Following Microsoft’s announcement of Xbox 360 backwards compatibility coming to Xbox One during their E3 2015 presentation, Ubisoft took the stage to announce a surprise for Rainbow Six fans on the platform.
On October 13, Rainbow Six Siege will launch with a free copy of both Rainbow Six Vegas and Rainbow Six Vegas 2, both playable on Xbox One.
A new trailer for Ubisoft’s upcoming tactical multiplayer shooter was also released, which you can check out above.
Alongside the release of a new trailer for their open-world shooter, Ubisoft studio Massive Entertainment announced a beta for Tom Clancy’s The Division, launching this December.
You’ll find the new trailer above and more details to come. According to the announcement and this Beta FAQ, Xbox One users will get early access. Users on all platforms can sign up now by pre-ordering the game.
The Division launches on Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC in early 2016.
To close out their segment during Microsoft’s E3 2015 conference, EA finally revealed to the public a first look at PopCap HD’s new shooter sequel, Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare 2, calling it the ‘funniest, craziest, and most over-the-top shooter’ from EA yet.
Check out the announcement trailer above.
UPDATE: Below is a first in-game look at Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare 2 from EA’s press conference at E3 2015. It shows a mission from the game’s new co-op mode called Graveyard Ops as well as six brand new character classes.
[youtube id=”dhMTYTjxVMU”]
According to the studio, all modes can be played solo against enemy AI with or without a co-op buddy. In addition, all unlocked characters you’ve earned in the original game will transfer over to Garden Warfare 2. Lastly, content updates will continue to be given to players for free, at no additional cost.
Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare 2 is set to be released Spring 2016.
Kicking off Microsoft’s media briefing at E3 2015, Halo developer 343 Industries took the stage to not only reveal Halo 5: Guardian‘s drop-in, drop-out co-op campaign, but also a brand new multiplayer mode the studio is calling Warzone.
First, have a look at the squad-based combat present in Halo 5’s campaign in a single-player level featuring Spartan Locke’s squad of Spartan-IV’s.
[youtube id=”8j5VY52FQL8″]
The newly announced Warzone mode promises 24-player battles, AI adversaries, massive environments, and maps that are four times the size of your average Halo map. It will launch alongside Halo 5: Guardian’s 8-player Arena Multiplayer mode, offering a contrasting experience that highlights the entire Halo sandbox. Here’s a first look at Warzone.
[youtube id=”CmR7NoQ1G6k”]
[youtube id=”O_f1ZJGD4iI”]
According to 343, Warzone is playable on the E3 2015 show floor.
Halo 5: Guardians launches on Xbox One October 27.
Could Bethesda Game Studios’ media briefing at E3 2015 have kicked off any better? Leave it to an explosive first look at Doom to get long-time first-person shooter fans pumped for the return of the genre’s most iconic franchise.
On stage, id Software introduced the rebooted shooter, built on the id Tech 6 engine with a focus on ‘bad-ass demons, big effing guns, and really, really fast movement’ in 1080p and 60 frames per second. In the game’s single player campaign, players gear up on a UAC research facility on Mars with one objective: kill demons.
Here’s a look at two gameplay videos from the game’s story mode, highlighting classic FPS elements returning to the genre, including pick-ups, big guns, and lots of gore, as well as new mechanics like the double-jump, clamber ability, and finishing moves.
[youtube id=”yFKxckG3-G8″]
[youtube id=”2-AAi1ikL3A”]
Fast-paced, arena-style multiplayer is back with vertical movement and unique power-ups. Arenas range from locations in UAC facilities to the depths of hell and players will have access to modes like Domination, Freeze Tag, and Clan Arena. A quick multiplayer demo was provided, though no mention of Doom’s Multiplayer Beta was made.
[youtube id=”qoQjNBlJTHE”]
A new cross-platform feature called Doom Snapmap, powered by BethesdaNet, brings player-created experiences to life, including custom maps and modes with mod-able game logic. On stage, a co-op mode, a mode that allows players to earn credits by killing demons, and four-player deathmatch were presented as examples. Creations can be shared with the press of a button.
What’d you think of the reveal? Happy to know Doom is coming back?
Doom is out Spring 2016 on Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC.
Join us in our E3 2015 discussion on the eve of the biggest gaming event of this year.
In our latest episode of MP Talk, we throw out a few of our own predictions and point out some of the upcoming video game-related announcements that have us most excited.
What sort of surprises will this year’s expo hold? Be sure to tell us your predictions and your most anticipated announcements in the comments.
Keep your sights on MP1st next week for the latest coverage on the event. In fact, you can keep our dedicated E3 2015 page bookmarked to get all the news in one place.
Happy E3 2015!
Big things are in store for Valve’s multiplayer online battle arena game, Dota 2, the company announced today. A new beta launching late next week, appropriately called Dota 2 Reborn, will completely overhaul the game’s user interface, replace its game engine, and introduce Custom Games, marking its most significant upgrade since its 2013 release.
A new blog series being published in three parts will provide an overview of what’s to come, the first entry taking a look at Dota 2’s all-new dashboard, hero browser, and DotaTV browser. You can read part one right here.
Part two, arriving “early next week,” will shine a light on Custom Games, while part three will look at Dota 2’s new engine and will accompany the open beta’s official launch “later that week.” Though Valve isn’t referencing it directly, we can guess Dota 2 Reborn will likely run on Valve’s new Source 2 engine, announced last March during GDC 2015.
Valve says it will release “frequent updates in order to fix bugs and make changes based on the feedback you provide.”
“As you browse around in the new client, you’ll notice a few things that aren’t fully functional yet,” Valve added. “Additionally, our focus has been on the dashboard so you’ll find the in-game HUD currently looks the same.”
Valve plans to bring the new update out of beta “some time after The International” to ensure a productive testing period.
Source: Dota 2 Official Blog
Taking a cue from popular RPG games, Call of Duty loot in Advanced Warfare is getting a welcomed upgrade in the coming weeks.
For starters, on June 23, Sledgehammer Games is introducing a new XP bonus system whereby equipping a full set of gear belonging to the same set will award your Operator with a boost in XP gain throughout all modes of multiplayer. According to Sledgehammer, the armory will let you know which pieces for each set you currently own and what pieces you’ll need to complete a full set.
Below is a checklist of sorts that will tell you how many pieces there are to a set, though more will be added over time, says Sledgehammer.
Also on June 23, a second wave of brand new Elite weapons are coming first to Xbox One, later on PlayStation 4 and PC. As before, these weapons are painted with the same camo you’ll find on Advanced Warfare’s Grand Master Prestige gear. According to Sledgehammer, the new weapons “will benefit from an increased reload speed vs. their Elite counterparts. These new weapon variants are carefully balanced, but provide that slight edge.”
Below are the new Elite weapons you’ll start finding in Supply Drops and Advanced Supply Drops on or after June 23 on Xbox One. You can see the first set of Elite weapons that were introduced last month right here.
Which new Elite weapons are your eyes set on? Or, are you out to collect them all?
Source: Sledgehammer Games
With Microsoft’s E3 presentation quickly approaching, new details on the company’s flagship video game title of 2015, Halo 5: Guardians, emerges.
After some hands on time with the game at 343 Industries’ headquarters, our friends at ReadyUpLive were able to share their experiences with Halo 5: Guardians campaign and improved arena multiplayer experience. They also got a chance to try out a brand new arena map, Fathom, set in an underwater facility.
You can have a look at some of the new screens and details in the images and videos below, courtesy of RUL. You’ll find even more here.
Halo 5: Campaign Details
[youtube id=”0l3sFo0i-sQ”]
Halo 5: Guardians Multiplayer Details
[youtube id=”im06YQWiffo”]
Halo 5: Guardians Multiplayer Screens
Skolas and his minions getting you down? You’re not alone. The big boss of Destiny‘s level 35 Prison of Elders, an end-game PvE event introduced alongside the launch of House of Wolves DLC, may laugh off your Fireteam’s tactics, but he’s not immune to Bungie’s Nerf Hammer.
According to Bungie Community Manager David “DeeJ” Dague, the team has been monitoring your adventures since launch. Check out this heat map of the Skolas Encounter.
Too bad it doesn’t capture how long some Fireteams have spent just trying to put a dent in Skolas’ health bar. Creative Director Christopher Barrett agrees that the encounter could use some tweaking.
“First off, the elemental burns proved to be too punishing (being one-shot by tracking Arc fire for example),” he explained. “This makes it too tempting to rely on one common tactic (three Gjallarhorns on a Solar Burn). In addition, the difficulty swings too wildly from week to week and average playtimes are tracking much longer than intended.”
With Destiny update 1.2.0.3, due out some time before the next weekly reset, the studio is aiming to make the encounter “challenging and require teamwork, only in a more predictable way that doesn’t feel cheap.” So, here are a few points Bungie is working out:
What’s your experience with the Prison of Elders been like so far? Frustrating, or rewarding?
The Oculus Rift is easily the most well-known piece of hardware that will let gamers experience Virtual Reality for the first time. Today, during Oculus VR’s pre-E3 2015 showcase, we got a glimpse into the final rendition of the consumer version of the device, what it will look like, and what it includes. We’ve put all the details into one article for you to get caught up on what’s coming in Q1 of 2016.
[youtube id=”etv_IxVh7cc”]
The Rift right out of the box comes with a wireless Xbox One controller and an adapter so that you can use it on your PC. It features two custom OLED displays that sport a wide field of view to reinforce immersion and prevent motion sickness and it includes a constellation tracking system for low latency head movement. It even allows users to wear their glasses and adjust the lens distance for your eyes to make it even more comfortable.
It’s lightweight and simple to put on (no really, it’s like putting a hat on) and the most unexpected feature to be revealed about it is that it comes with unique detachable headphones. These headphones aren’t like your everyday portable ones. They are specifically built for audio immersion, offering 360 degree sound and audio queues when playing games. But if you’re not big on using the Rift’s vanilla set of headphones, you can literally detach them and use your own.
What surprised most after the announcement of the Oculus Rift, including an Xbox One controller, is that Microsoft and Oculus Rift are partnering with each other to bring you the “best experience” when using a VR headset. This means that it works natively with Windows 10 from the start and even allows users to take advantage of Xbox’s game streaming service.
Now, to be fair, the demo we saw of the game streaming service was…a letdown to say the least. Instead of including new features into established games that allow users to actually take advantage of the constellation tracking for head movement, it puts players into a virtual living room with a TV. From there, gamers can sit on their virtual couch and play Xbox games (like the normally do, but IRL).
And while many believe that the Oculus Rift will fail right out of the gate, the team stated that they were working with thousands of developers, both established and indie, to bring gamers a new genre that included a myriad of games that support the Rift. Those developers include Harmonix, Insomniac Games, Square Enix and CCP, but the list goes on and on (see above picture). It was also announced that the Oculus Rift will include compatibilty for the Unity and Unreal 4 engines to allow developers to easily create or add support for VR for their games.
But what about the one thing that people will most naturally do when they put on the headset, the reaching out to touch something in the virtual world? To accommodate for this natural need, founder Palmer Luckey walked on stage to announce Oculus Rift’s own gamepad, Oculus Touch. The controllers include one analog stick, two buttons, and a trigger on each handheld and allows for haptic feedback when picking up certain objects and using them, such as a pistol and its recoil.
Just like the headset, the Touch also uses constellation tracking for low latency movement so that it feels and looks like your hands are in the game. This also means that you can use gestures such as thumbs up or pointing to allow for body communication. However, Oculus Touch will not be included in the vanilla box, and will be launched shortly after the headset is released.
Are you excited for Virtual Reality, or are you not really that into it? Let us know in the comment section below!
Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare’s Supremacy DLC will launch for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, and PC users on July 2, Activision and Sledgehammer Games announced today.
Having already dropped for Xbox One and Xbox 360 users on June 2, Supremacy expands Advanced Warfare’s map list with four new areas: Compound, Kremlin, Parliament, and a reimagining of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2’s Highrise, now called Skyrise. You can watch gameplay of each new map at the links below:
Supremacy also adds to the Exo Zombies saga with Episode 3: Carrier.
PSN and PS users will find Supremacy on the in-game store for $14.99 or at no extra cost as a Season Pass holder on July 2.
During the pre-E3 2015 showing of Oculus Rift earlier today, head of Microsoft’s Xbox division and Microsoft Studios, Phil Spencer, took the stage to announce a partnership with the makers of the VR technology.
[youtube id=”jVh8qD2MfZk”]
In combination with Windows 10, Oculus Rift owners will be able to stream Xbox One titles right onto their Oculus device. The device will work natively with Windows 10 and will benefit from DirectX 12. Confirmed during the livestream, a wireless Xbox One controller will ship with every Oculus Rift. Down below is a very short snippet of what you can expect.
[youtube id=”c5kI4NuM33E”]
It’s interesting to see this partnership as nearly half a year ago, it was said by the Oculus Rift team that they wouldn’t partner up with either Sony or Microsoft. With this announcement of a partnership, Microsoft may have found their answer to Sony’s VR headset, Project Morpheus. That is, if support expands beyond just streaming and actually developing full Xbox One VR titles.
Battlefield Hardline Criminal Activity DLC launches June 16, first for Premium subscribers, developer Visceral Games announced earlier today during a live stream gameplay reveal.
Community Manager Dan Mitre and Systems Designer Ben Gaciu commentated over the presentation, listing off some of the multiplayer expansion’s newest features. They explained that while Criminal Activity is clearly centered around the Enforcer class, offering a number of new weapons to that class only (the FAL, SG510, and KSG-12), the studio hopes to focus on other kits in following DLC releases.
As for Criminal Activity, Visceral is dropping three new weapons for the Enforcer class, four new multiplayer maps, two new gadgets, a new battle pick-up, two new vehicles, eight new masks, and a new game mode, among other things. One new throwback weapon, the M1A1, will also be available for all Battlefield fans, free of charge, whether they’re Premium subscribers or not. You can grab more details on the new content at the links below:
Lastly, you can watch it all in action in the round-up of new Criminal Activity gameplay videos below, courtesy of Battlefield Hardline’s top community members. A replay of the official livestream reveal can be viewed at this link (Twitch).
Battlefield Hardline Criminal Activity DLC will be available to all users on June 30.
[youtube id=”3XFtLEWq6vg”]
[youtube id=”HUGjHAOZoXw”]
[youtube id=”CmEDJpqv6cs”]
[youtube id=”WBhXXeO8Fz4″]
[youtube id=”Lklklz8begc”]
[youtube id=”EGGt6ES0pa0″]
[youtube id=”C8KoBJrcpFU”]
[youtube id=”Qd5fjcm7ijE”]
[youtube id=”uAqdKV1uxjE”]
[youtube id=”O_Me-bBtC7M”]
Battlefield Hardline developer Visceral Games has announced that the studio will be showing off gameplay from their upcoming Criminal Activity DLC tomorrow morning, June 11, on their Twitch channel.
We’ve gotten a small glimpse of some of the new maps, weapons, gadgets, and vehicles in the expansion’s initial reveal trailer late last month, but this will be the first time actual gameplay is shown to audiences. Check out the tweet below for details:
Hit up our Twitch tomorrow at 9am PT for the reveal of gameplay from BFH: Criminal Activity: http://t.co/vqxfdNURAG pic.twitter.com/leFxkKpFkr
— Battlefield (@Battlefield) June 10, 2015
Battlefield Hardline: Criminal Activity DLC is expected to launch some time before the end of the month for Premium members. Perhaps a solid launch date will be revealed tomorrow.
Earlier this week, Visceral dropped some brand new details on all of the new weapons, gadgets, and vehicles arriving with the new expansion. You can read about it here, if you missed it.
With the Master Chief Collection having received more patches than months it has been released, it’s fair to make the observation the title is not a benchmark for stability. This has not gone unnoticed by the developer, as 343 Industries has a plan going forward for future titles.
Recently sitting down with Gamespot, Founder of 343 Industries Bonnie Ross lamented how the ambitious project would have been better served seeing each title released separately.
“The original pitch that we wanted to do was sort of a war chest. Ship all four games separately. Package them up.”
“(This) definitely created huge challenges. In hindsight, it would probably have been better to ship the four games separately. And I think that fans would’ve loved that. We wanted to do more. We wanted it to be this gift to the fans.”
So how does a developer go about not only releasing a dependable product, but regain the trust of fans going forward? Simple: Guarantee a beta for all future Halo titles.
Ross went on to add:
“There is so much we learned with the Halo 5 beta,” she said. “There is actually stuff we took from our Master Chief Collection–learnings that we were able to put into the beta.”
“Going forward, you will never see a Halo game coming out without a beta. It was obviously painful for our fans and for us. But it won’t happen again. There are things we put in place to make sure that we know everything, how it stands up outside and in the wild.”
Its nice to see a developer learn from past mistakes, take things in stride, and implement new protocols going forward. But what do you — the fans — make of 343i’s stance? Is it enough to convince you to purchase Halo titles Day 1 going forward? Let us know in the comment below.
Source: NeoGAF
It’s time to go shopping. Grand Theft Auto Online‘s latest update, Ill-Gotten Gains: Part One, is here and available to download on all five platforms.
In short, it offers the Heist veterans of Los Santos a new catalogue of items to spend their questionably-earned cash on, including new vehicles, clothing, tattoos, and more. The new Combat PDW can also be purchased from Ammu-Nation.
Folks on PC, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4 might appreciate some of the finer new activities and luxurious add-ons. The details on all the new goods can be found in the official patch notes below. But first, some new screens:
Also, go here to find out more about some of the upcoming Ill-Gotten Gains events happening this weekend, June 12-14.
New Content – All Platforms
New Content – PS4, Xbox One, and PC Only
New Features/Updates – All Platforms
New Features/Updates – PS4, Xbox One, and PC
New Features/Updates – PC Only
Generic / Miscellaneous Fixes – All Platforms
Generic / Miscellaneous Fixes – PC Only
Struggling to find teammates in the Trials of Osiris? In need of more 3v3 practice? Or, are you simply out to perfect your Elimination strats across Destiny’s new multiplayer maps?
This week, Guardians will be able to participate in Destiny’s newest Elimination game type — first introduced in House of Wolves DLC’s Trials of Osiris end-game PvP weekend event a few weeks back — in a more casual atmosphere with full team matchmaking and cycling maps.
Until next Tuesday morning, the mode can now be accessed in the Crucible, but with a few key elements that differ from the normal Trials of Osiris ruleset:
As mentioned, the mode will only be around for one week, so get your practice in while you still can. If you need a refresher, here a recap from last April’s Trials of Osiris live stream reveal on how the game type works:
As for the rules, Guardians face off in a competitive, best-of-nine 3v3 Elimination game mode with no respawns, though players are able revive each other five seconds after death. An additional five seconds is added to the timer upon every death. A round ends upon the elimination of a full team, or, if it happens to extend beyond two minutes, a capture point appears on the map which will also bring the round to a close once captured by a team. Like Iron Banner, Light Level, Attack Ratings, and Defense Ratings matter.
Heavy ammunition spawns only once per match and only after at least one team has scored three round wins. Ammo can’t be carried forward into following rounds. Super Abilities behave as normal, but will obviously play a much more important role when attempting to turn the tide of battle.
Good luck and see you online!
Source: Bungie
Microsoft has unveiled an updated Xbox One wireless controller to launch alongside a recently announced 1TB Xbox One console, coming later this month.
The controller, available in black or black/silver camo, sports a 3.5mm stereo headset jack, allowing gamers to plug nearly any gaming headset directly into the controller. Volume, mic monitoring, and balancing options will be accessible in the console’s Settings menu in addition to the headset’s controls. Microsoft says the new controller improves the quality of audio coming through the controller and increases the maximum audio volume on headsets used with it. Previously existing accessories will continue to work with the updated controller, including the original Xbox One Stereo Headset Adapter.
Other improvements include fine-tuned bumpers “for more consistent performance anywhere along the full surface of the bumper,” says Microsoft. Updates to the controller’s firmware can now also be done wirelessly, eliminating the need to plug the controller in via USB to receive updates.
The new controller will launch on June 16 and will be included in Microsoft’s new 1TB Xbox One console, launching on the same day. The new console sports a matte finish and will start selling for $399 USD ERP, depending on region and availability. It will also include a digital copy of Halo: The Master Chief Collection in some regions.
Microsoft also says that, as of today, the $349 USD price tag on all standard 500GB Xbox One consoles will be permanent in the United States, United Kingdom, Hong Kong, Korea, Singapore, Taiwan and India.
Lastly, the company announced that Windows 10 PCs, laptops, and tablets are also getting a brand new Xbox Wireless Adapter, which can be plugged into any USB 2.0 or 3.0 port, allowing those devices to utilize the Xbox One controller wirelessly. It’ll be available for $24.99 U.S. MSRP or bundled with a controller for $79.95 U.S. MSRP.
Microsoft will conduct their E3 2015 media briefing at 9:30 AM Pacific on Monday morning, June 15. Here are all the places you can watch it.
Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare’s latest game update, which was applied to most platforms earlier last week alongside the launch of Supremacy DLC on Xbox, has now made its way to PlayStation 3.
Like the others, it mostly consists of bug fixes across multiplayer and zombies modes. It also includes updates to the Flack Jacket and Hard Wired perks, which you can read more about in the official patch notes below:
In-Game Updates
Weapon Updates
UI Updates
Challenges Updates
Scorestreak Updates
Ranked Play Updates
Game Mode Specific Updates
Map Specific Updates
Exo Zombies Updates
