http://auth.gamespot.com/ Gamespot's Everything Feed! News, Reviews, Videos. Exploding with content? You bet. en-us Thu, 27 Feb 2014 21:26:53 -0800 http://www.gamespot.com/articles/dayz-early-access-review/1100-6417979/ <p style=""> </p><p style=""><em>GameSpot's early access reviews evaluate unfinished games that are nonetheless available for purchase by the public. While the games in question are not considered finished by their creators, you may still devote money, time, and bandwidth for the privilege of playing them before they are complete. The review below critiques a work in progress, and represents a snapshot of the game at the time of the review's publication.</em></p><p style="">DayZ claims to be a zombie game, and it's true that you can occasionally find the undead scuttling about like drunken ravers looking for double high fives. If you have a weapon, you can slice them up like so much sushi, or you can try to outrun them in a high-stakes match of cross-country racing. (That's usually the smarter approach.) But they're about as common as smiles in <a href="/dark-souls/" data-ref-id="false">Dark Souls</a> right now, and oddly enough, this works in DayZ's favor. In fact, DayZ's emptiness renders it about as close to a video game version of Cormac McCarthy's <em>The Road</em> as there's ever been, because the current emphasis is on interactions with people rather than with putrefied riffraff, though sometimes I think I wouldn't mind if the former were taken out altogether.</p><p style="">In this frightening, desolate landscape, your goal is simply to stay alive by scavenging for food and weapons, finding proper shelter, and fending off anyone who threatens your survival. There's no easy way to orient yourself if you've forgotten <a href="/arma-ii/" data-ref-id="false">Arma II</a>'s fiddly control scheme; mMere seconds after my first spawn into the world, I found my poorly customizable avatar being slapped around by a zombie, and he died an undistinguished death around 30 seconds later while I dug around in the escape menu reacquainting myself with generally nonstandard button maps for pulling out weapons and hitting things with them. DayZ lets you use a controller if you wish, but it's even more cumbersome and not worth the effort.</p><div data-embed-type="video" data-ref-id="2300-6417105" data-width="100%" data-height="100%"><iframe src="/videos/embed/6417105/" width="100%" height="100%" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen mozallowfullscreen allowFullScreen></iframe></div><p style="">Later spawns dumped me in the middle of broad fields near the coast that led to crimson barns, towering construction cranes, and deserted buildings. The colors and textures for the post-Soviet nation of Chernarus are far richer here than they were in the original Arma II mod, and the derelict beauty serves as a nice contrast to the dangers it conceals. New, too, is the ability to enter almost every building and rummage for weapons, food, and the occasional antibiotics. No music distracts you from the desolation, and the sound design manages to evoke the fear that every creek of sheet metal might be death on the way. Chancing upon a town can be terrifying; for all the promise in those once-cozy homes and their picketed yards, there's a chance they'll deliver deaths that you never see coming.</p><p style="">DayZ works so well as a survival sim because it puts few barriers between you and the world around you. Gone are the tidy health and stamina bars that sneak into the corners of similar first-person games; instead, DayZ gnaws at your confidence with little nags like "My stomach grumbles" or "I feel like having a drink." And then there are the messages you never want to see, such as "I feel nauseous" or "I can feel warm blood on my clothes." There's a system behind all this--get shot, and you slowly lose blood unless you bandage it--but the numbers stay hidden.</p><figure data-align="right" data-size="medium" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/mig/3/7/5/1/1983751-676539_20120801_002.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-1983751" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/mig/3/7/5/1/1983751-676539_20120801_002.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-1983751"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_medium/mig/3/7/5/1/1983751-676539_20120801_002.jpg"></a></figure><p style="">DayZ wisely reserves its menus for essentials like its inventory, which now sports a drag-and-drop option in an improvement over the mod. The inventory itself expands greatly once you discover items with pockets like knapsacks and hoodies, thus delivering some of the satisfaction the discovery of these items would likely yield in real life. Bohemia Interactive knows it has made a game that's chiefly about foraging, and it usually gets the experience right.</p><p style="">Zombies number so few that it's possible to go half an hour without seeing one, and when you do, there's a good chance you'll see it running through doors or even vanishing under the terrain. The low population lends an air of reality to DayZ; many games feature zombie populations more suited to New York City than to cozy rural villages. The sparse undead populace is just as well, given that dealing with them is rarely a rewarding endeavor. Zombies tend to rush you from hundreds of yards away the moment you enter their line of sight, and shooting at them with the laughably few guns available only attracts more.</p><p style="">But it's not really the zombies you have to worry about. They're stupid things, usually killable with a hefty axe blow if you happen to have an axe on you. (Provided, that is, that the axe doesn't bug out and fail to make contact.) It's the other players who instill the most fear. Sometimes you come across a nice one, and a sense of camaraderie emerges as you scrounge through buildings and take out the undead together. Most of the time, however, they're out to kill you. Some play nice at first, and then lead you into ambushes where unseen snipers shoot you down. Still others may trick you into coming near, and then try to bury an axe in your face because they like the look of your hoodie and want it for themselves. Attempting to hide from and survive against humans with actual intelligence elevates DayZ to new heights of tension and unpredictability.</p><figure data-align="left" data-size="medium" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/mig/3/7/5/3/1983753-676539_20120801_004.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-1983753" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/mig/3/7/5/3/1983753-676539_20120801_004.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-1983753"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_medium/mig/3/7/5/3/1983753-676539_20120801_004.jpg"></a></figure><p style="">I suspect most of those players are bored. DayZ presents some memorable moments in its current state, and when you do find people who are willing to work and survive with you, you could create bonds so deep that your friendship might carry over into the real world. But DayZ loses its edge many hours in. You learn the tricks of finding new gear and weapons, and you learn which towns to avoid and which to ransack. Each respawn leaves you more experienced and thus stronger, and that confidence seems to encourage a desire to harass the newer players and loot their pitiful belongings. By the time you've put in around 20 hours, you know the secrets to crafting and making bandages out of old T-shirts. You're a survivor.</p><p style="">You're a survivor, that is, with no job but to survive. That's the appeal of the alpha; since there are no objectives--and thus no hope--your only option is to keep surviving until death inevitably overtakes you. It's bleak, yes, but in many ways, it delivers a sense of realism you don't get in many zombie games (or open worlds in general, for that matter). Given time, there's a truly great and memorable experience waiting to be explored, one that will come into its own with new and better weapons and more interactive elements such as vehicles. But as Bohemia makes so clear from the moment you boot up DayZ, this is an alpha. It's incomplete, and it shows. Yet Chernarus is well on its way to growing into the clothes that the developer has stitched for it, and if you feel you've got the steely will necessary to survive, DayZ is ready to test it. </p><table data-max-width="true"><tbody><tr><td><p style=""><strong>What's There?</strong></p></td><td><b><i>A vast, explorable (but seriously unfinished) Eastern European map that captures the experience of living in a postapocalyptic zombieland.</i></b></td></tr><tr><td><p style=""><strong>What's to Come?</strong></p></td><td><b><i>More zombies, animals for hunting, greater variety of gathering opportunities, cooking, better server architecture.</i></b></td></tr><tr><td><p style=""><strong>What Does it Cost?</strong></p></td><td><b><i>DayZ costs $29.99 on <a href="http://store.steampowered.com/app/221100/" rel="nofollow" data-ref-id="false">Steam</a>, although the developers discourage paying for it unless you are "prepared to handle with serious issues and possible interruptions of game functioning." And, yes, these things exist.</i></b></td></tr><tr><td><p style=""><strong>When Will it Be Finished?</strong></p></td><td><b><i>There's currently no concrete release date, and Bohemia Interactive has repeatedly spoken of DayZ as a work in progress.</i></b></td></tr><tr><td><p style=""><strong>What's the Verdict?</strong></p></td><td><p style=""><b><i>DayZ oozes with potential, though some elements are either bugged, unfinished, or unimplemented. That said, it delivers uncommonly appealing survival experiences and risky player interactions that lend credibility to its pretty environments. It'll probably be great, but for the time being, it requires uncommon patience.</i></b></p><p style=""> </p></td></tr></tbody></table> Thu, 27 Feb 2014 19:37:00 -0800 http://www.gamespot.com/articles/dayz-early-access-review/1100-6417979/ http://www.gamespot.com/articles/official-minecraft-movie-coming-from-warner-bros/1100-6418014/ <figure data-align="center" data-size="large" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/gamespot/images/2011/331/reviews/1827132-606524_20111128_001.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-1827132" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/gamespot/images/2011/331/reviews/1827132-606524_20111128_001.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-1827132"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_super/gamespot/images/2011/331/reviews/1827132-606524_20111128_001.jpg"></a></figure><p style="">Looks like Warner Bros has been tapped to be working on a potential Minecraft movie. Creator Markus "Notch" Persson revealed the news on Twitter earlier today.</p><p style="">According to <a href="https://twitter.com/notch/status/439164234099073024" rel="nofollow" data-ref-id="false">Notch's post on Twitter</a>, an individual attempted to pre-emptively leak the news. The Minecraft creator followed up with, "I wanted to be the leak!"</p><p style="">The crowdfunding campaign for a Minecraft-inspired full-length feature film was <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/minecraft-inspired-movie-shut-down/1100-6417633/" data-ref-id="1100-6417633">recently shut down</a>. Developer Mojang's <a href="https://account.mojang.com/documents/minecraft_eula" rel="nofollow">End User License Agreement (EULA) for Minecraft</a> specifies that users cannot "make commercial use of anything we've made" or "try to make money from anything we've made."</p><p style="">A <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/minecraft-documentary-premiering-on-xbox-live/1100-6401694/" data-ref-id="1100-6401694">documentary chronicling the development of Minecraft was produced by 2 Player Productions and released in December 2012</a>. Other Minecraft licensing deals have included arrangements for various clothing, accessories, and toys.</p><div data-embed-type="video" data-ref-id="2300-6406805" data-width="100%" data-height="100%"><iframe src="/videos/embed/6406805/" width="100%" height="100%" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen mozallowfullscreen allowFullScreen></iframe></div><p style=""> </p> Thu, 27 Feb 2014 19:32:00 -0800 http://www.gamespot.com/articles/official-minecraft-movie-coming-from-warner-bros/1100-6418014/ http://www.gamespot.com/videos/dayz-early-access-video-review/2300-6417447/ Even though its still in early stages, the DayZ alpha is still a gut-wrenching test of your survival skills. Thu, 27 Feb 2014 18:52:00 -0800 http://www.gamespot.com/videos/dayz-early-access-video-review/2300-6417447/ http://www.gamespot.com/videos/castlevania-lords-of-shadow-2-graphics-comparison/2300-6417446/ Lords of Shadow 2 looks great on PC. Here's a quick graphical comparison pinning the PS3 console version against it's PC counterpart. Just in case you can't decide which version you want. Thu, 27 Feb 2014 18:27:00 -0800 http://www.gamespot.com/videos/castlevania-lords-of-shadow-2-graphics-comparison/2300-6417446/ http://www.gamespot.com/videos/far-cry-3-highlights-the-shaun-method/2300-6417441/ Shaun shows off his skills in setting traps, shark hunting, and marksmanship in this highlight reel of Far Cry 3 on The Shaun Method. Thu, 27 Feb 2014 16:11:00 -0800 http://www.gamespot.com/videos/far-cry-3-highlights-the-shaun-method/2300-6417441/ http://www.gamespot.com/videos/gs-news-titanfall-is-done-wolfenstein-is-1080p-on-/2300-6417439/ Titanfall goes gold, new free games on PlayStation Plus, and can Wolfenstein bring peace to the raging PS4 and Xbox One console war? Thu, 27 Feb 2014 16:00:00 -0800 http://www.gamespot.com/videos/gs-news-titanfall-is-done-wolfenstein-is-1080p-on-/2300-6417439/ http://www.gamespot.com/reviews/world-of-tanks-xbox-360-edition-review/1900-6415682/ <p style="">Burly and menacing, tanks are an enticing tool for turning the tide in any pitched military conflict. There's also an undeniable coolness to them. Why drive around trees, walls, and foes when you can crash straight through them unscathed, right? Raw power and heavy guns are the primal ingredients that drive World of Tanks, an online multiplayer shooter that reimagines what mid-20th-century warfare might be like if it were fought solely with rolling metal doom machines. But even if you're titillated by the brute force of hammering explosive shells into your adversaries until they erupt in flame, it's the thoughtful emphasis on strategy and the unpredictability of every encounter that keep matches interesting over the long haul.</p><p style="">World of Tanks' 15-on-15 matches get off to a zippy start, spurring your battalion to spread out quickly across the map to destroy all of your opponents or capture their base before they nab yours. A diverse range of terrain layouts in each battlefield create natural choke points that speed you along toward the opening volleys of cannon fire, and once things get crazy, it's rare that a match bumps up against the 15-minute time limit before one side is declared the victor. This streamlined pacing helps counteract the sluggish nature of the many tanks you'll command. Sure, you might move along at a slow pace, but you're never very far from the action, and that's a great thing.</p><figure data-align="center" data-size="large" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/416/4161502/2445476-wot_capture_00501.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445476" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/416/4161502/2445476-wot_capture_00501.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445476"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_super/416/4161502/2445476-wot_capture_00501.jpg"></a><figcaption>World of Tanks isn't much of a looker, but that's OK: you're gonna blow everything up anyway.</figcaption></figure><p style="">Getting killed is serious business, however, since the annihilated tank is unavailable until the match is over. This prevents you from immediately using a tank that gets destroyed, which is a minor pain at times. The upside is that you're free to grab another available tank in your arsenal and dive into a different match in the meantime. It's a mechanic that gently pushed me to experiment with other tanks I was initially less interested in, broadening my armored horizons in the process.</p><p style="">The balance between simulation-level tank geekery and accessible arcade-style control is carefully tuned here. Each historical tank sports an authentic visual design, and everything from how tanks handle to the way taking damage impacts their performance is realistic enough to satisfy most serious enthusiasts. Get a tread blown off, and you're either hamstrung or immobilized, depending on the damage level. Take a direct hit from an armor-piercing round, and your gunner might get killed, leaving you prone and unable to fire. This unpredictability is refreshing and plays nicely into how tactics unfold. At the same time, it takes only a few minutes in the short tutorial to get a feel for maneuvering and firing. Swapping between a third-person view for short-range combat and a first-person, down-the-barrel perspective for long-range aiming is as speedy as it is seamless. With less to fiddle with on the control front, you have more room to focus and react when it counts.</p><figure data-align="right" data-size="medium" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/416/4161502/2445482-wot_capture_00104.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445482" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/416/4161502/2445482-wot_capture_00104.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445482"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_medium/416/4161502/2445482-wot_capture_00104.jpg"></a><figcaption>See?</figcaption></figure><p style="">Rather than being a chaotic free-for-all, World of Tanks takes a more deliberate, strategy-minded approach that favors tactical prowess over outright brazenness. Barreling headlong into the middle of a firefight with your cannons thundering--even in a more heavily armored tank--is a quick way to end up a pile of smoldering scrap. Instead, thoughtful planning prevails more often than not. Using the terrain to your advantage, you can hide behind bushes for camouflage, use hills and buildings to hamper incoming artillery, and position your tank at an angle to spread out incoming fire and increase your chances of survival.</p><p style="">Stealth is another important element that can boost the fun. Keep from being spotted, and you can skirt around just outside of the action and flank your foes for an ambush or make a beeline for their base when the path is clear. It works both ways, though, and scouting ahead and spot-marking enemies for your group to swoop in on is equally important.</p><p style="">All of this emphasis on thinking on the fly over outright reliance on twitch reflexes makes for slower-paced gameplay, which might not suit some players. But the strategic flexibility and large-scale team collaborations keep matches from stagnating--even when you're playing the same cycle of maps over and over again. World of Tanks can get repetitious until you open up more tanks and more territories to fight on. Fresh maps pop up at a reasonable pace, with new areas unlocking as you work your way up in rank. That said, expect to see lots of the same terrain over and over again for spells.</p><p style="">Thankfully, your fellow squadmates and their behaviors also ensure that few matches ever play out the same way. Using a headset is the simplest way to work alongside your team efficiently, though basic communication presets also let you issue orders to your teammates. Whether they follow them is another story. But it's a handy system and, like most areas of World of Tanks, it's easy to use.</p><blockquote data-align="center" data-size="large"><p style="">The balance between simulation-level tank geekery and accessible arcade-style control is carefully tuned here.</p></blockquote><p style="">The sheer tank variety and absorbing progression system ultimately trump some of World of Tanks' minor grindy moments. Spread out across three different countries, each with its own branching trees of vehicles and upgrades to unlock, the breadth of rolling thunder available is staggering. There's a huge assortment of light, medium, and heavy tanks that are also bolstered by a mix of tank killers and vehicles specializing in long-range artillery. Each looks and handles quite differently, and you can use experience and cash earned from your performance in battles to upgrade their firepower, maneuverability, and other critical stats.</p><p style="">Unlocking all that World of Tanks has to offer is a slow but satisfying pursuit that helps to cement long-term interest in diving back into the fray. You start with a single tank from each country, and a limited number of bays to add new vehicles to your fleet. Aside from a few special tanks that cost a bit of real-world coin and pack a mighty powerful punch as a result, you can eventually access everything without spending a cent. If you do feel inclined to drop a little actual green to buy power-ups, tanks, and other perks, the good news is that a little money goes a fairly long way, provided you don't want to get immediate access to everything.</p><figure data-align="left" data-size="small" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/416/4161502/2445483-wot_capture_00101.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445483" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/416/4161502/2445483-wot_capture_00101.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445483"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_small/416/4161502/2445483-wot_capture_00101.jpg"></a><figcaption>Ready... set... roll!</figcaption></figure><p style="">Match structuring and tank types help provide necessary balance, keeping things from devolving into a pay-to-win situation. Even among the higher tiers of tanks at your disposal, the strengths and weaknesses of each vehicle keep any single player from being too superpowered. The way matches are populated by a range of vehicles from different ranks within a range of similar tiers further keeps battles from being too one-sided. It's not so much the size of your tank, as it is how well you use it and how cohesive your team is.</p><p style="">World of Tanks has some room to grow until it mirrors the heavily updated PC version, but the smooth transition to the Xbox 360 is off to a great start, offering tons of tanks and a strong online player base to dive into. The strategic large-scale tank battles pair with a deep progression system to give everything a greater purpose and deliver a real winning combo.</p> Thu, 27 Feb 2014 15:21:00 -0800 http://www.gamespot.com/reviews/world-of-tanks-xbox-360-edition-review/1900-6415682/ http://www.gamespot.com/videos/pilotwings-megabit/2300-6417440/ Peter takes us back to the glory days of Super Nintendo to show off his pilot skills in Pilotwings! Thu, 27 Feb 2014 15:16:00 -0800 http://www.gamespot.com/videos/pilotwings-megabit/2300-6417440/ http://www.gamespot.com/articles/castlevania-lords-of-shadow-2-the-story-so-far/1100-6418010/ <p style="">It's understandable some folks are unaware that <a href="/castlevania-lords-of-shadow-2/" data-ref-id="false">Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2</a> is the third and final chapter of a trilogy, what with it having a "2" instead of a "3" in the title. In fact, <a href="/castlevania-lords-of-shadow-mirror-of-fate/" data-ref-id="false">Castlevania: Lords of Shadow - Mirror of Fate</a> for the 3DS (also ported to the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 as <a href="/castlevania-lords-of-shadow-mirror-of-fate/" data-ref-id="false">Mirror of Fate HD</a>) is the true second chapter, and there are a handful of events from it that play into the plot of Lords of Shadow 2.</p><p style="">So, for anyone who has missed or forgotten the events of the first two games in the saga, consider this handy guide your one-stop shop for all things story related the <a href="/castlevania-lords-of-shadow/" data-ref-id="false">Lords of Shadow </a>series.</p><h2><b>Spoiler Warning!</b></h2><p style="">Reading this will completely spoil the best parts of the first two Lords of Shadow games' plots. Proceed only if you're willing to accept the risks therein!</p><h3><b>Castlevania: Lords of Shadow</b></h3><p style="">It's the year 1047, and the end of days is near. The holy Brotherhood of Light, defenders of good and opponents to the forces of evil, are on the brink of failure. The wicked Lords of Shadow have severed the channel connecting heaven and earth. Darkness, in all its forms, floods the land.</p><figure data-align="left" data-size="medium" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1406/14063904/2445525-1697299castlevania_lords_of_shadow_gabriel_belmont.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445525" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1406/14063904/2445525-1697299castlevania_lords_of_shadow_gabriel_belmont.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445525"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_medium/1406/14063904/2445525-1697299castlevania_lords_of_shadow_gabriel_belmont.jpg"></a></figure><p style="">A formidable brother of light, Gabriel Belmont, may hold the key to Earth's salvation. The spirit of his recently deceased wife, Marie, who fell at the hand of evil, idles in limbo. Neither dead nor alive, and painfully aware of the crisis at hand, Marie reaches out to Gabriel from beyond with the promise of a solution to right humanity's plight.</p><p style="">Gabriel heads for the Lake of Oblivion, where the living can communicate with the dead if deemed worthy by its guardian, Pan. There, Gabriel meets Zobek, a founding member of the Brotherhood of Light, before conferring with Marie's spirit. The Lords of Shadow, who possess immense power and a fragment of a life-giving artifact, the God Mask, must be defeated, not only to restore peace on Earth, but also to revive Marie.</p><p style="">Gabriel and Zobek set out on their own in search of the Lords of Shadow, and it isn't long before Gabriel finds himself in the land of lycans. He encounters Cornell, a powerful lycan lord, who bestows key info upon Gabriel: the three founders of the Brotherhood of Light, including Cornell's former self, are the reason the Lords of Shadow exist at all. When the good part of their spirits ascended to the heavens long ago, their dark remnants ultimately transformed into the Lords of Shadow. Despite the separation between good and evil, the death of a Lord of Shadow also applies to his counterpart in heaven. Undeterred, Gabriel slays Cornell and collects the first part of the God Mask. He then travels to the land of vampires, defeating the second dark lord, Carmilla, before heading to the land of the dead for the final showdown with the lord of the dead.</p><p style="">The lord of the dead commands three powerful necromancers, two of which are ultimately defeated by Gabriel before he confronts his third target. Gabriel prevails, and acquires the final piece of the God Mask, but something isn't right. He has not killed the true lord of the dead, but instead, he has killed the third necromancer in disguise. Zobek, it turns out, is the true lord of the dead. Long ago, he conferred with Satan, displeased with the fact that the power of darkness had to be shared among the other Lords of Shadow. Satan gave Zobek the Devil Mask and the power to sever the line between heaven and earth.</p><figure data-align="right" data-size="medium" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1406/14063904/2445534-godmask.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445534" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1406/14063904/2445534-godmask.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445534"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_medium/1406/14063904/2445534-godmask.jpg"></a></figure><p style="">Zobek set that plan into motion and used the Devil Mask to manipulate Gabriel into murdering his own wife. Marie had discovered Zobek's true identity, and by getting Gabriel to kill Marie, Zobek secured his secret identity, while also motivating Gabriel to defeat the other lords while in search of the God Mask. Before Zobek gets the final say, Satan appears and wrenches the mask from Zobek. In a twist of fate, Satan reveals that he was only using Zobek to acquire the God Mask in hopes of usurping heaven's throne. With his new target in sight, Gabriel confronts Satan, and ultimately wins, regaining control of the God Mask and freeing the souls trapped in limbo, including Marie. Before she departs, she explains that the God Mask only allows the owner to see through the eyes of God; Gabriel can't use it to bring her back to life.</p><h3><b>Lords of Shadow: Reverie and Resurrection Downloadable Content</b></h3><p style="">After Marie passes on, Gabriel is contacted by Laura, a girl he met while in the land of vampires. She informs Gabriel that the Forgotten One, an ancient evil, has awoken during the turmoil between heaven and hell and is attempting to use the chaos to his advantage. To get to him, Gabriel must take on the darkness that fills Laura. In this moment, she offers him her blood, and he accepts it, taking on her immortality and starting down the path toward his current identity: Dracula.</p><h3><strong>Lords of Shadow - Mirror of Fate</strong></h3><p style="">The story fast-forwards generations. Simon, son of Trevor and grandson of Gabriel, is on Dracula's trail after the slaying of his mother. Along the way, Simon recovers his father's sacred weapon, the combat cross, which was lost during his own attempt to slay Dracula, years ago. Simon arrives at Dracula's throne, combat cross in hand, before the game takes a step back in time.</p><p style="">The next chapter opens on the vampire Alucard, rising from his tomb. Unsure of the events leading up to his new form, he looks into the mirror of fate. In it, he sees the one responsible for turning him into a vampire: Dracula. He travels to Dracula's castle and encounters Simon, never partnering with him, but twice saving him from sudden death nonetheless. Alucard eventually arrives at Dracula's throne just in time to interrupt Simon's arrival. Again, the game takes a step back, this time to Trevor Belmont, Simon's father.</p><figure data-align="center" data-size="large" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1406/14063904/2445541-alucard.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445541" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1406/14063904/2445541-alucard.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445541"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_super/1406/14063904/2445541-alucard.jpg"></a></figure><p style="">Trevor, with a wife and a newborn Simon to protect from the forces of evil, sets out to destroy Dracula, knowing full well that he's also killing his father in the process. The two meet, and Trevor loses. Before he ultimately passes on, he tells Dracula, formerly his father, Gabriel, that he is his secret son. Marie had kept him a secret from Gabriel, having learned of his destiny to become the evil lord he is today. Hearing this, Dracula has a change of heart. Before Trevor's life fades, he attempts to turn him into a vampire. Having seemingly failed to do so, he buries Trevor.</p><p style="">Next, we see Dracula standing over his son's tomb. However, the grave marker doesn't read Trevor. Instead, it's marked for Alucard, the inverse of Dracula's own name. Having witnessed Alucard's rise from the grave earlier in the game, we know that Dracula was more successful than he realized.</p><p style="">The game returns to where it left Simon and his father, Alucard, standing before Dracula in his throne room. The two take on Dracula and defeat him (as much as you can defeat an immortal), but the lord escapes before his castle begins to collapse. Simon escapes to the mountains where he witnesses his family's unfortunate legacy crumble before his eyes. Alucard seeks out the remaining fragments of his former weapon, the combat cross, and escapes with it before the ruined castle overcomes him.</p><p style="">Thus ends our guide to the history of Dracula, Alucard, and the Belmont family, leading up to the events in Lords of Shadow 2. There are a lot of revelations to keep track of, and this trend continues through to the end of the saga's third and final chapter.</p><p style="">What will ultimately become of the two immortal Belmonts? Don't ask. I don't want to spoil it!</p> Thu, 27 Feb 2014 15:06:00 -0800 http://www.gamespot.com/articles/castlevania-lords-of-shadow-2-the-story-so-far/1100-6418010/ http://www.gamespot.com/videos/starwhal-just-the-tip-highlights-multiple-players/2300-6417438/ Get some pro Tips from the GameSpot crew in this weeks Multiple Players highlights. Watch more highlights at Multiple Players at www.gamespot.com/shows/multiple-players Thu, 27 Feb 2014 14:36:00 -0800 http://www.gamespot.com/videos/starwhal-just-the-tip-highlights-multiple-players/2300-6417438/ http://www.gamespot.com/articles/gta-4-gets-flappy-bird-mod/1100-6418011/ <figure data-align="center" data-size="large" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1179/11799911/2445549-flappygta.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445549" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1179/11799911/2445549-flappygta.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445549"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_super/1179/11799911/2445549-flappygta.jpg"></a></figure><p style=""> </p><p dir="ltr" style="">It was bound to happen eventually. A new mod has brought the worlds of Flappy Bird and Grand Theft Auto together at last and the results are incredible. YouTube user "taltigolt" published a video today highlighting the creation of modders "julionib" and "quechus13," wherein the rules of Flappy Bird are applied to <a href="/grand-theft-auto-iv/" data-ref-id="false">Grand Theft Auto IV</a>.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">In the video, we see GTAIV protagonist Niko Bellic wearing a Flappy Bird-style mask and flying through the world, hitting pedestrians on the head to earn points. Running into objects like telephone poles means you die, and your score starts back at zero.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">The original Flappy Bird--which was removed from app stores worldwide by its creator this month because it was "<a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/flappy-bird-creator-explains-why-he-killed-the-world-s-most-popular-app/1100-6417651/" data-ref-id="1100-6417651">too addictive</a>"--was known to be ludicrously difficult. And this GTAIV mod keeps that spirit alive. Though the conditions are obviously different, hitting pedestrians on the head is no easy task, as they are always on the move, whereas Flappy Bird's green pipes never moved an inch.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">The mod will be <a href="http://gtaxscripting.blogspot.com/" rel="nofollow" data-ref-id="false">released publicly this weekend via its creator's blog</a>.</p><div data-embed-type="video" data-src="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eeShWU9_Eco" data-width="100%" data-height="100%"><iframe src="//cdn.embedly.com/widgets/media.html?src=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fembed%2FeeShWU9_Eco%3Fwmode%3Dopaque%26feature%3Doembed&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DeeShWU9_Eco&image=http%3A%2F%2Fi1.ytimg.com%2Fvi%2FeeShWU9_Eco%2Fhqdefault.jpg&key=6efca6e5ad9640f180f14146a0bc1392&type=text%2Fhtml&schema=youtube&wmode=opaque" width="100%" height="100%" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen mozallowfullscreen allowFullScreen></iframe></div><p dir="ltr" style=""> </p><p style=""> </p> Thu, 27 Feb 2014 13:31:00 -0800 http://www.gamespot.com/articles/gta-4-gets-flappy-bird-mod/1100-6418011/ http://www.gamespot.com/articles/pokemon-movies-and-tv-shows-coming-to-netflix-this-week/1100-6418009/ <figure data-align="center" data-size="large" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1179/11799911/2445507-pokemontv.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445507" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1179/11799911/2445507-pokemontv.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445507"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_super/1179/11799911/2445507-pokemontv.jpg"></a></figure><p style=""> </p><p dir="ltr" style="">What do Walter White, Frank Underwood, and Pikachu have in common? Soon you'll be able to watch all three via Netflix Instant streaming. The Pokémon Company today announced today that hours' worth of Pokémon movies and TV shows will be available for streaming on Netflix starting this Saturday, March 1.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">Here's a breakdown of the Pokemon content available via Netflix streaming beginning on Saturday.</p><p dir="ltr" style=""><ins><strong>TV shows:</strong></ins></p><ul><li dir="ltr">Pokémon: Indigo League (US, Canada, UK, and Ireland only)</li><li dir="ltr">Pokémon: Black and White (worldwide)</li></ul><p dir="ltr" style=""><ins><strong>Movies (available worldwide):</strong></ins></p><ul><li dir="ltr">Pokémon the Movie: Black - Victini and Reshiram</li><li dir="ltr">Pokémon the Movie: White - Victini and Zekrom</li></ul><p style="">A <a href="http://dvd.netflix.com/Search?v1=pokemon&ac_abs_posn=-1&fcld=true&ac_rel_posn=-1&ac_category_type=none&raw_query=pokemon" rel="nofollow" data-ref-id="false">limited offering of Pokemon media </a>is already available through Netflix's standard by-mail DVD service, but the new content is the first to be available via streaming. Of course, you'll need a Netflix streaming subscription ($8/month) to enjoy the content.</p><div data-embed-type="video" data-ref-id="2300-6415368" data-width="100%" data-height="100%"><iframe src="/videos/embed/6415368/" width="100%" height="100%" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen mozallowfullscreen allowFullScreen></iframe></div><table data-max-width="true"><thead><tr><th scope="col"><em>Eddie Makuch is a news editor at GameSpot, and you can follow him on<a href="https://twitter.com/EddieMakuch" rel="nofollow" data-ref-id="false"> Twitter @EddieMakuch</a></em></th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td><strong><em>Got a news tip or want to contact us directly? Email <a href="mailto:news@gamespot.com" rel="nofollow">news@gamespot.com</a><br /></em></strong></td></tr></tbody></table> Thu, 27 Feb 2014 12:35:00 -0800 http://www.gamespot.com/articles/pokemon-movies-and-tv-shows-coming-to-netflix-this-week/1100-6418009/ http://www.gamespot.com/articles/bioshock-infinite-dlc-gets-super-difficult-1998-mode/1100-6418007/ <figure data-align="center" data-size="large" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1179/11799911/2445498-1998.png" data-ref-id="1300-2445498" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1179/11799911/2445498-1998.png" data-ref-id="1300-2445498"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_super/1179/11799911/2445498-1998.png"></a></figure><p style=""> </p><p dir="ltr" style="">Following a positive fan reaction to <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/videos/bioshock-infinite-1999-mode-unclouded/2300-6406481/" data-ref-id="2300-6406481">BioShock Infinite's 1999 Mode</a>, developer Irrational Games announced today that an even more challenging "1998 Mode" will be offered for upcoming expansion Burial at Sea - Episode 2, which launches for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 on March 25.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">"In Burial at Sea--Episode Two we put a focus on balance and stealth mechanics," Irrational Games creative director Ken Levine said in a statement. "As we were developing this new style of gameplay, we started to see people self-impose non-lethal playthroughs. Given the fan reception of 1999 Mode, we thought it would be cool to give them another way to play Burial at Sea that challenged their mastery of stealth tools."</p><p dir="ltr" style="">The 1999 Mode, as you can see in the image above, is inspired by the stealth series Thief (which originally launched in 1998) and challenges players to complete the content without killing anyone.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">Burial at Sea - Episode 2 is set in the <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/bioshock/" data-ref-id="false">original BioShock</a>'s underwater city of Rapture and puts players into the shoes of Elizabeth. It follows Burial at Sea - Episode 2, which <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/reviews/bioshock-infinite-burial-at-sea-episode-one-review/1900-6415528/" data-ref-id="1900-6415528">GameSpot scored a 5/10</a>, with reviewer Kevin VanOrd saying: "Burial at Sea seems a prime example of the tail wagging the dog, and the result is an adventure with fantastic sights and sounds that don't come together in a meaningful way."</p><p style="">Last week, Levine surprised many when he announced that Irrational Games was "<a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/bioshock-creator-irrational-games-is-shutting-down/1100-6417821/" data-ref-id="1100-6417821">winding down</a>," meaning all but 15 staffers had lost their jobs. Levine is working on a "smaller, more entrepreneurial" project for Take-Two with those remaining at the company.</p><div data-embed-type="video" data-ref-id="2300-6417315" data-width="100%" data-height="100%"><iframe src="/videos/embed/6417315/" width="100%" height="100%" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen mozallowfullscreen allowFullScreen></iframe></div><table data-max-width="true"><thead><tr><th scope="col"><em>Eddie Makuch is a news editor at GameSpot, and you can follow him on<a href="https://twitter.com/EddieMakuch" rel="nofollow" data-ref-id="false"> Twitter @EddieMakuch</a></em></th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td><strong><em>Got a news tip or want to contact us directly? Email <a href="mailto:news@gamespot.com" rel="nofollow">news@gamespot.com</a><br /></em></strong></td></tr></tbody></table> Thu, 27 Feb 2014 12:03:00 -0800 http://www.gamespot.com/articles/bioshock-infinite-dlc-gets-super-difficult-1998-mode/1100-6418007/ http://www.gamespot.com/videos/gta-diaries-steal-one-of-everything/2300-6417428/ Seb and Cam race to find out who the better thief is in Grand Theft Auto V. Steal everything on the list and drop it off the pier, and you can call yourself a winner. Thu, 27 Feb 2014 12:00:00 -0800 http://www.gamespot.com/videos/gta-diaries-steal-one-of-everything/2300-6417428/ http://www.gamespot.com/articles/gta-5-getting-new-cars-and-guns-next-week/1100-6418005/ <figure data-align="center" data-size="large" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1179/11799911/2445451-business.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445451" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1179/11799911/2445451-business.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445451"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_super/1179/11799911/2445451-business.jpg"></a></figure><p style=""> </p><p dir="ltr" style="">Rockstar Games today announced that the next major free update for Grand Theft Auto Online, the multiplayer mode for <a href="/grand-theft-auto-v/" data-ref-id="false">Grand Theft Auto V</a>, will launch next week and bring with it a host of new downloadable content.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">The Business Update, as Rockstar is calling it, will arrive on Tuesday, March 4 on Xbox Live and the PlayStation Network. The update will introduce new sports cars like the Albany Alpha, Dinka Jester, and Grotti Turismo R; a new airplane called Vestra will also be available.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">Grand Theft Auto Online's Business Update will also introduce two new weapons: the Heavy Pistol and the Special Carbine.</p><figure data-align="left" data-size="medium" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1179/11799911/2445453-vestra.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445453" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1179/11799911/2445453-vestra.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445453"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_medium/1179/11799911/2445453-vestra.jpg"></a><figcaption>The Vestra</figcaption></figure><p dir="ltr" style=""> </p><p dir="ltr" style="">The Business Update also brings with it new formal and business casual attire like suit jackets, slacks, glasses, heels, and blouses. "All-business" hairstyles and money-themed tattoos, alongside new masks, will also be available.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">All new vehicles and weapons from the Business Update will be available to players in both Story Mode and Grand Theft Auto Online. In Story Mode, the weapons will show up in your inventory and the three cars will be available in your garage. For Grand Theft Auto Online, the weapons can be purchased at any Ammu-Nation store while the cars can be bought from Legendary Motorsport and Elitas.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">Finally, Rockstar said it will share further details about a special Business Update weekend event in the near future. The developer also teased that it will soon have news to share regarding Online Heists, the Capture Creator update, new Assassination and Flight School missions, and "much more."</p><p dir="ltr" style="">The "much more" could be referencing the <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/gtav-story-dlc-coming-in-2014/1100-6416619/" data-ref-id="1100-6416619">story mode DLC currently in development for Grand Theft Auto V</a>. Rockstar Games announced this content in December, teasing that upcoming expansions for the game will launch in 2014 and continue the story of Michael, Franklin, and Trevor. l</p><p style="">Predecessor <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/grand-theft-auto-iv/">Grand Theft Auto IV</a> welcomed two post-release expansions: The Lost and the Damned and The Ballad of Gay Tony.</p><div data-embed-type="video" data-ref-id="2300-6415547" data-width="100%" data-height="100%"><iframe src="/videos/embed/6415547/" width="100%" height="100%" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen mozallowfullscreen allowFullScreen></iframe></div><table data-max-width="true"><thead><tr><th scope="col"><em>Eddie Makuch is a news editor at GameSpot, and you can follow him on<a href="https://twitter.com/EddieMakuch" rel="nofollow" data-ref-id="false"> Twitter @EddieMakuch</a></em></th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td><strong><em>Got a news tip or want to contact us directly? Email <a href="mailto:news@gamespot.com" rel="nofollow">news@gamespot.com</a><br /></em></strong></td></tr></tbody></table> Thu, 27 Feb 2014 10:52:00 -0800 http://www.gamespot.com/articles/gta-5-getting-new-cars-and-guns-next-week/1100-6418005/
http://auth.gamespot.com/ Gamespot's Everything Feed! News, Reviews, Videos. Exploding with content? You bet. en-us Thu, 27 Feb 2014 21:26:53 -0800 http://www.gamespot.com/articles/dayz-early-access-review/1100-6417979/ <p style=""> </p><p style=""><em>GameSpot's early access reviews evaluate unfinished games that are nonetheless available for purchase by the public. While the games in question are not considered finished by their creators, you may still devote money, time, and bandwidth for the privilege of playing them before they are complete. The review below critiques a work in progress, and represents a snapshot of the game at the time of the review's publication.</em></p><p style="">DayZ claims to be a zombie game, and it's true that you can occasionally find the undead scuttling about like drunken ravers looking for double high fives. If you have a weapon, you can slice them up like so much sushi, or you can try to outrun them in a high-stakes match of cross-country racing. (That's usually the smarter approach.) But they're about as common as smiles in <a href="/dark-souls/" data-ref-id="false">Dark Souls</a> right now, and oddly enough, this works in DayZ's favor. In fact, DayZ's emptiness renders it about as close to a video game version of Cormac McCarthy's <em>The Road</em> as there's ever been, because the current emphasis is on interactions with people rather than with putrefied riffraff, though sometimes I think I wouldn't mind if the former were taken out altogether.</p><p style="">In this frightening, desolate landscape, your goal is simply to stay alive by scavenging for food and weapons, finding proper shelter, and fending off anyone who threatens your survival. There's no easy way to orient yourself if you've forgotten <a href="/arma-ii/" data-ref-id="false">Arma II</a>'s fiddly control scheme; mMere seconds after my first spawn into the world, I found my poorly customizable avatar being slapped around by a zombie, and he died an undistinguished death around 30 seconds later while I dug around in the escape menu reacquainting myself with generally nonstandard button maps for pulling out weapons and hitting things with them. DayZ lets you use a controller if you wish, but it's even more cumbersome and not worth the effort.</p><div data-embed-type="video" data-ref-id="2300-6417105" data-width="100%" data-height="100%"><iframe src="/videos/embed/6417105/" width="100%" height="100%" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen mozallowfullscreen allowFullScreen></iframe></div><p style="">Later spawns dumped me in the middle of broad fields near the coast that led to crimson barns, towering construction cranes, and deserted buildings. The colors and textures for the post-Soviet nation of Chernarus are far richer here than they were in the original Arma II mod, and the derelict beauty serves as a nice contrast to the dangers it conceals. New, too, is the ability to enter almost every building and rummage for weapons, food, and the occasional antibiotics. No music distracts you from the desolation, and the sound design manages to evoke the fear that every creek of sheet metal might be death on the way. Chancing upon a town can be terrifying; for all the promise in those once-cozy homes and their picketed yards, there's a chance they'll deliver deaths that you never see coming.</p><p style="">DayZ works so well as a survival sim because it puts few barriers between you and the world around you. Gone are the tidy health and stamina bars that sneak into the corners of similar first-person games; instead, DayZ gnaws at your confidence with little nags like "My stomach grumbles" or "I feel like having a drink." And then there are the messages you never want to see, such as "I feel nauseous" or "I can feel warm blood on my clothes." There's a system behind all this--get shot, and you slowly lose blood unless you bandage it--but the numbers stay hidden.</p><figure data-align="right" data-size="medium" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/mig/3/7/5/1/1983751-676539_20120801_002.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-1983751" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/mig/3/7/5/1/1983751-676539_20120801_002.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-1983751"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_medium/mig/3/7/5/1/1983751-676539_20120801_002.jpg"></a></figure><p style="">DayZ wisely reserves its menus for essentials like its inventory, which now sports a drag-and-drop option in an improvement over the mod. The inventory itself expands greatly once you discover items with pockets like knapsacks and hoodies, thus delivering some of the satisfaction the discovery of these items would likely yield in real life. Bohemia Interactive knows it has made a game that's chiefly about foraging, and it usually gets the experience right.</p><p style="">Zombies number so few that it's possible to go half an hour without seeing one, and when you do, there's a good chance you'll see it running through doors or even vanishing under the terrain. The low population lends an air of reality to DayZ; many games feature zombie populations more suited to New York City than to cozy rural villages. The sparse undead populace is just as well, given that dealing with them is rarely a rewarding endeavor. Zombies tend to rush you from hundreds of yards away the moment you enter their line of sight, and shooting at them with the laughably few guns available only attracts more.</p><p style="">But it's not really the zombies you have to worry about. They're stupid things, usually killable with a hefty axe blow if you happen to have an axe on you. (Provided, that is, that the axe doesn't bug out and fail to make contact.) It's the other players who instill the most fear. Sometimes you come across a nice one, and a sense of camaraderie emerges as you scrounge through buildings and take out the undead together. Most of the time, however, they're out to kill you. Some play nice at first, and then lead you into ambushes where unseen snipers shoot you down. Still others may trick you into coming near, and then try to bury an axe in your face because they like the look of your hoodie and want it for themselves. Attempting to hide from and survive against humans with actual intelligence elevates DayZ to new heights of tension and unpredictability.</p><figure data-align="left" data-size="medium" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/mig/3/7/5/3/1983753-676539_20120801_004.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-1983753" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/mig/3/7/5/3/1983753-676539_20120801_004.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-1983753"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_medium/mig/3/7/5/3/1983753-676539_20120801_004.jpg"></a></figure><p style="">I suspect most of those players are bored. DayZ presents some memorable moments in its current state, and when you do find people who are willing to work and survive with you, you could create bonds so deep that your friendship might carry over into the real world. But DayZ loses its edge many hours in. You learn the tricks of finding new gear and weapons, and you learn which towns to avoid and which to ransack. Each respawn leaves you more experienced and thus stronger, and that confidence seems to encourage a desire to harass the newer players and loot their pitiful belongings. By the time you've put in around 20 hours, you know the secrets to crafting and making bandages out of old T-shirts. You're a survivor.</p><p style="">You're a survivor, that is, with no job but to survive. That's the appeal of the alpha; since there are no objectives--and thus no hope--your only option is to keep surviving until death inevitably overtakes you. It's bleak, yes, but in many ways, it delivers a sense of realism you don't get in many zombie games (or open worlds in general, for that matter). Given time, there's a truly great and memorable experience waiting to be explored, one that will come into its own with new and better weapons and more interactive elements such as vehicles. But as Bohemia makes so clear from the moment you boot up DayZ, this is an alpha. It's incomplete, and it shows. Yet Chernarus is well on its way to growing into the clothes that the developer has stitched for it, and if you feel you've got the steely will necessary to survive, DayZ is ready to test it. </p><table data-max-width="true"><tbody><tr><td><p style=""><strong>What's There?</strong></p></td><td><b><i>A vast, explorable (but seriously unfinished) Eastern European map that captures the experience of living in a postapocalyptic zombieland.</i></b></td></tr><tr><td><p style=""><strong>What's to Come?</strong></p></td><td><b><i>More zombies, animals for hunting, greater variety of gathering opportunities, cooking, better server architecture.</i></b></td></tr><tr><td><p style=""><strong>What Does it Cost?</strong></p></td><td><b><i>DayZ costs $29.99 on <a href="http://store.steampowered.com/app/221100/" rel="nofollow" data-ref-id="false">Steam</a>, although the developers discourage paying for it unless you are "prepared to handle with serious issues and possible interruptions of game functioning." And, yes, these things exist.</i></b></td></tr><tr><td><p style=""><strong>When Will it Be Finished?</strong></p></td><td><b><i>There's currently no concrete release date, and Bohemia Interactive has repeatedly spoken of DayZ as a work in progress.</i></b></td></tr><tr><td><p style=""><strong>What's the Verdict?</strong></p></td><td><p style=""><b><i>DayZ oozes with potential, though some elements are either bugged, unfinished, or unimplemented. That said, it delivers uncommonly appealing survival experiences and risky player interactions that lend credibility to its pretty environments. It'll probably be great, but for the time being, it requires uncommon patience.</i></b></p><p style=""> </p></td></tr></tbody></table> Thu, 27 Feb 2014 19:37:00 -0800 http://www.gamespot.com/articles/dayz-early-access-review/1100-6417979/ http://www.gamespot.com/articles/official-minecraft-movie-coming-from-warner-bros/1100-6418014/ <figure data-align="center" data-size="large" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/gamespot/images/2011/331/reviews/1827132-606524_20111128_001.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-1827132" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/gamespot/images/2011/331/reviews/1827132-606524_20111128_001.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-1827132"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_super/gamespot/images/2011/331/reviews/1827132-606524_20111128_001.jpg"></a></figure><p style="">Looks like Warner Bros has been tapped to be working on a potential Minecraft movie. Creator Markus "Notch" Persson revealed the news on Twitter earlier today.</p><p style="">According to <a href="https://twitter.com/notch/status/439164234099073024" rel="nofollow" data-ref-id="false">Notch's post on Twitter</a>, an individual attempted to pre-emptively leak the news. The Minecraft creator followed up with, "I wanted to be the leak!"</p><p style="">The crowdfunding campaign for a Minecraft-inspired full-length feature film was <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/minecraft-inspired-movie-shut-down/1100-6417633/" data-ref-id="1100-6417633">recently shut down</a>. Developer Mojang's <a href="https://account.mojang.com/documents/minecraft_eula" rel="nofollow">End User License Agreement (EULA) for Minecraft</a> specifies that users cannot "make commercial use of anything we've made" or "try to make money from anything we've made."</p><p style="">A <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/minecraft-documentary-premiering-on-xbox-live/1100-6401694/" data-ref-id="1100-6401694">documentary chronicling the development of Minecraft was produced by 2 Player Productions and released in December 2012</a>. Other Minecraft licensing deals have included arrangements for various clothing, accessories, and toys.</p><div data-embed-type="video" data-ref-id="2300-6406805" data-width="100%" data-height="100%"><iframe src="/videos/embed/6406805/" width="100%" height="100%" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen mozallowfullscreen allowFullScreen></iframe></div><p style=""> </p> Thu, 27 Feb 2014 19:32:00 -0800 http://www.gamespot.com/articles/official-minecraft-movie-coming-from-warner-bros/1100-6418014/ http://www.gamespot.com/videos/dayz-early-access-video-review/2300-6417447/ Even though its still in early stages, the DayZ alpha is still a gut-wrenching test of your survival skills. Thu, 27 Feb 2014 18:52:00 -0800 http://www.gamespot.com/videos/dayz-early-access-video-review/2300-6417447/ http://www.gamespot.com/videos/castlevania-lords-of-shadow-2-graphics-comparison/2300-6417446/ Lords of Shadow 2 looks great on PC. Here's a quick graphical comparison pinning the PS3 console version against it's PC counterpart. Just in case you can't decide which version you want. Thu, 27 Feb 2014 18:27:00 -0800 http://www.gamespot.com/videos/castlevania-lords-of-shadow-2-graphics-comparison/2300-6417446/ http://www.gamespot.com/videos/far-cry-3-highlights-the-shaun-method/2300-6417441/ Shaun shows off his skills in setting traps, shark hunting, and marksmanship in this highlight reel of Far Cry 3 on The Shaun Method. Thu, 27 Feb 2014 16:11:00 -0800 http://www.gamespot.com/videos/far-cry-3-highlights-the-shaun-method/2300-6417441/ http://www.gamespot.com/videos/gs-news-titanfall-is-done-wolfenstein-is-1080p-on-/2300-6417439/ Titanfall goes gold, new free games on PlayStation Plus, and can Wolfenstein bring peace to the raging PS4 and Xbox One console war? Thu, 27 Feb 2014 16:00:00 -0800 http://www.gamespot.com/videos/gs-news-titanfall-is-done-wolfenstein-is-1080p-on-/2300-6417439/ http://www.gamespot.com/reviews/world-of-tanks-xbox-360-edition-review/1900-6415682/ <p style="">Burly and menacing, tanks are an enticing tool for turning the tide in any pitched military conflict. There's also an undeniable coolness to them. Why drive around trees, walls, and foes when you can crash straight through them unscathed, right? Raw power and heavy guns are the primal ingredients that drive World of Tanks, an online multiplayer shooter that reimagines what mid-20th-century warfare might be like if it were fought solely with rolling metal doom machines. But even if you're titillated by the brute force of hammering explosive shells into your adversaries until they erupt in flame, it's the thoughtful emphasis on strategy and the unpredictability of every encounter that keep matches interesting over the long haul.</p><p style="">World of Tanks' 15-on-15 matches get off to a zippy start, spurring your battalion to spread out quickly across the map to destroy all of your opponents or capture their base before they nab yours. A diverse range of terrain layouts in each battlefield create natural choke points that speed you along toward the opening volleys of cannon fire, and once things get crazy, it's rare that a match bumps up against the 15-minute time limit before one side is declared the victor. This streamlined pacing helps counteract the sluggish nature of the many tanks you'll command. Sure, you might move along at a slow pace, but you're never very far from the action, and that's a great thing.</p><figure data-align="center" data-size="large" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/416/4161502/2445476-wot_capture_00501.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445476" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/416/4161502/2445476-wot_capture_00501.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445476"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_super/416/4161502/2445476-wot_capture_00501.jpg"></a><figcaption>World of Tanks isn't much of a looker, but that's OK: you're gonna blow everything up anyway.</figcaption></figure><p style="">Getting killed is serious business, however, since the annihilated tank is unavailable until the match is over. This prevents you from immediately using a tank that gets destroyed, which is a minor pain at times. The upside is that you're free to grab another available tank in your arsenal and dive into a different match in the meantime. It's a mechanic that gently pushed me to experiment with other tanks I was initially less interested in, broadening my armored horizons in the process.</p><p style="">The balance between simulation-level tank geekery and accessible arcade-style control is carefully tuned here. Each historical tank sports an authentic visual design, and everything from how tanks handle to the way taking damage impacts their performance is realistic enough to satisfy most serious enthusiasts. Get a tread blown off, and you're either hamstrung or immobilized, depending on the damage level. Take a direct hit from an armor-piercing round, and your gunner might get killed, leaving you prone and unable to fire. This unpredictability is refreshing and plays nicely into how tactics unfold. At the same time, it takes only a few minutes in the short tutorial to get a feel for maneuvering and firing. Swapping between a third-person view for short-range combat and a first-person, down-the-barrel perspective for long-range aiming is as speedy as it is seamless. With less to fiddle with on the control front, you have more room to focus and react when it counts.</p><figure data-align="right" data-size="medium" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/416/4161502/2445482-wot_capture_00104.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445482" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/416/4161502/2445482-wot_capture_00104.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445482"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_medium/416/4161502/2445482-wot_capture_00104.jpg"></a><figcaption>See?</figcaption></figure><p style="">Rather than being a chaotic free-for-all, World of Tanks takes a more deliberate, strategy-minded approach that favors tactical prowess over outright brazenness. Barreling headlong into the middle of a firefight with your cannons thundering--even in a more heavily armored tank--is a quick way to end up a pile of smoldering scrap. Instead, thoughtful planning prevails more often than not. Using the terrain to your advantage, you can hide behind bushes for camouflage, use hills and buildings to hamper incoming artillery, and position your tank at an angle to spread out incoming fire and increase your chances of survival.</p><p style="">Stealth is another important element that can boost the fun. Keep from being spotted, and you can skirt around just outside of the action and flank your foes for an ambush or make a beeline for their base when the path is clear. It works both ways, though, and scouting ahead and spot-marking enemies for your group to swoop in on is equally important.</p><p style="">All of this emphasis on thinking on the fly over outright reliance on twitch reflexes makes for slower-paced gameplay, which might not suit some players. But the strategic flexibility and large-scale team collaborations keep matches from stagnating--even when you're playing the same cycle of maps over and over again. World of Tanks can get repetitious until you open up more tanks and more territories to fight on. Fresh maps pop up at a reasonable pace, with new areas unlocking as you work your way up in rank. That said, expect to see lots of the same terrain over and over again for spells.</p><p style="">Thankfully, your fellow squadmates and their behaviors also ensure that few matches ever play out the same way. Using a headset is the simplest way to work alongside your team efficiently, though basic communication presets also let you issue orders to your teammates. Whether they follow them is another story. But it's a handy system and, like most areas of World of Tanks, it's easy to use.</p><blockquote data-align="center" data-size="large"><p style="">The balance between simulation-level tank geekery and accessible arcade-style control is carefully tuned here.</p></blockquote><p style="">The sheer tank variety and absorbing progression system ultimately trump some of World of Tanks' minor grindy moments. Spread out across three different countries, each with its own branching trees of vehicles and upgrades to unlock, the breadth of rolling thunder available is staggering. There's a huge assortment of light, medium, and heavy tanks that are also bolstered by a mix of tank killers and vehicles specializing in long-range artillery. Each looks and handles quite differently, and you can use experience and cash earned from your performance in battles to upgrade their firepower, maneuverability, and other critical stats.</p><p style="">Unlocking all that World of Tanks has to offer is a slow but satisfying pursuit that helps to cement long-term interest in diving back into the fray. You start with a single tank from each country, and a limited number of bays to add new vehicles to your fleet. Aside from a few special tanks that cost a bit of real-world coin and pack a mighty powerful punch as a result, you can eventually access everything without spending a cent. If you do feel inclined to drop a little actual green to buy power-ups, tanks, and other perks, the good news is that a little money goes a fairly long way, provided you don't want to get immediate access to everything.</p><figure data-align="left" data-size="small" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/416/4161502/2445483-wot_capture_00101.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445483" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/416/4161502/2445483-wot_capture_00101.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445483"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_small/416/4161502/2445483-wot_capture_00101.jpg"></a><figcaption>Ready... set... roll!</figcaption></figure><p style="">Match structuring and tank types help provide necessary balance, keeping things from devolving into a pay-to-win situation. Even among the higher tiers of tanks at your disposal, the strengths and weaknesses of each vehicle keep any single player from being too superpowered. The way matches are populated by a range of vehicles from different ranks within a range of similar tiers further keeps battles from being too one-sided. It's not so much the size of your tank, as it is how well you use it and how cohesive your team is.</p><p style="">World of Tanks has some room to grow until it mirrors the heavily updated PC version, but the smooth transition to the Xbox 360 is off to a great start, offering tons of tanks and a strong online player base to dive into. The strategic large-scale tank battles pair with a deep progression system to give everything a greater purpose and deliver a real winning combo.</p> Thu, 27 Feb 2014 15:21:00 -0800 http://www.gamespot.com/reviews/world-of-tanks-xbox-360-edition-review/1900-6415682/ http://www.gamespot.com/videos/pilotwings-megabit/2300-6417440/ Peter takes us back to the glory days of Super Nintendo to show off his pilot skills in Pilotwings! Thu, 27 Feb 2014 15:16:00 -0800 http://www.gamespot.com/videos/pilotwings-megabit/2300-6417440/ http://www.gamespot.com/articles/castlevania-lords-of-shadow-2-the-story-so-far/1100-6418010/ <p style="">It's understandable some folks are unaware that <a href="/castlevania-lords-of-shadow-2/" data-ref-id="false">Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2</a> is the third and final chapter of a trilogy, what with it having a "2" instead of a "3" in the title. In fact, <a href="/castlevania-lords-of-shadow-mirror-of-fate/" data-ref-id="false">Castlevania: Lords of Shadow - Mirror of Fate</a> for the 3DS (also ported to the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 as <a href="/castlevania-lords-of-shadow-mirror-of-fate/" data-ref-id="false">Mirror of Fate HD</a>) is the true second chapter, and there are a handful of events from it that play into the plot of Lords of Shadow 2.</p><p style="">So, for anyone who has missed or forgotten the events of the first two games in the saga, consider this handy guide your one-stop shop for all things story related the <a href="/castlevania-lords-of-shadow/" data-ref-id="false">Lords of Shadow </a>series.</p><h2><b>Spoiler Warning!</b></h2><p style="">Reading this will completely spoil the best parts of the first two Lords of Shadow games' plots. Proceed only if you're willing to accept the risks therein!</p><h3><b>Castlevania: Lords of Shadow</b></h3><p style="">It's the year 1047, and the end of days is near. The holy Brotherhood of Light, defenders of good and opponents to the forces of evil, are on the brink of failure. The wicked Lords of Shadow have severed the channel connecting heaven and earth. Darkness, in all its forms, floods the land.</p><figure data-align="left" data-size="medium" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1406/14063904/2445525-1697299castlevania_lords_of_shadow_gabriel_belmont.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445525" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1406/14063904/2445525-1697299castlevania_lords_of_shadow_gabriel_belmont.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445525"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_medium/1406/14063904/2445525-1697299castlevania_lords_of_shadow_gabriel_belmont.jpg"></a></figure><p style="">A formidable brother of light, Gabriel Belmont, may hold the key to Earth's salvation. The spirit of his recently deceased wife, Marie, who fell at the hand of evil, idles in limbo. Neither dead nor alive, and painfully aware of the crisis at hand, Marie reaches out to Gabriel from beyond with the promise of a solution to right humanity's plight.</p><p style="">Gabriel heads for the Lake of Oblivion, where the living can communicate with the dead if deemed worthy by its guardian, Pan. There, Gabriel meets Zobek, a founding member of the Brotherhood of Light, before conferring with Marie's spirit. The Lords of Shadow, who possess immense power and a fragment of a life-giving artifact, the God Mask, must be defeated, not only to restore peace on Earth, but also to revive Marie.</p><p style="">Gabriel and Zobek set out on their own in search of the Lords of Shadow, and it isn't long before Gabriel finds himself in the land of lycans. He encounters Cornell, a powerful lycan lord, who bestows key info upon Gabriel: the three founders of the Brotherhood of Light, including Cornell's former self, are the reason the Lords of Shadow exist at all. When the good part of their spirits ascended to the heavens long ago, their dark remnants ultimately transformed into the Lords of Shadow. Despite the separation between good and evil, the death of a Lord of Shadow also applies to his counterpart in heaven. Undeterred, Gabriel slays Cornell and collects the first part of the God Mask. He then travels to the land of vampires, defeating the second dark lord, Carmilla, before heading to the land of the dead for the final showdown with the lord of the dead.</p><p style="">The lord of the dead commands three powerful necromancers, two of which are ultimately defeated by Gabriel before he confronts his third target. Gabriel prevails, and acquires the final piece of the God Mask, but something isn't right. He has not killed the true lord of the dead, but instead, he has killed the third necromancer in disguise. Zobek, it turns out, is the true lord of the dead. Long ago, he conferred with Satan, displeased with the fact that the power of darkness had to be shared among the other Lords of Shadow. Satan gave Zobek the Devil Mask and the power to sever the line between heaven and earth.</p><figure data-align="right" data-size="medium" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1406/14063904/2445534-godmask.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445534" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1406/14063904/2445534-godmask.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445534"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_medium/1406/14063904/2445534-godmask.jpg"></a></figure><p style="">Zobek set that plan into motion and used the Devil Mask to manipulate Gabriel into murdering his own wife. Marie had discovered Zobek's true identity, and by getting Gabriel to kill Marie, Zobek secured his secret identity, while also motivating Gabriel to defeat the other lords while in search of the God Mask. Before Zobek gets the final say, Satan appears and wrenches the mask from Zobek. In a twist of fate, Satan reveals that he was only using Zobek to acquire the God Mask in hopes of usurping heaven's throne. With his new target in sight, Gabriel confronts Satan, and ultimately wins, regaining control of the God Mask and freeing the souls trapped in limbo, including Marie. Before she departs, she explains that the God Mask only allows the owner to see through the eyes of God; Gabriel can't use it to bring her back to life.</p><h3><b>Lords of Shadow: Reverie and Resurrection Downloadable Content</b></h3><p style="">After Marie passes on, Gabriel is contacted by Laura, a girl he met while in the land of vampires. She informs Gabriel that the Forgotten One, an ancient evil, has awoken during the turmoil between heaven and hell and is attempting to use the chaos to his advantage. To get to him, Gabriel must take on the darkness that fills Laura. In this moment, she offers him her blood, and he accepts it, taking on her immortality and starting down the path toward his current identity: Dracula.</p><h3><strong>Lords of Shadow - Mirror of Fate</strong></h3><p style="">The story fast-forwards generations. Simon, son of Trevor and grandson of Gabriel, is on Dracula's trail after the slaying of his mother. Along the way, Simon recovers his father's sacred weapon, the combat cross, which was lost during his own attempt to slay Dracula, years ago. Simon arrives at Dracula's throne, combat cross in hand, before the game takes a step back in time.</p><p style="">The next chapter opens on the vampire Alucard, rising from his tomb. Unsure of the events leading up to his new form, he looks into the mirror of fate. In it, he sees the one responsible for turning him into a vampire: Dracula. He travels to Dracula's castle and encounters Simon, never partnering with him, but twice saving him from sudden death nonetheless. Alucard eventually arrives at Dracula's throne just in time to interrupt Simon's arrival. Again, the game takes a step back, this time to Trevor Belmont, Simon's father.</p><figure data-align="center" data-size="large" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1406/14063904/2445541-alucard.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445541" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1406/14063904/2445541-alucard.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445541"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_super/1406/14063904/2445541-alucard.jpg"></a></figure><p style="">Trevor, with a wife and a newborn Simon to protect from the forces of evil, sets out to destroy Dracula, knowing full well that he's also killing his father in the process. The two meet, and Trevor loses. Before he ultimately passes on, he tells Dracula, formerly his father, Gabriel, that he is his secret son. Marie had kept him a secret from Gabriel, having learned of his destiny to become the evil lord he is today. Hearing this, Dracula has a change of heart. Before Trevor's life fades, he attempts to turn him into a vampire. Having seemingly failed to do so, he buries Trevor.</p><p style="">Next, we see Dracula standing over his son's tomb. However, the grave marker doesn't read Trevor. Instead, it's marked for Alucard, the inverse of Dracula's own name. Having witnessed Alucard's rise from the grave earlier in the game, we know that Dracula was more successful than he realized.</p><p style="">The game returns to where it left Simon and his father, Alucard, standing before Dracula in his throne room. The two take on Dracula and defeat him (as much as you can defeat an immortal), but the lord escapes before his castle begins to collapse. Simon escapes to the mountains where he witnesses his family's unfortunate legacy crumble before his eyes. Alucard seeks out the remaining fragments of his former weapon, the combat cross, and escapes with it before the ruined castle overcomes him.</p><p style="">Thus ends our guide to the history of Dracula, Alucard, and the Belmont family, leading up to the events in Lords of Shadow 2. There are a lot of revelations to keep track of, and this trend continues through to the end of the saga's third and final chapter.</p><p style="">What will ultimately become of the two immortal Belmonts? Don't ask. I don't want to spoil it!</p> Thu, 27 Feb 2014 15:06:00 -0800 http://www.gamespot.com/articles/castlevania-lords-of-shadow-2-the-story-so-far/1100-6418010/ http://www.gamespot.com/videos/starwhal-just-the-tip-highlights-multiple-players/2300-6417438/ Get some pro Tips from the GameSpot crew in this weeks Multiple Players highlights. Watch more highlights at Multiple Players at www.gamespot.com/shows/multiple-players Thu, 27 Feb 2014 14:36:00 -0800 http://www.gamespot.com/videos/starwhal-just-the-tip-highlights-multiple-players/2300-6417438/ http://www.gamespot.com/articles/gta-4-gets-flappy-bird-mod/1100-6418011/ <figure data-align="center" data-size="large" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1179/11799911/2445549-flappygta.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445549" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1179/11799911/2445549-flappygta.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445549"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_super/1179/11799911/2445549-flappygta.jpg"></a></figure><p style=""> </p><p dir="ltr" style="">It was bound to happen eventually. A new mod has brought the worlds of Flappy Bird and Grand Theft Auto together at last and the results are incredible. YouTube user "taltigolt" published a video today highlighting the creation of modders "julionib" and "quechus13," wherein the rules of Flappy Bird are applied to <a href="/grand-theft-auto-iv/" data-ref-id="false">Grand Theft Auto IV</a>.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">In the video, we see GTAIV protagonist Niko Bellic wearing a Flappy Bird-style mask and flying through the world, hitting pedestrians on the head to earn points. Running into objects like telephone poles means you die, and your score starts back at zero.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">The original Flappy Bird--which was removed from app stores worldwide by its creator this month because it was "<a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/flappy-bird-creator-explains-why-he-killed-the-world-s-most-popular-app/1100-6417651/" data-ref-id="1100-6417651">too addictive</a>"--was known to be ludicrously difficult. And this GTAIV mod keeps that spirit alive. Though the conditions are obviously different, hitting pedestrians on the head is no easy task, as they are always on the move, whereas Flappy Bird's green pipes never moved an inch.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">The mod will be <a href="http://gtaxscripting.blogspot.com/" rel="nofollow" data-ref-id="false">released publicly this weekend via its creator's blog</a>.</p><div data-embed-type="video" data-src="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eeShWU9_Eco" data-width="100%" data-height="100%"><iframe src="//cdn.embedly.com/widgets/media.html?src=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fembed%2FeeShWU9_Eco%3Fwmode%3Dopaque%26feature%3Doembed&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DeeShWU9_Eco&image=http%3A%2F%2Fi1.ytimg.com%2Fvi%2FeeShWU9_Eco%2Fhqdefault.jpg&key=6efca6e5ad9640f180f14146a0bc1392&type=text%2Fhtml&schema=youtube&wmode=opaque" width="100%" height="100%" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen mozallowfullscreen allowFullScreen></iframe></div><p dir="ltr" style=""> </p><p style=""> </p> Thu, 27 Feb 2014 13:31:00 -0800 http://www.gamespot.com/articles/gta-4-gets-flappy-bird-mod/1100-6418011/ http://www.gamespot.com/articles/pokemon-movies-and-tv-shows-coming-to-netflix-this-week/1100-6418009/ <figure data-align="center" data-size="large" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1179/11799911/2445507-pokemontv.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445507" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1179/11799911/2445507-pokemontv.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445507"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_super/1179/11799911/2445507-pokemontv.jpg"></a></figure><p style=""> </p><p dir="ltr" style="">What do Walter White, Frank Underwood, and Pikachu have in common? Soon you'll be able to watch all three via Netflix Instant streaming. The Pokémon Company today announced today that hours' worth of Pokémon movies and TV shows will be available for streaming on Netflix starting this Saturday, March 1.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">Here's a breakdown of the Pokemon content available via Netflix streaming beginning on Saturday.</p><p dir="ltr" style=""><ins><strong>TV shows:</strong></ins></p><ul><li dir="ltr">Pokémon: Indigo League (US, Canada, UK, and Ireland only)</li><li dir="ltr">Pokémon: Black and White (worldwide)</li></ul><p dir="ltr" style=""><ins><strong>Movies (available worldwide):</strong></ins></p><ul><li dir="ltr">Pokémon the Movie: Black - Victini and Reshiram</li><li dir="ltr">Pokémon the Movie: White - Victini and Zekrom</li></ul><p style="">A <a href="http://dvd.netflix.com/Search?v1=pokemon&ac_abs_posn=-1&fcld=true&ac_rel_posn=-1&ac_category_type=none&raw_query=pokemon" rel="nofollow" data-ref-id="false">limited offering of Pokemon media </a>is already available through Netflix's standard by-mail DVD service, but the new content is the first to be available via streaming. Of course, you'll need a Netflix streaming subscription ($8/month) to enjoy the content.</p><div data-embed-type="video" data-ref-id="2300-6415368" data-width="100%" data-height="100%"><iframe src="/videos/embed/6415368/" width="100%" height="100%" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen mozallowfullscreen allowFullScreen></iframe></div><table data-max-width="true"><thead><tr><th scope="col"><em>Eddie Makuch is a news editor at GameSpot, and you can follow him on<a href="https://twitter.com/EddieMakuch" rel="nofollow" data-ref-id="false"> Twitter @EddieMakuch</a></em></th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td><strong><em>Got a news tip or want to contact us directly? Email <a href="mailto:news@gamespot.com" rel="nofollow">news@gamespot.com</a><br /></em></strong></td></tr></tbody></table> Thu, 27 Feb 2014 12:35:00 -0800 http://www.gamespot.com/articles/pokemon-movies-and-tv-shows-coming-to-netflix-this-week/1100-6418009/ http://www.gamespot.com/articles/bioshock-infinite-dlc-gets-super-difficult-1998-mode/1100-6418007/ <figure data-align="center" data-size="large" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1179/11799911/2445498-1998.png" data-ref-id="1300-2445498" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1179/11799911/2445498-1998.png" data-ref-id="1300-2445498"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_super/1179/11799911/2445498-1998.png"></a></figure><p style=""> </p><p dir="ltr" style="">Following a positive fan reaction to <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/videos/bioshock-infinite-1999-mode-unclouded/2300-6406481/" data-ref-id="2300-6406481">BioShock Infinite's 1999 Mode</a>, developer Irrational Games announced today that an even more challenging "1998 Mode" will be offered for upcoming expansion Burial at Sea - Episode 2, which launches for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 on March 25.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">"In Burial at Sea--Episode Two we put a focus on balance and stealth mechanics," Irrational Games creative director Ken Levine said in a statement. "As we were developing this new style of gameplay, we started to see people self-impose non-lethal playthroughs. Given the fan reception of 1999 Mode, we thought it would be cool to give them another way to play Burial at Sea that challenged their mastery of stealth tools."</p><p dir="ltr" style="">The 1999 Mode, as you can see in the image above, is inspired by the stealth series Thief (which originally launched in 1998) and challenges players to complete the content without killing anyone.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">Burial at Sea - Episode 2 is set in the <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/bioshock/" data-ref-id="false">original BioShock</a>'s underwater city of Rapture and puts players into the shoes of Elizabeth. It follows Burial at Sea - Episode 2, which <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/reviews/bioshock-infinite-burial-at-sea-episode-one-review/1900-6415528/" data-ref-id="1900-6415528">GameSpot scored a 5/10</a>, with reviewer Kevin VanOrd saying: "Burial at Sea seems a prime example of the tail wagging the dog, and the result is an adventure with fantastic sights and sounds that don't come together in a meaningful way."</p><p style="">Last week, Levine surprised many when he announced that Irrational Games was "<a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/bioshock-creator-irrational-games-is-shutting-down/1100-6417821/" data-ref-id="1100-6417821">winding down</a>," meaning all but 15 staffers had lost their jobs. Levine is working on a "smaller, more entrepreneurial" project for Take-Two with those remaining at the company.</p><div data-embed-type="video" data-ref-id="2300-6417315" data-width="100%" data-height="100%"><iframe src="/videos/embed/6417315/" width="100%" height="100%" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen mozallowfullscreen allowFullScreen></iframe></div><table data-max-width="true"><thead><tr><th scope="col"><em>Eddie Makuch is a news editor at GameSpot, and you can follow him on<a href="https://twitter.com/EddieMakuch" rel="nofollow" data-ref-id="false"> Twitter @EddieMakuch</a></em></th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td><strong><em>Got a news tip or want to contact us directly? Email <a href="mailto:news@gamespot.com" rel="nofollow">news@gamespot.com</a><br /></em></strong></td></tr></tbody></table> Thu, 27 Feb 2014 12:03:00 -0800 http://www.gamespot.com/articles/bioshock-infinite-dlc-gets-super-difficult-1998-mode/1100-6418007/ http://www.gamespot.com/videos/gta-diaries-steal-one-of-everything/2300-6417428/ Seb and Cam race to find out who the better thief is in Grand Theft Auto V. Steal everything on the list and drop it off the pier, and you can call yourself a winner. Thu, 27 Feb 2014 12:00:00 -0800 http://www.gamespot.com/videos/gta-diaries-steal-one-of-everything/2300-6417428/ http://www.gamespot.com/articles/gta-5-getting-new-cars-and-guns-next-week/1100-6418005/ <figure data-align="center" data-size="large" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1179/11799911/2445451-business.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445451" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1179/11799911/2445451-business.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445451"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_super/1179/11799911/2445451-business.jpg"></a></figure><p style=""> </p><p dir="ltr" style="">Rockstar Games today announced that the next major free update for Grand Theft Auto Online, the multiplayer mode for <a href="/grand-theft-auto-v/" data-ref-id="false">Grand Theft Auto V</a>, will launch next week and bring with it a host of new downloadable content.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">The Business Update, as Rockstar is calling it, will arrive on Tuesday, March 4 on Xbox Live and the PlayStation Network. The update will introduce new sports cars like the Albany Alpha, Dinka Jester, and Grotti Turismo R; a new airplane called Vestra will also be available.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">Grand Theft Auto Online's Business Update will also introduce two new weapons: the Heavy Pistol and the Special Carbine.</p><figure data-align="left" data-size="medium" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1179/11799911/2445453-vestra.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445453" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1179/11799911/2445453-vestra.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2445453"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_medium/1179/11799911/2445453-vestra.jpg"></a><figcaption>The Vestra</figcaption></figure><p dir="ltr" style=""> </p><p dir="ltr" style="">The Business Update also brings with it new formal and business casual attire like suit jackets, slacks, glasses, heels, and blouses. "All-business" hairstyles and money-themed tattoos, alongside new masks, will also be available.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">All new vehicles and weapons from the Business Update will be available to players in both Story Mode and Grand Theft Auto Online. In Story Mode, the weapons will show up in your inventory and the three cars will be available in your garage. For Grand Theft Auto Online, the weapons can be purchased at any Ammu-Nation store while the cars can be bought from Legendary Motorsport and Elitas.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">Finally, Rockstar said it will share further details about a special Business Update weekend event in the near future. The developer also teased that it will soon have news to share regarding Online Heists, the Capture Creator update, new Assassination and Flight School missions, and "much more."</p><p dir="ltr" style="">The "much more" could be referencing the <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/gtav-story-dlc-coming-in-2014/1100-6416619/" data-ref-id="1100-6416619">story mode DLC currently in development for Grand Theft Auto V</a>. Rockstar Games announced this content in December, teasing that upcoming expansions for the game will launch in 2014 and continue the story of Michael, Franklin, and Trevor. l</p><p style="">Predecessor <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/grand-theft-auto-iv/">Grand Theft Auto IV</a> welcomed two post-release expansions: The Lost and the Damned and The Ballad of Gay Tony.</p><div data-embed-type="video" data-ref-id="2300-6415547" data-width="100%" data-height="100%"><iframe src="/videos/embed/6415547/" width="100%" height="100%" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen mozallowfullscreen allowFullScreen></iframe></div><table data-max-width="true"><thead><tr><th scope="col"><em>Eddie Makuch is a news editor at GameSpot, and you can follow him on<a href="https://twitter.com/EddieMakuch" rel="nofollow" data-ref-id="false"> Twitter @EddieMakuch</a></em></th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td><strong><em>Got a news tip or want to contact us directly? Email <a href="mailto:news@gamespot.com" rel="nofollow">news@gamespot.com</a><br /></em></strong></td></tr></tbody></table> Thu, 27 Feb 2014 10:52:00 -0800 http://www.gamespot.com/articles/gta-5-getting-new-cars-and-guns-next-week/1100-6418005/
