The Future Is 4K and It's the PC Not Next-Gen Leading the Charge

The Xbox One and PS4 are set to support 4K, but as Mark Walton discovers, only the PC has the power to do it justice.

There was a time, back in the late nineties and early noughties, when console graphics were king. While the PC industry and the likes of the now-defunct Silicon Graphics poured most of their efforts into making specialist chips for specialist 3D workstations, it was Sony and Nintendo that led the charge on 3D graphics for the consumer. By the time the PlayStation 2 launched in early 2000, console graphics had far surpassed anything available on the humble PC, much to the chagrin of dedicated PC players.

Fast-forward a few years, and huge investments into R&D, tighter fabrication processes, and a freedom from the tighter power constraints of the console--not to mention a much-improved DirectX from Microsoft--saw the PC steadily claw back the performance crown. Even the last bastion of console overkill, the PlayStation 3 and its Cell processor, was backed up by what was essentially a standard 7000-series Nvidia graphics card, with a performance to match.

Nowadays, it's tough to imagine even a company as large as Sony putting as much time and money into developing something as esoteric as the Cell processor, which is probably why it and Microsoft have eschewed such tech for off-the-shelf (or thereabouts) chips from a company that makes them for a living. That certainly has its benefits (it's simpler for developers for one), but they aren't challenging the best the PC has to offer in the same way that the PS3 and Xbox 360 did.

Where those consoles ushered in the HD generation, such a sea change isn't in the cards this time around, at least in terms of whizzy visuals. Instead, the PS4 and Xbox One peak at a nice but hardly cutting-edge 1080p at 60fps for games. That's the standard for now, but if big tech trade shows like CES and IFA are anything to go by, it certainly won't be for long.

"…they aren't challenging the best the PC has to offer in the same way that the PS3 and Xbox 360 did."

4K, or Ultra HD as it's otherwise known, has been around for a while in cinemas and video production houses, but it's only in the last year or so that the technology has switched from completely absurd pricing to something that's a little more accessible for the average Joe. A decent 60Hz 4K TV or monitor still runs you a couple of thousand dollars, but as the technology matures over the course of the next few years, prices will fall. And if you're willing to take a punt on a cheap Chinese import, a 50-inch 4K TV can be yours for less than $1,000 right now.

So why would you want 4K? Think of it like the first time you saw the iPhone 4's retina display: the crispness of the text, the pin-sharp pictures, and the horrible realisation that from that point on, anything less would look like garbage. It's a wonderful thing to see with your own eyes. And, unlike the 3D technology heavily pushed to get us all to buy new TVs, it's unlikely to be a fad. After all, it's an easier up sell. 4K is more--more pixels, more sharpness, more definition--and it's easily demoed in stores. If there's one thing people love, it's more.

Like in the transition from SD to HD, there's not a whole lot of native 4K content out there at the moment, but if you're a well-heeled PC gamer who doesn't mind a little bit of fiddling, you can get in on the action right now. Monitors like ASUS' PQ321 31-inch display are slowly hitting the market, and while it's hardly cheap at $3,499, it's far better than the $20,000 such monitors once cost.

Rendering the 8 million pixels of a 4K set in real time is a tough challenge, even for the most powerful of PCs. And it's made all the more difficult by how 4K monitors currently work. Rather than one giant monitor, they are actually two 1920 x 2160 panels stitched together, so clever software from the likes of Nvidia and ATI is needed to prevent any noticeable vertical tearing or artefacts between the two panels. There were some problems in the very early days of 4K, but the latest set of drivers from both companies seem to have ironed out most of the issues.

Indeed, we didn't spot any of those issues as we gawked in amazement at Metro: Last Light and Battlefield 3 being run in 4K. The benefits of cramming so many pixels into a display are open to debate (and be sure to watch Reality Check for an insight into that), but when you're sitting just a few feet away like the typical PC user does, everything looks crisp and clear, and the 31-inch size of the monitor does wonders for sucking you right into the action.

"You need a very powerful PC to drive the display."

But it's worth reiterating that you need a very powerful PC to drive the display. Our test rig--despite sporting an Intel i7, Samsung Evo SSD, 16GB of RAM, and a killer graphics card in the form of Nvidia's Titan--struggled during some of the more demanding games. The opening of Crysis slowed to a crawl, forcing us to knock down from ultra to mere high settings, while busier sections of BioShock Infinite suffered from some mild chugging.

There are also some games, such as Skyrim, that don't have particularly high-resolution textures, meaning they look a little worse in 4K, thanks to the blurring effect of stretching the textures out. More games are poised to adopt higher-resolution textures, though, and it wouldn't be a surprise to see next year's PC games adopt 4K assets as standard over the 2K ones currently used. But the fact is, most games work fine at decent frame rates and look spectacular. There's not even a need to use antialiasing, thanks to those tightly packed pixels taking the place of blending colours to smooth edges. And it all works on technology, albeit high-end technology, that you can buy right now.

The beauty of the PC is that today's high-end tech is tomorrow's mid-range. In as little as a year's time, playing 4K games on the PC is going to be much cheaper, and they'll perform even better too. That leaves the next-gen consoles in something of a predicament. If a $3,000 PC equipped with the most powerful GPU around can only just cope with 4K, what chance does the PS4 or Xbox One have? A deeper access to hardware and a lighter OS gets you only so far.

Raw power and eye-popping visuals certainly aren't a requisite for making a great game. Indeed, as the late, great godfather of Nintendo, Hiroshi Yamauchi, once said, "We cannot guarantee interesting video games through the use of better technology." But as living rooms across the land begin to move to 4K, the next-gen consoles won't be able to deliver that content. Sure, Sony has confirmed that the PS4 will support 4K films and photos, and Microsoft has said that the Xbox One will too. They may even support lighter 2D games in 4K further down the line.

But the big blockbuster AAA experiences in 4K? That will be the domain of the PC. It's a platform that's easily adapted for new technologies, and that's only going to get more powerful as the years roll by. It's even got its sights set on the living room with the likes of Valve's SteamMachines and Steam OS. Honestly, once you've seen what games look like in 4K, those next-gen consoles are far less attractive. You're simply not going to want anything less.

→ More coverage of PS4 on GameSpot.com

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Reality Check - Do we need 4K?

Of course it does matter.... if new technologies for displays were not implemented, we would still be watching those CGA monitors :D

Now the real question is not if it matters or not, because it does matter... the real question is if I am going to jump in right away or not.... and as it happens all the time, at first the price tag is not for everybody.

For starters, I would have to buy a 4k TV or monitor to take advantage or the technology, and that has to go with a computer or console that takes advantage to it... huge investment. Now when replacing or changing my tv, I will make sure it will run the highest resolution possible (within my budget).

I will not jump in right away, but it is great news that it is out there, and for my next tv purchase, I think I will get it.

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Canceled Star Wars games revealed

In the wake of LucasArts' closure earlier this year, new details on canceled Star Wars projects have come to light. Kotaku reports today, citing a number of sources familiar with the matter, that the studio canned multiple games in a variety of genres.

One of the projects was Smuggler, a cross-platform multiplayer game that was reportedly going to allow users to play as a customizable character within the Star Wars universe, "smuggling and trading between Facebook, tablets, and consoles."

Another reportedly canceled game was Outpost, a Star Wars version of Zynga's popular social game FarmVille, allowing players to build empires. A third game--Death Star for iOS--was to put players in control of the Empire's iconic hulking space ship, though no other details were provided.

In addition to canceled games, LucasArts was reportedly planning to launch its own spin on Electronic Arts' download service Origin. This LucasArts-owned network was said to be planned as a means to help the studio distribute Star Wars games and assist in the completion of in-app purchases.

One source said this service was scheduled to launch alongside Star Wars: First Assault, the previously revealed multiplayer-focused online game, which would have included a microtransaction store of some kind.

These games were all connected as part of a larger LucasArts ecosystem before being canceled, people with knowledge of the matter said. Cancellations are not atypical in the industry, but LucasArts reportedly canceled games that were nearly completed. For example, Kotaku reports that Death Star and Outpost had already gone through QA testing when they were canned.

"Projects get canceled all the time," one source said. "You'd hope that your process can identify problem projects before they're finished."

Also in the report, it was revealed that a Day of the Tentacle remake was in development. Though it was supposedly never officially greenlit, one person familiar with the game said it was 80 percent complete.

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MechWarrior Online Review

At this point, MechWarrior Online has been in open beta for so long that you could be forgiven for thinking it came out months ago. To be sure, there was little in the way of new content when the official launch date dropped last week; instead, the well-worn "beta" tag at last slipped away and presented new players with essentially the same game others have been playing for months. What we have here is a combat experience that's exciting and intense for many sessions, but winds down once the tedium of the free-to-play model and repetitive objectives takes over.

To an outsider, MechWarrior Online may appear to be about little more than hopping into bipedal tanks that resemble RoboCop's ED-209 and blasting the hell out of each other. Sure enough, there's that (and developer Piranha Games usually manages to deliver it), but the MechWarrior franchise also has some deep lore that stretches back to its tabletop origins through BattleTech in 1984. Alas, you see only snippets of it here, chiefly revealed through cosmetic skins and baubles you can buy for your ship's dashboard. It's a nice if ultimately meaningless touch, since currently little else matters besides crushing the mech across the field.

Good thing, then, that Piranha got the actual feel of piloting a mech right. Stomping around in a two-legged tank is every bit as unwieldy as it sounds (and that's kind of a good thing), in part because you have to master the act of turning your cab and steering your rig's legs separately. It feels believable, though, as do other elements, such as the staggeringly complex upgrade system that associates a weight and space requirement with even the smallest pieces of equipment. MechWarrior Online thus demands careful consideration of which role you want to play, because outfitting your mech with nothing but heavy cannons leaves you plodding across the field with all the speed of a massive tectonic plate.

It's best to experiment with multiple roles in the testing grounds, such as jumping into lighter mechs with cloaking abilities that can paint targets for other players, but mastering each still comes down to trial and error thanks to MechWarrior Online's laughably inadequate tutorials that cover basic movement and little else. Want to learn how to toggle the various sight modes? You'll have to dig into the official forums or search for YouTube videos. Piranha recently included a third-person view for mechs to ease newcomers into the experience, but cries of possible cheating (by allowing mechs to "peek" around corners with the perspective shift) led to a smart decision to disable the view entirely in 12-versus-12 premade maps. In this way, newcomers can still use the third-person viewing mode to learn the ropes, while focused competitors can still have the purer mech experience they long for.

The climate of each of the eight maps has a pleasantly immersive way of affecting your gameplay. If you're battling through the frigid wastes of Frozen City, for instance, you can blast away with near impunity. Attempt the same trigger-happiness in the molten expanses of Terra Therma, and your mech will overheat, leaving you helpless against the enemies prowling about. These little touches, along with night modes that bump the tension of combat even higher, do a good job of making the maps feel distinct from each other.

That combat is usually good enough to make up for many of MechWarrior Online's stumbles. Mechs lumber along with heavy clangs and the whirring of gears, and the constant threat of running across an entire team encourages sneaking around corners and sniping unwitting opponents. One-on-one fights benefit from unrelenting tension as well, and a player who knows all the quirks of piloting a mech will have a clear advantage over the one who doesn't, no matter how big the size of his or her guns. It helps that the mechs themselves are beautiful in their cold brutality, even if the surrounding landscape doesn't always achieve the same visual intensity. Even so, the sound design does much to make up for it, especially with the satisfying thumps and pulses from the laser cannons. You might occasionally long for some bombastic music to bring drama to battle, but MechWarrior Online doesn't feature a musical soundtrack. This absence, however, does much to capture the gritty, no-hogwash combat vibe Piranha so obviously wants to deliver.

It's a shame that all this attention to detail isn't enough to keep MechWarrior Online from suffering from tedium. Not only does the missing lore lead to a lack of investment in the world, but the two simple combat modes leads to tackling the same tired objectives ad infinitum. Assault amounts to little more than team deathmatch with the admittedly welcome option to also win by storming your opponent's base. In Conquest, on the other hand, you earn victory either by by capturing the resources from five points or by slaughtering all the enemy mechs. Despite the repetition, the model does have its appeal, particularly when you find yourself winning a conquest match alone because the other team was too busy killing mechs instead of capturing points. Alas, that doesn't happen often, due to an imperfect matchmaking system that frequently pits groups of random players against organized teams.

The lack of extra game modes is all the more surprising once you consider MechWarrior Online's free-to-play model. You're encouraged to buy many specialized items with real cash through the ads splattered over the home UI (including some pricey premium mechs), but you can still build a strong mech with so-called C-bills earned from matches if you have a lot of patience. Again, a lot. Long grinds for earning the same items available for cash are the norm with the free-to-play model, but the time commitment is particularly harsh here. And with only two modes to choose from, the grind soon becomes more tedious than fun, possibly leading you to wonder why you're even playing in the first place.

The answer for most players is likely that this is the best iteration of a long-neglected franchise that we've seen in years, and there's always the possibility it could improve. Piranha constantly drops hints regarding features to come, such as "community warfare" that captures some of the faction rivalry of previous games, yet in its current launch existence, MechWarrior Online is hardly more than a solid arena shooter populated with mechs. If the game had made better use of its assets and given us a reason to care about more than the fleeting pleasures of customization and combat, it might be worth enduring the currency grind. As it is, like its strongest mechs, it runs out of power far too fast.

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GameSpot GamePlay Episode 57: Meat Space

September 26, 2013 5:23PM PDT

Host Kevin VanOrd beats guests Matt Downham, Matt Gilgenbach, Tom Mc Shea, and Carolyn Petit with the stick of truth.

Do you suffer from "The Slump?" Host Kevin VanOrd has the cure for what ails you. Tune in to hear Tom Mc Shea fall over himself with praise for Valve! Wince as Matthew Rex coats himself with the ashes of his dead loved ones! Grin as Matt Gilgenbach gurgles his views on SteamOS from underwater! Root for Carolyn Petit as she hides her purse from Tom's sticky fingers!

All this, plus a new quiz, on this week's GameSpot GamePlay.

GameSpot GamePlay Episode 56: Try The Elvis Poutine

GameSpot GamePlay Episode 55: Earth Culture

GameSpot GamePlay Episode 54: Imconventional

GameSpot GamePlay Special Edition Spoilercast: Gone Home

GameSpot GamePlay Episode 53: Roguelikelike

GameSpot GamePlay Episode 52: Research & Development

→ More coverage of GAMEPLAY on GameSpot.com

By Kevin VanOrd, Senior Editor

Kevin VanOrd is a lifelong RPG lover and violin player. When he isn't busy building PCs and composing symphonies, he watches American Dad reruns with his fat cat, Ollie.

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State of Decay (PC) - Now Playing

It should have difficulty options. Why not just give the option to run the simulation while you're not playing / or not. While I don't like the idea of it playing itself while I'm living, someone else might.

That way if you want perma death. you got it.

I'm looking forward to this on PC. Not a fan of stuttering, so waited. Hope it's modable!

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Red 5 Studios removes PvP from Firefall, eSports staff no longer with company

September 26, 2013 6:57PM PDT

Red 5 Studios has removed the PvP and eSports elements from it's free-to-play MMOFPS Firefall.

Red 5 Studios' CEO, Mark Kern, announced in a letter to the Firefall community earlier this month that the studio would be scrapping the current version of its PvP system in its free-to-play MMOFPS. The PvP system was reportedly only being utilized by 3% of the user base.

Kern penned, "we're going to regroup, rethink, and deliver the best PvP system we can that can be enjoyed by everyone. We don't have a timetable for this, but at some near future point we will shut off the PvP aspect of the game, which we feel does not represent Firefall at its best, and relaunch that part of the game when its ready. "

Kern's letter to the community included a remark on their decision to keep eSports in mind during the development process. He wrote, "We have gone through several iterations, and for some time, pursued the controversial e-Sports route. As many of you know, its not working very well."

That announcement, which preceded more announcements, appears to have been made on the heels of a lot of sudden decision making internally. Their tournament partners have not yet taken down their pages for Firefall competition.

The second to last news post on the ESL's Firefall portal says, "Go4Firefall will be taking a little break in September and will be back in October to accommodate the players and teams to catch up with the latest patches and PVP changes and also allow us here to implement some of the many feedback we received to allow a better experience for teams and players that will help grow Firefall PVP."

Turtle Entertainment's Electronics Sports League had been hosting "GO4Firefall" cups since April of this year, paying out €10,000 a month.

Within a week of Kern's letter to the community Red 5 Studios would circulate a press release noting that the studio was "being reorganized prior to the launch of Firefall." The press release would add that the majority of the layoffs, which totaled about 10 percent of its staff, would primarily be from Red 5's video entertainment channel Stage 5 TV.

One of the employees laid off was Morgan Romine, industry veteran and founder of the all girls eSports team the Frag Dolls. She was working as the eSports Director; this is not a position that Red 5 is planning to refill.

Red 5 had previously invited eSports personalities Scott "SirScoots" Smith and Sean "Day[9]" Plott to appear during a streaming marathon last July they called Firefall Fest. Smith and Plott played the game's competitive mode "Jet Ball" and hosted a Q-and-A with one of Red 5's developers.

We reached out to ESL for a comment shortly before publication, but due to the time difference between American and Europe they could not be reached. GameSpot eSports will update this story when they respond.

→ More coverage of ESPORTS on GameSpot.com

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Takedown: Red Sabre Screens

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Community News Update: Wednesday 9/25

Team Social Content Spotlight

With the Xbox One launch about a month away, our editor, Peter Brown layouts 4 more things you should know about it. Microsoft has been slowly releasing information about its next gen console, but most of it has been detailed in full. The most impressive of all these features has to be 24-Player Local Co-Op. I would love to see these happen in our office since most of us will have consoles near us. To learn the next 3 things you should know read the full article.

Team Solo Mid has been working busy this season and made it to Leauge of Legends Worlds Championship. In this week's episode of GameCribs, we watch TSM as they try to play their way of group A. Watch Now. Have you been watching any of the Worlds matches? Who do you think will take it all? Comment below.

One of the most exciting news to come out this week has been all of the Valve announcements. Earlier this week, the first real was SteamOS . SteamOS is based on Linux, is designed for the TV and the living room, and will be free. Today, Valve made another huge announcement: Steam Machines. They are described as a "powerful new category of living room hardware." Valve is taking their company in a great direction and I can't wait to see where all of this goes. Oh and before I forget they even teased this picture of a controller!

GameSpot Community Code Update

Since our developers and product managers are hard at work on the new GameSpot site, no fireside chat happened this week. What did happen was our Social and Community Manager, Walter Lopez, laid out important changes and updates for the GameSpot Community Code of Conduct. This has been in the works for a while and is finally happening. Many have embraced this change, but a lot more have not. We understand that we all have different opinions and we love that. We want your comments and concerns. Even if you are being critical of our content, we welcome the feedback. The issues arise when people are disrespectful and insult each other. We want our community to be welcoming to everyone, no matter who they are or what they do. We are here because we all love to play video games. Please don't forget that. Also, remember to keep it classy. Full Article.

(Cool points and maybe a small prize for getting the gif reference.)

Contest winners

Last week's contest was by far the most entrees we have ever had for a Facebook contest! It had over 4,000 likes and 2,800 comments! Thanks for participating. And now the winners are:

X360 - Tasha Smith and Nathan Maxfield

PS3 - Carol Sue and Stephen Preece

We have contacted all the winners, but if you do not contact us back we can't send our your prizes!

Injustice: Gods Among Us Battle Edition Fight Stick Giveaway

Yes, you read that right. This week, we are giving away an Xbox 360 Injustice: Gods Among Us Battle Edition. This includes the game disc, exclusive Injustice: Gods Among Us Fight Stick featuring official artwork from the game and three exclusive skins based on Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman from DC COMICS - THE NEW 52. (US only).

How to Enter:

Like and comment on the Facebook post below! You can also use this link

Good luck!

→ More coverage of COMMUNITY on GameSpot.com

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GTAV - Vehicle Mayhem

In this episode of GS News, we disucss GTA Online possibly adding microtransactions, The GTA V Soundtrack, Killzone Shadow Fall season pass, Microsoft clams they're 'winning the games message and Notch praises SteamOS.

Posted Sep 24, 2013 | 3:48 | 0 Views

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Marlow Briggs and the Mask of Death Review

His name is Marlow Briggs. The game named after him is a whole lot like God of War, but this brash action hero is no Kratos. He is, in fact, a walking and talking cliche, shouting out "Feel the burn" when he summons fire from the heavens, and "Trust me…it's going to be a bloodbath" as he wades into danger. Marlow Briggs--the game, not its star--is keenly aware of its unoriginality, poking fun at video game tropes and its own hackneyed tribalism. Sometimes, self-aware humor is a crutch used to excuse banal gameplay, but Marlow Briggs and the Mask of Death earns the right to make fun of itself: it's a fast-paced confection that's quite good on its own terms. The silly attitude is just sugar on top.

At first, Marlow Briggs seems like a typical self-serious action game, presenting you with a cackling madman, a damsel in distress, and a brash action hero brought back from the dead by way of a talking Mayan mask with an ancient shaman's soul inside of it. Or something like that. The plot can be boiled down to "kill the bad guy and rescue your girlfriend after chopping up hundreds of nameless grunts," but it's not the story that keeps you pressing on, but rather the always-on action and the crazy dialogue.

Early dialogue is straight from a silly summer blockbuster. "Aw yeah. Class is in session," Marlow shouts out as he violently slashes up anyone within blade's reach, giving you no reason to doubt his dim-bulb sincerity. But then your ancient friend melodramatically bestows a new name upon you, Kamikal Alixel Xojol, before informing you that this means "dancing death princess." "Do you like it?" he snickers, before quieting down while you wave your fancy weapon about as if you've been practicing your whole life. The humor isn't highbrow, but it's rarely juvenile, with Marlow poking fun at video game conventions like conveniently placed machine-gun turrets, and the mask making fun of you when you miss a jump and fall to your death. ("Did you think you saw some enemies down there?")

The good news is that Marlow Briggs doesn't use its humor to explain away its shortcomings. It is, in fact, a good action game in its own right, changing up the environments, the gameplay, and the camera angles often enough to keep tedium at bay. This is by every definition a God of War clone. You chain attacks together using two buttons, occasionally stopping to climb up some vines, slide down ropes, move a few objects around for platforming purposes, and so forth. And because Marlow Briggs takes place in the modern day, you occasionally get to shoot some stationary guns before switching back to your blades, and even get to gun down some aircraft in top-down shooter sequences.

So no, Marlow Briggs is hardly original, but it's gleefully entertaining nonetheless. You begin with a medium-range melee weapon but eventually earn three more, including a longer-range set of chains with a remarkable resemblance to Kratos' weapon of choice. You earn experience as you kill and find extra caches of experience along the way, and then use it to enhance your health and mana pools, while your new playthings come at specific points during the story. There's a good sense of continuing rewards over the game's four-hour or so runtime, as well as a sense of increasing challenge.

The melee action is typically fluid and rewarding, with a few kinks here and there to remind you how hard it is for a game to live up to the legacy of the classic that inspired it. Marlow tumbles and swipes about with ease in battle arenas, rewarding your button taps with colorful displays of violence. He squashes bugs under his feet, carves up scorpions, and summons electrical tornadoes onto the battlefield, and his lively animations make him look like he's having a good time. And that good time sure is infectious.

It's in the details that things get a little messy. For instance, some enemies can be dispatched with an exploitable violent finishing move, which makes certain sequences too easy. The platforming is functional, but the jumping doesn't have the responsiveness of combat, and the fixed camera angles aren't always ideal, leaving you to struggle during certain sequences, like one in which you leap across a bridge while meteors fall upon it. (Additionally, it's hard not to laugh at the ridiculously sped-up animations when you hurry across ropes, hand over hand.) Boss fights are also problematic, particularly one that springs a small quick-time prompt on you way down in the corner of your screen after a very clear preceding prompt.

Marlow Briggs goes for drama during boss fights and elsewhere, though some long, unusual cutscenes come across as more anticlimactic than exciting. In these scenes, the action is paused and the camera swings about, Matrix-style. The image changes throughout the course of the cinematic to indicate action, but what was meant to be a slow-motion payoff comes across as a low-budget mockery. Luckily, Marlow Briggs' grand set pieces more than make up for the silly still-image scenes. As you shinny across a narrow ledge, the camera rotates to reveal a smoking industrial complex and an ancient temple existing side by side in the jungle. You whale on security forces while a demonic head rises up to gaze at you, its giant blue eye and toothy grimace making for a fearsome backdrop.

Its concepts may be familiar, and its mechanics are not best-in-class, but Marlow Briggs switches gears often, always moving forward at a breakneck tempo. You go from severing limbs in a trainyard with locomotives zooming through it, to dodging flaming boulders barreling at you down a narrow corridor, to leaping across moving platforms Frogger-style in a log-sorting facility, to riding a scorpion and jabbing scarabs with its poisonous tail. Here's hoping the sequel teased by the conclusion comes to fruition; Marlow surely has a few more tricks up his bloodied sleeve.

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Bungie design director leaves

Bungie Studios design director and Halo and Destiny universe co-creator Joseph Staten has left the company after 15 years, the studio announced today on its website.

"At Bungie, we consider ourselves lucky. Every day, we get to do what we love in an amazing place, alongside people we respect and admire. No one embodies that more than Joseph Staten," Bungie said in a statement.

"Few have contributed as much to our success. To that end, it is with no small degree of sadness that we say 'Godspeed' to more than just a Grizzled Ancient, but an old, dear friend. And it is with no small degree of delight and intrigue that we imagine what worlds he might take us to next."

In a statement of his own, Staten explained that he is leaving Bungie to "tackle new creative challenges," though these were not specified.

"After 15 great years at Bungie, from the battlefields of Myth to the mysteries of Halo and beyond, I'm leaving to tackle new creative challenges," Staten said. "While this may come as a surprise, fear not. It's been my pleasure building Destiny these past four years, and after the big reveal this summer, our hugely talented team is on track for greatness. I'll be cheering all of them, with all of you, when the game launches next year. Thank you for your support of me, and your continued support of Bungie. We couldn't have done it without you."

Staten is a prolific Halo writer, having written for every game in the series developed by Bungie. He also served as creative director for Peter Jackson's Halo film (which would later fall apart) and authored the New York Times bestseller Halo: Contact Harvest.

Destiny launches in 2014 for current- and next-generation consoles.

→ More coverage of PS4 on GameSpot.com

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Dragon Fantasy Book II Review

Dragon Fantasy Book II is a game about doing the same thing over and over until the credits roll, and overcoming challenges using the same tired techniques. Repetition is not an occasional roadblock, but rather, the beginning, middle, and end of the game experience. While the script is pun-packed and, at times, laugh-out-loud funny, Book II is a 15-hour exercise in button tapping.

Book II's visuals and sounds are clearly inspired by classic 16-bit-era role-playing games. The main character, Ogden, is the returning protagonist from Dragon Fantasy Book I. He's bald, overweight, and past his prime fighting years. He and a small group of heroes must band together to defeat an ultimate evil. This story has, of course, been done to death; if developer Muteki hadn't loaded the script with cute jokes and chuckle-worthy dialogue, you could skip all the text without missing much. It's a welcome and entertaining alternative to typical, self-important fantasy blabber. Plus, the silliness means you get to fight off-brand Daleks and groups of David Bowelfs.

Everything about Book II, including combat, is light and free of consequence. The turn-based fights rarely last longer than a minute, and there are no random encounters. Instead, you view enemies in the environment, and you can avoid them with some maneuvering. If you choose to fight, you usually just unleash your standard attacks until the other dudes fall over without worrying about other battle options. Beefier enemies might require you to use your healing spells during a skirmish, but even when you're up against a strong opponent, combat is never tense or challenging. When combat is over, you patch up your party using dozens of cheap healing items. This is the boring core gameplay circle of Book II, and it doesn't change.

The worst part is that Book II clearly had plans to be something better. As you level up--which is a quick, almost effortless process--you learn a wide variety of skills with different effects and uses. Rare items are found in chests. Crafting manuals can be purchased. Superficially, the game aims to expand your options. However, when your basic skills do the job just fine most of the time, there's little reason to try anything else. There are a few instances of ship-to-ship combat, which could have provided some sorely needed diversity, but they're entirely forgettable. Ammunition, in the form of rock monsters, must be battled, defeated, and carried to your ship's cannons. It feels like busywork that keeps you from getting to where you really want to go.

For a good chunk of the story, your main cast is split up. This could have been a fine way to give you three interesting sides of one story, as well as three different play styles. Unfortunately, the stories aren't connected in a meaningful way, and the wayward characters have more or less the same kinds of skills. There's a way to capture monsters and have them fight for you, so you'll be using random creatures to fill out your party most of the time. Aside from having funny names and appearances, most have the same few attacks. Rather than choosing party members based on their combat capabilities, you'll probably end up picking them based on how they look.

Extra quests are plentiful, but they're difficult to manage and often not worth the trouble. Finding lost items and killing bad guys are the most common tasks. After completing a quest, your log tells you which city to return to but doesn't specify who gave the quest. With so many active assignments, you'll almost certainly forget whom to speak with, which means you have to talk to everyone in the city until you find the character you're looking for. Rewards are usually meager anyway. You'll find plenty of experience and goodies on the main story path.

Book II's technical issues are annoying and abundant. The frame rate often drops in environments with weather or atmospheric effects. Full game crashes are common, especially when you're swapping out party members. These problems are worsened by the game's lack of an autosave system. The anxiety you feel when exploring a dungeon doesn't come from the challenges you face; it comes from suddenly realizing that you haven't saved in 20 minutes, and that a crash could easily wipe away the few levels of progress you made. These flaws dictate the pacing. You'll stop and save often when you otherwise wouldn't need to.

With Dragon Fantasy Book II's bare-bones combat and rampant technical issues, your appreciation of the game will boil down to how much you enjoy puns. The framework is in place for a bigger, more engaging game, but there's just no reason to move beyond the basics. Don't be fooled by its appearances: this classic-looking RPG gets nowhere close to filling the shoes of its inspirations.

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What SteamOS Tells Us About the Rumored Steam Box

What does the SteamOS announcement mean for the long-rumored "Steam Box", and how will a Linux-based operating system impact consumers?

Valve kicked off its trio of announcements this week by unveiling its upcoming SteamOS, the Linux-based operating system targeted at small form factor PCs designed for the living room. The announcement comes as a bit of a surprise and leaves many questions unanswered, but an analysis of Valve's recent past and the technology behind a proposed Linux-based gaming system provides hints as to the future of Steam's presence in the living room.

Valve's current efforts started taking shape when it's simplified, controller optimized Big Picture mode UI entered beta back in September of 2012, and the proposal of a so-called "Steam Box", a console sized PC designed for gaming through Steam, made waves at the Consumer Electronics Show a few months later. With two more announcements to go this week, presumably related to the living room space, there's a chance that such a box will surface, but one question remains: will it come from Valve or third-party manufacturers?

Here's what we know so far: the SteamOS can be licensed and implemented at no cost to hardware manufacturers and users. That alone gives credence to the inevitability of third-party Steam-branded PCs. However, the Steam moniker and logo would presumably fall outside the license tied to the SteamOS, and it's likely that Valve will seek to control its brand through some semblance of quality assurance moving forward, especially so if it hopes to contend with the strength of brands such as PlayStation and Xbox.

Theoretically, working with third parties to maintain a certain level of quality for sanctioned Steam Boxes will take a considerable effort on Valve's part, but it's far more likely it will go this route as opposed to designing and manufacturing its own hardware. At least, a series of events over the past year seem to indicate as much. In the same month it released the Big Picture Mode beta, Valve began looking for new engineers to join its hardware division, specifically to "conceive, design, evaluate, and produce new types of input, output, and platform hardware." It then came to the Consumer Electronics Show with prototypes of Steam-dedicated PCs, thus reigniting rumors of an official Steam Box. Given the growth in the PC gaming space of late, the proposition of an easy-to-use, low-profile gaming PC for the living room caught on easily with an audience hungry for next-gen consoles, months before Sony and Microsoft had made any announcements of their own.

However, fast-forward to February of this year, and the hardware division was effectively disrupted when two of its key staff members were laid off: Jeri Ellsworth and Rick Johnson. Valve is a company with a lot of fluid capital geared toward experimentation, but the same willingness to initiate efforts seems applicable to shaking them up, according to Ellsworth's interview with Develop last July, though Valve later stated that the layoffs weren't an indication that any projects had been cancelled.

Chances are, given the ubiquity of Steam, there will be numerous third party Steam Boxes designed specifically for the new OS in the years to come, but there are still hurdles to overcome if Valve or manufacturers hope to find success in a dedicated gaming box. Chief among those is the Linux environment.

Unlike Windows, Linux is unable to use Microsoft's DirectX graphics API; a framework developers use when creating games. OpenGL is the most popular alternative to DirectX, and it's plenty powerful in its own right, but it's nowhere near as popular. Some games support both OpenGL and DirectX, but only a fraction of the nearly 3,000 games available through Steam. Take one look at Steam's selection of games for Mac OSX (821 games) and Linux (299 games), and the disadvantage of a Linux box becomes clear: users will have access to only a fraction of the Steam library.

On the other hand, given SteamOS's ability to stream games from a secondary Windows PC to a TV, it's likely that steam-friendly boxes will become a new niche in manufacturers' line-ups alongside desktops, laptops and tablets. In the past, managing director and Valve frontman Gabe Newell has been outspoken about device-to-device streaming technology, calling out the Miracast technology by name as a means to deliver Windows-centric Steam content to low-cost TV-connected devices. Given this, it's likely that Steam Boxes will exist in two flavors once the OS gets rolling: low-cost devices that stream games from discrete gaming PCs running Windows, and dedicated Linux gaming PCs from third-party manufacturers.

Users hoping to construct their own SteamOS PCs have another hurdle to contend with beyond the lack of DirectX: Linux driver support. The Linux community and various manufacturers have come a long way toward improving support for the untold number of PC components on the market, but Windows remains king when it comes to providing users with functional drivers. Granted, popular manufacturers such as Nvidia and AMD are keeping up just fine, but it's not unusual for incomplete drivers to plague fresh Linux adopters with exotic hardware. Sometimes the incomplete support affects components within components, such as individual chips on motherboards that can affect everything from audio output to SATA support for hard drives. It's an imperfect environment, and it's likely that users will have to compromise one way or another, by building machines from an approved list of parts, purchasing a sanctioned Steam Box from a third party, or streaming their existing PC content to a connected SteamOS device.

Plenty of people are indeed excited about the prospect of taking their PC game libraries into the living room, and chief among the benefits of doing so is support for the Steam Workshop, Steam's repository for user-created game mods. PC users have held game mods over console-players' heads for as long as the two markets have vied for dominance in the gaming space, and the Steam Box may tip the scales for consumers who are skeptical of the two upcoming next-gen consoles' ability to outpace the growth of PC gaming. Mods provide a means to customize games in exciting and new ways, and in doing so, they enable the community to drastically extend the life of a product by delivering everything from custom characters to complete single-player campaigns, all free of charge.

Of course, Valve wouldn't be able to compete with consoles unless it found a way to integrate multiplayer at a system level as well as Microsoft and Sony have, but in today's SteamOS announcement, it also mentioned the inclusion of Game Hubs, which will let players easily join game groups, form clans, and chat in-game. With that final stroke, there isn't much ground that Valve won't have covered when SteamOS goes live in the near future.

Perhaps the most exciting aspect of a Steam Box is the proposition of family sharing, a feature that will let people play games owned by other family members and, potentially, a select number of friends. Only one person at a time can use games from a distinct account, but support for account-specific game saves, in the cloud no less, makes family sharing something more than an official means to grant account permissions to numerous devices. Microsoft had a similar plan for the Xbox One, although it was retracted once the company altered its stance on DRM for its future console.

Where exactly Valve is headed is still anyone's guess, though it's likely the two remaining announcements this week, coming this Wednesday and Friday, will shed light on the future of its latest venture. It's certainly an exciting time for players, and perhaps scary for console manufacturers with hard street dates for static hardware looming overhead. If anything, Valve continues to ignite fires in the PC market, and if it has its way, the pillars of console gaming will have no choice but to react in someway to a successful Steam Box should one, or many, bring PC gaming to the living room in the near future.

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New Watch Dogs Gameplay from TGS 2013 Sony Stage Demo

@bbq_R0ADK1LL I was pleased to see that yes, you can get suppressors for certain weapons.  Also, we see a melee takedown using a different animation from the one at the ctOS server farm in other videos (here, it's a straight beatdown as opposed to a sleeper hold)... this might be proof of the existence of non-lethal melee takedown options, which would be welcome (see: SC: Blacklist).   Further, we see what appears to be a remote charge... can we get these in varieties other than HE, such as CS or flashbang or KO gas?

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Reality Check - Could GTA V train you to kill?

So much junk science here.  I'm sure Cam did nothing but read the script for this piece, but whoever is producing/publishing this garbage is just making things worse.  They are counting on the fact that most of the people who view this have no idea about how math or statistics work, let alone statistical studies, telling you something you think you already know.  Of course you, the viewer responds "i could have told you that", validating all of your beliefs, while confirming Gamespot's position as a responsible source of information.  

Of course, Cam never mentions the name of the "study", the authors, or their credentials.  He never mentions the limitations of the study.  He never mentions any statistics about the results for controller users in violent games.  Just simply "hey guys, you were right!"

At least viewing some of the comments, there are a few people that realize that if this study even exists, there's no way it was completed in a matter of 5 days (these studies take years), and therefore has absolutely nothing to do with the game they are relating it to, GTA V.  

It just depresses me at how many people are responding with "I'm in the military, and these games don't make you better at killing people".  The reasoning is almost as absurd as the people who say "I play GTA V and I have no intention of hurting anyone".  The issue is that there are people out there who DON'T have that decency or common sense.  Yes most of the population can tell right from wrong, but if you believe that these games can't make weak-minded or mentally ill people violent, then you're simply in denial.

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Top 5 Skyrim Mods of the Week - Diablo Dungeons & Chicken Mounts

No Pete Stef this is a weekly show. Its also meant to humour. There are many mods which greatly improve the game. Some of them without even changing the gameplay at all. For example SkyUI, bug fixes which you can't get on console not to mention there are more confirmed bugs on console version of skyrim. Besides mods, skyrim on PC has uncapped Fps not stuck at 30 or below, and higher resolution textures. Also full HD.

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Diablo III Loot Comparison - PC vs Console

@aovannor 

I'm actually pretty well informed on the game.

Though, I did not know that Diablo III had no leveling wall. It's my first Diablo game ever. 

I don't really understand the tone of your response. I actually defend Diablo 3 from unnecessary criticisms regularly. The game itself isn't bad, but it launched with a lot of nonsense that was (online always).

My point with the above post was to point out the slight differences in gameplay structures between the two games. 

Both of the games are very similar to each other, only BG: Dark Alliance (glad that you played the game, btw) puts less emphasis on loot and more on moment to moment action.

Diablo III, in my opinion seemed to rely too heavily on the loot aspect of the game. It was used too much a a driving force behind the game, when it should have been there to supplement the main experience.

Some went as far as to suggest that  it WAS the experience.

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Final Fantasy XIV Online: A Realm Reborn Review

You wouldn't think that simply meeting standards would be cause for celebration, yet when it comes to Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn, congratulations are in order. At its launch, Final Fantasy XIV Online was a mess--so much so that it was easy to question whether developer Square-Enix had ever played an online role-playing game before, let alone created one. But the old has been burned to ashes and an entertaining and beautiful game has risen to take its place. A Realm Reborn is a perfectly playable massively multiplayer concoction whose witty writing and colorful vistas make it easy to lose yourself in the fantasy.

Enter a nobody, emerge a legend.

This rising phoenix is not an entirely unknown creature, however. While A Realm Reborn represents a sizable step forward for this particular game, it does not leap over the shoulders of the games that have come before. This is a familiar kind of game with a familiar feel under your fingers. Genre fundamentals are delivered here with vigor, if not always with great imagination. You speak with characters labeled with icons floating over their heads, and they send you out into the world to kill roaming creatures, interact with objects, and collect various ingredients for their scientific projects and medicinal needs. When you encounter walking vegetation, skittish jackals, and winged demons, you target them and tap keys or click buttons on your skill bar until you vanquish them. While other massively multiplayer games have re-thought quest structure, combat mechanics, and exploration tropes, A Realm Reborn represents the old world.

A Realm Reborn is a fine representation of this old world, however. Once you choose a race and initial class, you are treated to a long and melodramatic cutscene ripped right out of the Final Fantasy storybook, and then land in the starting area associated with your chosen class. This is an unusual association, given how most similar games use your race to determine your starting location, and you spend the early hours performing gopher quests and slaying low-level creatures alongside a bunch of players dressed like you and performing the same attacks as you. This world structure is sensible when A Realm Reborn's flexible class system is considered (more on this later), but you'll long for some visual variety after a few hours of seeing and hearing the same spells being cast over and over again in every direction.

Once you venture out into the vast world of Eorzea, however, you'll be entranced by it. Open regions are large and attractive, urging you into the distance to see what secrets might be uncovered. In regions with numerous vertical spaces, using the minimap to navigate can sometimes lead to a wild goose chase when you discover that your destination is on a cliff above you, but circling back is no great frustration considering the world's visual grandeur.

Leave the city of Limsa Lominsa, for instance, and you're immediately struck by the beauty of the display before you. The view is a striking mix of moss-coated cliffs crossing the horizon and sturdy spires poking against the clouds. Outside Gridania, the tedious corridors of the original release have been replaced by lush forests where turtlelike adamantoises roam among golden luminescent flowers. As you cross The Footfalls just outside of Ul'Dah, collapsed statues and crumbling archways speak to the destruction that befell the land. Seeing such lovely sights at their best requires a modern PC, but the allure isn't greatly diminished even if you have to adjust some of the game's many visual sliders.

Yes, you will fight those adamantoises, either alone or with friends. There's nothing particularly unusual about the moment-to-moment combat: you select your target and click buttons on your hotbar or press your shortcut keys to fire off projectiles and swing weapons. Like in several modern games, enemies often signal their most powerful attacks, allowing you to move out of the way. Unlike those other games, though, A Realm Reborn doesn't feature a real-time dodge maneuver, so you don't feel like you're leaping out of grave danger. When peril approaches, part of the fun is in the escape, and sauntering into another position just isn't very thrilling.

It may not feature the most tactile combat, but warfare comes into its own when you enter one of A Realm Reborn's many entertaining and challenging dungeons. It's easy to queue up for a dungeon; the game automatically groups players of differing roles, though you may need to wait a bit for that to happen, especially if you play as a damage dealer. The dungeons strike the right balance of combat and treasure hunting, their various nooks and crannies filled with chests to open in between monster battles. Group warfare is colorful, with healing spells easing the violence with their healthy green glow, and horned boss demons galloping around arenas of fire.

Dungeons often require you to use various clever mechanics to triumph. For instance, you may need to lure explosive enemies towards goopy slime monsters so that their eruptions might damage those foes when your arrows cannot. If you're a conjurer, expect your healing spells to get a good workout; if you're a damage-dealing arcanist, you might be thankful for your own healing abilities when your magical comrade has difficulty keeping up. Outside of dungeons, however, combat can be pretty dry. Particularly for magic-users, the slow (but fluid) animations and conservative cooldown times can make for underwhelming open-world skirmishes, with the fireworks of particles and other glittering effects providing most of the interest.

Luckily, dungeons aren't the only place you join up with others. Public quests called FATEs (that is, Full Active Time Events) erupt out in the open, bringing players together to defeat a bunch of spawning lizardmen, attack golems and collect the minerals they leave behind, or protect an AI-controlled local as he makes his way from one point to another. FATEs are full of action, but are so short that you often stumble upon one just as it's finishing up, which can be anticlimactic. However, FATEs are a good source of experience points, so players often band together, riding their chocobos and other mounts from one to the next.

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PlayStation 4 exclusive Deep Down to be free-to-play

This doesn't necessarily mean a bad thing. NOW, I'm not saying this is HOW things will happen, but look at it like this:
Games need to change, or more specifically, pricing models need to change. We've already seen it start with XBLA and PSN, the nature of the game dictates the price. But we still have all console games being released at a full $60 here in U.S., whether it's a one-time-through story game like Heavy Rain, or replayable competitive game like COD or Street Fighter. I have believed games like that should be released for free, and new content be produced and charged. Instead of releasing a "new" Call of Duty every year, release ONE version for free (or $20) and make the money on CONTENT. New maps, new guns, new whatever. NOT a F2P store, but similar to DLC and whatever. If anyone has played Neverwinter, it proves that there is possibility for GOOD f2p game. If the base game is decent, and they make money back on continuous DLC, it won't be that bad. If you get the game for free, whats the problem with DLC? None. 

F2P =/= Bad Game
Bad Game = Bad Game

If it ends up being bad, well thats the games fault, because there are good ways to do F2P. If the the game ends up being good, then we could see Sony trying to adjust how the market monetizes video games, because it definitely needs to change.

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Diablo III Loot Comparison - PC vs Console

Man, after seeing this, I feel like Blizzard ripped PC players off hardcore. As a PC player, I cannot be more excited about Blizzard removing the AH and giving the PC version loot 2.0. I just hope loot 2.0 is like the console loot system, and not the same crap we already have, with 2.0 at the end of it. I just think its a bit dumb their waiting till next year to fix the PC version, when the console version is already fixed.

I knew from the get go Diablo 3 was too console friendly, but I never wanted to believe it. Now its got me wondering if WoW is coming to consoles as an attempt to get the player count back up to what it was, considering MOP dumbed the game down so far, a 2 year old could spec a class, run raids, etc.

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GameSpot: The FAQ

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Dark Souls II Screens

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From Software details new Dark Souls II features

September 18, 2013 6:00PM PDT

By Peter Brown, Eddie Makuch

Director Yui Tanimura outlines key changes to underlying gameplay systems for upcoming current-generation role-playing game.

Dark Souls II will feature a number of key changes to underlying gameplay systems, according to From Software director Yui Tanimura, including revamped rules for player interactions, co-op, and PVP.

Tanimura explained the changes during a recent presentation attended by GameSpot.

Unlike the peer-to-peer lobbies that fuel the original Dark Souls, players will now populate dedicated servers, like the spiritual predecessor, Demon's Souls, thus increasing the number of players that populate a given instance of the game.

In order to encourage player interaction, blood messaging is built into Dark Souls II as a system command, negating the original game's item requirements.

Summoned players--players who join the game of another character--no longer automatically exit a game upon the defeat of a boss. By utilizing different sized White Soapstone items, players gain different amounts of time for co-op play, but this allotment depletes as the summoned player defeats enemies. Players can also now summon two players at once, creating a three-player co-op experience.

When a player's game is invaded, they have the chance to receive backup from fellow covenant members if they belong to the "Way of the Blue" covenant. This will make it harder for stronger players to torment low-level characters, and give players a chance to act as a savior for the weak.

The final changes noted during the presentation pertained to characters with undead status. If a player dies while fighting as an undead character, their HP limits will decrease with each consecutive death. In order to recover from undead status, players now must expend a "Human Effigy" item, rather than an amount of humanity.

Lastly, unlike the original Dark Souls, undead players are susceptible to invaders in the sequel.

Dark Souls II will be released on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 on March 11, 2014. A release date for the PC version has not been announced. PlayStation 3 owners in North America, Europe, and Australasia can sign up for the beta, which begins on October 12.

For more on Dark Souls II, check out GameSpot's previous coverage.

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Dark Souls II release date announced

Open-world role-playing game Dark Souls II will launch on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 on March 11 next year in North America, publisher Namco Bandai confirmed. The announcement was made during Namco Bandai's pre-Tokyo Game Show conference today.

A collector's edition was also revealed and will include a soundtrack, artbook, 12 inch figurine, and a cloth map. A release date for PC was not confirmed.

Dark Souls II is the sequel to the critically acclaimed Dark Souls. PlayStation 3 owners in North America, Europe, and Australasia can sign up for the beta, which begins on October 12.

More news from the show can be found at our Tokyo Game Show 2013 hub.

→ More coverage of Tokyo Game Show 2013 on GameSpot.com

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MechWarrior Online - Launch Trailer

A campaign honoring the passing of one of the youngest and most talented Canadian pilots in the Inner Sphere, five-year-old Sarah Marie Alida Parries. The custom Jenner Class Chassis Champion 'Mech, "Sarah's 'Mech", raised more than $122,200.

Posted Aug 21, 2013 | 0:43 | 0 Views

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GS News - GTA V is out, Gabe likes Linux and Battlefield 4 news

Hi Chris, nice t-shirt, lolol.

About Steam Box, i'm waiting for more information, off course, but i'm really satisfied with my platforms (consoles and PC), i don't know if this new system will appeal for me.

And Deep Silver (or Volition), trying to be funny, again, well, they try. But for me, SR4 it's a disappointment.

Peace.

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League of Legends Season 3 World Championships kick off

The $2,000,000 League of Legends Season 3 World Championships have begun.

Riot Games has kicked off the League of Legends Season 3 World Championships, with 14 of the best teams from North America, Europe, South Korea, China, and Southeast Asia battling for $2,000,000 and the title of best League of Legends team in the world.

The Season 3 finals began with the first day of group matches, where the top two teams from each group advanced to the quarterfinals to meet with the first-place finishers of each region. Teams in the group stage include Team SoloMid and Team Vulcun from the United States, Samsung Galaxy Ozone and SK Telecom T1 from South Korea, Fnatic, Gambit Gaming (Russia), Lemondogs (Sweden), GamingGear (Lithuania) from Europe, OMG from China, and Mineski from the Philippines. Cloud 9 from the United States, Gamania Bears from Taiwan, Najin Sword from South Korea, and Royal Club from China wait the winners in the Quarterfinals.

Games kicked off with TSM taking a quick victory over a GamingGear team who will have a rough road ahead of them these playoffs, and Lemondogs putting up a battle with tournament favorites SKT1.

Things ramped up much quicker for TSM's next match against OMG, a team that is playing outside of China for the first time. OMG AD Carry Guo "San" JunLiang left no question of their tournament inexperience by leading them to two wins over TSM and SKT1. Guo led the day in average gold per game, and second in KDA with 19.

"I never thought we could beat SKT1," midlaner Yu "Cool" JiaJun told GameSpot about their wins. "We've watched all of their previous games and their AP and AD carries are so strong. I think the reason we were able to win against SKT1 was because our Jungler [Yin "LoveLin" Le] played great in the beginning. He was able to get us our advantages."

"We didn't know much about TSM before our game. We didn't put a lot of pressure on ourselves before playing them. We actually have very high expectations for ourselves. I think it's important to have confidence in your own team."

"The biggest thing was that we lost mid," said TSM support Alex "Xpecial" Chu. "Fizz vs. Ahri is supposed to be a winning matchup for [TSM Captain] Reginald, and he lost the lane. Ahri got out of control. Today was a frustrating experience and hopefully we learned a lot from it. We've still got six more games, and if we can win five we have a really good shot of making it out of the group stage."

Chu believes Group A to be a much more difficult group, stating that most analysts have picked SKT1, OMG, and Lemondogs as the best teams in each of their regions--Korea, China, and Europe, respectively.

"I say we'll get out of group stage, and I firmly believe Vulcun can get out and have a really good shot," said Chu. "I'm 100 percent sure if we were in Group B, we would get out."

Group B saw Vulcun with a big win over Fnatic to start things off, and SG Ozone return the favor soon after. SG Ozone closed out the day against Gambit Gaming, which earned the final spot in the European playoffs after a close decider against Evil Geniuses. Gambit used Vulcun's similar lineup in their game against SG Ozone for their own benefit, getting them a crucial win against one of Korea's best teams.

"I think we were not that nervous, we knew what they were going to do," said Gambit Captain Alexey "Alex Ich" Ichetovkin. "They really suffered versus Vulcun, and we were pretty sure we had an edge. We decided to pick our comfort picks, and we knew [what they would pick] because we picked similar to Vulcun."

Ichetovkin says that Gambit has used their preparation against teams like OMG in the days leading into the event.

"We're scrimming a lot against the Chinese teams, against OMG. They brought a lot to our teamplay and game overall. We've changed a bit about our game. We're pretty confident. I think we should be able to win against the other teams. The only team we're not sure against is Fnatic. They're really good against us."

Day two was headlined by a battle between Gambit and Fnatic for the top spots in Group B. Fnatic has not lost a game to Gambit since the Spring Playoff Finals, having lost all the games in the Summer Season. Ichetovkin's worries came true as Fnatic continued their streak to tie up both teams 3-1 on the top of Group B.

Fnatic Top Laner Paul "sOAZ" Boyer believes the picking phase played a key factor in their win.

"Everyone thought went good for us. I think we really out banned and out picked them, and we played good. I think Gambit is the team we know the most in Europe. We know how to play against them. Gambit is really predictable on their picks."

"We expected a bit more from the Koreans. I think they're really strong individual players but their teamplay is not that good compared to what we've seen before."

Hundreds of thousands of viewers tuned in from around the globe to watch the opening day of the championships on live-stream, though no confirmation could be given on peak concurrent viewers or total views. The #Worlds hashtag trended third in the United States above NFL games at certain times, and at one point there was over 25,000 concurrent users on the League of Legends community hub on Reddit.

Reddit General Manager Erik Martin tells GameSpot that the League of Legends subreddit was the most active subreddit on the entire site yesterday. "It was indeed the most active (by pageviews) subreddit for the day," he said.

Riot Games head of eSports Dustin Beck told GameSpot that the developer has been blown away by the event's reception thus far.

"We're just completely floored by the community's reception as we kick off the group stages of the Season 3 World Championship," Beck said. "We can't wait to see which teams make it out of the Group Stages, and we hope fans enjoy the rest of this week's games as much as we're gonna!"

The group stages continue again tonight and every night at 7 p.m. PST through till Saturday, September 21. Watch the event live on GameSpot each night. GameSpot eSports is live on location provided interviews every day of the championships.

→ More coverage of ESPORTS on GameSpot.com

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Valve, SteelSeries, and DreamHack to host $250,000 Counter-Strike tournament

September 16, 2013 3:17PM PDT

By Cody Conners and Rod Breslau

Valve's community-funding eSports initiative leads to to largest Counter-Strike tournament prize pool in the game's history.

Valve announced today that the 2013 DreamHack Steelseries Counter-Strike: Global Offensive Championship taking place at DreamHack Winter will feature a $250,000 community-funded prize pool. The prize pool is the largest in Counter-Strike's history.

The funds were generated from in game item purchases. On August, 13th Valve released a patch called The Arms Deal to Counter-Strike: Global Offensive that added weapon and weapon case drops to the game. All weapon cases require a purchasable key to be opened. A portion of the revenue generated from one of the weapon cases types, the eSports Weapon Case, was set to "be redirected to fund prize purses at upcoming CS:GO eSport events worldwide." The DreamHack Steelseries Counter-Strike: Global Offensive Championship is the first tournament that is seeing the benefit of this initiative.

Christopher "GeT_RiGhT" Alesund, member of the multiple DreamHack winning team Ninjas in Pyjamas, remarked to GameSpot that he has "been dreaming about something like this ever since [he] has started playing Counter-Strike." Alesund's manager, former teammate, and fellow champion, Emil "HeatoN" Christensen added, "I think it's a great step forward to bring Counter-Strike back in the spotlight. Since the growth of the MOBA it has kind of been in the shadows. Even if we see the game growing steadily it needs something like this tournament to make it grow even faster, and hopefully create another Counter-Strike boom."

This is not the first time that Valve have used in game item purchases to help community-fund an eSports tournament. Part of The International 3's $2,874,407.00 prize pool came from Interactive Compendium purchases in the Dota 2 in game store. This item granted the purchaser certain perks like virtual item drops and access to exclusive compendium owner polls that allowed owners to vote on things like the participants of The International 3's all-star game. Interactive Compendium's cost $10.00 to purchase with 25% of all purchases going towards The International 3's prize pool.

Henning Christiansson, SteelSeries' Marketing Manager, told GameSpot, "For us events like this means everything, our foundation builds on giving back to our fans all over the world. We have always worked close with our partners and when this opportunity came around we were really honored that our tournament at Dreamhack was the one Valve selected." When asked if Valve's involvement changed SteelSeries' allocation of resources and capital he responded, "…when a partner like Valve commits and raises the bar to this level, you have to follow. There will be more information presented later on that I believe the community will enjoy." Christiansson noted that casters would be announced at a later date.

At the time of publication the SteelSeries' Counter-Strike: Global Offensive Championship boasts the title of largest single event prize pool in DreamHack history. The tournament will take place in Jönköping, Sweden from November 28th to 30th.

Photo credit to Hampus Andersson and DreamHack.

→ More coverage of ESPORTS on GameSpot.com

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Community News: Monday 9/16

Happy Monday GameSpot, we've got a lot going on this week!

What to look forward to

GameSpot is coming to SXSW… Maybe!
But we need your help! Games media veterans GameSpot's Ben Howard and Red Robot Labs Inc. John Davison will lead a discussion about the challenges publishers of core, big-budget franchises face as well as what emerging companies in the mobile and indie scene are changing all expectations about the games industry and its future. - please go vote for our panel!

GTAV is coming, are you ready?
Carolyn took part in a bit of an Ask me Anything style Q&A today after our GTAV review was posted. If you missed out don't worry, we'll be having another sit down with Carolyn later this week on GameSpots Reddit page.

GameSpot is on Tumblr!
Just in case you missed it, GameSpot now has a Tumblr account, we be all up in these social medias!

The new site… it's almost here.
Currently the due date for the new site is early October, and baring any major issues we find along the way things should be pretty classy around here. We will be having another one of our Fireside Chats this Wednesday with the ever spiffy Lark Anderson to host. Have questions about the new site? Ask them below.

Community Spotlight

This weeks GameSpot Member Spotlight shines on Stevo_the_gamer a valiant System Wars Mod.

A bit about him: PC gamer first, console gamer second. Video games is one of my major hobbies. Currently studying Criminal Justice; getting a major in that, and will pursue a minor in Sociology and/or Psychology.

Contests

The rumor mill spins as Team Social plots and plans for this weeks contest. While nothing has yet been confirmed, there are whisperings' of a Grand Theft Auto V giveaway in the works. Make sure you're following us on Facebook and Twitter the the latest contest updates!

That's it for today Spotters! Be sure to check back on Wednesday for our next Community News Update!

→ More coverage of COMMUNITY on GameSpot.com

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GS News - GTA V reviews, Battlefield 4 and Mass Effect updates

Again with the funny stuff, Chris. (I secretly don't mind, continue being clever!)

The hype that developed on GTA Vs backside hasn't left me yet (I can happily say) as I'll grab that work when it comes out for my laptop to munch on. Just saw the review though (awesomely done by Ms. Petit) and the expectations that sat on MY backside were realized pretty quickly as I was satisfied through the footage.

I was ecstatic to hear that the missions that would carry GTA Vs story were so spectacular, as I'm playing Saints Row The Third right now, and am bored, disappointed and frustrated at times by the forced generic qualities that a lot of the missions have. That's not to say that the game doesn't have its moments in flair and spectacle, and I'm entertained for the most point so far, so I guess that's all I can ask for in a title that doesn't promote any depth in its atmosphere and story. In short, looking forward to GTAs variety and originality in structure.

A lot of my buds have been shaking waiting for Battlefield 4 to debut, and news of the open October beta will make them human again, so thanks for that. And another Mass Effect game?

Never played a single one, but have heard plenty of the series legacy as a hard story driven RPG. That'll be neat to cover. 

Another enjoyable episode, man. Keep up the good work and stuffs.

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Top Five Skyrim Mods of the Week - ALIENS!

September 14, 2013 12:00PM PDT

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By Johnny Chiodini, Video Producer | Cameron Robinson, Video Producer

This week's Top 5 Skyrim Mods sees Cam, Johnny and the ever brave Kevin VanNord face off against the terrifying Xenomorph Alien Horde!

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Zelda Music Swap by -cC+ Wolfy

aMidianBorn Blades Armor by CaBaL

ALIENS by Dogtown1

HD Armored Circlets by cyanideja

Goat Dynasty: Genesis by Fisto the Sexbot

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Always with the double posts :o

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Battlefield 4 beta starts October 1

An open beta for Battlefield 4 will launch on October 1, Electronic Arts has announced. The beta will be available on that date for all Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC players.

An "Exclusive" Battlefield 4 beta was previously announced for Battlefield 3 Premium owners, those who preordered the Battlefield 4 Digital Deluxe version, and owners of Medal of Honor: Warfighter. It is not clear when this version will be released.

Battlefield 4 launches for current-generation consoles and PC on October 29. For more on the Battlefield 4 beta, check out a FAQ page on the game's website.

EA also has announced Xbox One and PlayStation 4 launch dates for Madden NFL 25, FIFA 14, and Battlefield 4.

These games will be available on November 19 (North America)/November 21 (Europe) for Xbox One and November 12 (North America)/November 29 (Europe) for PlayStation 4.

For more on Battlefield 4, check out GameSpot's previous coverage.

→ More coverage of ESPORTS on GameSpot.com

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StarCraft II and Counter-Strike: GO head into finals at DreamHack Bucharest

September 14, 2013 7:43PM PDT

World's best players from around the world travel to Romania to compete for over $40,000.

The best StarCraft II players and Counter Strike: Global Offensive teams from around the world have come to Bucharest, Romania to compete for over $40,000 at DreamHack's Open Bucharest event.

The final day of competition has now arrived for what is said to be the most competitive DreamHack StarCraft II tournament in the event's long history. Players competing this weekend include Blizzard WCS Season 1 Champion Lee "INnoVation" Shin Hyung, Artur "Nerchio" Bloch, Lee "Jaedong" Jae Dong, Samuli "elfi" Sihvonen, Song "HerO" Hyeon Deok, Lee "Life" Seung Hyun, and Mun "MMA" Seong Won, and are among the final 16 players remaining. Brood War legend and favorite Lee "Flash" Young Ho was eliminated in the first day of competition, with losses to MMA and Jung "YugiOh" Seung Il.

The winner of the StarCraft II tournament will earn $9,240, and 750 WCS points to help in their quest to qualify for the WCS Grand Finals at BlizzCon later this year.

The Counter-Strike: Global Offensive tournament has only four teams remaining, featuring reigning Swedish champions Ninjas in Pyjamas led by Christopher "GeT_RiGhT Alesund, Ukraine's Na'Vi and Astana Dragons, and Sweden's Lemondogs. Each of the teams dispatched their opponents convincingly 2-0 in the quarterfinals, while Lemondogs eliminated fellow countrymen Fnatic from the event in what was the biggest upset from the first day of competition.

Both tournaments resume in the morning hours of Sunday, September 15, beginning at 5 a.m. EST/2 a.m. PST. Watch the StarCraft II event at DreamHack's Twitch channel, and CS:GO also through Twitch.

Check out more eSports coverage at the GameSpot eSports hub.

Image credit: Helena Kristiansson, eSportPhoto.

→ More coverage of ESPORTS on GameSpot.com

13.15 | 0 komentar | Read More

Torture Chamber - Unfair Mario

@Karjah I bet you play sports better than those fools on TV as well ;)

It's always easier when you're not the one who has to do it.

You have to remember he's on livestream with an office full of people giggling at him and a chatroom full of trolls + he needs to think of what he says and keep an eye on the chat and be entertaining and think of how he looks etc. Then the controls may not be as responsive as you might think.

13.16 | 0 komentar | Read More

Coming of Age with the Press of a Button

Chris Watters analyzes the remarkable bond between narrative and gameplay in Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons.

Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons blew me away. The heartfelt story of two brothers going on a grand journey moved me, the gorgeous environments and evocative art delighted me, and the clever control scheme and light puzzles intrigued me. These are the familiar elements that many games use to captivate players, but few games use them in harmony as well as Brothers. By designing narrative and gameplay to complement and enhance each other, Brothers conveys emotion in a uniquely poignant way and proves itself a powerful example of the expressive potential of video games.

(Be warned, the following contains major spoilers for Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons. If you are merely curious about the game, I suggest you read Mark Walton's eloquent and spoiler-free review. The game only takes about 4 hours to complete and I highly recommend experiencing it for yourself before you read on. It's wonderful.)

This video review is your last chance to get out of here spoiler-free.

Brothers begins laying the groundwork for its best moments in the tragic first scene. The younger brother watches helplessly as his mother drowns in front of him, and soon after, his father falls ill with a mysterious ailment. In order to save him, both brothers embark on a journey to find a mystical tree high in the mountains. When they come upon a river they must swim across, however, the younger brother balks. Still traumatized by his mother's death, he must cling to his older brother's back to make it across.

This dependency goes both ways. The older brother is too large to fit through small gaps that the younger can squeeze through, and big brother can boost his sibling up to ledges that neither would be able to reach alone. Such simple puzzles build on the theme of connectedness. The two brothers are already bound to each other narratively by blood and by the quest to help their father. The environmental design forces them to work together to overcome the obstacles they face, cleaving them to each other through gameplay. And because the left stick and trigger control the elder and the right stick and trigger control the younger, the two are even further bound together on a fundamental mechanical level.

Having to control two characters at once is a curious sensation. The two are physically separate and are controlled separately, yet they must act--you must make them act--in unison. As the brothers are bound to each other through different aspects of the game's design, so too are you connected to them. This is a particularly good example of one of the fundamental strengths of video games: the ability to make you feel connected to characters by putting you in control of them.

Brothers builds on this basic connection by drawing you into the emotional bond between the two boys. The gibberish they speak conveys mood and tone perfectly well, and through their exclamations and their actions you see their personalities emerge. You may be drawn to the elder's politeness or the younger's ebullience, or put off by the younger's impertinence or the elder's rigidity. With strengths of one complementing the flaws of the other, the brothers cover more emotional range than a single character could and make it easy to identify with them.

And so Brothers crafts a deep fellowship. By controlling them both, you develop an instinctual sense for each boy's place in the world. Each spoken phrase or idle gesture speaks volumes to you. You get the sense that no more could these two part ways than your hands could detach and walk away from each other. This easy, unthinking intimacy feels like brotherliness, and only through the harmonious interplay of narrative, level design, and gameplay is Brothers able to achieve such a credible representation of that deep bond.

With the foundation of brotherhood established, Brothers sets its sights on other, darker emotions. Because the brotherly bond is so skillfully woven, it becomes all the more upsetting when it begins to fray. A beguiling new presence captures the elder brother's attention late in the game to the confusion and dismay of the younger. There is a period of uneasiness that puts you on edge, and after a dramatic and tragic encounter, the older brother is gravely wounded. For the first time in the game, the younger sets off on his own, desperate to find the item he hopes will save his brother. As you guide him up a twisting, winding tree, the contorting environment mirrors the disorienting feeling of using only your right hand to play the game that has demanded both for so long. When you emerge from the tree, disorientation turns to shock. The older brother has died.

I was playing the same game, but I was no longer playing the same game. How can you convey the feeling of loss? The death of a beloved character can make you feel sadness and regret, but grief goes deeper. There is an emptiness, a hollowing out, a physical sense of loss that mere narrative often fails to capture. But the sensation of my left hand gripping the controller passively, lying dormant while my right continued to work, that sensation felt to me like loss. The physical balance of my play experience was upset; I was playing the same game, but I was no longer playing the same game. Something had been lost.

When a beloved family member passed away recently, my life took on a similar fractured quality; I was leading the same life, but my life was no longer the same. A loss like that reverberates throughout many aspects of life, and so it seems only natural that to convey this poignant sense of loss, Brothers uses multiple aspects of the game. The narrative informs you of your loss by showing you the lifeless body and the weeping younger brother. But you aren't simply told, not merely shown. You are forced to change the way you interact with the game on a physical level and then, in your hobbled state, you must bury your brother. With each pile of dirt you push onto his corpse, you see him passing from your life and you feel your left arm lying limp by your side, a physical manifestation of virtual death.

The emotional impact of this moment is intense, and only the interactivity of the medium allows it to carry the weight that it does. But this isn't Brothers' last trick. Carried to within shouting distance of his home, the younger brother faces an insurmountable challenge. In order to reach his father and deliver the cure, he must swim across a dark expanse of water. It's not possible. At every watery obstacle prior, you moved the elder brother to the shore, pulled the left trigger to make him dive in, then moved the younger towards him and pulled the right trigger to make him grab on to his brother. Yet even as you remember this simple solution, it dawns on you what you must do.

You pull the left trigger. This is a profoundly odd feeling because your mind has so securely bonded the younger brother to your right hand. It feels wrong. It feels uncomfortable. But sure enough, the left trigger sends him foundering and flailing into the water where he slowly makes his way across to the far shore. In that brave act, the younger brother confronts his fears and forges onward, growing up a bit in the process. This narrative coming of age is underscored by your physical action; by pulling the left trigger, you make the younger assume the role of the elder. Because this act is a subversion of what you've been doing for the whole game, you feel some of the trepidation and unease that accompanies the transition from childhood to adolescence. And amidst this tumult of emotions, there is a note of comfort, an assurance that even when our loved ones pass away, a part of them stays with us.

Brotherhood, grief, maturation. These aren't the themes you might expect to find conveyed honestly and authentically in a video game, and yet Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons does just that. By treating the physical act of using the controller as part of the emotional experience of playing a game, developer Starbreeze Studios leverages the interactivity of the medium to create something special. The potential of video games to probe the human condition is vast indeed, and it's inspiring to play a game that takes on that noble challenge.

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