Disney Infinity 3.0 Marvel Battlegrounds adds brawling to the game

      Disney Infinity 3.0 is expanding into a whole new realm with Marvel Battlegrounds.

Disney Interactive held its first Disney Infinity Next on Tuesday to announce the launch of Marvel Battlegrounds. The new expansion will let you have a four-player, arcade brawler style fight with all of your favorite Infinity characters. You’ll be able to put them against one another in locations such as Wakanda, Knowhere and more.

Along with the new set, several new Marvel characters were announced including Black Panther, The Vision, Ant-Man, Black Suited Spider-Man and Captain America: The First Avenger. Outside of Marvel you can also keep an eye out for Zootopia’s Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde, while Baloo from The Jungle Book will be joining in the fun as well.

All of the new figures will be releasing on various dates over the coming months, but you can look for the Marvel Battlegrounds expansions tarting on March 15.

source: technobuffalo

Etrian Odyssey V confirmed for a summer release in Japan

Well, toss another life-draining JRPG into the already crowded selection for this year. Atlus has finally confirmed the existence of Etrian Odyssey V in the latest issue of Famitsu, and it will be released for the Nintendo 3DS in Japan on Aug. 4.

No mention of an English release just yet, but I hope Atlus shows us a little mercy and pushes the game back into 2017 or at least the winter. I don’t want this competing with Dragon Quest VII.

This marks the first original entry in the main series since Etrian Odyssey IV launched to universal acclaim back in 2012. Since then, Atlus has churned out a few quality remakes and spin-offs, but fans are a little tired of dabbling in the past. The time has come to get this ball rolling again!

Atlus revealed very little on the gameplay in this latest game, but Etrian Odyssey V will be returning with a story mode with set characters. Our story takes place on the continent of Arcadia, which is broken up into “tribes.” The four characters teased come from these different tribes, and they are named Arslan, Lunaria, Celian, and Branii.

My guess is that Etrian Odyssey V will follow in the path of the remakes with both a Story Mode and Classic Mode with just the bare character development and dungeon crawling.

Etrian Odyssey V will launch in Japan on the Nintendo 3DS on Aug. 4. Again, no word on an English release, but I can only hope that Atlus has this lined up for a release alongside Shin Megami Tensei IV: Final. Just, please… take your time Atlus. No rush.

source: SILICONERA

Dark Souls III’s game guide includes an Estus Flask

                              

Everyone’s got a different perspective on collector’s editions. Some people hate them, others find them impossible to resist. Sometimes one hits, though, that ticks all the boxes for a fan of the property.

For Dark Souls III fans, that might be the special edition of Prima Games’ Dark Souls III strategy guide. The special edition, called the Estus Flask Edition, retails for $129.99 and features a hardcover edition of the guide, an electronic copy of the guide, a journal, a metal bookmark made to look like one of the greatswords featured in the game and finally, of course, is the Estus Flask.

For fans of the series, this is a familiar item. A well-timed tug of the Estus Flask has brought countless warriors back from the brink of un-death, while poorly timed drinks have doomed just as many to sit through another You Died screen. This healing item is a crucial part of the series in both gameplay and lore.

It’s not another statue, a cloth map, or artbook. Those things are cool, but we have plenty. This is something you could put in your liquor cabinet or otherwise display without it having to be another action figure, but it’s still a very visible reminder of a beloved game. The flask is made from resin, so I’m not sure it’s safe to drink from. We’ll probably want to wait on filling it with any kind of “healing potions.” Save that for the other kind of flask.

The bookmark, electronic guide, and journal are all nice touches that could, conceivably, be useful for a committed Souls fan, as well.

The guide hits shelves the same day as the game itself, which releases for PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One on April 12.

ORDER THIS FROM AMAZON

SOURCE TWITTER

Nvidia Feeds Android 6.0 Marshmallow to Shield Android TV, Adds Vulkan API

Mmm, Marshmallow!

Nvidia updated its Shield tablet to Android 6.0 Marshmallow earlier in the month, and now it’s doing the same for its Shield Android TV device via an over-the-air (OTA) roll out, the company announced this week.

Marshmallow alone brings several enhancements to Shield Android TV, though the update also includes some other feature upgrades. They include:

• Upgradable storage and home screen customization
• Quick access to the power menu on the home screen by long pressing the “Back” button
• Seamless switching between surround sound and headset audio in Netflix app
• Wireless support for SHIELD controller when charging via USB, including headset audio and voice search
• Improved color support for YUV 4:2:0 video playback
• Option to set 1080p 60Hz resolution on Ultra HD TVs
• Option to set RGB Full Range via Settings > HDMI > Dynamic Range
• Improved support for Denon receivers and CEC volume control for more audio receivers

In addition to all that, Nvidia is rolling out fully conformant Vulkan drivers to its Shield Android TV platform. That makes it the first Android consumer platform to ship with support for the Vulkan API, which gives developers low-level access to CPU and GPU resources.

The update is a little over 800MB.

source: technobuffalo

Ubisoft Disputes EA Trademark for "Ghost" [UPDATE]

[UPDATE] A NeoGAF forum member has discovered that EA has withdrawn its trademark application for "Ghost." However, it is unclear what impact this may have on EA's Ghost Games, the developer of Need for Speed. We will update this post with new information as we learn more.

The original story is below.

Ubisoft has taken issue with the fact that Electronic Arts sought to trademark "Ghost" for its new studio over claims and concerns that it would "cause confusion" with Ubisoft's Ghost Recon franchise.

As spotted by a NeoGAF user, Ubisoft filed a notice of opposition against EA on January 29 over the company's two trademark applications for the word "Ghost." These are serial numbers: 86568852, 86568854. Ghost Games is the name of the EA-owned Need for Speed developer based in Sweden that put out the new Need for Speed game in November.

In fact, Ubisoft began its action against EA last summer, only just now publishing its official notice of opposition. In the notice, Ubisoft points out that it has used its Ghost Recon trademark since at least as early as 2001, while EA filed its initial trademark applications for Ghost in March 2015.

Ubisoft is referred to as "Opposers" in the document, while EA is known as "Applicant." Here's a particularly noteworthy section from the notice of opposition:

"Applicant's Mark so resembles Opposers' GHOST RECON marks alleged herein as to be likely, when used in connection with the goods and services identified in the Applications, to cause confusion, to cause mistake, or to deceive. Consumers are likely to believe, mistakenly, that the goods and services Applicant offers under Applicant’s Mark are provided, sponsored, endorsed, or approved by Opposers, or are in some way affiliated, connected, or associated with Opposers, all to the detriment of Opposers. Registration of Applicant's Mark, therefore, should be refused under 15 U.S.C. §§ 1052(d) and 1063."

EA apparently has until March 9 to respond to Ubisoft's claims, while the trial schedule--should there be a trial--is outlined below.

source: gamespot

Disgaea launches on Steam with bugs and glitches, NipponIchi is fixing it

NipponIchi’s hilarious strategy RPG Disgaea: Hour of Darkness is available now on Steam. However, reports are pouring in from fans and gaming publications alike that it is riddled with crashes, performance issues, graphical glitches, and framerate problems.

You know, the whole nine yards with any botched PC launch these days.

In a situation very similar to Tales of Symphonia a few months back, Disgaea’s Steam page has been blasted with polarizing reviews with the hardcore forgiving fans balancing out those who demand it to be fixed. Currently, 375 out of 526 reviewers recommend the game as is, so it is not without its supporters who are just happy it’s there.

Still, the backlash has been loud enough to garner a response from NipponIchi, whose tone comes off as a little peeved with some of the accusations made by fans.

We spent a total of ten months on researching and developing this game for PC users, two months of which were spent on rigorous testing. However, we have been made aware of the fact that some of our customers have been experiencing issues when playing the game.

According to the research we have done, it seems as if most of the issues are graphics related.

Right now, we at NISA and NIS are trying to gather as much information from all over the world as possible in order to pinpoint what is causing these problems.

Whether it gets fixed soon or not, we should be pleased about the greater presence of JRPGs on Steam in general. However, I’m not sure how many launch controversies,looking at you too Final Fantasy XIII, the crowd is willing to endure.

If we want the PC to be a safe home for the genre in the future, we need launches to be smoother. It’s no different than the AAA crowd.

SOURCE: STEAM

Rockstar and 2K owner Take Two will be at E3 “in a big way”

One of gaming’s biggest publishers – if not the most prolific, then certainly one of the most profitable – has a big presence planned for E3 this year.

Take Two, the publishing house that owns studios like 2K games and Grand Theft Autodev Rockstar games, is not in the habit of revealing things before they’re ready. We know they have Mafia III on the way from Hangar 13, as well as Battleborn from Gearbox. What else could be coming? We don’t really know.

In an interview with MCV, though, Take Two CEO Strauss Zelnick said Take Two “will be there in a big way.”

Again, most of what that presence will be is a mystery. Mafia III certainly will make a big showing, but the few things we know about from Take Two aren’t enough to make for a big showing. Hopefully this means something fresh from Rockstar, like Grand Theft Auto V expansions, the long-awaited Red Dead game, or something equally big.

SOURCE: MCV

Firewatch is already a success, passing the developer’s “wildest expectations”

So far, 2016’s biggest indie smash has been the first-person adventure game, Firewatch. Campo Santo’s exploration of the Wyoming frontier has left its stamp on the gaming universe, and everyone who has played it loves sharing their experiences and even photos with one another. What’s more, they can even get them printed physically and mailed to their homes!

Fans will be happy to know that the developers have also declared the game to be a hit, stating in a Twitter post that sales have exceeded their “wildest expectations.”

Regardless of whether or not this game doesn’t sell as many copies as The Witness, Firewatch never got center stage air-time at E3, and it blazed out of nowhere to become just one of those “lightning in a bottle” sensations.

With the money raised from Firewatch, the team will be financially sound enough to create another game. Hopefully, some of that cash will be put towards a rocket-launcher death-match mode before it moves on to a follow-up game.

SOURCE TWITTER

Star Ocean 5 character trailer for Relia – Do those clothes weigh more than her?

Star Ocean: Integrity and Faithlessness is back with another character introduction, this time looking at its pint-sized priestess, Relia.

This twerp fills the amnesia quota as required by every JRPG storyline. She indeed has no idea where she is from or who she is, but she joins Fidel and Miki on their intergalactic quest to bring these memories back. She speaks in a childish manner, comforting those around her, but she also lacks emotions, filling yet another important anime void.

It would also appear from the trailer that someone is out to get her. I can’t imagine how she might blend into a crowd, though. Her pursuer could spot that outfit from seven star systems away, and the weight of such heavy robes would bring her crashing to the ground should she be forced to run.

But, hey! JRPG logic! Just accept it, and move on.

Star Ocean: Integrity and Faithlessness launches on the PlayStation 4 later in 2016.

source:  GEMATSU

Xbox Live Downtime Drags Past 12-Hour Mark [Update]

Xbox One users have reported faults with Microsoft's Xbox Live service for more than twelve hours, with the service down and unable to allow customers to use apps, buy content, or play games online.

Throughout the early hours on Tuesday morning Pacific Time, Microsoft battled to restore its flagship games service, but connections have been up and down for some 14 hours at the time of writing.

Xbox Live Status web pages across North America, the UK, and Australia have flickered between green and red lights; telltale signs that the company's engineers are working to fix the issue but problems are persisting.

[Update: 02:56 am Pacific - Microsoft has said the Xbox Live service has been restored for now.]

As a result of a suspected DDoS attack, Xbox Live has been knocked offline on numerous occasions for more than seven days. At the time of writing, Microsoft's status page is reporting that core services are back online, though notifications have yet to be sent to customers, suggesting that the corporation is still verifying that the service has been restored.

A Microsoft spokesperson was unavailable for comment at the time of going to press.

source: gamespot

The Future of Mobile Game Graphics, As Demonstrated by Epic Games

This week at Samsung's Galaxy Unpacked 2016 event, during which the company announced the Galaxy S7 and more, Epic Games showcased what mobile games might look like in the future. This was done by way of a video for ProtoStar, a real-time 3D "experience" built using the Unreal Engine 4. It's one of the first publicly demonstrated applications using the new Vulkan API, which has a number of gaming-specific features.

First, check out the video below.

"The new industry-standard Vulkan API brings key elements of high-end console graphics technology to mobile devices, and Samsung is leading the way with the amazing new Galaxy S7," Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney said in a statement. "As the first engine supporting Vulkan, Unreal Engine 4 provides a solid foundation for developers joining in the mobile graphics revolution."

According to Epic, Unreal Engine 4's use of the Vulkan API is capable of delivering a number of improvements, including more dynamic onscreen objects and faster performance overall.

Here's a list of some of the technologies used in the ProtoStar video and available with Vulkan in Unreal Engine 4.

• Dynamic planar reflections (high-quality reflections for dynamic objects)
• Full GPU particle support on mobile, including vector fields
• Temporal anti-aliasing (TAA)
• High-quality ASTC texture compression
• Full scene dynamic cascaded shadows
• Chromatic aberration
• Mobile dynamic light refraction
• Filmic tonemapping curve
• Improved mobile static reflections
• High-quality mobile depth of field
• Vulkan API support with thousands of dynamic objects onscreen

The new Samsung Galaxy S7 (and the S7 Edge model) comes with a water-cooling system, a "No Alerts" setting, and the ability to record and broadcast gameplay footage. Check out this post for more on the phone's gaming features. Preorders for the new device (pricing has not been announced) open on February 23 and come with a free Gear VR headset.

source: gamespot