Battlefield 4 on Xbox 360 Requires a Hard Drive November 1, 2013

Only some of the Xbox 360 units sold at retail include Hard Drives, but this isn’t usually that big a deal.  Up until earlier this year, the Xbox 360 only required a Hard Drive for certain tasks like Halo Co-Op play, or for playing backwards compatible original Xbox games.  Because of that, some of you may have avoided needing to pick up a Hard Drive for your Xbox 360.  However, If your plan is to play Battlefield 4 from EA, I’m sorry to say that your luck has run out.

In the past, Microsoft has a stated policy that games can be installed to USB flash memory, provided there was adequate free space, but it was not recommended.  Battlefield 4’s developers have made it clear that the game installation cannot be performed on a USB flash drive, so if you want to play Battlefield 4 on your Xbox 360, you’re going to need an official Xbox 360 Hard Drive.

To help any Battlefield 4 players who don’t know how to install their new Hard Drives, here’s a quick how-to guide.

Xbox Live Terms of Service Updated November 1, 2013

Some of you may have some problems logging into Xbox Live today.  No, you don’t have a problem with your account.  Microsoft has once again updated the Xbox Live Terms of Service and because of that, require that you reaccept their updated terms before you can be allowed to log back into Live.

It is highly likely that the TOS was updated in advance of the Xbox One launch next month.  Once you accept the new terms, you should have no issues getting your Xbox 360 back online.

Playstation 4 Day One Firmware Update Does Not Require Online Activation October 31, 2013

Those of you who may be lacking broadband internet access and wish to pick up a Playstation 4 with the hope of using most of the console’s announced features can breathe a small sigh of relief today.  According to several media sources, the Day One Software Update that Sony is releasing on the PS4’s launch can be installed from multiple different sources, including USB.

This may be a welcome announcement, as many prospective PS4 owners have been concerned that Sony’s update servers may not be able to meet the demand of all the new PS4 users updating their consoles at around the same time.  By offering different update solutions, this could lessen the load on Sony’s update server, or provide a workaround in case users do find problems updating online.

Sony has also stated they may be able to provide an alternate activation disc to users unable to update through other means.  However, you may need to contact Sony Support in order to have that disc sent to you.

You can read more about this, as well as all of the final technical information Sony is releasing on the PS4, here.

The Playstation 4 is launching November 15th, 2013 for a price of $399 US.

Dead Rising 3 Halloween Trailer October 31, 2013

We’re less than a month away from the launch of the Xbox One, and the highest anticipated game on my launch radar is without a doubt Dead Rising 3 from Capcom.

One of the staples of the Dead Rising series was that you could pretty much wear any kind of clothes you find in the game’s environment.  One of the gameplay enhancements of Dead Rising 2 is that you could fashion your own weapons from other smaller weapons you found in the environment.  This new trailer is just here to remind us on Halloween that yes…that’s all still there.

Dead Rising 3 is coming November 22nd, 2013 exclusive to the Xbox One.

Heavenly Sword Movie Announced October 31, 2013

In 2007, developer Ninja Theory released their first exclusive game to Sony’s Playstation 3, called Heavenly Sword.  It had a deep story with fantastic characters, and a similar gameplay style to Sony’s Playstation 2 hit series God of War.  Sadly, the game critically suffered as many people complained just how short it was, and after the game’s release Ninja Theory moved on to other projects.  Because of this, most people forgot about the series and moved on.  This is quite a shame since…well without going too deep into spoilers the original game did end with a pretty big cliffhanger.

I can remember some musings from Ninja Theory shortly after Heavenly Sword’s release that they had the facilities and the expertise to make a dedicated CGI movie, but that really didn’t go any further.  They were working with WETA to make the original game, and it looked great.  All characters were digitally performance captured from actors including Andy Serkis.  A CGI movie would have made a really good fit for the series, but we hadn’t heard anything further about that in years.  Imagine my surprise when this trailer hit the web last night.

That’s right, they’re making an Heavenly Sword CGI movie, and it looks to be a direct adaptation of the original game.  From what I can see in the the trailer, the movie makers have replicated the game’s art style perfectly.  I’m also happy to see that Anna Torv, who was the lead actress in the original game, will be reprising her role for this movie.  It looks like Alfred Molina (famous for playing Doc Ock in Spider-Man 2) will be replacing Andy Serkis as the antagonist.

I’m really excited about this development.  I was a fan of Heavenly Sword when it was first released, and I have been hoping for quite some time that they would continue the franchise in some form.  I’ve extended an invitation for interviews on behalf of this site to the movie’s filmmakers.

Heavenly Sword: The Movie will be coming April 2014.

Uncharted 3 Multiplayer Maps Free Today October 29, 2013

In honor of the two year anniversary of the release of Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception, Naughty Dog has made ALL of the Uncharted 3 Multiplayer Map Packs, including a brand new Dry Docks Map Pack, free to download from the Playstation Store.  This is a fantastic piece of news as it will get a lot of players who haven’t had the chance to check out Uncharted 3’s multiplayer in a long time to start playing again.

Read all the details about the promotion here on Naughty Dog’s Website.  Now head to the Playstation Store and start downloading!

Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception is out now exclusive to the Playstation 3.

Halo: Spartan Assault Coming to Xbox 360 and Xbox One October 29, 2013

Up to this point, Halo: Spartan Assault has been considered by many to be the only Windows 8 exclusive program that could entice people to upgrade.  Today, gamers everywhere not interested in ever upgrading to Windows 8 can breathe a sigh of relief as Microsoft has announced the game is being ported to the Xbox 360 and Xbox One platforms next month.

What is Halo: Spartan Assault?  It is a side story which takes place between the events of Halo 3 and Halo 4 and tells the story of the SPARTAN-IV unit, one of the major supporting characters from 2012’s Halo 4.  Take a look!

The Xbox versions of Halo: Spartan Assault will be redesigned specifically for the Xbox controller’s dual analog sticks.  This should be a much more comfortable control option.  The Xbox versions will also include 2-player cooperative play, the Operation Hydra expansion, and new levels featuring Halo’s most fearsome foe, The Flood.

Hopefully, both of these new versions of the game will have achievements that are compatible with Halo Waypoint.  In fact, there are several achievements in the game that unlock specific Halo Waypoint awards.

Halo: Spartan Assault is coming in December to Xbox 360 and Xbox One.  It is out now on Windows 8-equipped computers, tablets and smartphones.

UPDATE:  While both the Xbox One and Xbox 360 versions of Halo: Spartan Assault will support cooperative play, the game will not support cooperative play across the two platforms.  So unfortunately, anyone who is playing the Xbox One version of the game will only be able to play with Xbox One players, and Xbox 360 players will only be able to play with other Xbox 360 players.

Playstation 4 Day One 1.5 Software Update Announced October 25, 2013

For those of you who complained that the Wii U required a pretty hefty day-one patch to be able to play Wii games, many news organizations are reporting today that Sony is going to offer a Day One Playstation 4 which will unlock most of the console’s announced features.  So before you fire up your games, make sure to fire up the PS4’s Software Update.

The 300 MB patch will be released the day of the console’s launch and can be downloaded online.  It will enable most of the PS4’s features such as remote play, gameplay spectating, facial and voice recognition, and second screen, but also adds a lot of features that the PS3 already can do out of the box.  The patch will enable the PS4’s online multiplayer capabilities, cross game voice party chat, and will also enable the PS3’s Blu-Ray and DVD playback capabilities.

You can read all the details about the system update here on Playstation Blog.

Playstation 4 is launching in North America November 15th, 2013 for a price of $399 US.

Killer Instinct Pin Ultimate Edition Release Moved Up October 23, 2013

I know a lot of people can’t wait for the latest Killer Instinct game to come to the Xbox One at the console’s launch, and in anticipation of that the guys at Penny-Arcade have previously announced they are working on a Killer Instinct retail box exclusively for sale through Microsoft Stores, and they were able to push up the retail game’s release to the same day as the Xbox One’s launch.

Unfortunately, I no longer thinks this boxed game will be a good value.  The retail box will only include a download code for the game content.  No disc will be included, so you’ll still need an internet connection on your Xbox One to download it through Live.  The retail box will not offer any more game content than what you can already purchase with a direct online download.  There aren’t going to be any special behind the scenes videos, soundtracks, or exclusive DLC included with the package, just the two pins and a box with slots for more.

For a twenty dollar premium over a full-priced download of the game you get what amounts to an empty box with two collector’s pins.  Any further pins need to be purchased through the Penny-Arcade website, collected through public events which people may not be able to afford to attend, or sheer luck.  And since the Pin Ultimate Edition is only going to be able to be purchased through the very uncommon Microsoft Stores, it is highly likely that not a lot of players will be able to pick them up.  If the Pin Ultimate game box is going to be as uncommon as Penny-Arcade and Microsoft are making it out to be, who is going to care about collecting these pins at major gaming events?

So it will be coming out sooner, but the question is, is it really worth buying?

Killer Instinct Pin Ultimate Edition is coming November 22nd, 2013 exclusive to the Xbox One and only sold through Microsoft Stores.

Deadly Premonition PC Release Date October 18, 2013

PC owners hoping for the chance to finally play the cult classic Deadly Premonition have had their wishes granted. The game is officially coming to the PC with entirely new features not seen on any other version of the game currently released.

Directed by Swery65, Deadly Premonition tells the story of Agent Francis York Morgan as he tries to uncover the identity of a serial killer operating in the quiet mountain town of Greenvale.

Deadly Premonition is coming October 29th, 2013 to the PC through Steam. It is already out now on the PS3 and Xbox 360.