A New Project

There’s no better feeling than setting yourself a project and actually finding yourself dedicated to it and fulfilling it. In the past I’ve tried making mods and things for games I enjoy and usually it doesn’t progress anywhere. However, lately I’ve been having a lot of success with GTA Online’s Content Creator. I started out making a couple of fun races and deathmatches, and before too long I found myself building up quite the collection. I wasn’t getting that many plays due to not having a big subscriber base on YouTube or anything I could utilise to get people to play them and vote them up, but nonetheless I was enjoying myself, while still hoping I could get lucky and have one (or more!) of my Jobs selected to be Rockstar Verified. I made an earlier blog post (which I’ve now taken down since there’s no need for it anymore) where I posted some of my design notes on my maps in the hope that would draw some attention, to no avail. As I kept making more and more content, I jokingly said to myself “Hey, I could probably have a world map purely filled with my own custom Jobs!” But then I thought about it for a second and it didn’t sound like that bad an idea. So I set out to match Rockstar’s output of 105 races and 71 deathmatches (I only counted Rockstar-made Jobs, not Rockstar Verified ones, and didn’t include things like Vehicle Deathmatches or Last Team Standing matches because you can’t make them in the Creator as of yet).

5 PlayStation All Stars Rivalries That Need to Happen Through DLC

The launch of PlayStation All Stars is just around the corner, and Sony have confirmed that the game will most definitely be getting stage and character DLC, revealing the first pair of characters to be Kat from Gravity Rush on the Vita, and Emmett Graves from the PS3’s Starhawk. The best bit is, that for two weeks from their release you can download these characters for free, even if you don’t have the game. So I got thinking about who would be good to see as DLC using both my personal wants and the wants of the fanbase, and decided on 10 characters that would be cool to see and at least semi-plausible because that sounded like a nice, even number. People make lists like these all the time but I figured I’d do something different and come up with pairs of characters that seemed like a good fit together, and come up with a rivalry like in the game, giving them a reason to fight each other. And because I could, I chucked in a mashup stage of the two characters’ franchises. So without further ado, let’s begin!

Origin Partnering with Twitch- In-Game Streaming!

In a surprise reveal today, EA have said that their Origin service is partnering up with streaming service Twitch in order to provide in-game streaming of your Origin games to your Twitch.tv account with the upcoming beta update for Origin rolling out this week to those who have opted in.

Final Boss of PlayStation All Stars Leaked?

Update (9/11/2012): The final boss has been confirmed to be Polygon Man. Much more fitting, I believe.

It seems everything about this game has been leaked, so it was only natural that someone would discover the game's final boss, who up until now has been kept secret. GameFAQs user rumbalumba seems to be that person. Rumba has uncovered various files from several of the latest betas for PlayStation All Stars, and in the latest beta, he has discovered audio files linked to a 'Boss Arena' stage, that seem to reveal the game's boss. This is your last chance to back out from spoilers. You've been warned.

Ubisoft Reveals Playable Wii U Games at EB Expo

It was rumoured for a while that the Wii U would be showing up at the EB Expo in Sydney this October, but there was no official word on it. It had been teased by EB higher ups saying to wait for future announcements, but now it's official. Well, not technically official since this is more a leak than anything, but the Wii U is going to be playable at EB Expo! I checked my emails this morning and found an email from Ubisoft, showing the games that they'll have playable at the Expo. Awkwardly, it shows Wii U games that hadn't been officially announced for the line up yet. Have a look:

Darksiders II Tops Australian Charts, DLC Details

The NPD Group Australia have confirmed that Darksiders II topped the Australian sales charts in its launch week beginning August 16th! Congrats to THQ, it's a great game that really deserves the attention it's getting. Sequels that actually change and improve upon their predecessors should be commended. If you haven't bought it yet, check out my Darksiders II review which should hopefully convince you ;)

Tekken Tag Tournament 2 Wii U Footage Shows Exclusive Content

The Tekken Youtube Channel updated with this video today, showing off some of the exclusive content in the Wii U version of Tekken Tag Tournament 2. This includes a mode in which Mario mushrooms are scattered across the fighting arena, causing effects to those who bump into them, for example the Mega Mushrom makes them gigantic while a Poison Mushroom shrinks them. In one section of the footage a Starman is also bouncing around the stage, which will presumably grant temporary invincibility.

The Wii U version of the game will also include Nintendo inspired alternate costumes for the playable characters, including Mario Bros. costumes for the Mishimas, a Bowser costume for Alex the raptor, and a Zero Suit Samus costume for Anna Williams.

Tekken Tag Tournament 2 is a launch window title for the Wii U, meaning it will launch sometime before March 2013.

Nintendo Direct Europe/Australia Stream + Live Blog

Live broadcasting by Ustream

Check back here at 12am tonight AEST for my live blog of the Australian/European Nintendo Direct! Can't wat! :D

Tweets by @Mario__Bones

Australian R18+ Games Rating Guidelines Released

Update: People more knowledgeable than I are saying that the guidelines for R18 are basically the old MA15 ones with different wording. If the government have gone and relabelled the MA rating to R and just weakened MA, then that's just wrong, and they've totally missed the point of why the rating was needed. Kinda wishing I didn't speed read these in class now!

The Australian Government has released the new guidelines for the classification of computer games in Australia.

Buyerhazard- Stolen Copies of Resident Evil Being Sold in Poland

Apologies for that awful, awful pun.

Capcom have come out today and said that a couple of stores in Poland are selling 'stolen' copies of Resident Evil 6, much earlier than its release date. One of the buyers of the stolen copies has even put in on eBay, with the current bid being 478.78 Euros, and a Buy It Now price of 1,196.71 Euros.

"Capcom is currently undertaking a thorough investigation into reports that Resident Evil 6 is being sold ahead of its official October 2 release date," Capcom have said in a statement. "At this time, all we can add is that it would appear this unfortunate incident is limited to a small quantity of stolen copies of the German USK PlayStation 3 version of the game."

I'm a bit unsure what they mean by 'stolen', whether they mean the stores somehow got their hands on illegal copies, or if they were just shipped really early and the stores put them on the shelves, breaking the street date by an entire month. I highly doubt that would be accidental.You could say that once Capcom's lawyers get a hold of them there will be No Hope Left. Ah? Ah? Thankyou, I'm here til Tuesday.

Battlefield 3 Armored Kill Assignments, Trophies and Achievements Detailed

The Australian spell-checker inside my head pains me to spell it this way, but the upcoming Battlefield 3 expansion pack Armored Kill releases this week for PS3 Premium users, and next week for PC and 360 Premium players, and DICE have revealed all the assignments, trophies and achievements that the DLC will introduce, including 5 Premium exclusive dog tag assignments. These assignments unlock a black and gold dogtag much like the class specialist ones released previously, except these ones are basic dog tags, meaning they're the ones that appear on the left of your tags. They have designs based on the various vehicles of the game, and are listed with their requirements below.

Skyrim's Hearthfire DLC Launches September 4th, Details Within

Earlier this month Bethesda filed a trademark for an upcoming Skyrim DLC, Hearthfire, and a supposed leak suggested that the DLC will revolve around home-making. It was confirmed today that this is in fact the purpose of the DLC. The description reads:

The World Ends With You Countdown Was an iOS Port After All (Gameplay Footage Inside)

Square Enix had a teaser site counting down to something related to their hit DS game 'The World Ends With You'. It was leaked that TWEWY would be ported to iOS, and it was assumed that this is what the reveal would be. However, the game's translator tweeted that people should wait until the countdown is actually over first. The way they worded their tweet had me cautious, it sounded more like there'd be more details on the port rather than details on something new. Unfortunately, as the countdown came to an end this morning, it turned out that this was in fact the truth. The launch trailer for the port is below. Update: Commenting on the trailer on Youtube has been disabled, I take that as Square Enix knowing people were going to be... 'disappointed' by this news, which I personally find hilarious.

Yet More GTAV Screenshots, More On The Way

In addition to the other 6 screenshots posted in the past few days, Rockstar Games have posted the last four Grand Theft Auto V screenshots for this week, promising more in the next few weeks. These screenshots appear to show crimes and side jobs in the game, including the crop duster shown previously, a rifle with a laser scope and some sort of garbage disposal/freighting business.

New GTA V Screenshots Showcase Leisure Activities

Rockstar have just updated their site with three gorgeous new screenshots of the upcoming Grand Theft Auto V, which show off some leisure activities which players can presumably partake in in the game. These activities being dirt biking, tennis and parachuting.

Bethesda Files 'Hearthfire' Trademarks for Skyrim DLC

Bethesda has filed a trademark for a new Skyrim DLC, titled 'Hearthfire', along with the description "Computer game software for use with computers and video game consoles; downloadable computer game software offered via the internet and wireless devices." This is consistent with a supposed 'leak' from Redditor derptemp6698 who correctly leaked details of some of Mass Effect 3 DLCs. The description he gave for the pack was as follows:

Secret Games to Be Announced for EB Games Expo?

I was one of a few people who thought there were some games suspiciously missing from the games announced for the EB Games Expo a week or so ago. I thought The Last of Us and Watch Dogs may have made an appearance, but wasn't too shocked when they weren't on the list. However, I was really surprised at the total lack of Wii U games. With the console coming out before the end of the year, you'd think Nintendo would be wanting it to get as much attention as possible.

More Mass Effect 3 DLC Leaks

A few months back, details on Mass Effect 3's Leviathan DLC were leaked, including a script. It was revealed that a rogue reaper named Leviathan could be recruited in the fight against the Reapers, and used as war assets, which made me think it could somehow affect the ending. Turns out it will in a way, as it will add more dialogue in the game's ending sequence. Eurogamer found discussion on the Bioware forums about new script leaks, which divulge some more dialogue added into the game's final sections. So as to not ruin the experience for people I won't be posting details of the leak, you can read them for yourselves if desired at the linked pages (though you may want to stop reading after the trailer, there's some potential spoilers there).

A trailer for the Leviathan DLC can be seen below

Also, in the new Firefight weapon pack DLC for the game, a list of unreleased weapon mods seems to suggest future DLC will involve a return to Omega from Mass Effect 2, due to the locations the mods are assigned to use the same location code as Omega assets in Mass Effect 2. Combined with the fact there's cut dialogue in the game suggesting at a re-take Omega mission of sorts, this seems rather likely.

Mass Effect 3's Leviathan DLC will release later this year.

Resident Evil 6 No Hope Left Edition Announced

The No Hope Left Edition of Resident Evil 6 has been announced, and is exclusive to EB Games. This special edition of the game is exclusive to Australia and New Zealand so ANZ Resident Evil fans won't want to miss this deal. You'll be sure to REgret it *sitcom laughter*. The name is in reference to the game's tagline of sorts, which is also used in its quite literally viral advertising.

Final Darksiders II Pre-Release Trailer

With about a week until its US release, THQ have given us the final pre-release gameplay trailer for Darksiders II. Its narrated by Death, giving insight into his quest, and shows off some more boss fights, and a rideable golem-like creature.