http://auth.gamespot.com/ Gamespot's Everything Feed! News, Reviews, Videos. Exploding with content? You bet. en-us Fri, 28 Mar 2014 23:01:05 -0700 http://www.gamespot.com/videos/castlevania-lords-of-shadow-2-revelations-skeleton/2300-6418049/ Watch Alucard tear through a horde of skeleton warriors in this gameplay clip for Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 - Revelations DLC. Fri, 28 Mar 2014 18:20:00 -0700 http://www.gamespot.com/videos/castlevania-lords-of-shadow-2-revelations-skeleton/2300-6418049/ http://www.gamespot.com/reviews/escape-goat-2-review/1900-6415715/ <p style="">There is no shortage of 2D puzzle games involving block manipulation, particularly on the PC, but it's rare to find one with as smooth a difficulty curve as Escape Goat 2. While we've seen the basics of the jumping, block-pushing, and switch-pressing here in other games, these elements come together in a package that's better than the sum of its parts.</p><p style="">The basic mechanics of Escape Goat 2 might not be novel, but the protagonist is. As a nameless purple goat, you traverse room after room of puzzles in an effort to escape the Stronghold of Toragos and rescue some sheep souls along the way. You're a special goat, if not a particularly special platforming star. Your abilities are limited to basic movement, a double jump, and a dash that can be performed both on the ground and in midair. This is all you need to push or break different types of blocks and hit a variety of switches, doing which gets you through some of the most basic puzzles in the game.</p><figure data-align="center" data-size="large" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/416/4161502/2490460-0001.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2490460" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/416/4161502/2490460-0001.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2490460"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_super/416/4161502/2490460-0001.jpg"></a><figcaption>A little fireball from that enemy is all you need. Just don't stand too close to the exploding boxes.</figcaption></figure><p style="">It would be unfair to say Escape Goat 2 is only about a goat, though. Much of the puzzle-solving weight is pulled by a magical mouse friend you can summon at the tap of a button. The mouse can crawl on walls, squeeze through tight spaces, stand on switches, distract enemies, and more, making it an invaluable companion throughout the game. On certain puzzles you can also collect items that give the mouse new abilities, including the ability to swap places with you or turn into an indestructible block. While the mouse can "die," it always comes right back to you, ready to be used again, so don't worry about protecting your friend's life.</p><p style="">Escape Goat 2 is smart about how it introduces you to each of these mechanics, easing you into each ability so you never feel overwhelmed. Each time the game wants to teach you something new, it does so with at least one simple puzzle devoted almost entirely to the new element alone. It's not until you feel comfortable with each individual piece of a potential puzzle that the game starts mixing mechanics together into something more complex.</p><blockquote data-size="large"><p style="">Much of the puzzle-solving weight is pulled by a magical mouse friend you can summon at the tap of a button. The mouse can crawl on walls, squeeze through tight spaces, stand on switches, distract enemies, and more, making it invaluable throughout the game.</p></blockquote><p style="">There is a smart pace to the game's natural progression, though branching paths on the level select screen also give you some freedom to vary things up yourself. No tool or mechanic is overused, and just when you might start thinking, "Not another puzzle like that last one, please," Escape Goat switches things up. Some puzzles are focused more on slow, methodical thinking. Others require you to be quick on your cloven hooves and have some decent platforming skills. You're not likely to be performing similar actions over and over again, which helps each of the game's more than 100 puzzles feel fresh.</p><figure data-align="right" data-size="medium" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/416/4161502/2490462-0002.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2490462" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/416/4161502/2490462-0002.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2490462"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_medium/416/4161502/2490462-0002.jpg"></a><figcaption>Wanna watch me squash a reaper under a block of ice?</figcaption></figure><p style="">Frustration sometimes arises in the same place it does for countless other puzzle games: in the middle of finding a solution. Occasionally you know exactly what to do to get to the goal, but a tap of the wrong button screws everything up. A quick restart option helps alleviate some of the pain, but you might find yourself wishing for a rewind option that would go back just a few seconds rather than a few minutes. Sometimes experimentation isn't as easy as you would like.</p><p style="">If you're looking for a more simple, almost relaxing puzzle experience, you can reach Escape Goat 2's end credits without breaking your brain too much, which will probably take only a couple of hours, if that. But if you stop there, you will likely have solved less than half of the puzzles in the game, and the other half are much more devious. Those puzzles take a lot more logic and speed to tackle, and there are many secret exits well hidden within select levels that take a while to find.</p><p style="">There's nothing especially unique about Escape Goat 2 aside from its protagonist, but it thrives due to its masterful execution of puzzles, simple controls, and a kind learning curve. Even some of the game's easier solutions make you feel smart for discovering them. The easier, mainline puzzle path may be over quickly, but if you're interested in finding every secret and solving even the most diabolical trials, you can milk a lot of fun out of this goat.</p> Fri, 28 Mar 2014 17:41:00 -0700 http://www.gamespot.com/reviews/escape-goat-2-review/1900-6415715/ http://www.gamespot.com/articles/the-elder-scrolls-online-live-stream-extravaganza/1100-6418605/ <table data-max-width="true"><tbody><tr><td>Welcome to GameSpot's live streaming Elder Scrolls Online spectacular! Kevin VanOrd is anxious to get his adventure going, so he thought he would invite all of you to join him. Congratulate him on his victories! Ridicule him for his defeats! Ask him anything about the game, online RPGs, or his preferred types of cheese! See below for live stream schedules, and bear in mind that broadcast times are subject to change. Thanks for joining!</td></tr></tbody></table><div data-embed-type="html"> </div><div data-embed-type="html"><object id="live_embed_player_flash" data="http://www.twitch.tv/widgets/live_embed_player.swf?channel=kevinvanord" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" height="454" width="744"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always" /><param name="allowNetworking" value="all" /><param name="movie" value="http://www.twitch.tv/widgets/live_embed_player.swf" /><param name="flashvars" value="hostname=www.twitch.tv&channel=kevinvanord&auto_play=true&start_volume=25" /></object></div><p style=""> </p><div data-embed-type="html"><iframe src="http://twitch.tv/kevinvanord/chat?popout=" height="250" width="744"></iframe></div><p style=""> </p><p style=""><em><strong>Schedule: </strong></em></p><p style="">Sunday, March 30, 10am-4pm PST/1pm-7pm EST</p><p style="">Monday, March 31, 5pm-8pm PST/8pm-11pm EST</p><p style="">Tuesday, April 1, 5pm-8pm PST/8pm-11pm EST</p><p style="">Thursday, April 3, 5pm-8pm PST/8pm-11pm EST</p><p style="">Saturday, April 5, 12pm-6pm PST/3pm-9pm EST</p><p style="">Sunday, April 6, 10am-4pm PST/1pm-7pm EST</p><p style="">Monday, April 7, 5pm-8pm PST/6pm-11pm EST</p> Fri, 28 Mar 2014 17:19:00 -0700 http://www.gamespot.com/articles/the-elder-scrolls-online-live-stream-extravaganza/1100-6418605/ http://www.gamespot.com/articles/edge-of-space-early-access-review/1100-6418590/ <p style=""><i>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.</i></p><p style=""><a href="/edge-of-space/" data-ref-id="false">Edge of Space</a> is a Kickstarter success built with the blessing of the team behind its inspiration, <a href="/terraria/" data-ref-id="false">Terraria</a>. The concept: build, create, and explore the nooks and crannies of a mysterious alien world. The game is rife with possibilities, but it's still got a long way to go before it comes close to realising them.</p><div data-embed-type="video" data-ref-id="2300-6404854" data-width="100%" data-height="100%"><iframe src="/videos/embed/6404854/" width="100%" height="100%" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen mozallowfullscreen allowFullScreen></iframe></div><p style=""> </p><p style="">Much like in Terraria and <a href="/starbound/" data-ref-id="false">Starbound</a>, which are the two games that Edge of Space will inevitably find itself being compared to, you create an avatar and set it loose into a destructible, harvestable 2D world. You're like a magpie with a laser pickaxe, scooping up anything and everything that looks shiny and turning your supplies into bigger, better items to help further explore the game's bizarre alien world. You also have a sweet jetpack.</p><p style="">Go where you please, and blast anything that looks nasty. Stumble upon a pocket of uranium? I'll have that. A few hunks of biomass? Cheers! Edge of Space isn't so much about digging out ore and rocks--although that's part of it--but establishing an outpost, securing new weapons and armour for your character, and then seeing how far down you can push without getting thoroughly distracted by whatever you discover along the way. Is it worth trying to craft a better gun, or is that the entrance to a new dungeon over there?</p><figure data-align="left" data-size="medium" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1493/14930800/2490437-gsuk-1_s001_s001_t001.mov.still001.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2490437" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1493/14930800/2490437-gsuk-1_s001_s001_t001.mov.still001.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2490437"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_medium/1493/14930800/2490437-gsuk-1_s001_s001_t001.mov.still001.jpg"></a><figcaption>One giant leap for a man with a sweet jetpack.</figcaption></figure><p style="">One of the nicest things in Edge of Space is its death system, which gives you the freedom to occasionally perish alongside a deterrent to discourage you from doing so. The way it works is that upon death, you respawn back at the nearest cryopod, a machine limited by the number of craftable rods you can keep it topped up with. It's a neat system.</p><p style="">The whole game is very much early days. My current character's hair colour is Test3, for instance, and it's those little things that stick out the most. There's usually a message on screen that says "Welcome!" in <i>Matrix</i>-inspired green, meant to serve as a status window for multiplayer games, but the word lingers there, awkwardly, when you're on your own. Welcome! Plenty of in-game text has yet to be written, and what's there is littered with silly mistakes. Edge of Space is stable and mostly playable, but it's Steam Early Access in the truest sense. The game is regularly being updated, though, with a recent patch overhauling much of the game at the cost of wiping previous saves.</p><p style="">The UI is another big challenge, coming across as a mix between a piece of Windows 95 clipart and a vintage Winamp skin. Items are shuffled between an inventory, a character screen, a crafting menu, and an easy-access bar that sits at the top of the screen, but all of these windows are fiddly, unpleasant to use, and poorly displayed. Managing your gargantuan collection of tchotchkes is also a challenge, which is a big problem in a game of this ilk.</p><p style="">The whole game is a bit bizarre, then, because on the one hand, Edge of Space is offering up this wonderful sci-fi conceit--go out there and explore an alien planet--but on the other hand, you find yourself forced deeper into the ground as opposed to upwards and outwards. One of the main features is that you can soar with a jetpack, yet the game is very much about going down and not up.</p><figure data-align="center" data-size="large" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1493/14930800/2490438-gsuk-1_s001_s001_t001.mov.still006.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2490438" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1493/14930800/2490438-gsuk-1_s001_s001_t001.mov.still006.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2490438"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_super/1493/14930800/2490438-gsuk-1_s001_s001_t001.mov.still006.jpg"></a><figcaption>The new tutorial, recently added, helps you get your bearings.</figcaption></figure><p style="">In trying to do so much, Edge of Space suffers from somewhat of an identity crisis, and often comes across as messy and incoherent. In the new tutorial sequence, bolted on in the latest patch, there's a lot of dialog written in that canny mix of violence-meets-bureaucracy that we saw in <a href="/portal/" data-ref-id="false">Portal</a>'s Aperture Science. Because that game was amazing, right? And one of the main selling points of Edge of Space is also that it features cyborg laser sharks strapped to rocket launchers, because, hey, that's really cool and totally wacky, right? Edge of Space has the potential to claim that whimsical story sci-fi aesthetic for its own, but right now it strikes me as a game built with bits and bobs from other, better influences, and when playing I'm consistently struck by the echoes of those sources.</p><p style="">Functionally, the game works. The crafting system is extensive and the world is huge. The mechanics are sound, and it's impossible to fault the amount of content available at this early stage. Yet it's not quite enough. The environments don't yet dazzle, so I'm left with no impetus to actually explore, build, and survive in this world. There's a lot going on, but it's a jumble that doesn't mesh together nicely, and I'm left feeling cold and disconnected because of it, awkwardly chipping away at a bunch of minerals because the game requires me to, not because I actually want to. What Edge of Space reminds me of the most is my old mathematics notepad from school, which I filled to the brim with a mishmash of random doodles with no logic or pattern.</p><blockquote data-align="right" data-size="medium"><p style="">The UI is another big challenge, coming across as a mix between a piece of Windows 95 clipart and a vintage Winamp skin.</p></blockquote><p style="">Multiplayer has recently been added to the game, and roaming around this world is certainly more palatable when you're with a partner. If you play your cards right, you can take on Omegatron, Edge of Space's first major boss and a robotic reimagining of Terraria's Skeletron. I didn't have too much trouble setting up a multiplayer game, but the process is fiddly, and since it requires a bit of technical know-how, it's definitely not for the fainthearted. The game is also a victim of its low-key status, and finding an active multiplayer server without organising it yourself with friends is a tricky task right now.</p><p style="">The spirit of Edge of Space is one of adventure, discovery, and creativity, but in its current state, the game feels like it's stuck in the shadows of other, better sandbox games. Much has been made about the game's similarities to Terraria, but the biggest problem Edge of Space faces is that it's yet to work out an identity of its own.</p><table data-max-width="true"><tbody><tr><td><p style=""><strong>What's There?</strong></p></td><td><strong><em>A huge planet, loads of monsters, and plenty of things to mine. There's a crafting system and a basic tutorial, and you can also begin to build your own station. The multiplayer mode is also starting to be implemented. </em></strong></td></tr><tr><td><p style=""><strong>What's to Come?</strong></p></td><td><em><strong>Numerous bug fixes, tweaks, and mechanics. Developer Handyman Games has also said that, when Edge of Space is finished, it would like to make a top-down shooter component that lets you travel through space.</strong></em></td></tr><tr><td><p style=""><strong>What Does it Cost?</strong></p></td><td><em><strong>$12.99 <a href="http://store.steampowered.com/app/238240/" rel="nofollow" data-ref-id="false">on Steam</a>.<br /></strong></em></td></tr><tr><td><p style=""><strong>When Will it Be Finished?</strong></p></td><td><em><strong>Edge of Space has no confirmed release date, and Handyman Studios has pledged that it will continue creating content even after the 1.0 release.</strong></em></td></tr><tr><td><p style=""><strong>What's the Verdict?</strong></p></td><td><p style=""><em><strong>Edge of Space is a game full of ambition, but it's rough around the edges in its current state. Only the keenest sandbox adventurers should consider applying right now.</strong></em></p><p style=""> </p></td></tr></tbody></table> Fri, 28 Mar 2014 17:02:00 -0700 http://www.gamespot.com/articles/edge-of-space-early-access-review/1100-6418590/ http://www.gamespot.com/articles/everything-you-need-to-know-about-facebook-buying-oculus-for-2-billion/1100-6418636/ <div data-embed-type="video" data-ref-id="2300-6417961" data-width="100%" data-height="100%"><iframe src="/videos/embed/6417961/" width="100%" height="100%" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen mozallowfullscreen allowFullScreen></iframe></div><p dir="ltr" style="">If Sony's <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/sony-announces-ps4-virtual-reality-initiative-project-morpheus/1100-6418391/" data-ref-id="1100-6418391">reveal of their own long-rumored VR headset</a> wasn't enough vindication of the virtual reality platform, Facebook brought it into the mainstream big leagues by<a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/facebook-buys-oculus-rift-company-in-a-massive-deal-worth-an-estimated-2-billion/1100-6418540/"> buying Oculus VR for $2 billion</a>. For context, <a href="http://www.cnet.com/news/facebook-buys-instagram-but-for-what/" rel="nofollow">Facebook bought Instagram for $1 billion</a>, and spent a whopping<a href="http://www.cnet.com/news/facebook-to-acquire-whatsapp-for-16b/" rel="nofollow"> $19 billion on WhatsApp</a>.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">The Facebook <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/some-deals-take-months-but-facebook-completed-its-purchase-of-oculus-vr-in-72-hours/1100-6418566/">acquisition of Oculus was finalized in just 72 hour</a>s, but the backlash was much more immediate. Oculus creator Palmer Luckey wrote a letter online <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/oculus-creator-explains-why-facebook-buyout-makes-sense/1100-6418544/">explaining why the deal makes sense for Oculus</a>, but:</p><ul><li dir="ltr"><a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/oculus-rift-kickstarter-backers-rage-against-facebook-sale/1100-6418553/">Kickstarter backers raged against the sale online and in the Oculus Kickstarter message area</a>.</li><li dir="ltr">Minecraft creator Notch <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/minecraft-developer-notch-cancels-oculus-vr-version-of-game-after-facebook-acquisition/1100-6418541/">cancelled the previously announced Oculus version of Minecraft</a>, calling Facebook "creepy." He explained his decision, and his <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/minecraft-creator-notch-on-why-he-doesn-t-like-faceboo%20k-in-the-wake-of-oculus-buyout/1100-6418547/">disdain for Facebook, in a longer letter on his website.</a></li><li dir="ltr">Cliff Blezinski called <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/cliff-bleszinski-calls-notch-a-pouty-kid-for-canceling-minecraft-vr/1100-6418579/">Notch a "pouty kid" for his knee-jerk reaction</a>.</li><li dir="ltr">And Notch responded that he is <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/minecraft-creator-responds-to-cliff-bleszinski-calling-him-a-pouty-kid/1100-6418609/">"a man driven by principles, not capitalism, so I guess I'll just have to get used to the occasional name calling."</a></li></ul><figure data-align="right" data-size="small" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1534/15343359/2491229-6666500559-24554.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2491229" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1534/15343359/2491229-6666500559-24554.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2491229"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_small/1534/15343359/2491229-6666500559-24554.jpg"></a></figure><p dir="ltr" style="">Oculus was <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/oculus-didn-t-expect-such-a-negative-reaction-to-facebook-deal/1100-6418626/">genuinely surprised by the negative reaction to the Facebook purchase,</a> and Lucky said that, "After [Notch] sees everything we are able to do, <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/some-deals-take-months-but-facebook-completed-its-purchase-of-oculus-vr-in-72-hours/1100-6418566/">I hope he will change his mind</a>." Luckey also <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/oculus-rift-creator-we-promise-we-won-t-change-following-facebook-buyout/1100-6418562/">answered questions directly on Reddit about the deal</a>:</p><ul><li dir="ltr">"You won't need to log into your Facebook account every time you wanna use the Oculus Rift."</li><li dir="ltr">There's going to be a lot of resources put into indie content, hiring more people, and making custom hardware instead of using "scraps of the mobile phone industry."</li><li dir="ltr">"A lot of people are upset, and I get that. If you feel the same way a year from now, I would be very surprised."</li><li dir="ltr">Zuckerberg won't control Ocululs. "This acquisition/partnership gives us more control of our destiny, not less!"</li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="">Here in the GameSpot office, editor Tom Mc Shea wrote about how the backlash was understandable, but that ultimately, "<a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/facebook-oculus-rift-and-the-kickstarter-backlash/1100-6418571/" data-ref-id="1100-6418571">We have learned a valuable lesson: Giving money on Kickstarter does not mean we have any say in a company's decisions.</a>" And Peter Brown explained why, even if you're truly excited by VR, <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/why-you-shouldn-t-worry-about-facebook-buying-oculus-rift/1100-6418545/">you shouldn't worry about Facebook buying Oculus.</a></p><p dir="ltr" style="">And you can be sure that there'll be even more big developments in the near future. Microsoft has<a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/microsoft-reportedly-pays-as-much-as-150-million-for-wearable-computing-assets/1100-6418628/" data-ref-id="1100-6418628"> rumblings of getting into VR in their own way</a>, and E3 is right around the corner with even more exciting announcements.</p><table data-max-width="true"><tbody><tr><td><p style=""><strong>Justin Haywald is a senior editor at GameSpot, and you can follow him on<a href="https://twitter.com/JustinHaywald" rel="nofollow"> Twitter @JustinHaywald</a>. Got a news tip or want to contact us directly? Email <a href="mailto:news@gamespot.com" rel="nofollow">news@gamespot.com</a></strong></p></td></tr></tbody></table> Fri, 28 Mar 2014 16:56:00 -0700 http://www.gamespot.com/articles/everything-you-need-to-know-about-facebook-buying-oculus-for-2-billion/1100-6418636/ http://www.gamespot.com/videos/gs-news-top-5-new-assassin-s-creed-ps4-memory-powe/2300-6418035/ We give you the lowdown on the Facebook buying Oculus drama, a super-powered Nvidia graphics card and the 100 games coming to PS4 in 2014! Fri, 28 Mar 2014 16:00:00 -0700 http://www.gamespot.com/videos/gs-news-top-5-new-assassin-s-creed-ps4-memory-powe/2300-6418035/ http://www.gamespot.com/reviews/castlevania-lords-of-shadows-2-revelations-review/1900-6415716/ <p style="">It took a while for Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 to find its footing, but once combat became more prevalent and the story took off in an unexpected direction, it finally came into its own. One of the most interesting aspects of the latter half was the appearance of Alucard, but he wasn't playable, and though he played a pivotal role in the overall plot, there were a lot of missing pieces to his story. This is where the new downloadable content, Revelations, comes in. You no longer have to imagine what Alucard was up to while his father searched for Satan's acolytes, and given his secretive nature, you may expect to find that the truth is more interesting than the main game let on.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">Sadly, this isn't the case. Alucard is effectively a secret errand boy, and though there's room for some interesting character development, you'll quickly discover that there's only a pittance of new information to be found. There's obvious room for surprising aberrations in the telling of Alucard's motivations, and with a title that's such a tease, it's reasonable to expect the unexpected. Alas, any high expectations you bring to Revelations will only increase your disappointment by the time the credits roll. There are moments that feel ripe for twists, or revelations as it were, but the game never makes the most of its potential, and there's almost nothing of value added to the preexisting tale.</p><div data-embed-type="video" data-ref-id="2300-6418049" data-width="854" data-height="480"><iframe src="/videos/embed/6418049/" width="100%" height="100%" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen mozallowfullscreen allowFullScreen></iframe></div><p dir="ltr" style="">Likewise, if you're hoping for more of the series' great combat, that too is in short supply. You're still working with the solid foundation established in the main game, which feels great when you get a chance to dive into battle, but such opportunities are few and far between. Alucard's timing and momentum give him a distinct feel compared to his father's whip and gauntlets, but it doesn't take long to adapt, however, and it's not until the final battle that you feel the need to master his repertoire. With so little combat to sink your teeth into, there's hardly an occasion where it's necessary to upgrade your skill set unless you're playing on a harder-than-normal difficulty setting.</p><blockquote data-align="left" data-size="medium"><p dir="ltr" style="">Likewise, if you're hoping for more of the series' great combat, that too is in short supply.</p></blockquote><p dir="ltr" style="">Outside of combat, you've got three new powers for exploring your environment and solving puzzles, and you have to familiarize yourself with them as quickly as possible to make much progress. Most of the puzzles require the use of at least two of your powers, but you occasionally need to juggle all three. This can be frustrating when Alucard's time reversal skill is involved, which allows you to fix architectural elements in disrepair. Given that its effect lasts for only a limited amount of time, you inevitably need to repeat every step along the way if you happen to fail at the last second. These puzzles also tend to have minimal tolerances for mistakes, causing a lot of repeat trips that weigh you down with their tedium. Puzzles aren't great by nature; they're great by design, and there's nary an example of great design in Revelations' puzzles. They simply exist and stand in your path, rarely challenging your intellect or problem-solving skills in a meaningful way.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">The vampire-hunting Belmont clan has endured myriad deaths, rebirths, and about-faces over the course of this three-game story, and their struggles elevated the series' once perfunctory narrative to something worth paying attention to. These twists, plus an array of haunting set pieces and an enjoyable combat system, were for the most part all you needed to enjoy these games in spite of their shortcomings. Though Revelations thankfully lacks the boring stealth sections of Lords of Shadow 2, it fails to deliver an interesting story, and with only a couple memorable fights amidst the meager helping of standard enemy encounters, there's almost no reason to get excited about playing as Alucard. It might be an interesting diversion if you can't tear yourself away from Castlevania, but if you come in with high expectations, you'll wonder why you ever felt the need to return to Dracula's castle in the first place.</p> Fri, 28 Mar 2014 15:47:00 -0700 http://www.gamespot.com/reviews/castlevania-lords-of-shadows-2-revelations-review/1900-6415716/ http://www.gamespot.com/articles/gamespot-at-pax-east-2014/1100-6418633/ <p style="">If you're attending PAX East in Boston on April 11-13, odds are you've already looked over the <a href="http://east.paxsite.com/schedule" rel="nofollow">packed schedule</a> and picked out some panels to attend. In case you missed them, GameSpot will be running two panels at the show this year, both on Saturday April 12, both in the Bumblebee Theatre.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">First up at 1:30pm is a special PAX East episode of <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/shows/the-lobby/">The Lobby</a>, where Chris Watters, Danny O'Dwyer, Peter Brown, Shaun McInnis and a number of special guests will be checking out some of the best games at the show, inviting those of you in the audience to ask questions, and giving away some sweet prizes.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">Then, at 9:00pm, our Demolish the Developers panel will afford you an opportunity to beat (or be beaten by) developers at their own games. Think you're good at <a href="/titanfall/" data-ref-id="false">Titanfall</a>, <a href="/hearthstone-heroes-of-warcraft/" data-ref-id="false">Hearthstone</a>, or <a href="/super-street-fighter-iv-arcade-edition/" data-ref-id="false">Ultra Street Fighter IV</a>? Come put your skills to the test against folks from Respawn, Blizzard, and Capcom respectively.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">For those of you in Boston on Friday April 11, we're planning to spend the evening at a bar somewhere with our friends from Giant Bomb. Be sure to follow <a href="https://twitter.com/gamespot" rel="nofollow" data-ref-id="false">@gamespot</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/giantbomb" rel="nofollow" data-ref-id="false">@giantbomb</a> on Twitter for details.</p><div data-embed-type="video" data-ref-id="2300-6417947" data-width="100%" data-height="100%"><iframe src="/videos/embed/6417947/" width="100%" height="100%" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen mozallowfullscreen allowFullScreen></iframe></div><p style=""><br /><br /><br /></p> Fri, 28 Mar 2014 15:44:00 -0700 http://www.gamespot.com/articles/gamespot-at-pax-east-2014/1100-6418633/ http://www.gamespot.com/videos/exploring-the-lands-in-age-of-wonders-iii/2300-6418046/ Ride your trusty stead and explore the unexplored in this gameplay clip from Age of Wonders 3. Fri, 28 Mar 2014 15:23:00 -0700 http://www.gamespot.com/videos/exploring-the-lands-in-age-of-wonders-iii/2300-6418046/ http://www.gamespot.com/articles/sherlock-holmes-crimes-punishments-a-new-kind-of-sherlock-holmes-game/1100-6418634/ <p style="">The character of Sherlock Holmes has a timeless appeal. Nowadays, we have many incarnations of the character to choose from. There's the original deerstalker-hat-wearing detective of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's novels. There's the modern-day New York City Holmes of <i>Elementary</i> and the modern-day London Holmes of <i>Sherlock.</i> And there's the Holmes of Frogwares' long-running series of games. The latest, Sherlock Holmes: Crimes & Punishments, represents a departure from the studio's earlier games; whereas those were somewhat traditional adventure games, this entry, according to associate producer Olga Ryzhko, is an investigation game in which you have the tremendous deductive abilities of Sherlock Holmes at your disposal. The goal is to make you feel like Sherlock Holmes. After all, why should Benedict Cumberbatch and Jonny Lee Miller get to have all the fun?</p><p style="">Crimes & Punishments will feature six individual murder cases, and in each case, you might guide Holmes to the right conclusion, pegging the true killer in the end, or, if you're not thorough in your investigations and rigorous in your logical reasoning, you could send an innocent person to the slammer. I was recently given a look at one of the game's cases, titled The Murder of Black Peter, and got a sense of how the focus on investigation will work, though not a sense of how it will actually feel.</p><div data-embed-type="video" data-ref-id="2300-6417039" data-width="100%" data-height="100%"><iframe src="/videos/embed/6417039/" width="100%" height="100%" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen mozallowfullscreen allowFullScreen></iframe></div><p style="">In a moment visually reminiscent of scenes from the BBC <i>Sherlock</i>, the game established Holmes' uncanny ability to pick up on details most people would miss and make conclusions based on them. Holmes and his assistant, Dr. Watson, were talking at 221B Baker Street when the sounds of someone climbing up the stairs were heard. Words like "clicking handcuffs" appeared in the air around Holmes as he listened to the person approach, and he deduced that it was Inspector Lestrade before the officer made his entrance.</p><p style="">Usually, though, it's up to you to draw conclusions from the things that Holmes notices. While questioning a woman about her recently murdered husband, Ryzhko demonstrated how you can closely examine people you interrogate, and how the details about them are automatically stored in Holmes' casebook. Will it be relevant in the end that Mrs. Carey was wearing gardening gloves and that she had recently been fiddling with a birdhouse? That will be up to you to determine.</p><p style="">Next, Ryzhko made her way to the nearby work shed in which Peter Carey had met his grisly demise. Standing outside the entrance, Ryzhko activated what she called "Sherlock Holmes vision," which enabled her to zoom in on some tiny scratches on the door and conclude that someone had tried to force it open. Entering the shed, Holmes was confronted with the sight of Carey's corpse pinned to a wall with a whaling harpoon. Here, Ryzhko closely examined a number of items--a tobacco pouch, a liquor bottle, and a knife lying in a pool of blood, with which Carey had attempted to defend himself.</p><figure data-align="left" data-size="medium" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1197/11970954/2385590-crimes%26punishments-14.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2385590" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1197/11970954/2385590-crimes%26punishments-14.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2385590"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_medium/1197/11970954/2385590-crimes%26punishments-14.jpg"></a><figcaption>"I accuse that man--of having an impressive beard!"</figcaption></figure><p style="">Ryzhko eventually skipped to the end of the case, when it was time for Holmes to piece together the facts and make his accusation. The screen showed a representation of the concepts floating around in Holmes' brain, and it was up to Ryzhko to link some of them together based on her own conclusions--for instance, was the person who killed Carey tremendously strong, or tremendously lucky, to have managed to impale him with a whaling harpoon? Ultimately, the conclusions she'd arrived at led Holmes to home in on a particular suspect, but it doesn't end there. You can also decide whether you want to inform the police of the suspected killer's identity, or, if you think the killer acted in self-defense or had other justifiable reasons for his or her actions, you can opt to let the suspect go free. Then, in a touch that seemed lifted from Telltale's <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/the-walking-dead-a-telltale-games-series/" data-ref-id="false">The Walking Dead</a>, you're presented with a screen that shows you what percentage of players reached the same conclusion that you did. You're also given the option to see the truth and discover if you got it right or wrong.</p><p style="">It's difficult to tell from a brief hands-off demo just how challenging and involving the gameplay of Crimes & Punishments might be. I love a good whodunit, but there are few things more frustrating than a poorly constructed one, and until I get to step into Holmes' shoes myself and take my time closely examining murder scenes, questioning suspects, and making deductions, whether or not these cases are worthy of the great Sherlock Holmes will remain a mystery. I look forward to solving it when the game is released later this year.</p> Fri, 28 Mar 2014 15:14:00 -0700 http://www.gamespot.com/articles/sherlock-holmes-crimes-punishments-a-new-kind-of-sherlock-holmes-game/1100-6418634/ http://www.gamespot.com/videos/playstation-plus-free-games-of-april/2300-6418045/ Tom walks us through the free games of April for PlayStation Plus users. Fri, 28 Mar 2014 14:25:00 -0700 http://www.gamespot.com/videos/playstation-plus-free-games-of-april/2300-6418045/ http://www.gamespot.com/articles/here-s-another-great-example-of-xbox-one-trolling/1100-6418631/ <div data-embed-type="video" data-src="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TRDdi96R5uY" data-width="100%" data-height="100%"><iframe src="//cdn.embedly.com/widgets/media.html?src=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fembed%2FTRDdi96R5uY%3Fwmode%3Dopaque%26feature%3Doembed&wmode=opaque&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DTRDdi96R5uY&image=http%3A%2F%2Fi1.ytimg.com%2Fvi%2FTRDdi96R5uY%2Fhqdefault.jpg&key=6efca6e5ad9640f180f14146a0bc1392&type=text%2Fhtml&schema=youtube" width="100%" height="100%" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen mozallowfullscreen allowFullScreen></iframe></div><p style=""> </p><p dir="ltr" style="">YouTuber "Master of Luck" is back with another video that demonstrates the trolling potential for the Xbox One. In his latest video (via <a href="http://kotaku.com/xbox-one-troll-tricks-people-into-using-skype-1553867478?utm_campaign=Socialflow_Kotaku_Facebook&utm_source=Kotaku_Facebook&utm_medium=Socialflow" rel="nofollow" data-ref-id="false">Kotaku</a>), he creates a gamertag called "Xbox Skypee" and then pesters other players in <a href="/call-of-duty-ghosts/" data-ref-id="false">Call of Duty: Ghosts</a> until they say his name. [<em>There's some profanity in the video</em>]</p><p dir="ltr" style="">When a player says "Xbox Skypee," Kinect thinks they want to launch Skype, but really it just interrupts their session, causing frustration. "Master of Luck" published a video back in January <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/xbox-one-trolling-looks-like-this/1100-6417043/" data-ref-id="1100-6417043">showing off a similar trolling move</a>, only he created a gamertag called "Xbox Sign Out," which proved even more troublesome.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">Of course, you can always unplug your Kinect or play with friends online in a private party chat to avoid the inconvenience--unless your friend is the troll. Then you're out of luck.</p><p style=""> </p><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></em></strong></td></tr></tbody></table> Fri, 28 Mar 2014 13:41:00 -0700 http://www.gamespot.com/articles/here-s-another-great-example-of-xbox-one-trolling/1100-6418631/ http://www.gamespot.com/articles/ea-s-origin-service-will-stop-selling-disc-based-games-next-week/1100-6418630/ <figure data-align="center" data-size="large" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1179/11799911/2491071-origin.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2491071" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1179/11799911/2491071-origin.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2491071"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_super/1179/11799911/2491071-origin.jpg"></a></figure><p style=""> </p><p dir="ltr" style="">Battlefield publisher Electronic Art's Origin marketplace will stop selling disc-based games starting April 4, the company <a href="https://www.origin.com/en-us/news/origin-is-all-digital" rel="nofollow" data-ref-id="false">announced today on its website</a>. Beginning one week from today, the Origin store will transition to an all-digital marketplace where it will only sell downloads for PC and Mac.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">EA said 99 percent of Origin users download their games, so this change won't affect them in any way. "But if you're that 1 percent who still desires a physical collection, we want to let you know that Origin won't be able to fulfill that need beginning April 4."</p><p dir="ltr" style="">"We'll still be here when you transition your gaming habits to the wonders of digital downloads," EA said. "Digital is fast and convenient. Origin's focus is to give gamers the best experience, and going all-digital will make that possible."</p><p style=""><em>Did you ever buy a physical product from Origin? Let us know in the comments below.</em></p><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></em></strong></td></tr></tbody></table> Fri, 28 Mar 2014 13:02:00 -0700 http://www.gamespot.com/articles/ea-s-origin-service-will-stop-selling-disc-based-games-next-week/1100-6418630/ http://www.gamespot.com/articles/microsoft-won-t-allow-xbox-one-pc-cross-platform-play-says-war-thunder-dev/1100-6418587/ <figure data-align="center" data-size="large" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1179/11799911/2489398-xboxsales.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2489398" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1179/11799911/2489398-xboxsales.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2489398"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_super/1179/11799911/2489398-xboxsales.jpg"></a></figure><p style="">[UPDATE] Following the publication of this story, a Microsoft representative provided GameSpot the following statement:</p><p style=""><em>"For developers interested in enabling cross-platform game play between Xbox One and PC, we work with them closely to meet their development needs and ensure a great user experience."</em></p><p style=""><strong><em>The original story is below.</em></strong></p><p dir="ltr" style="">The Xbox One is technically capable of supporting cross-platform play, but Microsoft is not currently allowing it, according to <a href="/war-thunder/" data-ref-id="false">War Thunder</a> developer Gaijin Entertainment CEO Anton Yudintsev.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">"Microsoft is not allowing cross-play completely; which means [War Thunder] cannot be on Xbox One," Yudintsev told GameSpot at GDC last week in San Francisco.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">Why would Microsoft block cross-platform play? According to Yudintsev, Microsoft needs to certify game servers as a means to ensure a "good experience" for all players. This isn't possible under the current circumstances, Yudintsev said.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">Xbox boss Phil Spencer said previously that cross-platform play between Xbox One and PC "<a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/microsoft-xbox-one-and-pc-cross-platform-play-makes-sense/1100-6415567/" data-ref-id="1100-6415567">makes sense</a>," teasing that he's "not allowed to leak things," suggesting this feature may actually be in the works. We've reached out to a Microsoft representative for a further comment.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">Cross-platform play is vital for a game like War Thunder because the install base of new consoles like the Xbox One and PS4 is too small for players to have an enjoyable experience, Yudintsev said.</p><figure data-align="center" data-size="large" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/mig/0/6/9/4/1990694-634977_20120814_003.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-1990694" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/mig/0/6/9/4/1990694-634977_20120814_003.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-1990694"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_super/mig/0/6/9/4/1990694-634977_20120814_003.jpg"></a></figure><p dir="ltr" style=""> </p><p style="">The PS4 version of War Thunder, available only in Europe right now, will support cross-play beginning as early as next month, Yudintsev said. The reason this feature has yet to go live comes down to an unspecified updating issue that Yudintsev said Sony engineers are working to fix right now.</p><p style="">As for why Gaijin Entertainment elected to side with Sony instead of Microsoft, Ydintsev said it's because Sony is significantly more accommodating to indie developers, specifically those who make free-to-play games.</p><p style="">"Sony is much more open to indie developers and free-to-play games in general. So Sony has been in the free-to-play market for a few years already, they started on the PlayStation 3," Yudintsev said. "Not only that, but Microsoft has a lot of unspoken limitations like if you want to make a free-to-play game you have to talk to an account manager and there are no set of rules; you need to communicate them; and the rule depends on the [individual account manager]. If he likes your game you get approval, if he doesn't you don't get approval."</p><blockquote data-align="right"><p style="">"Sony is much more open to indie developers and free-to-play games in general" -- Yudintsev</p></blockquote><p style="">Yudintsev said one individual Microsoft account manager decides your game's fate. This person is the only who says "This game is good, this game is bad," Yudintsev said.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">"I don't think it's a correct assumption that anyone can be the one who can choose which game is good and which is bad because each game is for a specific audience," he said.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">Yudintsev said <a href="/minecraft/" data-ref-id="false">Minecraft</a> is a good example of the faults in Microsoft's indie program. "It's a very fun game, a lot of people play it, and nowadays everyone understands it's a very good game. But it would not be happening [first] on Xbox Live."</p><p dir="ltr" style="">"When it was released it was strange...it had very, let's say, specific graphics and not much of the gameplay," Yudintsev said, referencing the game's alpha release. "It suddenly became very popular and after that it appears on Xbox 360 as well. But it could not happen the other way. There's no way, I am pretty sure, that Microsoft would ever approve that game to be on Xbox Live Arcade <em>before</em> it became popular on the PC."</p><p dir="ltr" style="">Yudintsev stressed that Microsoft's policies for indie games are beginning to change for the better with the arrival of the ID@Xbox program. But he made clear that Microsoft still has a ways to go to catch up to Sony.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">"[Microsoft] has to change and they will change," Yudintsev said. "They key is that they understand the necessesity of change, so they will. We'll see. I hope we will be [on Xbox One] some day as well. I have nothing against the platform itself especially because I'm not one of those guys who worries about which is better [Xbox One or PS4]. I don't care. It's just the hardware. At the end of the day it's only about the quality of the game and the gameplay experience."</p><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></em></strong></td></tr></tbody></table> Fri, 28 Mar 2014 12:30:00 -0700 http://www.gamespot.com/articles/microsoft-won-t-allow-xbox-one-pc-cross-platform-play-says-war-thunder-dev/1100-6418587/ http://www.gamespot.com/videos/feedbackula-final-farewell-furore/2300-6418038/ Johnny sends Feedbackula off into the long night. Also, bees. Fri, 28 Mar 2014 12:00:00 -0700 http://www.gamespot.com/videos/feedbackula-final-farewell-furore/2300-6418038/
http://auth.gamespot.com/ Gamespot's Everything Feed! News, Reviews, Videos. Exploding with content? You bet. en-us Fri, 28 Mar 2014 23:01:05 -0700 http://www.gamespot.com/videos/castlevania-lords-of-shadow-2-revelations-skeleton/2300-6418049/ Watch Alucard tear through a horde of skeleton warriors in this gameplay clip for Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 - Revelations DLC. Fri, 28 Mar 2014 18:20:00 -0700 http://www.gamespot.com/videos/castlevania-lords-of-shadow-2-revelations-skeleton/2300-6418049/ http://www.gamespot.com/reviews/escape-goat-2-review/1900-6415715/ <p style="">There is no shortage of 2D puzzle games involving block manipulation, particularly on the PC, but it's rare to find one with as smooth a difficulty curve as Escape Goat 2. While we've seen the basics of the jumping, block-pushing, and switch-pressing here in other games, these elements come together in a package that's better than the sum of its parts.</p><p style="">The basic mechanics of Escape Goat 2 might not be novel, but the protagonist is. As a nameless purple goat, you traverse room after room of puzzles in an effort to escape the Stronghold of Toragos and rescue some sheep souls along the way. You're a special goat, if not a particularly special platforming star. Your abilities are limited to basic movement, a double jump, and a dash that can be performed both on the ground and in midair. This is all you need to push or break different types of blocks and hit a variety of switches, doing which gets you through some of the most basic puzzles in the game.</p><figure data-align="center" data-size="large" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/416/4161502/2490460-0001.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2490460" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/416/4161502/2490460-0001.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2490460"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_super/416/4161502/2490460-0001.jpg"></a><figcaption>A little fireball from that enemy is all you need. Just don't stand too close to the exploding boxes.</figcaption></figure><p style="">It would be unfair to say Escape Goat 2 is only about a goat, though. Much of the puzzle-solving weight is pulled by a magical mouse friend you can summon at the tap of a button. The mouse can crawl on walls, squeeze through tight spaces, stand on switches, distract enemies, and more, making it an invaluable companion throughout the game. On certain puzzles you can also collect items that give the mouse new abilities, including the ability to swap places with you or turn into an indestructible block. While the mouse can "die," it always comes right back to you, ready to be used again, so don't worry about protecting your friend's life.</p><p style="">Escape Goat 2 is smart about how it introduces you to each of these mechanics, easing you into each ability so you never feel overwhelmed. Each time the game wants to teach you something new, it does so with at least one simple puzzle devoted almost entirely to the new element alone. It's not until you feel comfortable with each individual piece of a potential puzzle that the game starts mixing mechanics together into something more complex.</p><blockquote data-size="large"><p style="">Much of the puzzle-solving weight is pulled by a magical mouse friend you can summon at the tap of a button. The mouse can crawl on walls, squeeze through tight spaces, stand on switches, distract enemies, and more, making it invaluable throughout the game.</p></blockquote><p style="">There is a smart pace to the game's natural progression, though branching paths on the level select screen also give you some freedom to vary things up yourself. No tool or mechanic is overused, and just when you might start thinking, "Not another puzzle like that last one, please," Escape Goat switches things up. Some puzzles are focused more on slow, methodical thinking. Others require you to be quick on your cloven hooves and have some decent platforming skills. You're not likely to be performing similar actions over and over again, which helps each of the game's more than 100 puzzles feel fresh.</p><figure data-align="right" data-size="medium" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/416/4161502/2490462-0002.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2490462" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/416/4161502/2490462-0002.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2490462"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_medium/416/4161502/2490462-0002.jpg"></a><figcaption>Wanna watch me squash a reaper under a block of ice?</figcaption></figure><p style="">Frustration sometimes arises in the same place it does for countless other puzzle games: in the middle of finding a solution. Occasionally you know exactly what to do to get to the goal, but a tap of the wrong button screws everything up. A quick restart option helps alleviate some of the pain, but you might find yourself wishing for a rewind option that would go back just a few seconds rather than a few minutes. Sometimes experimentation isn't as easy as you would like.</p><p style="">If you're looking for a more simple, almost relaxing puzzle experience, you can reach Escape Goat 2's end credits without breaking your brain too much, which will probably take only a couple of hours, if that. But if you stop there, you will likely have solved less than half of the puzzles in the game, and the other half are much more devious. Those puzzles take a lot more logic and speed to tackle, and there are many secret exits well hidden within select levels that take a while to find.</p><p style="">There's nothing especially unique about Escape Goat 2 aside from its protagonist, but it thrives due to its masterful execution of puzzles, simple controls, and a kind learning curve. Even some of the game's easier solutions make you feel smart for discovering them. The easier, mainline puzzle path may be over quickly, but if you're interested in finding every secret and solving even the most diabolical trials, you can milk a lot of fun out of this goat.</p> Fri, 28 Mar 2014 17:41:00 -0700 http://www.gamespot.com/reviews/escape-goat-2-review/1900-6415715/ http://www.gamespot.com/articles/the-elder-scrolls-online-live-stream-extravaganza/1100-6418605/ <table data-max-width="true"><tbody><tr><td>Welcome to GameSpot's live streaming Elder Scrolls Online spectacular! Kevin VanOrd is anxious to get his adventure going, so he thought he would invite all of you to join him. Congratulate him on his victories! Ridicule him for his defeats! Ask him anything about the game, online RPGs, or his preferred types of cheese! See below for live stream schedules, and bear in mind that broadcast times are subject to change. Thanks for joining!</td></tr></tbody></table><div data-embed-type="html"> </div><div data-embed-type="html"><object id="live_embed_player_flash" data="http://www.twitch.tv/widgets/live_embed_player.swf?channel=kevinvanord" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" height="454" width="744"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always" /><param name="allowNetworking" value="all" /><param name="movie" value="http://www.twitch.tv/widgets/live_embed_player.swf" /><param name="flashvars" value="hostname=www.twitch.tv&channel=kevinvanord&auto_play=true&start_volume=25" /></object></div><p style=""> </p><div data-embed-type="html"><iframe src="http://twitch.tv/kevinvanord/chat?popout=" height="250" width="744"></iframe></div><p style=""> </p><p style=""><em><strong>Schedule: </strong></em></p><p style="">Sunday, March 30, 10am-4pm PST/1pm-7pm EST</p><p style="">Monday, March 31, 5pm-8pm PST/8pm-11pm EST</p><p style="">Tuesday, April 1, 5pm-8pm PST/8pm-11pm EST</p><p style="">Thursday, April 3, 5pm-8pm PST/8pm-11pm EST</p><p style="">Saturday, April 5, 12pm-6pm PST/3pm-9pm EST</p><p style="">Sunday, April 6, 10am-4pm PST/1pm-7pm EST</p><p style="">Monday, April 7, 5pm-8pm PST/6pm-11pm EST</p> Fri, 28 Mar 2014 17:19:00 -0700 http://www.gamespot.com/articles/the-elder-scrolls-online-live-stream-extravaganza/1100-6418605/ http://www.gamespot.com/articles/edge-of-space-early-access-review/1100-6418590/ <p style=""><i>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.</i></p><p style=""><a href="/edge-of-space/" data-ref-id="false">Edge of Space</a> is a Kickstarter success built with the blessing of the team behind its inspiration, <a href="/terraria/" data-ref-id="false">Terraria</a>. The concept: build, create, and explore the nooks and crannies of a mysterious alien world. The game is rife with possibilities, but it's still got a long way to go before it comes close to realising them.</p><div data-embed-type="video" data-ref-id="2300-6404854" data-width="100%" data-height="100%"><iframe src="/videos/embed/6404854/" width="100%" height="100%" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen mozallowfullscreen allowFullScreen></iframe></div><p style=""> </p><p style="">Much like in Terraria and <a href="/starbound/" data-ref-id="false">Starbound</a>, which are the two games that Edge of Space will inevitably find itself being compared to, you create an avatar and set it loose into a destructible, harvestable 2D world. You're like a magpie with a laser pickaxe, scooping up anything and everything that looks shiny and turning your supplies into bigger, better items to help further explore the game's bizarre alien world. You also have a sweet jetpack.</p><p style="">Go where you please, and blast anything that looks nasty. Stumble upon a pocket of uranium? I'll have that. A few hunks of biomass? Cheers! Edge of Space isn't so much about digging out ore and rocks--although that's part of it--but establishing an outpost, securing new weapons and armour for your character, and then seeing how far down you can push without getting thoroughly distracted by whatever you discover along the way. Is it worth trying to craft a better gun, or is that the entrance to a new dungeon over there?</p><figure data-align="left" data-size="medium" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1493/14930800/2490437-gsuk-1_s001_s001_t001.mov.still001.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2490437" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1493/14930800/2490437-gsuk-1_s001_s001_t001.mov.still001.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2490437"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_medium/1493/14930800/2490437-gsuk-1_s001_s001_t001.mov.still001.jpg"></a><figcaption>One giant leap for a man with a sweet jetpack.</figcaption></figure><p style="">One of the nicest things in Edge of Space is its death system, which gives you the freedom to occasionally perish alongside a deterrent to discourage you from doing so. The way it works is that upon death, you respawn back at the nearest cryopod, a machine limited by the number of craftable rods you can keep it topped up with. It's a neat system.</p><p style="">The whole game is very much early days. My current character's hair colour is Test3, for instance, and it's those little things that stick out the most. There's usually a message on screen that says "Welcome!" in <i>Matrix</i>-inspired green, meant to serve as a status window for multiplayer games, but the word lingers there, awkwardly, when you're on your own. Welcome! Plenty of in-game text has yet to be written, and what's there is littered with silly mistakes. Edge of Space is stable and mostly playable, but it's Steam Early Access in the truest sense. The game is regularly being updated, though, with a recent patch overhauling much of the game at the cost of wiping previous saves.</p><p style="">The UI is another big challenge, coming across as a mix between a piece of Windows 95 clipart and a vintage Winamp skin. Items are shuffled between an inventory, a character screen, a crafting menu, and an easy-access bar that sits at the top of the screen, but all of these windows are fiddly, unpleasant to use, and poorly displayed. Managing your gargantuan collection of tchotchkes is also a challenge, which is a big problem in a game of this ilk.</p><p style="">The whole game is a bit bizarre, then, because on the one hand, Edge of Space is offering up this wonderful sci-fi conceit--go out there and explore an alien planet--but on the other hand, you find yourself forced deeper into the ground as opposed to upwards and outwards. One of the main features is that you can soar with a jetpack, yet the game is very much about going down and not up.</p><figure data-align="center" data-size="large" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1493/14930800/2490438-gsuk-1_s001_s001_t001.mov.still006.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2490438" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1493/14930800/2490438-gsuk-1_s001_s001_t001.mov.still006.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2490438"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_super/1493/14930800/2490438-gsuk-1_s001_s001_t001.mov.still006.jpg"></a><figcaption>The new tutorial, recently added, helps you get your bearings.</figcaption></figure><p style="">In trying to do so much, Edge of Space suffers from somewhat of an identity crisis, and often comes across as messy and incoherent. In the new tutorial sequence, bolted on in the latest patch, there's a lot of dialog written in that canny mix of violence-meets-bureaucracy that we saw in <a href="/portal/" data-ref-id="false">Portal</a>'s Aperture Science. Because that game was amazing, right? And one of the main selling points of Edge of Space is also that it features cyborg laser sharks strapped to rocket launchers, because, hey, that's really cool and totally wacky, right? Edge of Space has the potential to claim that whimsical story sci-fi aesthetic for its own, but right now it strikes me as a game built with bits and bobs from other, better influences, and when playing I'm consistently struck by the echoes of those sources.</p><p style="">Functionally, the game works. The crafting system is extensive and the world is huge. The mechanics are sound, and it's impossible to fault the amount of content available at this early stage. Yet it's not quite enough. The environments don't yet dazzle, so I'm left with no impetus to actually explore, build, and survive in this world. There's a lot going on, but it's a jumble that doesn't mesh together nicely, and I'm left feeling cold and disconnected because of it, awkwardly chipping away at a bunch of minerals because the game requires me to, not because I actually want to. What Edge of Space reminds me of the most is my old mathematics notepad from school, which I filled to the brim with a mishmash of random doodles with no logic or pattern.</p><blockquote data-align="right" data-size="medium"><p style="">The UI is another big challenge, coming across as a mix between a piece of Windows 95 clipart and a vintage Winamp skin.</p></blockquote><p style="">Multiplayer has recently been added to the game, and roaming around this world is certainly more palatable when you're with a partner. If you play your cards right, you can take on Omegatron, Edge of Space's first major boss and a robotic reimagining of Terraria's Skeletron. I didn't have too much trouble setting up a multiplayer game, but the process is fiddly, and since it requires a bit of technical know-how, it's definitely not for the fainthearted. The game is also a victim of its low-key status, and finding an active multiplayer server without organising it yourself with friends is a tricky task right now.</p><p style="">The spirit of Edge of Space is one of adventure, discovery, and creativity, but in its current state, the game feels like it's stuck in the shadows of other, better sandbox games. Much has been made about the game's similarities to Terraria, but the biggest problem Edge of Space faces is that it's yet to work out an identity of its own.</p><table data-max-width="true"><tbody><tr><td><p style=""><strong>What's There?</strong></p></td><td><strong><em>A huge planet, loads of monsters, and plenty of things to mine. There's a crafting system and a basic tutorial, and you can also begin to build your own station. The multiplayer mode is also starting to be implemented. </em></strong></td></tr><tr><td><p style=""><strong>What's to Come?</strong></p></td><td><em><strong>Numerous bug fixes, tweaks, and mechanics. Developer Handyman Games has also said that, when Edge of Space is finished, it would like to make a top-down shooter component that lets you travel through space.</strong></em></td></tr><tr><td><p style=""><strong>What Does it Cost?</strong></p></td><td><em><strong>$12.99 <a href="http://store.steampowered.com/app/238240/" rel="nofollow" data-ref-id="false">on Steam</a>.<br /></strong></em></td></tr><tr><td><p style=""><strong>When Will it Be Finished?</strong></p></td><td><em><strong>Edge of Space has no confirmed release date, and Handyman Studios has pledged that it will continue creating content even after the 1.0 release.</strong></em></td></tr><tr><td><p style=""><strong>What's the Verdict?</strong></p></td><td><p style=""><em><strong>Edge of Space is a game full of ambition, but it's rough around the edges in its current state. Only the keenest sandbox adventurers should consider applying right now.</strong></em></p><p style=""> </p></td></tr></tbody></table> Fri, 28 Mar 2014 17:02:00 -0700 http://www.gamespot.com/articles/edge-of-space-early-access-review/1100-6418590/ http://www.gamespot.com/articles/everything-you-need-to-know-about-facebook-buying-oculus-for-2-billion/1100-6418636/ <div data-embed-type="video" data-ref-id="2300-6417961" data-width="100%" data-height="100%"><iframe src="/videos/embed/6417961/" width="100%" height="100%" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen mozallowfullscreen allowFullScreen></iframe></div><p dir="ltr" style="">If Sony's <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/sony-announces-ps4-virtual-reality-initiative-project-morpheus/1100-6418391/" data-ref-id="1100-6418391">reveal of their own long-rumored VR headset</a> wasn't enough vindication of the virtual reality platform, Facebook brought it into the mainstream big leagues by<a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/facebook-buys-oculus-rift-company-in-a-massive-deal-worth-an-estimated-2-billion/1100-6418540/"> buying Oculus VR for $2 billion</a>. For context, <a href="http://www.cnet.com/news/facebook-buys-instagram-but-for-what/" rel="nofollow">Facebook bought Instagram for $1 billion</a>, and spent a whopping<a href="http://www.cnet.com/news/facebook-to-acquire-whatsapp-for-16b/" rel="nofollow"> $19 billion on WhatsApp</a>.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">The Facebook <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/some-deals-take-months-but-facebook-completed-its-purchase-of-oculus-vr-in-72-hours/1100-6418566/">acquisition of Oculus was finalized in just 72 hour</a>s, but the backlash was much more immediate. Oculus creator Palmer Luckey wrote a letter online <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/oculus-creator-explains-why-facebook-buyout-makes-sense/1100-6418544/">explaining why the deal makes sense for Oculus</a>, but:</p><ul><li dir="ltr"><a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/oculus-rift-kickstarter-backers-rage-against-facebook-sale/1100-6418553/">Kickstarter backers raged against the sale online and in the Oculus Kickstarter message area</a>.</li><li dir="ltr">Minecraft creator Notch <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/minecraft-developer-notch-cancels-oculus-vr-version-of-game-after-facebook-acquisition/1100-6418541/">cancelled the previously announced Oculus version of Minecraft</a>, calling Facebook "creepy." He explained his decision, and his <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/minecraft-creator-notch-on-why-he-doesn-t-like-faceboo%20k-in-the-wake-of-oculus-buyout/1100-6418547/">disdain for Facebook, in a longer letter on his website.</a></li><li dir="ltr">Cliff Blezinski called <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/cliff-bleszinski-calls-notch-a-pouty-kid-for-canceling-minecraft-vr/1100-6418579/">Notch a "pouty kid" for his knee-jerk reaction</a>.</li><li dir="ltr">And Notch responded that he is <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/minecraft-creator-responds-to-cliff-bleszinski-calling-him-a-pouty-kid/1100-6418609/">"a man driven by principles, not capitalism, so I guess I'll just have to get used to the occasional name calling."</a></li></ul><figure data-align="right" data-size="small" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1534/15343359/2491229-6666500559-24554.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2491229" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1534/15343359/2491229-6666500559-24554.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2491229"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_small/1534/15343359/2491229-6666500559-24554.jpg"></a></figure><p dir="ltr" style="">Oculus was <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/oculus-didn-t-expect-such-a-negative-reaction-to-facebook-deal/1100-6418626/">genuinely surprised by the negative reaction to the Facebook purchase,</a> and Lucky said that, "After [Notch] sees everything we are able to do, <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/some-deals-take-months-but-facebook-completed-its-purchase-of-oculus-vr-in-72-hours/1100-6418566/">I hope he will change his mind</a>." Luckey also <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/oculus-rift-creator-we-promise-we-won-t-change-following-facebook-buyout/1100-6418562/">answered questions directly on Reddit about the deal</a>:</p><ul><li dir="ltr">"You won't need to log into your Facebook account every time you wanna use the Oculus Rift."</li><li dir="ltr">There's going to be a lot of resources put into indie content, hiring more people, and making custom hardware instead of using "scraps of the mobile phone industry."</li><li dir="ltr">"A lot of people are upset, and I get that. If you feel the same way a year from now, I would be very surprised."</li><li dir="ltr">Zuckerberg won't control Ocululs. "This acquisition/partnership gives us more control of our destiny, not less!"</li></ul><p dir="ltr" style="">Here in the GameSpot office, editor Tom Mc Shea wrote about how the backlash was understandable, but that ultimately, "<a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/facebook-oculus-rift-and-the-kickstarter-backlash/1100-6418571/" data-ref-id="1100-6418571">We have learned a valuable lesson: Giving money on Kickstarter does not mean we have any say in a company's decisions.</a>" And Peter Brown explained why, even if you're truly excited by VR, <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/why-you-shouldn-t-worry-about-facebook-buying-oculus-rift/1100-6418545/">you shouldn't worry about Facebook buying Oculus.</a></p><p dir="ltr" style="">And you can be sure that there'll be even more big developments in the near future. Microsoft has<a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/microsoft-reportedly-pays-as-much-as-150-million-for-wearable-computing-assets/1100-6418628/" data-ref-id="1100-6418628"> rumblings of getting into VR in their own way</a>, and E3 is right around the corner with even more exciting announcements.</p><table data-max-width="true"><tbody><tr><td><p style=""><strong>Justin Haywald is a senior editor at GameSpot, and you can follow him on<a href="https://twitter.com/JustinHaywald" rel="nofollow"> Twitter @JustinHaywald</a>. Got a news tip or want to contact us directly? Email <a href="mailto:news@gamespot.com" rel="nofollow">news@gamespot.com</a></strong></p></td></tr></tbody></table> Fri, 28 Mar 2014 16:56:00 -0700 http://www.gamespot.com/articles/everything-you-need-to-know-about-facebook-buying-oculus-for-2-billion/1100-6418636/ http://www.gamespot.com/videos/gs-news-top-5-new-assassin-s-creed-ps4-memory-powe/2300-6418035/ We give you the lowdown on the Facebook buying Oculus drama, a super-powered Nvidia graphics card and the 100 games coming to PS4 in 2014! Fri, 28 Mar 2014 16:00:00 -0700 http://www.gamespot.com/videos/gs-news-top-5-new-assassin-s-creed-ps4-memory-powe/2300-6418035/ http://www.gamespot.com/reviews/castlevania-lords-of-shadows-2-revelations-review/1900-6415716/ <p style="">It took a while for Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 to find its footing, but once combat became more prevalent and the story took off in an unexpected direction, it finally came into its own. One of the most interesting aspects of the latter half was the appearance of Alucard, but he wasn't playable, and though he played a pivotal role in the overall plot, there were a lot of missing pieces to his story. This is where the new downloadable content, Revelations, comes in. You no longer have to imagine what Alucard was up to while his father searched for Satan's acolytes, and given his secretive nature, you may expect to find that the truth is more interesting than the main game let on.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">Sadly, this isn't the case. Alucard is effectively a secret errand boy, and though there's room for some interesting character development, you'll quickly discover that there's only a pittance of new information to be found. There's obvious room for surprising aberrations in the telling of Alucard's motivations, and with a title that's such a tease, it's reasonable to expect the unexpected. Alas, any high expectations you bring to Revelations will only increase your disappointment by the time the credits roll. There are moments that feel ripe for twists, or revelations as it were, but the game never makes the most of its potential, and there's almost nothing of value added to the preexisting tale.</p><div data-embed-type="video" data-ref-id="2300-6418049" data-width="854" data-height="480"><iframe src="/videos/embed/6418049/" width="100%" height="100%" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen mozallowfullscreen allowFullScreen></iframe></div><p dir="ltr" style="">Likewise, if you're hoping for more of the series' great combat, that too is in short supply. You're still working with the solid foundation established in the main game, which feels great when you get a chance to dive into battle, but such opportunities are few and far between. Alucard's timing and momentum give him a distinct feel compared to his father's whip and gauntlets, but it doesn't take long to adapt, however, and it's not until the final battle that you feel the need to master his repertoire. With so little combat to sink your teeth into, there's hardly an occasion where it's necessary to upgrade your skill set unless you're playing on a harder-than-normal difficulty setting.</p><blockquote data-align="left" data-size="medium"><p dir="ltr" style="">Likewise, if you're hoping for more of the series' great combat, that too is in short supply.</p></blockquote><p dir="ltr" style="">Outside of combat, you've got three new powers for exploring your environment and solving puzzles, and you have to familiarize yourself with them as quickly as possible to make much progress. Most of the puzzles require the use of at least two of your powers, but you occasionally need to juggle all three. This can be frustrating when Alucard's time reversal skill is involved, which allows you to fix architectural elements in disrepair. Given that its effect lasts for only a limited amount of time, you inevitably need to repeat every step along the way if you happen to fail at the last second. These puzzles also tend to have minimal tolerances for mistakes, causing a lot of repeat trips that weigh you down with their tedium. Puzzles aren't great by nature; they're great by design, and there's nary an example of great design in Revelations' puzzles. They simply exist and stand in your path, rarely challenging your intellect or problem-solving skills in a meaningful way.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">The vampire-hunting Belmont clan has endured myriad deaths, rebirths, and about-faces over the course of this three-game story, and their struggles elevated the series' once perfunctory narrative to something worth paying attention to. These twists, plus an array of haunting set pieces and an enjoyable combat system, were for the most part all you needed to enjoy these games in spite of their shortcomings. Though Revelations thankfully lacks the boring stealth sections of Lords of Shadow 2, it fails to deliver an interesting story, and with only a couple memorable fights amidst the meager helping of standard enemy encounters, there's almost no reason to get excited about playing as Alucard. It might be an interesting diversion if you can't tear yourself away from Castlevania, but if you come in with high expectations, you'll wonder why you ever felt the need to return to Dracula's castle in the first place.</p> Fri, 28 Mar 2014 15:47:00 -0700 http://www.gamespot.com/reviews/castlevania-lords-of-shadows-2-revelations-review/1900-6415716/ http://www.gamespot.com/articles/gamespot-at-pax-east-2014/1100-6418633/ <p style="">If you're attending PAX East in Boston on April 11-13, odds are you've already looked over the <a href="http://east.paxsite.com/schedule" rel="nofollow">packed schedule</a> and picked out some panels to attend. In case you missed them, GameSpot will be running two panels at the show this year, both on Saturday April 12, both in the Bumblebee Theatre.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">First up at 1:30pm is a special PAX East episode of <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/shows/the-lobby/">The Lobby</a>, where Chris Watters, Danny O'Dwyer, Peter Brown, Shaun McInnis and a number of special guests will be checking out some of the best games at the show, inviting those of you in the audience to ask questions, and giving away some sweet prizes.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">Then, at 9:00pm, our Demolish the Developers panel will afford you an opportunity to beat (or be beaten by) developers at their own games. Think you're good at <a href="/titanfall/" data-ref-id="false">Titanfall</a>, <a href="/hearthstone-heroes-of-warcraft/" data-ref-id="false">Hearthstone</a>, or <a href="/super-street-fighter-iv-arcade-edition/" data-ref-id="false">Ultra Street Fighter IV</a>? Come put your skills to the test against folks from Respawn, Blizzard, and Capcom respectively.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">For those of you in Boston on Friday April 11, we're planning to spend the evening at a bar somewhere with our friends from Giant Bomb. Be sure to follow <a href="https://twitter.com/gamespot" rel="nofollow" data-ref-id="false">@gamespot</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/giantbomb" rel="nofollow" data-ref-id="false">@giantbomb</a> on Twitter for details.</p><div data-embed-type="video" data-ref-id="2300-6417947" data-width="100%" data-height="100%"><iframe src="/videos/embed/6417947/" width="100%" height="100%" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen mozallowfullscreen allowFullScreen></iframe></div><p style=""><br /><br /><br /></p> Fri, 28 Mar 2014 15:44:00 -0700 http://www.gamespot.com/articles/gamespot-at-pax-east-2014/1100-6418633/ http://www.gamespot.com/videos/exploring-the-lands-in-age-of-wonders-iii/2300-6418046/ Ride your trusty stead and explore the unexplored in this gameplay clip from Age of Wonders 3. Fri, 28 Mar 2014 15:23:00 -0700 http://www.gamespot.com/videos/exploring-the-lands-in-age-of-wonders-iii/2300-6418046/ http://www.gamespot.com/articles/sherlock-holmes-crimes-punishments-a-new-kind-of-sherlock-holmes-game/1100-6418634/ <p style="">The character of Sherlock Holmes has a timeless appeal. Nowadays, we have many incarnations of the character to choose from. There's the original deerstalker-hat-wearing detective of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's novels. There's the modern-day New York City Holmes of <i>Elementary</i> and the modern-day London Holmes of <i>Sherlock.</i> And there's the Holmes of Frogwares' long-running series of games. The latest, Sherlock Holmes: Crimes & Punishments, represents a departure from the studio's earlier games; whereas those were somewhat traditional adventure games, this entry, according to associate producer Olga Ryzhko, is an investigation game in which you have the tremendous deductive abilities of Sherlock Holmes at your disposal. The goal is to make you feel like Sherlock Holmes. After all, why should Benedict Cumberbatch and Jonny Lee Miller get to have all the fun?</p><p style="">Crimes & Punishments will feature six individual murder cases, and in each case, you might guide Holmes to the right conclusion, pegging the true killer in the end, or, if you're not thorough in your investigations and rigorous in your logical reasoning, you could send an innocent person to the slammer. I was recently given a look at one of the game's cases, titled The Murder of Black Peter, and got a sense of how the focus on investigation will work, though not a sense of how it will actually feel.</p><div data-embed-type="video" data-ref-id="2300-6417039" data-width="100%" data-height="100%"><iframe src="/videos/embed/6417039/" width="100%" height="100%" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen mozallowfullscreen allowFullScreen></iframe></div><p style="">In a moment visually reminiscent of scenes from the BBC <i>Sherlock</i>, the game established Holmes' uncanny ability to pick up on details most people would miss and make conclusions based on them. Holmes and his assistant, Dr. Watson, were talking at 221B Baker Street when the sounds of someone climbing up the stairs were heard. Words like "clicking handcuffs" appeared in the air around Holmes as he listened to the person approach, and he deduced that it was Inspector Lestrade before the officer made his entrance.</p><p style="">Usually, though, it's up to you to draw conclusions from the things that Holmes notices. While questioning a woman about her recently murdered husband, Ryzhko demonstrated how you can closely examine people you interrogate, and how the details about them are automatically stored in Holmes' casebook. Will it be relevant in the end that Mrs. Carey was wearing gardening gloves and that she had recently been fiddling with a birdhouse? That will be up to you to determine.</p><p style="">Next, Ryzhko made her way to the nearby work shed in which Peter Carey had met his grisly demise. Standing outside the entrance, Ryzhko activated what she called "Sherlock Holmes vision," which enabled her to zoom in on some tiny scratches on the door and conclude that someone had tried to force it open. Entering the shed, Holmes was confronted with the sight of Carey's corpse pinned to a wall with a whaling harpoon. Here, Ryzhko closely examined a number of items--a tobacco pouch, a liquor bottle, and a knife lying in a pool of blood, with which Carey had attempted to defend himself.</p><figure data-align="left" data-size="medium" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1197/11970954/2385590-crimes%26punishments-14.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2385590" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1197/11970954/2385590-crimes%26punishments-14.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2385590"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_medium/1197/11970954/2385590-crimes%26punishments-14.jpg"></a><figcaption>"I accuse that man--of having an impressive beard!"</figcaption></figure><p style="">Ryzhko eventually skipped to the end of the case, when it was time for Holmes to piece together the facts and make his accusation. The screen showed a representation of the concepts floating around in Holmes' brain, and it was up to Ryzhko to link some of them together based on her own conclusions--for instance, was the person who killed Carey tremendously strong, or tremendously lucky, to have managed to impale him with a whaling harpoon? Ultimately, the conclusions she'd arrived at led Holmes to home in on a particular suspect, but it doesn't end there. You can also decide whether you want to inform the police of the suspected killer's identity, or, if you think the killer acted in self-defense or had other justifiable reasons for his or her actions, you can opt to let the suspect go free. Then, in a touch that seemed lifted from Telltale's <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/the-walking-dead-a-telltale-games-series/" data-ref-id="false">The Walking Dead</a>, you're presented with a screen that shows you what percentage of players reached the same conclusion that you did. You're also given the option to see the truth and discover if you got it right or wrong.</p><p style="">It's difficult to tell from a brief hands-off demo just how challenging and involving the gameplay of Crimes & Punishments might be. I love a good whodunit, but there are few things more frustrating than a poorly constructed one, and until I get to step into Holmes' shoes myself and take my time closely examining murder scenes, questioning suspects, and making deductions, whether or not these cases are worthy of the great Sherlock Holmes will remain a mystery. I look forward to solving it when the game is released later this year.</p> Fri, 28 Mar 2014 15:14:00 -0700 http://www.gamespot.com/articles/sherlock-holmes-crimes-punishments-a-new-kind-of-sherlock-holmes-game/1100-6418634/ http://www.gamespot.com/videos/playstation-plus-free-games-of-april/2300-6418045/ Tom walks us through the free games of April for PlayStation Plus users. Fri, 28 Mar 2014 14:25:00 -0700 http://www.gamespot.com/videos/playstation-plus-free-games-of-april/2300-6418045/ http://www.gamespot.com/articles/here-s-another-great-example-of-xbox-one-trolling/1100-6418631/ <div data-embed-type="video" data-src="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TRDdi96R5uY" data-width="100%" data-height="100%"><iframe src="//cdn.embedly.com/widgets/media.html?src=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fembed%2FTRDdi96R5uY%3Fwmode%3Dopaque%26feature%3Doembed&wmode=opaque&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DTRDdi96R5uY&image=http%3A%2F%2Fi1.ytimg.com%2Fvi%2FTRDdi96R5uY%2Fhqdefault.jpg&key=6efca6e5ad9640f180f14146a0bc1392&type=text%2Fhtml&schema=youtube" width="100%" height="100%" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen mozallowfullscreen allowFullScreen></iframe></div><p style=""> </p><p dir="ltr" style="">YouTuber "Master of Luck" is back with another video that demonstrates the trolling potential for the Xbox One. In his latest video (via <a href="http://kotaku.com/xbox-one-troll-tricks-people-into-using-skype-1553867478?utm_campaign=Socialflow_Kotaku_Facebook&utm_source=Kotaku_Facebook&utm_medium=Socialflow" rel="nofollow" data-ref-id="false">Kotaku</a>), he creates a gamertag called "Xbox Skypee" and then pesters other players in <a href="/call-of-duty-ghosts/" data-ref-id="false">Call of Duty: Ghosts</a> until they say his name. [<em>There's some profanity in the video</em>]</p><p dir="ltr" style="">When a player says "Xbox Skypee," Kinect thinks they want to launch Skype, but really it just interrupts their session, causing frustration. "Master of Luck" published a video back in January <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/xbox-one-trolling-looks-like-this/1100-6417043/" data-ref-id="1100-6417043">showing off a similar trolling move</a>, only he created a gamertag called "Xbox Sign Out," which proved even more troublesome.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">Of course, you can always unplug your Kinect or play with friends online in a private party chat to avoid the inconvenience--unless your friend is the troll. Then you're out of luck.</p><p style=""> </p><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></em></strong></td></tr></tbody></table> Fri, 28 Mar 2014 13:41:00 -0700 http://www.gamespot.com/articles/here-s-another-great-example-of-xbox-one-trolling/1100-6418631/ http://www.gamespot.com/articles/ea-s-origin-service-will-stop-selling-disc-based-games-next-week/1100-6418630/ <figure data-align="center" data-size="large" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1179/11799911/2491071-origin.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2491071" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1179/11799911/2491071-origin.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2491071"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_super/1179/11799911/2491071-origin.jpg"></a></figure><p style=""> </p><p dir="ltr" style="">Battlefield publisher Electronic Art's Origin marketplace will stop selling disc-based games starting April 4, the company <a href="https://www.origin.com/en-us/news/origin-is-all-digital" rel="nofollow" data-ref-id="false">announced today on its website</a>. Beginning one week from today, the Origin store will transition to an all-digital marketplace where it will only sell downloads for PC and Mac.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">EA said 99 percent of Origin users download their games, so this change won't affect them in any way. "But if you're that 1 percent who still desires a physical collection, we want to let you know that Origin won't be able to fulfill that need beginning April 4."</p><p dir="ltr" style="">"We'll still be here when you transition your gaming habits to the wonders of digital downloads," EA said. "Digital is fast and convenient. Origin's focus is to give gamers the best experience, and going all-digital will make that possible."</p><p style=""><em>Did you ever buy a physical product from Origin? Let us know in the comments below.</em></p><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></em></strong></td></tr></tbody></table> Fri, 28 Mar 2014 13:02:00 -0700 http://www.gamespot.com/articles/ea-s-origin-service-will-stop-selling-disc-based-games-next-week/1100-6418630/ http://www.gamespot.com/articles/microsoft-won-t-allow-xbox-one-pc-cross-platform-play-says-war-thunder-dev/1100-6418587/ <figure data-align="center" data-size="large" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1179/11799911/2489398-xboxsales.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2489398" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/1179/11799911/2489398-xboxsales.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-2489398"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_super/1179/11799911/2489398-xboxsales.jpg"></a></figure><p style="">[UPDATE] Following the publication of this story, a Microsoft representative provided GameSpot the following statement:</p><p style=""><em>"For developers interested in enabling cross-platform game play between Xbox One and PC, we work with them closely to meet their development needs and ensure a great user experience."</em></p><p style=""><strong><em>The original story is below.</em></strong></p><p dir="ltr" style="">The Xbox One is technically capable of supporting cross-platform play, but Microsoft is not currently allowing it, according to <a href="/war-thunder/" data-ref-id="false">War Thunder</a> developer Gaijin Entertainment CEO Anton Yudintsev.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">"Microsoft is not allowing cross-play completely; which means [War Thunder] cannot be on Xbox One," Yudintsev told GameSpot at GDC last week in San Francisco.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">Why would Microsoft block cross-platform play? According to Yudintsev, Microsoft needs to certify game servers as a means to ensure a "good experience" for all players. This isn't possible under the current circumstances, Yudintsev said.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">Xbox boss Phil Spencer said previously that cross-platform play between Xbox One and PC "<a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/microsoft-xbox-one-and-pc-cross-platform-play-makes-sense/1100-6415567/" data-ref-id="1100-6415567">makes sense</a>," teasing that he's "not allowed to leak things," suggesting this feature may actually be in the works. We've reached out to a Microsoft representative for a further comment.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">Cross-platform play is vital for a game like War Thunder because the install base of new consoles like the Xbox One and PS4 is too small for players to have an enjoyable experience, Yudintsev said.</p><figure data-align="center" data-size="large" data-img-src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/mig/0/6/9/4/1990694-634977_20120814_003.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-1990694" data-resize-url="" data-resized="" data-embed-type="image"><a href="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/original/mig/0/6/9/4/1990694-634977_20120814_003.jpg" data-ref-id="1300-1990694"><img src="http://static.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_super/mig/0/6/9/4/1990694-634977_20120814_003.jpg"></a></figure><p dir="ltr" style=""> </p><p style="">The PS4 version of War Thunder, available only in Europe right now, will support cross-play beginning as early as next month, Yudintsev said. The reason this feature has yet to go live comes down to an unspecified updating issue that Yudintsev said Sony engineers are working to fix right now.</p><p style="">As for why Gaijin Entertainment elected to side with Sony instead of Microsoft, Ydintsev said it's because Sony is significantly more accommodating to indie developers, specifically those who make free-to-play games.</p><p style="">"Sony is much more open to indie developers and free-to-play games in general. So Sony has been in the free-to-play market for a few years already, they started on the PlayStation 3," Yudintsev said. "Not only that, but Microsoft has a lot of unspoken limitations like if you want to make a free-to-play game you have to talk to an account manager and there are no set of rules; you need to communicate them; and the rule depends on the [individual account manager]. If he likes your game you get approval, if he doesn't you don't get approval."</p><blockquote data-align="right"><p style="">"Sony is much more open to indie developers and free-to-play games in general" -- Yudintsev</p></blockquote><p style="">Yudintsev said one individual Microsoft account manager decides your game's fate. This person is the only who says "This game is good, this game is bad," Yudintsev said.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">"I don't think it's a correct assumption that anyone can be the one who can choose which game is good and which is bad because each game is for a specific audience," he said.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">Yudintsev said <a href="/minecraft/" data-ref-id="false">Minecraft</a> is a good example of the faults in Microsoft's indie program. "It's a very fun game, a lot of people play it, and nowadays everyone understands it's a very good game. But it would not be happening [first] on Xbox Live."</p><p dir="ltr" style="">"When it was released it was strange...it had very, let's say, specific graphics and not much of the gameplay," Yudintsev said, referencing the game's alpha release. "It suddenly became very popular and after that it appears on Xbox 360 as well. But it could not happen the other way. There's no way, I am pretty sure, that Microsoft would ever approve that game to be on Xbox Live Arcade <em>before</em> it became popular on the PC."</p><p dir="ltr" style="">Yudintsev stressed that Microsoft's policies for indie games are beginning to change for the better with the arrival of the ID@Xbox program. But he made clear that Microsoft still has a ways to go to catch up to Sony.</p><p dir="ltr" style="">"[Microsoft] has to change and they will change," Yudintsev said. "They key is that they understand the necessesity of change, so they will. We'll see. I hope we will be [on Xbox One] some day as well. I have nothing against the platform itself especially because I'm not one of those guys who worries about which is better [Xbox One or PS4]. I don't care. It's just the hardware. At the end of the day it's only about the quality of the game and the gameplay experience."</p><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></em></strong></td></tr></tbody></table> Fri, 28 Mar 2014 12:30:00 -0700 http://www.gamespot.com/articles/microsoft-won-t-allow-xbox-one-pc-cross-platform-play-says-war-thunder-dev/1100-6418587/ http://www.gamespot.com/videos/feedbackula-final-farewell-furore/2300-6418038/ Johnny sends Feedbackula off into the long night. Also, bees. Fri, 28 Mar 2014 12:00:00 -0700 http://www.gamespot.com/videos/feedbackula-final-farewell-furore/2300-6418038/
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