Niga Higa is that you?

Square Enix London Studios, a part of the Square Enix Group announces Sleeping Dogs™, a gritty open-world cop drama set in the vibrant city of Hong Kong. Developed by United Front Games in collaboration with Square Enix London Studios, Sleeping Dogs will be available in the second half of 2012 for the PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system, Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft and Windows PC.



Sleeping Dogs catapults players into the role of undercover cop Wei Shen, tasked with taking down one of the world's most fearsome criminal organizations from the inside...the Hong Kong Triads. As players explore the bustling and crowded Hong Kong island, through its neon-lit side streets and sprawling street markets, an incredible story unfolds of loyalty and betrayal where Wei begins to question his own motives as he is sucked in deeper than he could ever imagine.

Offering players an island packed with action, every street corner, market stall, harbor dock or city skyscraper can become an opportunity for intense shoot-outs, adrenaline-fuelled street races and intense, brutal martial arts combat. Featuring one of the most intuitive and imaginative combat systems, Sleeping Dogs empowers players to perform an extensive set of martial arts moves, singlehandedly taking on numerous opponents. Players perform bone-crunching kicks and combos, vicious counters and a cinematic set of environmental takedowns making use of countless real-world items from circular saws to phone booths, incinerators to refrigerator doors.



"From the moment you pick up the controller and experience the blend of driving, close combat and shooting you know you're playing something fresh and a bit special," said Lee Singleton, general manager of Square Enix London Studios. "Sleeping Dogs has one of the best melee combat systems out there – it's super brutal with devastating takedown moves, and when added to UFG's proven heritage in driving games, a first class story and the vibrant backdrop of the Hong Kong underworld we get a fiery recipe with fun written all over it."

"Working on Sleeping Dogs has been such a huge passion for the team at United Front Games and we're really pleased to be working with Square Enix London Studios," said Stephen Van Der Mescht, executive producer at United Front Games. "The extensive experience that both studios have in creating compelling open world gameplay and rich, rewarding combat makes for a perfect partnership. Working together we're ensuring Sleeping Dogs is the most intense and immersive game it can be."

Daniel does not play well with others.

This isn't a damning school reported dredged up from my youth. It's a frank self-assessment of my present gaming habits. In an age when multiplayer is king, I prefer to play alone.

I've done my best to overcome this complaint. I really have. When playing Halo I try to get involved, charging into battle, plasma grenade in hand. Yet more often than not, I find myself sat alone in a Warthog on the edges on the map, watching everyone else have a much better time. I can't even convincingly pass myself off as a lone wolf.

Yes, it's lonely in a crowd, but for some it's even lonelier in a multiplayer lobby. And nowhere is this more prominent than in the shooter genre. Don't get me wrong, the advent of online services like Xbox LIVE and PSN have revolutionised multiplayer, and there's no turning back. Even the most sprawling of sofas can only accommodate so many players. So in a bid to keep virtual battlefields populated with fresh fodder 24-hours a day, cryptic gamertags and faceless opponents have become staples of the online experience. This has created, however, a level of anonymity that many find deeply alienating.

Max Payne 3's multiplayer – a first for the franchise – attempts to counter this modern malaise. "We're trying to reduce the anonymity you get in multiplayer games," says Charlie Bewsher, the lead designer on the game's multiplayer. "We want to make relationships. We want to make these players stand out for you."



Payne Killer, the game's take of King of the Hill, is a good example of how it tries to forge relationships. Designed as the natural successor to Max Payne 2's Dead Man Walking mode, it centres on Max and his partner Passos as they fight to stay alive for as long as possible. Two players will randomly start the match as Max and Passos, while everyone else attempts to take them out. All the other players are, essentially, on one big team, hunting down the pair. To make things fair, Max and Passos are equipped with special abilities and powerful load-outs. Points are gained by injuring or killing Max and Passos, or by killing any of the attacking team. The player with the most points wins. Simple.

Now here's the twist: if you kill either of the under-fire duo, you and your victim will become the new Max and Passos. Forcing you to work with your killer potentially creates an uneasy, awkward alliance, but if you are to survive for long you need to reconcile, quickly.

But all alliances are ultimately ephemeral, with allies being turned upon one another in an instant. "What we really enjoyed about multiplayer games is the relationship you have with other players when you're playing," says Bewsher. Like Gang Wars, the game's flagship multiplayer mode, it's all about forging intimate rivalries and breaking them, creating the familiar drama that would emerge naturally sat next to friends, huddled around a console.



It's a strategy that runs throughout the game's multiplayer. Even smaller features, like the Vendetta system, are designed to foster good-natured rivalry. If Payne Killer is about forging relationships before smashing them to pieces, Gang Wars' Vendettas are all about fuelling competition. If a player is killed twice in a row by an opponent, they can choose to start a vendetta with that player. If they can successfully take them out, they will be handsomely rewarded with a XP bonus. But if they are killed by their target, the opponent will take the bonus for themselves. Those locked into a vendetta will be able to see each other on the mini-map, instigating a cat-and-mouse like scenario.

Whether Max Payne's multiplayer will succeed in its bid to create a more social, more personable online shooter depends, to a large degree, on the type of community it attracts once the game is released and servers go live. Yet it's interesting that its director has tried to counter the anonymity through deliberate design choices, shaping the very form of the multiplayer arena to draw out the very best (and sometimes worst) in players. So far, it's promising to be one of the most engaging online shooters around. I'm already feeling a little less lonely.


Source: IGN

Ubisoft has released a new ‘I Am Alive’ trailer that gives players some more useful tips on surviving the wasteland, using a familiar and popular gaming mechanic.

Stop me if you’ve heard this one: Ubisoft Shanghai has just released a new trailer for I Am Alive that shows a vague release date.

Yes, the game that has been pushed more times than blocks in Pushmo is back again with a new trailer featuring more tips for survival in the desolate wasteland of an post-apocalyptic world — more specifically the fictional American city of Haventon.

This new I Am Alive trailer teaches something that Ubisoft knows all about: climbing! As the trailer says, “you’re gonna need to climb… constantly,” all while showing the main character traversing destroyed skyscrapers and generally anything you might expect to be wrecked after a worldwide cataclysm.

Admittedly, the environment looks kinda fun to explore. The designers have made use of a wide range of spaces around the city to provide the sense that there is a lot of freedom to explore. Unfortunately, how much exploration will be available is unclear, as is the majority of the game — but hey, they’ve only had 4 years to tell us.

Work on I Am Alive began back in 2008. The game was being developed by Darkworks up until 2010, when Ubisoft Shanghai took over the project. The game changed from being a retail disc release to an XBLA and PSN release. Throughout it all, gamers have been presented with several different release dates and teased with several trailers that exemplify the main theme of the game: survival.

All of the elements for a good game appear to be there, but the extended delays in development either mean I Am Alive got the polish it needed or Ubisoft had no clue what they were doing. Thankfully, this date looks like the real deal since the game is now part of the 2012 XBLA House Party, releasing 2 weeks after Alan Wake’s American Nightmare.

The morale of the story is this: delays don’t necessarily equal a bad game. After all, Blizzard has made a career of it. Gamers should check out the new trailer and decide for themselves if they are willing to pay the cover for that particular section of the house party.

Sony has announced that by the 7th of February, they will turn Playstation Network into Sony Entertainment Network.

This will go along side their new Privacy Policy and Terms of Service.


Here is the why:

“This transition is based on Sony’s goal to enhance its unique digital entertainment offering. As a series of these activities Sony started last September, PlayStation Network will be aligned with “Sony Entertainment Network.” This helps us get closer to our goal of establishing a global comprehensive network platform of services across games, movies, music and more, all accessible from one convenient account.”

All fun and good, but wasn’t Sony in a pickle with their Privacy Policy? And now they are advancing this new stage of their Privacy Policy? Is it me, or do I smell something burning?
Anyways, this name change at least gives us a view of what Sony wants for the future. One account, one goal, one target for Anonymous… Ho wait, did I say that last thing out loud?

Source: G4TV

Just a quick note to let you know that while the beta for Assassin’s Creed: Revelations is scheduled to end on September 11, 2011, Sony has decided to open it up to ALL PSN users beginning today at 10am PST. So, basically, if you’re quick about it, you can get a few days of play in on the beta before it goes bye-bye, in which case you’ll probably want to check out this handy beta guide to ensure your time is well spent.


Assassin’s Creed: Revelations is scheduled for launch this November.
 
Source

It’s been a long time coming, but today Rockstar has announced that Max Payne 3 is expected to launch on the 360, PS3, and PC in March 2012 in North America and Europe. In addition, the latest installment will be the first title in the series to introduce a multiplayer experience that, along with traditional multiplayer modes, will also include a “deep reward and leveling system, persistent clans and multiple strategic load-out options” as Rockstar puts it.




“Max Payne 3 gave us an amazing creative opportunity to evolve one of our most iconic characters,” said Sam Houser, Founder of Rockstar Games. “We’re excited to show fans a modern version of Max that pulls them back into his dark and twisted story.”

Here’s an official description of the game:

Max Payne 3 continues the tale of former New York City detective, Max Payne. Still haunted by the memories of his traumatic past, Max begins a new life working private security protecting a wealthy industrialist and his family in Sao Paulo, Brazil. When gangs target the family under his protection, Max is forced to fight to save his clients and clear his name, in a bid to, once and for all, rid himself of the demons that have tortured him for far too long.
Picking up where the release of Max Payne 2 from series creator Remedy Entertainment left off, Max Payne 3 is a true cross-studio collaboration between Rockstar Games’ global development teams. The game utilizes cutting edge technology for a seamless, cinematic action experience, incorporating the latest advances in Natural Motion physics and a brand new iteration of Rockstar’s own Rockstar Advanced Game Engine. The result offers highly-refined gameplay, with an extensive range of realistic weaponry, an intelligent cover system and sophisticated Bullet-Time mechanics.

Rockstar promises that the game will deliver a dark, gritty action experience that is “sure to satisfy newcomers and fans to the historic franchise.”

For more, slow-mo roll your way on over to the game’s official website.

The highly-anticipated Battlefield 3 made its console debut last night on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. The game was shown running on the PlayStation 3 and featured the familiar parking lot scene we’ve all become accustomed to running on the PC.

So, stop reading and just check out the vid above. Then, let us know what you think of BF3 on the PS3 below!
Source

Want to know what Bungie Aerospace is? Well, Bungie says the date for Aerospace’s reveal is somewhere between June 23 and July 7, as that is the time that Bungie will be hosting celebrations for both the company’s 20th anniversary and Halo‘s 10th anniversary.

Bungie noted on its website that when the reveal takes place, we will know “in explicit detail” what Aerospace is all about. So, it’s only a matter of weeks…

Source

Valve and recording artist The National have today announced a music video making contest based on the song “Exile Vilify” which is featured in Valve’s Portal 2.


Starting today and running until midnight July 15th, the contest asks the community to make a music video for the song “Exile Vilify” using whatever visuals they choose. Once you aspiring video directors complete your work, you can submit your videos on YouTube using the tag PORTAL2NATIONALEXILE. After the deadline, Valve, The National, and the community will select the winner who will win a prize package including a guitar autographed by The National plus a collection of Portal 2 merchandise.

For more info on the Portal 2 Music Video Contest, hit up this page on the game’s official website.

Warner Bros. Interactive and NetherRealm Studios have announced that the downloadable character Skarlet will be ready to rip off some heads in Mortal Kombat come June 21, 2011 on both the PS3 and Xbox 360. Three additional characters will enter the fray some time after including Kenshi, Rain, and one other “Kombatant” to be revealed at a later date.

To celebrate, a new trailer featuring the DLC has been released which you can check out right here.
Each character will enjoy some time in the spotlight as they are individually released this summer, but a newly revealed “compatibility pack” will also be made available for free alongside the content offerings to ensure that players who do not purchase the new characters can still see online opponents utilizing the DLC. The first compatibility pack will feature Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 – inspired Cyrax and Sektor
Are you still playing Mortal Kombat? Are you stoked for the DLC? Sound off in the Komments!

With a slew of [hopefully] hit games coming out during the remainder of the year, Best Buy wants you to purchase them all at their outlets, and will reward you for doing so. If you are a Reward Zone member and pre-order & purchase five select games at a Best Buy outlet, you will get a $100 credit for being awesome! Here is the list of applicable games:

• NCAA 2012
• Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword
• Madden 2012
• Resistance 3
• Gears of War 3
• FIFA Soccer 2012
• Forza 4
• Just Dance 3
• Batman Arkham City
• Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception
• Battlefield 3
• Elder Scrolls Skyrim
• Assassin’s Creed: Revelations
• Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
• Rage

So, does this entice you to visit that big, blue retailer?

Source

Many Battlefield 3 fans were worried that the “Physical Warfare” pre-order bonus would grant an unfair advantage on the multiplayer battlefield to those who shelled out $5 at their participating retailer. Well, DICE was nice enough to clarify the matter by proclaiming that said pre-order bonus is only a timed-exclusive, and the content will be available to everyone at a later point in the year. Oh, and it will be free too!

If you do happen to pre-order though, you will get the “Back to Karkand” themed expansion pack at no extra cost when it releases, so at least that is still an incentive to get the ole’ wallet out early.
Hopefully this news will put everybody at ease, but tell us, what do you guys think of this decision? Do you think it was the plan all along? Was it done in response to the overwhelming disgust from the community? Let’s hear your thoughts below.

Source

Activision has announced that Xbox 360-owning Call of Duty: Black Ops fans can look forward to the game’s third content pack hitting their console first with the worldwide release of Call of Duty: Black Ops Annihilation via XBL on June 28, 2011. The content will hit both PC and PSN at a later date. Annihilation features four new multiplayer maps and a Zombie experience that’s “sure to keep gamers coming back for more”.

“With Annihilation, Black Ops fans will get four exciting and unique multiplayer settings with Hangar 18, Drive-In, Silo and Hazard,” said Treyarch Studio Head, Mark Lamia. “Players will also enjoy an all-new Zombies experience, Shangri-La, an exotic and mysterious map filled with deadly traps, dark secrets and innovative gameplay that will challenge even the most daring Zombie hunters.”
Additionally, to celebrate the upcoming release of Call of Duty: Black Ops Annihilation, Treyarch will host a Double XP weekend beginning Friday, July 1st.

So, do YOU plan on picking up the new DLC when it’s released? Annihilate your fellow gamers with mind-blowing thoughts in the comments.

Sony’s new handheld is alive and well–the PSVita was officially revealed at Sony’s E3 press conference today, along with a release window and pricing information.
Sony has two separate PSVita models and prices:

Wi-Fi only: $250/€250/¥29,980
Wi-Fi and 3G: $299/€299/¥29,980

Stay tuned for more details on the PSVita and all these games in the coming days!

The full PSVita press release can be seen here.

Irrational Games’ Ken Levine dropped a barrage of BioShock bombs at the Sony presser today with the announcement of PS3 Move support for BioShock Infinite and a unique BioShock game for Sony’s newly detailed handheld, PSVita.

Levine didn’t show any Move gameplay, suggesting Infinite is still in the initial stages of peripheral porting, but said he doesn’t want players to feel compromised using traditional controls. The PS3 version of Infinite will include another exclusive bonus, a copy of BioShock on the Blu-Ray disc.
Levine continued fanboying BioShock content with the announcement of a “pet project” in the BioShock universe for the PSVita.

Irrational showed off a new BioShock trailer to kick off the Sony-strong announcement, which you can view right here.