LocoCycle Price Dropped February 4, 2014

Major Nelson is reporting that LocoCycle, a downloadable launch title for the Xbox One developed by Twisted Pixel Games, has been dropped in price by 40-50% depending on what region you live in.  I loved the previous games made by Twisted Pixel, and because of that LocoCycle was the first game that I downloaded after setting up my Xbox One, and was the first Xbox One title I completed.  If you were on the fence about giving it a look, now would be a great time to check it out.  You can watch our review of it below.

And here’s our Let’s Play of the game’s opening.

LocoCycle is out now exclusive to Xbox One.  It is coming to the Xbox 360 and PC.

Inside the Square – Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII Director’s Cut February 4, 2014

The Director’s Cut of the Behind the Scenes documentary series for Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII, dubbed Inside the Square, has been released today.  It combines all three parts of the Inside the Square web series into one thirty minute video.  If you had any questions about the development process for the third installment in the Final Fantasy XIII series, take a look at this.

Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII is coming February 11th, 2014 to the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3.

The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Anniversary Edition Free on 3DS January 31, 2014

I could not be happier with Nintendo right now.  Just as soon as I completed all the actions in the Bravely Default demo, I checked the Nintendo eShop and found Nintendo had once again taken my advice.  The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Anniversary Edition is back on the 3DS’s eShop and you can download it for free right now up until February 2nd, 2014.

The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Anniversary Edition is a special promotional port of The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords, originally released bundled with the game The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past for the Game Boy Advance.  It is redesigned to take full advantage of the features of the 3DS, including wireless multiplayer.  The game was originally created as a special promotion for The Legend of Zelda’s Anniversary, and was released for free only for a short time.  As this period of release took place before the release of the 3DS XL, I was not lucky enough to be able to download this game, and seeing the game’s listing in the official Hyrule Historia only served to put salt on that wound.  Now that it’s back out, I couldn’t hit the download button faster.

As far as I know, Nintendo has not widely reported on this.  Their website makes a small mention of the event, but I cannot recall a single message on their Twitter Feed or YouTube Channel.  Regardless, if you have a 3DS or plan to pick one up before the 2nd of February, you have no reason not to give this game a download.  Nintendo said it may be a very long time before they bring it back.

The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Anniversary Edition is free right now exclusively to the Nintendo 3DS.

Bravely Default Gameplay Trailer January 30, 2014

Yesterday, Nintendo released the  latest gameplay trailer for Square Enix’s newest RPG franchise, Bravely Default.  Inspired heavily by the gameplay of earlier Final Fantasy games, Bravely Default takes full advantage of the 3DS’s features (including StreetPass), while still offering a ton of options you will recognize from earlier Final Fantasy games, like a great jobs system.  I’ve put several hours into the Bravely Default demo, and I hope to be lucky enough to complete it and unlock all of the demo’s extra bonuses before the full version of the game gets released, because the demo’s unlocked bonuses carry over into the main game.  So check out this latest gameplay trailer.  If anything, it should be something fun to watch while you wait for Norende to finish rebuilding.

Bravely Default is coming February 7th, 2014 exclusive to the Nintendo 3DS.  You can download the demo right now off the Nintendo eShop.

Final Fantasy XIII RETRO-spective January 30, 2014

The third entry in the Final Fantasy XIII series, Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII, is coming in just a few weeks.  To help prepare anyone interested in picking it up who may not have played any of the previous Final Fantasy XIII games, Square Enix has produced a FANTASTIC retrospective on the series story, with a little twist.  Instead of cutting together gameplay footage from the game’s CGI cutscenes, this new video is done very much in the style of the classic 16-bit RPGs like Final Fantasy VI (Final Fantasy III is the US SNES version’s name) and Chrono Trigger.  This could have been done because that era is considered by many to be the finest era in the history of Console RPGs.  Well, check out the video below to see for yourself.  It really puts the RETRO in retrospective.

Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII is coming February 11th, 2014 to the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3.  A Collector’s Edition for the game is for sale exclusively through the Square Enix Online Store.  Anyone who preorders any version of the game from a participating retailer will get an exclusive Lightning costume based on Cloud’s outfit and Buster Sword from Final Fantasy VII.

Microsoft Buys Gears of War IP January 27, 2014

Hot off the presses, Microsoft has announced the purchase of the Gears of War franchise from Epic Games.  Next to Halo, Gears of War is one of the biggest exclusive franchises that the Xbox 360 held over Sony platforms since the Playstation 3 launch.  However, up to today, the Gears of War property was owned by developer Epic Games, and if they chose, they could have released it on other platforms like the PS3.  With Microsoft buying the property, there is no chance of a Gears of War game coming to a non-Microsoft platform any more.

This is highly unusual for Microsoft, as they typically acquire IPs by purchasing the companies that developed them outright.  My guess is that Epic either wished to stay independent, or Microsoft had no interest in acquiring extra companies right now.  The details of the deal are still pretty secret, so we don’t know how much Microsoft paid for the franchise yet, but Microsoft did acquire Epic team member Rod Fergusson (seen here) as part of the deal.

Microsoft says they plan to announce their future plans with the IP later this year.  My bet is they may announce something at this year’s E3.

inFAMOUS: Second Son Behind the Scenes – Make it Rain January 27, 2014

The latest release in the inFAMOUS series, inFAMOUS: Second Son, is going to take place in the city of Seattle.  If you’re going to reproduce Seattle for a gaming environment, you’re going to want to go all out, and that means also recreating Seattle’s signature weather patterns.  Thanks to the power of the Playstation 4, the game’s developers plan to do exactly that, and here’s how they are doing it.

inFAMOUS: Second Son is coming March 2014 exclusive to the Playstation 4.

Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD Remaster Collector’s Edition Trailer January 27, 2014

Square Enix is in the process of remastering Final Fantasy X and Final Fantasy X-2 to the PS3 in glorious HD with entirely new scenarios never released in North America.  However, that is not all Square Enix is planning to do with this HD remaster, they are planning to release two Special Collector’s Edition versions of the game for fans.  The first is very similar to the Kingdom Hearts 1.5 HD ReMIX release in that it will include a detailed artbook.  This version will be available at no extra charge for anyone who preorders the game from participating retailers.  The other is a very special Collector’s Edition which will include a full sized artbook, and the soundtrack for both games on Blu-Ray Disc.  This CE is going to be so rare it will only be available on Square Enix’s Online Store.  Take a look for yourselves to see which version you want to pick up.

Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD Remaster is coming March 2014 to the Playstation 3.  A Playstation Vita version is also in development.

Inside the Square – Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII Behind the Scenes Series January 24, 2014

To help set the proper mood for when we release the Let’s Play of the Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII Demo later this weekend, take a look at this three part behind the scenes documentary, dubbed “Inside the Square”, which details the history of the company behind the series and the game’s development.  It is very well produced and I highly recommend giving it a watch for anyone waiting for the demo to finish downloading.

Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII is coming February 11th, 2014 to the PS3 and Xbox 360.

Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII Demo Released January 24, 2014

The Demo for Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII, the third and final part of the Final Fantasy XIII saga is up for release nearly a month before the game’s official launch.  Xbox Live Gold and Playstation Network users should be able to download the demo right now free of charge to their respective console.  Free Xbox Live members will have to wait until January 28th, 2014 to download the demo.

Ready for the best part?  Anyone who plays through the demo, activates the Outworld game feature and submits a player score will be eligible for some exclusive DLC.  On top of that, anyone who downloads the PS3 version of the demo prior to the game’s launch will immediately unlock an exclusive costume.  That costume will download to your PS3 automatically.

For those of you unable to download the demo, we are planning to record a Let’s Play of it for release some time this weekend.  In the meantime, enjoy this opening cinematic.

Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII is coming February 11th, 2014 to the PS3 and Xbox 360.  PS3 users should download the demo prior to the game’s launch to ensure access to the exclusive costume.