Category: Games and Gaming

Here’s Why It is Difficult for Developers to Create Games for Apple Watch

When Apple Watch went up for sale globally on Friday, nobody thought that games could find a place on Apple Watch. The Cupertino-based firm focused on health and fitness apps incorporated on its Watch, and never talked about any game-related app in its March 9 conference.

However, it sparks a question of whether developers would be able to shrink down games to the size of a 2-inch screen of the device. The gaming market for the smartphones is vast, and with the size of games decreasing year after year, it now seems possible. The preview page of Apple shows only two games.

It was learnt that developers don’t have access to full features of the wearable and development tools. But if any company succeeds to squeeze down a game to the size of the watch, it will have a firm grip on the smartwatch game sector. Apple has made a record-breaking $15 billion in 2014 through games in its App Store, and with estimates of 40 million Apple Watch to sell by year-end, there is a vast market for the developers ahead.

Some game developers have already started to take an initiative. New York-based studio Robot 5 says it has already designed three games that can be played on the 2-inch screen, along with seven more that will complete before the end of June.

Runeblade

Right now, the Apple Watch acts as a screen interface when tethered to the iPhone. Developers are still trying to figure out a way to develop native apps for the Watch. For making games on the wearable, it will need an entirely different mindset, however. Peter Chen, Founder and CEO of Robot 5 Studios says –

The biggest challenge is the complexity of the animations. iPhone games can have animations that are infinitely complex, with full control of each pixel and also of objects movements across the screen. Apple Watch games don’t have this kind of control over pixels and objects, so we have to mimic this kind of behavior.

It is likely that Apple will work on this issue on its launch or after, added Peter Chen. The 18-hour battery life of the wearable is also a problem for the developers.

It is quite evident that creating games for Apple Watch is not impossible. Just like for the iPhone and iPad, creating a set of games for the wearable needs a different approach.

Robot 5 Studios released a teaser of a new game. Check out how it looks like on Apple Watch in the video below:

https://youtu.be/tcwFyJysTG8

April 25, 2015
Steam Workshop Now Allows Mod Developers to Make Money Off Their Work

Steam Workshop, an Internet-based multiplayer and social networking platform, is one of the best platforms where developers can share their add-ons, mods (modifications), maps and items to the games for free. Today, Valve Corporation, creators of Steam, announced that people who create different mods, maps or in-game items can sell and earn of their work through the Steam Workshop.

Steam writes on its official blog:

The Steam Workshop has always been a great place for sharing mods, maps, and all kinds of items that you’ve created. Now it’s also a great place for selling those creations.

With a new, streamlined process for listing and selling your creations, the Steam Workshop now supports buying mods directly from the Workshop, being immediately usable in the game.

The new paid marketplace is updated with the hit game The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, which currently has over 25,000 available mods. An American video game publisher Bethesda Software said many of their fans have been creating mods for more than ten years, and Steam is offering them a chance to earn by doing what they love best.

While the new paid model sounds great for modders and developers, the other side of the coin is that many Steam users who are used to free mods have started to cry foul against the change. Several users have called the move as ‘immoral’ and blamed the creators to be greedy.

In January, Valve announced that new analytical and measurement tools will be introduced to further optimise the sale of user-created content. This tool may help creators get a better idea of which of their mods are more popular.

April 25, 2015
Activision Releases The Teaser For ‘Call of Duty: Black Ops 3’

One of the biggest first person shooting franchise of all times, Call of Duty is all set to make a comeback this month with some incredibly thrilling operations. Activision has teased a video for the third instalment of intense spy thriller adventure. This new sequel is titled “Call of Duty: Black Ops 3”.

The one minute seven seconds teaser depicts random numbers and codes moving around to give a blurred impression of a man. An important detail is imparted through the teaser that the modern combaters don’t need any weapons; looks like the game is going to be far more interesting. The video ends up with a quote, “How far are we willing to go?” The teaser doesn’t give away much about the game but it does builds up the excitement. Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 will release on April 26 this year.

Check out the ‘Call of Duty: Black Ops 3’ teaser titled “Back in Black” below:

April 10, 2015
Top 5 Games We’d Love to Play in Virtual Reality

Well, the Oculus Rift’s consumer model edges closer to release and Sony is preparing ‘Project Morpheus’ for the PS4. We’re almost certain that the next chapter of gaming and entertainment is going to be ruled by Virtual Reality. Acknowledging what’s to come, we thought we’d take a look at the games we think could be the best suited for VR space.

Here are the top 5 games we’d love to play in virtual reality:

1. Mirror’s Edge 2

Perhaps the most obvious choice of game to feature Oculus Rift/Project Morpheus compatibility, even the idea of wall-running in virtual reality in Mirror’s Edge 2 is enough to empty your pocket and buy Sony already. If you’ve ever wanted to experience flying through the skyline of a freakishly white city, or getting a first-person view of plummeting to your death from the top of a skyscraper, then this is the best option to walk away from the experience alive. Mirror’s Edge‘s tough platforming and great aesthetic is ideal for virtual reality.

2. Portal 2

If the Oculus Rift and Project Morpheus will tackle with the motion sickness issue, then playing Portal 2 in Virtual Reality would be the only thing you’d be doing on weekends. In this game you would be frequently chastised by sociopathic A.I. that has a penchant for breaking into song at the end of the ride. Puzzle-solving with added adrenaline.

3. Star Wars: Battlefront

There is no news about the upcoming Star Wars: Battlefront game other than that it will be launching soon, but the idea of experiencing the Star Wars universe in virtual reality is an unexceptionally exciting one. While the Battlefront games were typically played in third-person, they’ve always featured a first-person mode, too, and one which will likely be focused in the new game. If this is to be the case, then Battlefront with Oculus Rift/Project Morpheus support would be amazing.

4. Everybody’s Gone to the Rapture

Everybody’s Gone to the Rapture is being developed by The Chinese Room,who previously created ‘Dear Esther’, an atmospheric first-person game that suffered from being a little too pretentious and, frankly, dull. With its apocalyptic setting, Everybody’s Gone to the Rapture has the potential to be much more enjoyable than its earlier version, and if it can bring the atmosphere of Dear Esther to a more interesting game, then this upcoming PS4 title will be a great opportunity for Sony to show off Project Morpheus.

5. Evolve

Evolve’s under the development under Turtle Rock, same people behind the Left 4 Dead series, and from early impressions and screenshots it seems to be L4D with gigantic monsters instead of zombies. This would lend itself well to virtual reality, providing equal amounts of horror and hilarity, if the L4D series is anything to go by.

April 5, 2015
The Upcoming Assassin’s Creed Chronicle Will Visit India

Ubisoft recently released a trailer of the upcoming Assassin’s Creed Chronicle, each exploring a different locale. As seen in the trailer, the storyline takes place in China, Russia, as well as India.

The first chronicle takes place in China, where the players will play as the female assassin, Shao Jun, and experience the downfall of the Ming Dynasty. The next is based in India and is the story of Arbaaz Mir, an assassin in the era of the Sikh Empire at War in 1841. Lastly, the story of Nikolai Orelov, set against the backdrop of the Red October in Russia.

Climax Studios is handling development on this trio of titles in conjunction with Ubisoft Montreal. The games will feature a 2.5D perspective, each with their distinct art style. Assasin’s Creed: China edition will be releasing on April 21st for PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC on April 21st for North and South America, followed by the release in European countries the day after. The remaining two titles, which are based in India and Russia will be released separately later this year. Release for India has not yet been disclosed.

Assassin’s Creed Chronicle: The unique 2.5D graphics

Each Chronicle will be priced at $10 (Rs. 641). Players who have the Assassin’s Creed Unity Season Pass will be able to download the ACC: China with no extra cost.

You can check out the trailer below:

April 3, 2015
Microsoft Releases Two New Trailers and Reveals the Launch Date for Halo 5: Guardians

Microsoft’s Halo is one of the most popular games in the market. This year, the fifth installment will be up for grabs on October 27. The date of launch was mentioned in the two new trailers released by Microsoft during the season finale of “The Walking Dead.”

Both the trailers are shot in live action and seem like a juxtaposition of each other. It shows the scene, but the two characters are on opposite ends in both videos. According to some decrypters on the internet, it is said that a super soldier named Locke believes Master Chief, the protagonist from the previous “Halo” games, is a traitor, but the reason is unknown.

Halo 5: Guardians is developed by game makers. 343 industries who had also created the previous two offerings under the banner of Halo. It is said that the trailer indicates the possibility of controlling multiple characters in the latest version of the game.

Over the years, Microsoft has seen tremendous appreciation and demand for this game. The fifth edition will come to Xbox consoles on 27th October this year; so you know when to clear up your schedule and warm up your Xbox for unending Halo sessions.

Here are both the new trailers for Halo 5: Guardians.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tHQiYPiNVEE#t=61

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9rd8FWUCCZk

March 30, 2015
NVIDIA GTX 960M and 950M Processors Bring High-Powered Desktop Gaming To Notebooks

Some time ago, NVIDIA had launched the GeForce GTX 980M and 970M processors for notebooks. Now, to turn up the heat on the competition a bit more, the chip maker has added GeForce GTX 960M and 950M to the GTX 900M lineup. Nvidia is mainly aiming for notebooks from ASUS, Lenovo, Alienware, Acer and HP. Both the processors features Maxwell architecture, including 640 CUDA cores and are built on 28nm process.

These new processors are very powerful and hence can be used for purposes other than gaming, for example video editing and creating 3D graphics. Acer has announced that a new batch of its existing line of Aspire V Nitro Black Edition laptops will offer the GeForce GTX 960M as an option.

Aspire V Nitro Black Edition laptop

One of the features of the processor is the BatteryBoost which lets users enjoy longer playtime than previous gaming notebooks. It provides more battery backup, even if the user is playing off-cord. Users can choose between the best graphics performance or the best battery life, according to the application they are using. Other features include ShadowPlay activation. Users can record full-resolution videos for sharing on YouTube or stream live to Twitch.

As of now, only the Acer V Nitro will be offering the GTX 960M service. Alienware, ASUS, HP and Lenovo would be releasing the upgraded version soon.

UPDATE

For a limited period, customers who purchase the GeForce GTX 980, GTX 970, and GTX 960 graphics cards, or a notebook with a GTX 970M or above, will get a code for a digital copy of the game. Labelled the ‘Undeniably Epic’ bundle, it will be authorized for purchases from Flipkart, Snapdeal and computer stores that are a part of Nvidia’s retail network.

March 13, 2015
Sony Unveils a Beautiful Limited Edition PS4 Inspired by Metal Gear Solid 5

Sony has announced a limited edition PlayStation 4 inspired by the wildly popular stealth action title Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain. The limited edition version has been announced in Japan for now, though we’re not sure whether it’ll be announced globally.

The limited edition console is one hell of a looker, made in collaboration with Konami’s Hideo Kojima. The console gets the same colour as Snake’s Bionic arm, while the DualShock 4 is inspired by the assassin’s gun with his logo emblazoned. We won’t mind getting our hands dirty on this badboy!

Meanwhile’ Konami has also officially announced the release date for Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain. The title will launch on all major consoles except Wii U on September 1, while the game will be released for the PC on Steam on September 15. Hideo Kojima also mentioned that MGS5 will be the final chapter of this epic franchise.

Sony also announced its retro themed limited edition console back in December marking their 20th anniversary.

March 5, 2015
Sony Brags About its Upgraded VR Headset, Announces Arrival for Early 2016

Sony today announced a spruced up version of its virtual reality headset, codenamed Project Morpheus, and Sony is already bragging about how better it is compared to the one they showed off last year. The new VR headset was showcased at a GDC presentation in San Francisco and Sony says it’ll start shipping in the first half of 2016.

New features include an OLED display with a Full HD resolution, while Sony says it’ll be able to offer framerates at 60fps and 120 fps. The screen has a 5.7 inch display, while a total of nine LEDs support 360 degree tracking. Sony also claims it has super low latency – 50 percent improved response than its predecessor.

[quote text_size=”small” author=”Shuhei Yoshida” author_title=”President of Worldwide Studios for Sony Computer Entertainment.”]

A new dimension of gaming is, at long last, here – and PlayStation is again at the forefront with Project Morpheus.

[/quote]

Meanwhile, Sony also stressed on its user friendly design, featuring a single band design and quick release button. The headband supports the weight of the unit on the top of your head, hence there is no pressure on your face. Other components have also been adjusted and configured to make the headset lighter, so players do not find the headset cumbersome or uncomfortable to use.

Sony says more details on the new Project Morpheus will be revealed at E3 and Beyond, along with more VR games.

March 4, 2015
Scarecrow at the Helm Of Gotham in New Arkham Knight Trailer

Batman: Arkham Knight is the finale in the Batman Trilogy, marking the return of RockSteady Studios. Today, the game has been given a brand new trailer titled ‘Gotham is Mine’. The trailer primarily focuses on Gotham’s nefarious thugs and their plans for the city. It sets a rather dark and gritty tone for the game, with Scarecrow being the Dark Knight’s nemesis this time, voice acted by veteran actor Kevin Conroy.

The new trailer does a fairly good job setting up the premise for the game, showing some snippets of gameplay in the process. Gotham City, as expected, is in a turmoil, overrun with nefarious thugs while Batman’s worst foes are running the show, and are conspiring over Batman’s utter destruction. Scarecrow just isn’t satisfied with killing Batman, he wants to annihilate him in every way possible.

We also get to see Poison Ivy, The Penguin, the Riddler, Harley Quinn and Firefly, though for the most part, the trailer was all about Scarecrow. The game has been rated M, implying we may have some really intense moments in the game.

[quote text_size=”small” author=”Sefton Hill ” author_title=”Game Director”]

I’m not blind to the fact that [the M rating] does mean some fans will miss out… I don’t want to be oblivious to that fact. It would have been wrong to water down the game and deliver a story we didn’t believe in to keep the game ‘mass market’ or enable it for more people. We feel that’s the wrong way to go about it. We said we love the story and we don’t want to jeopardize that.

[/quote]

Rocksteady’s Batman: Arkham Asylum got a lot of gamers into Batman lore, and it’s been one hell of a ride from there. This one looks quite promising as well. Rounding up the Rocksteady Batman: Arkham trilogy. Arkham Knight launches worldwide on June 2 for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC.

Do check out the new trailer below:

In addition, some keen eyed viewers noticed some cryptic codes popping up in the trailer. A Reddit user has apparently cracked the code, which reveals three different set of character bios for Ivy, Scarecrow and Harley Quinn. These codes can be punched in the game’s official website for access to bios. We tried it out though nothing happened. Do let us know if the codes worked for you guys.

-qeL e2uLEE2 zul2e for Harley
-pPL2a3Mn Ppi3mAMpyL2 for Ivy
-c Rcn3n3 N2Jn3tjHn2 for Scarecrow

February 26, 2015
Predator Might Join the Cast of Fighters of the Upcoming Mortal Kombat X

With the launch of Mortal Kombat X (MKX) almost upon us, Ed Boon and his folks at Netherealm Studios are further fueling the hype with frequent teasers and updates to MKX’s fighter roster. The game launches in April and there are still a few fighters yet to be announced.

Latest round of rumours suggest ‘Predator’ from the blockbuster movie will also be part of a DLC for the game set to launch in June. Along with this infamous sci-fi hunter, the CIA agent that was killed in the first predator movie Colonel Al Dillion will also be a part of the game. Moreover, Weathers has reportedly agreed to share his likeness for the character design which further solidifies the credibility of the report.

@noobde How bout this photo? Predator in MKX would be so sick! pic.twitter.com/aoUV5tyqWp

— A-T (@AyDashTee) July 3, 2014

Meanwhile, Ermac is the most recently confirmed Mortal Kombat character, making him the fourteenth character in the line up. It was also reported that MKX has been granted access to use Spawn, as a new deal with Warner Bros grants them limited access to Spawn for use in its games.

In addition, it is also rumored that gunslinger Erron Black will be part of the roster. Black’s revelation in the official comic book depicts him standing next to D’vorah and Kotal Khan, both being new characters and officially confirmed for the upcoming Mortal Kombat X.

Now this could be an exciting addition to the ever growing Mortal Kombat X roster of fighters. It just gets bigger and bigger as we are inching closer to the launch of the Mortal Kombat X. Who would be your dream fighter for the MKX? Post your replies in the comments below.

February 20, 2015
Assassin’s Creed: Rogue PC Out on 10th March, PC Requirements Revealed
Ubisoft has officially confirmed the launch of Assassin’s Creed: Rogue PC version for the 10th of March. While, those of you who order the game via Uplay also get one of the seven other Assassin’s Creed title as a bonus. Digital Pre-orders also come bundled with two bonus DLC packs – The Siege of Fort de Sable and The Explorer, though we are not sure whether these will be available on retail pre-orders in India.

Meanwhile, Ubisoft also announced that the PC version of Rogue will feature eye tracking technology, where SteelSeries Sentry owners can control the in-game camera simply with their head motion.

For those you, interested in the PC version, you should check out the minimum PC requirements below:

OS: Windows 7 SP1 or Windows 8/8.1 (64bit versions only)
CPU: Intel Core2Quad Q6600 @ 2.4 GHz or AMD Athlon II X4 620 @ 2.6 GHzH
RAM: 2 GB
Graphics: Nvidia GeForce GTS450 or AMD Radeon HD5670 (1024MB VRAM) or Intel HD4600
DirectX: DirectX June 2010 Redistributable
Sound: DirectX Compatible Sound Card with latest driver
Hard drive: 11.4 GB

Supported video cards at launch:
- Nvidia Geforce GTS 450 or better, Geforce 500, 600, 700, 900 series
- AMD Radeon HD 5670 or better, Radeon HD 6000, 7000, R7, R9 series
- Intel HD4600, HD5200
Note: Laptop versions of these cards may work but are not officially supported.
February 6, 2015
Assassin’s Creed Rogue to Get Eye-Control Motion Soon

The next installment of the wildly popular Assassins Creed franchise could get more wilder – as you’ll be able to control the assassin with your own eyes. Put simply, where you look, the assassin looks (in this case Shay Patrick Cormac). Now your view and the in-game character’s view will be the same.

Ubisoft has announced that the upcoming PC version (no consoles) of Assassin’s Creed Rogue will be compatible with eye-tracking tech, making it the first AAA title to do so. The game will support the Steel Series Sentry eye-tracking device – designed specially for gaming.

Ubisoft has collaborated with Tobii for this venture. The eye tracking technology will primarily be used to control the game’s camera. The game will still be played using a keyboard and mouse, though when you look somewhere on the screen, the game’s character will do the same. While if you look away from the screen, it will pause automatically.

[quote text_size=”small” author=”Corneliu Vasiliu ” author_title=”Producer at Ubisoft’s Kiev Studio”]

Eye tracking is such a natural way to interact with a game and creates tons of potential opportunities for gameplay immersion.

[/quote]

Asassin’s Creed Rogue was launched last year for consoles, though the PC version is slated for a release sometime this year.

Meanwhile, Tobii says its working on a range of other projects from indies to big studios, so we can expect more titles in the future who’ll milk this technology.

[quote text_size=”small” author=”Oscar Werner.” author_title=”President of Tobii”]

This is only the beginning of eye-tracking in gaming.

[/quote]

You can check out other games that have used the technology at Tobii Arcade. Do check out the video below showing off the eye tracking integration:

February 6, 2015
Microsoft Launches 500GB Xbox 360 with CoD, Other Variants Face Price Cuts

A little too late or right on time, Microsoft has announced the launch of its Xbox 360 500 GB bundle for the Indian market priced at Rs.19,990. The bundle includes two popular Call of Duty titles – Black Ops and Ghosts. The bundle also includes a one month Xbox Live Gold membership.

In addition, prices of other variants of the Xbox 360 have been slashed. The 4GB standalone version is now priced at Rs. 12,990, which gets a price cut of Rs 3,000. The 250GB Xbox 360 with Kinect now gets a price tag of Rs 29,990, while its earlier price tag was Rs. 31,990. The 4GB Xbox with Kinect price has been slashed to Rs 21,990 from Rs. 26,990.

Xbox Variant New Price Old Price

4GB standalone Xbox 360 Rs.12,990 Rs. 15,990

250GB Xbox 360 with Kinect Rs.29,990 Rs.31,990

4GB xBOX 360 with Kinect Rs. 21,990 Rs.26,990

Meanwhile in November, Microsoft announced a new exclusive Xbox One Assassin’s Creed bundle with Kinect featuring Assassin’s Creed Unity.

February 2, 2015
Xiaomi Ventures into Gaming Hardware; Launches Super-Cheap Bluetooth Gamepad

Xiaomi, few days back, teased a gaming hardware with the launch date expected to be 20th January. Now it has been revealed that this mysterious device was none other than a bluetooth game controller, which carries an amazingly low price tag (surprise, surprise) of 99 Yuan.

The Xiaomi game controller sports a D-pad, analogue sticks, Y, X, A, and B buttons, as well as two shoulder buttons on either side. It also has a back button, menu button, and a home button with Mi branding. It is powered by 2xAA batteries.

It looks awfully similar to the XBox One controller and according to the company, has a very ergonomic and comfortable feel while holding. The shell is made of tough materials manufactured by Samsung. Xiaomi claims that the remote controller is made using the same quality manufacturing process as the Sony PS4 remote.

Another interesting thing about the controller is that it is scratch and sunlight resistant. The company hopes that you can play your games for hours without getting tired.

The controller comes with some serious features for heavy gamers; 360-degree field of precision positioning, which has an accuracy of 0.172 degrees, shaking, center-specific anti-tampering measures of 0.5 degrees and high precision arrow keys which have a 360 degrees movement technology, ensuring a uniform gap around the keys. It connects with Android devices using Bluetooth 3.0 and comes with a power management system which turns the device into standby mode after 5 minutes of remaining idle.

The official website states that the first 300 buyers of the Bluetooth game controller would only have to shell out just CNY 1 (roughly Rs. 9) for the device. As mentioned above, the controller is priced very competitively at 99 Yuan which rounds up to about Rs. 1000 in India currency.

January 21, 2015

Xbox Variant	New Price	Old Price
4GB standalone Xbox 360	Rs.12,990	Rs. 15,990
250GB Xbox 360 with Kinect	Rs.29,990	Rs.31,990
4GB xBOX 360 with Kinect	Rs. 21,990	Rs.26,990

Category: Games and Gaming

1. Mirror’s Edge 2

2. Portal 2

3. Star Wars: Battlefront

4. Everybody’s Gone to the Rapture

5. Evolve

Supported video cards at launch: