStation 4 systems architect Mark Cerny took the stage with Guerrilla Games director Hermen Hulst to explain more about the technicalities of the engine.
"The Decima engine is not just about rendering," according to Hulst, citing its handling of AI, physics, logic, and the "entire world creation suite." Kojima also added that the Decima engine is "very appropriate for work on open worlds," which lines up with Kojima's previous discussion of his upcoming title as an open-world game.
Uncharted: The Lost Legacy Setting, Story Details Revealed
Naughty Dog has shared a few story and setting details about Uncharted: The Lost Legacy, shedding light on what fans can expect from Chloe and Nadine's upcoming standalone adventure, which was announced today for PS4.
During a panel today at PSX 2016, creative director Shaun Escayg confirmed that The Lost Legacy will take place after Uncharted 4: A Thief's End, and the section shown during the reveal was taken from the beginning of the game.
The Lost Legacy will be set in India, and as such, writer Josh Scherr said the studio took a "deep dive" into Hinduism and the mythology tied to the region when crafting the story. Game director Kurt Margenau also chimed in to note the setting shown in the reveal footage won't be the only locale Chloe will explore.
How Mass Effect’s Relationships Will Evolve in Andromeda
Choices define the Mass Effect gameplay experience, and one of the biggest choices a player can make is who they decide to pursue romantically. Did you go for Ashley Williams, or was Liara more up your alley in the original trilogy? Did you prefer Kaidan or Garrus? With Mass Effect: Andromeda introducing a new swath of love interests for the two playable characters, the Ryder twins, Bioware creative director and Mass Effect franchise lead writer Mac Walters talked to IGN about how pursuing relationships has evolved in the latest game.
"As far as the relationships go, we try to make them less formulaic," he said. "In the original trilogy, they often were you do a couple conversations with them and then it's getting close to the end, it's time to romance. What I wanted to see in this was more of a, well, somebody might want to hop in the sack right away,