Platformer, Platforms, PS4, Reviews, Xbox One

Rayman Legends (PS4 Review)

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After being utterly smitten with the next-gen re-release of Tomb Raider last month, I was keen to see how last year’s rather tasty Rayman Legends fared on the next-gen machines too. Well, there’s good news and bad news.

There’s a strong argument that that Rayman Legends looks exactly the same on the new consoles as it does on the older ones and there’s no truly relevant new material. But on the other hand, shop around and you can currently buy it for only £7 more than the last-gen version, meaning you don’t have to spend much to finally play a decent platformer on your PS4 or Xbox One.

Continue reading Rayman Legends (PS4 Review) →

Action, Platforms, PlayStation 3, Reviews, Xbox 360

Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 (Review)

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Way short of the full Belmonty

Hundreds of years after Gabriel Belmont’s journey began; we’re here to witness the grand finale as we see him return as Dracula, to take on Satan and his acolytes one last time in the hope of finally finding peace and an escape from his immortal torment.

If the events of the original Lords of Shadow, the expansion DLC and Mirror of Fate are a little faded in your memory, there’s a summative cutscene early on to bring you back up to speed. Robert Carlyle and Patrick Stewart reprise their roles from the first game, attempting to add as much brooding and grandiosity respectively as possible. And lots of hammy dialogue so cringe worthy, it’ll give you a sore neck.

Continue reading Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 (Review) →

Features, Platforms, PlayStation 3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One

Tekken X Street Fighter: Going Next-Gen or Cancelled?

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Where is Tekken X Street Fighter? That’s the question many of us fight fans have been wondering recently. Nobody has even seen a screenshot of the game, and yet it has been two years since Capcom released Street Fighter X Tekken. Namco’s return effort was set to give the Street Fightercharacters a Tekken-style makeover, but it’s been a notorious no-show for years now.

Recently, we were sent a UK release schedule from Bandai Namco (they changed their name around, remember) and thankfully the game was still on there, but the date was only down as TBC. More interestingly, the formats no longer read PS3/360, instead they’ve also been replaced with TBC. The optimists inside us are hoping this means that we could be seeing the game on PS4 and Xbox One -two consoles desperately in need of a decent fighting game. With a relatively small install-base for the new consoles though, we’d still expect the PS3 and 360 (and probably the Vita) to see the game too.

Continue reading Tekken X Street Fighter: Going Next-Gen or Cancelled? →

News

Play Alien: Isolation at Rezzed Expo in Birmingham

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Most media outlets haven’t even been given a chance to try Alien: Isolation yet, but Sega are giving YOU the chance to play the game at the EGX Rezzed event at Birmingham NEC on the 28th-30th March.

Sega seem keen to show gamers the game first-hand with no smoke and mirrors after the utter farce that was the finished product of Aliens: Colonial Marines. So why not head on down? Tickets are available at the event’s site here from as little as £9. The game will be playable on PS4, Xbox One and PC platforms. Creative Assembly’s survival horror approach certainly has us interested, but we’re cautious as to whether they can maintain it throughout a whole game against just one alien. That said, we’ve been hearing rumours of androids being used as gun-fodder in-between all the hiding in cupboards. Continue reading Play Alien: Isolation at Rezzed Expo in Birmingham →

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Play Infamous: Second Son Early at Game Store Lock-Ins

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Still on the fence about putting a pre-order down for Infamous: Second Son on your PS4? Well, you need to do two things. One: Check out Matt’s recent hands-on preview. Two: Head down to one of  the participating Game stores and play the game for yourself ahead of the game’s release on March 21st. 

Dates and venues are included below. To sign up, you’ll need to visit the store in advance and ask for a free ticket. Note: you’ll need to be 16+ and a Game card owner. If your local store isn’t on the list, but you’re planning on travelling a few extra miles to the nearest venue, you could always try contacting the store’s Twitter account to see if they’ll hold a ticket for you so you don’t have to travel twice. That’s my plan anyways. 

It’s also worth noting that attendees will be given some free food and refreshments while you wait. Better yet, place a pre-order for the game and you’ll get an exclusive Infamous poster and a Destiny summer beta key. 

Continue reading Play Infamous: Second Son Early at Game Store Lock-Ins →

News

PS4 Update 1.61 Set to Fix CE-34878-0 Crashes?

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Earlier this week we saw the latest PS4 firmware update pop up when we turned on our PS4s. Keen to see what new feature we were getting, we had a look what was included with the new 1.61 update. With the previous update mainly focusing on adding official headset support, we were hoping for something directly targeting the dreaded CE-34878-0 error message which appears on a regular basis for many gamers, either causing corrupted save files or even crashes when browsing their capture collections. Continue reading PS4 Update 1.61 Set to Fix CE-34878-0 Crashes? →

Action, Platformer, Platforms, PlayStation 3, Reviews

Legend of Kay Review – This kitty has claws

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Looking at gaming’s release schedule, you may notice one genre in particular doesn’t seem to have anything on the horizon – the action platformer. Has the flop of Knack on the PS4 put developers off making new ones? Until someone says otherwise, it would seem that the best way to get our fix is to look backwards.

Fortunately, I’ve been saved a visit to my local preowned store and plugging my PS2 into a modern TV (scart lead consoles on HD TV’s look horrendous) thanks to PS2 title, Legend of Kay being released in digital form on PS3. This isn’t an HD remake, but to be honest, time has been kind to the game and it still looks good today. Widescreen and 60Hz support helps too. Continue reading Legend of Kay Review – This kitty has claws →

First Person Shooters, PC, Platforms, PS4, Reviews, Xbox One

Battlefield 4 (PS4 Review)

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With the Christmas release schedule being so packed, some games slips through the cracks. But here at Dealspwn it’s never too late to give you a verdict on a game. After all, in these modern times developers are able to add patches to their games to fix issues that may have been around at launch. The next-gen launch versions of Battlefield 4 on PS4 and Xbox One had a few teething issues, so maybe time (and a few patches) have proved to be a great healer. I’m about to find out as I dive into Battlefield 4 on the PS4.

Let’s get straight to it. Battlefield 4’s single player campaign is better than Battlefield 3’s, but still way behind the Bad Company games. For those of you kind enough not to have scrolled down to the multiplayer part of the review already, I’ll tell you why.

Continue reading Battlefield 4 (PS4 Review) →

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Titanfall Beta Now Available to All on Xbox One

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Just spent £35 on a Titanfall beta code on eBay? Well, your Muppet of the Month award will be with you shortly. For the rest of you that missed out on registering for a Titanfall beta code in time, you’ll be glad to hear that you can now download the beta from the dashboard on your Xbox One. No codes, no purchases, just head to the New Game Demos section of the Game Store. No word yet on when PC gamers can expect similar access.

So, get cracking and get involved with what’s looking like the Xbox One’s killer app.

News

Synchronicity Facial Performance Capture Demo Sets New Standards

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Fancy a look at the future of graphics for facial performance capture? Then you really need to see this outstanding video which was produced from a collaboration of three teams. Capture, casting, voice recording, writing and direction was handled by Side, 3Lateral took care of head rigging and Cubic Motion was in charge of animating the results.

The three teams decided to produce the demo because they wanted to show off their skills at the cutting edge of what they were capable of today. In an interview with Develop magazine, Side MD Andy Emery said: “We’ve had it, as three outsourcing companies, where we’ve worked on various big projects, but been frustrated in the past by the fact we can’t showcase anything we’ve worked on publicly until a point where everything has moved on.”

Cubic Motion’s Simon Elmes added, “We wanted to create something we could share, and that was completely in our control, where there was no sacrifice made to compression, or many of the other restrictions we sometimes face.”

So without the restrictions of NDA’s or having to produce something for a specific game, the three teams were able to produce this video short which shows a woman recording what looks like a video diary letter home. There’s an impressive range (and more importantly, depth) of emotions on display and unlike many facial tech demos, we’re not just looking at a chatting floating head. Instead, we have a full cinematic cutscene complete with a background and real-time lighting reflecting on the character’s face. Hell, even the shifting material on the t-shirt looks good. Take a look for yourselves and let us know what you think in the comments section. Continue reading Synchronicity Facial Performance Capture Demo Sets New Standards →

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New Thief Trailer Emphasises Open Approach

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Still on the fence about the upcoming Thief game? Then check out this extensive gameplay trailer which does a great job of showing how you’ll be able to play the game in any style you want. Play as a ghost and remain undetected throughout your mission, try to play the game without killing a single person (betting there’s a Trophy for that) or just swagger around firing lethal arrows and stabbing people in the neck -probably making life quite difficult for yourself in the process.

Coming from the team behind Deus Ex: Human Revolution, we’d expect open approaches to missions to make up a large part of the game’s DNA and are enormously relieved to finally see some solid evidence of this. The footage brings to mind a hybrid of Deus Ex, Far Cry 3 and Dishonored, which might just the best thing to happen to stealth gaming since Hideo Kojima looked at a PS1.

Enjoy the trailer below and keep an eye on Dealspwn.com for the cheapest pre-order deals around the net.
Platforms, PlayStation 3, Puzzle, Reviews

Adam’s Venture Chronicles Review

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Sometimes you need to take a break from all the cover shooters, the chequered flag chasing and alien blasting to exercise the old grey matter with some puzzles for a change. PSN has been a bit bare of late for head-scratching titles, which is why we’re so keen to give Adam’s Venture Chronicles a go.

The name may sound familiar to PC gamers as the game was originally released in episodic chunks in 2009 through 2012. So, while not exactly fresh, it’s nice to see the game eventually reach another platform. Continue reading Adam’s Venture Chronicles Review →

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Dracula Vs Toy Maker in New Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 Video

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We can’t wait for Lords of Shadow 2 here at Dealspwn and it looks like Mercury Steam haven’t run out of ideas for ruddy huge boss fights yet either if this new gameplay video is anything to go by.

This multi-part boss fights sees ol’ pasty face take on a transforming enemy that begins as a lance-wielding knight before going on to become a snake and then a large mechanical puppet-bot. Time to brush on those dodging skills as this could be a tough one. Fingers crossed there are some checkpoints along the way as this isn’t the shortest of battles, but then again, the best ones never are. Continue reading Dracula Vs Toy Maker in New Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 Video →

Action, Platforms, PS4, Reviews, Xbox One

Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition (PS4 Review)

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With the PS3/360 generation of gaming pumping out some excellent games right up to the release of the new generation of gaming consoles, there was always going to be the question of whether some of these games should have waited for the new hardware.

That said we were blown away by what our old machines were capable of with the likes of Beyond: Two Souls (visually at least), Bioshock infinite, The Last of Us, and of course Tomb Raider. So how much do we really need a re-release of a game that’s not even a year old? I admit I was sceptical, but as a fan of the game and a visuals enthusiast (my new name for ‘graphics whore’), there was no denying I’d struggle to pretend a PS4 version wasn’t of interest.

Continue reading Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition (PS4 Review) →

News

PS4’s CE-34878-0 Error Code Spreads to Share Captures

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Reports have been floating around the net for a few weeks now that numerous PS4 users have seen the CE-34878-0 error code appear and corrupt their save files beyond repair, often wasting up to 40 hours of work for the likes of Assassin’s Creed IV.

However, new evidence suggests the system error isn’t just focussed on our game save files and is spreading throughout the PS4’s other features. Continue reading PS4’s CE-34878-0 Error Code Spreads to Share Captures →

Features, PC, Platforms, PlayStation 3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One

Are Game Development Costs Set to Spiral out of Control?

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Last week we learned via a Eurogamer interview, that 2013’s Tomb Raider reboot only started to make a profit nine months after its March release date, despite selling 3.4 million copies in its first three weeks. If it takes that long for a game that good that sold that well to actually make money, how long can companies afford to make similar blockbuster big-budget games?

Tomb Raider’s budget was reportedly around £60 million ($100 million), which is probably why Square Enix set their sales targets so high (5 million units) in the first month,  which would have seem them move into the black straight away. Continue reading Are Game Development Costs Set to Spiral out of Control? →

Action, Platforms, PlayStation 3, PSN (PlayStation Store), Reviews, XBLA, Xbox 360

Assassin’s Creed Liberation HD (Review)

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Releasing at the busiest time of year, Liberation went largely unnoticed when it released towards the back end of 2012 on the PS Vita. So when Ubisoft announced they would be polishing it up for a downloadable release on PSN and XBLA it was collective high fives all-round. Sorry Vita, but the big TV wins again.

So often, I cringe when I see the prices of digital games or HD remakes, but Liberation’s £15.99 asking price is very reasonable. Mainly because the original Vita version costs more and the visual upgrade is huge. Some of you may be disappointed to hear that the multiplayer options have been ditched, but this makes sense really. Why would Ubisoft want to dedicate resources to keeping more servers alive when they know most fans will be enjoying the superior multiplayer offerings of Assassin’s Creed IV?

Continue reading Assassin’s Creed Liberation HD (Review) →

Features, Platforms, PS4

Sony Coy On Western DriveClub Release. But Why?

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The PS4 and Sony really need a racing game. And we should have one on the horizon. But earlier this week, when I asked Sony’s UK PR team for a release date or even a rough release period for DriveClub, they were only able to say, “I’m afraid we don’t have any info on the release date for DriveClub at the moment.”

Originally planned as a launch title in the West, the game was delayed into 2014, with a general understanding it would be arriving on PS Plus in January or February. Instead, an announcement was made that next month’s free PS4 game would be the horror title, Outlast (which we can’t wait for by the way) and there was no mention of DriveClub at all. Continue reading Sony Coy On Western DriveClub Release. But Why? →

Platforms, PlayStation 3, Previews, Video, Xbox 360

Opening Scenes | Assassin’s Creed: Liberation HD – First 20 Mins

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Opening Scenes | Assassin's Creed: Liberation HD - First 20 Mins

Thanks to my recent acquisition of a Hauppauge capture device, I’m able to bring you an Opening Scenes video for Assassin’s Creed: Liberation HD, the new HD port of the 2012 Vita game. I’ll be bringing you a review very soon, but if you’re eager to see what the opening twenty minutes hold, then marvel at my restraint as I avoid succumbing to collecting all the shiny things instead of doing actual missions.

Instead of playing an Assassin’s game like my usual obsessive-compulsive (but very stabby) magpie, this playthrough video will show you cutscenes, climbing, fighting, costume changes, mistimed jumps and some ruddy vicious looking machetes. I’ve put a few hours into the game since recording this footage and am pleased to say it’s going well so far. Aveline is a delightful character and the story is shaping up to be better than most Assassin’s games. Stay tuned for that review. Continue reading Opening Scenes | Assassin’s Creed: Liberation HD – First 20 Mins →

Features, Platforms, Previews, PS4, Video

Don’t Starve – PS4 Gameplay

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Dealspwn Playthrough | Don't Starve - PS4 Gameplay

Our new playthrough video is a 12 minute glimpse at the world of Don’t Starve, the latest free PS4 game to land on the PS Plus service. The game’s similarities to the likes of Minecraft, or more specifically Terraria, are there for all the indie-PC crowd to see. But how will such a niche survival-style title fare on the PS4?

Sony has been keen to show off their indie credentials with the PS4, but have they perhaps made a rare miss-calculation by having this as the first free PS Plus title since Contrast and Resogun back at launch last year? I’m very much a console gamer, but I managed to get into Terraria when I covered it on the 360 elsewhere last year. But Don’t Starve is a different sort of beast with its aggressive one-life policy making it hard to stomach, especially given the lack of any tangible rewards for the time required to put in. That said, I’ve only played the game for about two hours so far. Continue reading Don’t Starve – PS4 Gameplay →

Gaming reviews, previews and features by Brendan Griffiths