PokemonCenter.com Counting Down to Launch July 3, 2014

I have to admit I have been jealous of Japan for quite a while. It is really difficult to find merchandise for Japanese made video games here in the United States. Because of that, merchandise for some of my favorite games from the Land of the Rising Sun like Catherine, Metal Gear Solid or the Silent Hill series can be very hard to come by.

One thing you might know about Japan is it is the home of Pokémon. What you might not know is that Japan has Pokemon Centers located all throughout the country, just like in the games. Unlike the games, where the Centers serve as communal areas for Pokémon Trainers on their Pokémon journey, real-life Pokémon Centers are retail stores where you can find all sorts of exclusive merchandise there, games, movies and other collectibles.

When I first found out about the Pokémon Center stores, I thought they were pretty cool. Some of the content sold in Pokémon Centers have never been made available anywhere else. If you want to hear about how much non-Japanese Pokémon players have missed just in the past few years, I recommend checking out JWittz’s YouTube Channel and watching a video he posted produced by fellow YouTuber TamashiiHiroka.

Well, have I got a big announcement to make today. Continuing with today’s Pokémon news, Nintendo and The Pokémon Company have announced the imminent launch of PokemonCenter.com, a one stop website for Pokémon fans in the US to purchase the latest exclusive Pokémon merchandise.

Currently the site is only offering a few items including a Pikachu Plush toy, but there is a countdown clock indicating that the full site should be launching within the next 35 days! Can’t wait to see what they have in store for us.

Pokémon: The Series X/Y Now on iTunes July 3, 2014

Nintendo has announced that fans of the animated Pokémon X/Y series will be able to purchase and download entire episodes from iTunes right now in SD and HD. To celebrate the launch, Apple currently has the first episode of the X/Y season available for download free of charge.

I only caught the first few episodes of this series when it first aired but I have to say it had a great launch that both paid respect to the legacy of the animated series and the story of the newest Pokémon generation games.

You will need an iTunes account to purchase the episode but you can create one quickly with just a valid credit card or iTunes gift card. iTunes content can be played on any PC or Mac with iTunes installed, Apple TV, or iOS compatible device.

inFAMOUS: First Light Release Date June 26, 2014

First announced at E3 2014, inFAMOUS: First Light is a standalone downloadable game where you take control of Abagail “Fetch” Walker in a prequel story to inFAMOUS: Second Son.

Those who fondly remember using Fetch’s neon powers will get the chance to use them once again in this game. Developer Sucker Punch Studios has promised that Fetch had a few neon powers she did not give Delsin in the original game, and players will get the chance to use then in First Light.

Sony currently has the game available for preorder on the Playstation Store. Anyone with a PS4 can purchase it right now for a price of $14.99 US. They are offering free exclusive DLC to anyone who preorders the game.

inFAMOUS: First Light is coming August 26th, 2014 exclusively to the Playstation 4.

PS4 Firmware 1.72 Released June 24, 2014

If you noticed your PS4 would not connect to the Playstation Network this afternoon, relax, there’s nothing wrong with it.

Sony has released a required firmware update for the Playstation 4 this afternoon and because it is a required update, you’re not allowed to mess around with the system’s Playstation Network features as the update downloads in the background as you would typically be allowed to.

Version 1.72 addresses some PS4 system stability issues but the release notes for the firmware do not specifically state what stability issues were fixed.

Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain E3 2014 Demo June 24, 2014

If you’re like me and were blown away by Konami’s E3 2014 trailer for Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain and had to see more, you are in luck.  The guys over at Konami have posted up the gameplay footage from their E3 2014 demonstration.

Make no mistake this is over thirty minutes of Metal Gear Solid V gameplay.  The game takes place in an open world environment over two hundred times bigger than the environment in Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes.  The developers have also mentioned the game is currently running in 1080p at 60hz on a Playstation 4.

Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain is coming to Playstation 4, Playstation 3, Xbox 360 and Xbox One.

Watch Dogs Patch to Fix Loading Error Launching Soon June 18, 2014

Since shortly after the game’s release, a lot of gamers who have been playing UbiSoft’s Watch_Dogs have been experiencing issues loading their save games. In particular, their games would get stuck loading the game at around 90%.

Ubisoft announced shortly after people started having the issue that they knew what was causing the problem and were working on a fix. Today, Ubisoft has announced they believe they have fixed the problem and will be releasing a patch on all platforms for the game very soon that will fix this issue as well as some other issues specific to the PC version.

The patch will launch on the PS3 and PS4 versions of the game later today. PC owners will get the patch later in the next few days. Xbox One and Xbox 360 players should find their patches in the next week.

Here’s a full list of all the patch notes.

GAMEPLAY FIXES
• Fixed several mission-breaking bugs.
• Fixed minor mission and item-related issues.
• Fixed the issue that caused the empty weapon-wheel.

MULTIPLAYER FIXES
• Fixed several minor respawn issues.
• Fixed some connection and session joining issues.

PC SPECIFIC FIXES
• Fixed graphical glitches on Low & Medium settings.
• Fixed some crashes on SLI configurations.
• Implemented several performance improvements.
• Implemented a few control improvements.
• Fixed issues causing infinite messaging and timing-out when trying to access the Online Shop from the Extras Menu while Uplay is set to Offline mode.
• Fixed issues connecting to a Multiplayer game.
• Implemented several mouse modifications.
• Fixed “Drinking Game” control issue where wrong information was displayed when played with a gamepad.
• Fixed “Chess Game” control issue.
• Fixed bug where the invasion setting was never saved.
• Fixed graphical issues during cut scenes and cinematics.
• Fixed several graphical and texture bugs.
• Removed Vista OS check to prevent false positives.
• Added game version in main menu.

UPDATE: The patch has been released on the PS4.

UPDATE 2: The patch should be out on PC now.

UPDATE 3: The patch should be out on Xbox 360 now.

Nintendo Digital E3 2014 Press Event June 10, 2014

Ladies and gentlemen, Reggie Fils-Amie.

Destiny Beta Coming to the Playstation July 17th June 9, 2014

Are you a huge fan of the developer, Bungie? Have you preordered Destiny on a Playstation platform? Have I got great news for you! Sony has announced this evening that they will be launching the Destiny beta test on Playstation platforms starting on July 17th!

So how does the game look? Take a look for yourselves.

Can’t wait to play the game until then? Bungie and Sony are planning to host an Alpha Test of the game exclusively on the Playstation 4. If you’re a PS4 owner with a valid Playstation Network account check out this site and sign up.

Batman: Arkham Knight E3 2014 Batmobile Gameplay Trailer June 9, 2014

Do not adjust your monitor. There is nothing wrong with your PC, Tablet or Smartphone. Just sit back and enjoy the fear.

Batman: Arkham Knight is coming to the PS4 and Xbox One. The PS4 version will feature exclusive Scarecrow Nightmare Missions.

Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain E3 2014 Trailer June 9, 2014

I’m one of the biggest fans of the Metal Gear Solid franchise and I have been waiting as patiently as I could for any information on Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain after the release of Ground Zeroes. I had heard it leaked at some point online but I wasn’t able to see it during that time. Hopeful it would show during one of the E3 Press Events I waited for Sony to air this trailer at their show tonight and I wasn’t disappointed. Take a look.

Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain is coming to multiple platforms in 2015.