Gaming News Message Board older than one year ago

Android is the biggest mobile OS in the world. So why are games having such a hard time on Google's platform?

Here’s what’s going on Talk Among Yourselves, our reader-written blog: TruthTellah offers up one take on yesterday’s Xbox One turnaround.Battleborn examines the long, twisting life of the Pokemon franchise. And Danimalcart looks back at E3 somewhat fondly. And you can always go join the voices talking about video games and life in TAY Classic and in the TAY: Open Forum.

Well, Luigi's the main guy, for one thing. Also, Nabbit!

The biggest news of E3 2013 was the battle between the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, a battle centered on consumer rejection of digital rights management and used game restrictions. Meanwhile, in San Francisco, Apple quietly fired a shot that could eventually neuter traditional game consoles. iOS controller support could change everything. Prior to last week's WWDC conference, I suggested that Apple might be on the verge of revealing a game controller for the iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch, based on industry rumblings and tips from our sources. Apple took it a step further, introducing support for third-party game controllers in the upcoming iOS 7 and — here's the important part — establishing a standard for how those third-party controllers will operate. Up until now, third-party iOS controllers have been a scattered mess. Products like the iCade have worked well enough, but in order for them to function properly, a game has to be designed to take advantage of the device. Not a lot of iOS game developers are going to spend the time implementing a control scheme for a product only a handful of gamers own. With the controller support coming in iOS 7, however, there is a standard. Every compliant third-party controller will function exactly the same, be it Logitech's iPhone 5-to-PSP converter kit style, or a controller with a clip — peripheral maker Power A is already prepping an iOS version of its popular MOGA Android controller. Developers no longer have to worry about which consumers own which controllers — they all work. It's a very 'game console' approach to controller support, one that Apple is uniquely situated among mobile platform makers to implement. The Android platform has been supporting controllers for quite some time, but with countless manufacturers creating an endless array of diverse Android devices, achieving a standard for controllers is problematic. The iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch share a single manufacturer, so standards are easy. And then there's the Apple TV, which is just a game controller and some apps away from becoming a viable home console. Right now we can hook our iPhones and iPads up to our television sets or stream our games through Apple TV, which is nifty but overall feels very Wii U — why do I need a single game running on two screens? But an app-enabled Apple TV with controller support would kill. It'd be a relatively inexpensive game console with excellent media streaming capabilities, a rapidly-growing game library and one of the world's most recognizable logos on the front. An Apple game console wouldn't insta-kill our PlayStations, Wii Us and Xboxen, but it has the potential to reach a much larger audience than Sony, Nintendo or Microsoft could ever hope for. Such an audience would be incredibly attractive to developers and publishers, and when big-name games start seeing more success on iOS than those others... well, we know how they do. It also bears noting that iOS games are all tightly-controlled by DRM, there are no used game sales, and those decisions are completely out of developer and publisher hands, so they can't be held accountable. I wouldn't worry too much, at least not for now. Even though I'm pretty sure the Apple TV game console is going to happen (as is Gizmodo), there are too many variables in play to gauge exactly how successful such an endeavor would be. Except for iOS controller support — that's no longer a variable. It's coming this fall with iOS 7. I can't wait to see what sweeping changes come with it.

Nvidia's Android-powered handheld has received a $50 price cut ahead of its June 27th launch.

Frogwares, known mostly for their Sherlock Holmes brand of adventure games, brings us Magrunner: Dark Pulse, a first-person action-physics puzzler-platformer hybrid with the tagline "Technology Meets Cthulhu." Huh. Magrunner takes place in 2050, where you, a space explorer hopeful named Dax, start out in a training facility meant to teach you how to use the Magtech glove. This useful piece of technology lets you charge various items in the environment, letting you solve the puzzles the facility throws at you using the power of magnetism. Also, there's... well. I'll let the game speak for itself: However, you will soon understand that the training facility you have entered is hiding a darker secret…. The high-tech installation that houses the training program quickly descends into a foreign, perilous parallel universe: the world of the Cthulhu Mythos, a strange land filled with sanity-shattering creatures imagined by H.P. Lovecraft. In this dangerous world, your skills will be tested more than ever. Do not falter, for your very life is at stake… and the fate of mankind is in your hands. Okay, that actually does sound pretty cool. Magrunner: Dark Pulse comes to PC via Steam today. Releases for Xbox 360 and PS3 via Xbox Live and PlayStation Network will follow in September.

Don't let the 'fangame' moniker fool you. This is the real deal. The game, called Sonic After the Sequel, is actually a sequel to an earlier game done by the same guy, Sonic Before the Sequel. Both are full-fledged Sonic games with their own storylines and stages, taking place between the official games: Before the Sequel between Sonic 1 and 2, and After the Sequel between Sonic 2 and 3. They also both feature their own custom soundtracks, and let you play as either Sonic or Tails. LakeFeperd, the games' developer, is already hard at work creating another sequel, called Sonic Chrono Adventure, which will involve new characters, time travel, and a deeper story. You can download BtS and AtS here and here, and read more about them on their respective TvTropes pages, here and here. Sonic After The Sequel Is Now Available For Free [DSOGaming] Questions? Comments? Contact the author of this post at andras-AT-kotaku-DOT-com.

Twitter doesn't only inform at 140 characters a tweet, but it also amuses and delights with pictures. Here's a look at some, certainly not all, of Japan's most adorable, entertaining, and interesting photos found on Twitter. As with these things, be aware that people in Japan also find these images unusual—hence, them being retweeted numerous times. Many of them were retweeted thousands of times. Some of the photos are riffs one well-known memes, while others (such as the top image) can be easily explained(it's Halloween). And many of the photos are just people screwing around. You know, hijinks. Then, there are simply the surprising sights people have encountered and shared online. Photos: miryou, TSNet64, CatCutePhotos, k_ami_c, xX_harowan_Xx, napalmthing, _G_A_I, sorata22, hayama_syoko, nobu_12_, akiranagahashi, py0nk1ch7, kihhie_1052, Tired_Nova, hyper_shimeji, when_sir, matome, kataoka_k, xxkaixz, yuukitokuda, de_ji_be, nakamukae, Nekopic, ymtk_, kataoka, ag_gt To contact the author of this post, write to bashcraftATkotaku.com or find him on Twitter @Brian_Ashcraft. Kotaku East is your slice of Asian internet culture, bringing you the latest talking points from Japan, Korea, China and beyond. Tune in every morning from 4am to 8am.

Tower defense game Evilot is now compatible with the iPhone, and it arrive on PC later today (June 20). We recently reviewed the iPad version, taking note of the way it blends the mechanics of Plants vs. Zombies with Triple Town. Ultimately, the game lacked the polish of PopCap's ubiquitous PvZ, but we praised Evilot for its unique unit building mechanic.

The iOS version of Evilot is $0.99 on iTunes, and a limited free version is also available. The PC version launches tomorrow for $1.99 on Desura.

Taking a screenshot in New Leaf is simple: press L and R at the same time. Boom. You've got a picture. Great! Getting those pictures off your 3DS, while simple, requires a few more steps. Nothing too complicated, though. The image above, which details the process, is from Nintendo's website—you can find that here. Putting it in words, basically: take a screenshot. From there, use the 3DS' internet browser, and visit this website. There, you have to log into either Twitter or Tumblr. Once you do, a menu comes up that allows you to post your pictures; in my experience, Tumblr only allows you to upload one picture at a time. I assume Twitter does the same. Kind of cumbersome, sure, but the pictures aren't so big—uploading shouldn't take more than a few seconds. Be warned that whatever you upload automatically has the #ACNL hashtag attached to it. If you don't have a Twitter or Tumblr, the next best thing is to pop out your SD card and put it on your computer somehow—like, say, by using an SD card reader. Either way, hopefully you're taking plenty of pictures and sharing them with the world: much of the fun in Animal Crossing involves showing other people what you've done. Now get out there and take some good pictures. Tomorrow, we're giving you a chance to show us your home in New Leaf—better go tidy up!

I mean, who WOULDN'T want to know how fast their fans are running?

Microsoft has revealed fundamental changes to how the Xbox One will handle digital-rights management and Internet connectivity, and the Giant Bomb staff reacts.

It's Peter Molyneux...reviewing iPhone fart apps? I cant help but admire how calmly Molyneux speaks here—you'd think he's describing wine, not farts. Watch for yourself over at Game Informer.

It's been a while since we've heard news about The War Z, the controversial online zombie game that was kind of a mess in just about every possible way. So today's news is kind of interesting: the folks behind The War Z are changing the game's name to make it less like that other zombie MMO, DayZ. Now it's called... Infestation: Survivor Stories. Which really does sound a lot less like DayZ. (Thanks, Roman!)

If you liked those video game doodles we’ve featured from graphics artist Olly Moss, you’ll be glad to know that he’s making them available for purchase for a limited time.

It was announced months ago, but all that we’ve seen from Beware the Batman—the new CGI series featuring the Dark Knight—has been the tiniest of teasers. This new trailer shows a bit more of the show’s version of Bruce Wayne and his Bat-themed vehicles and gadgets. I can see Professor Pyg from the Grant Morrison run of Batman & Robin and 1990s villain Anarky. Beware the Batman starts airing on Saturday July 13th. What do you like about the clip? [Via USA Today]

The rumor windmill spun out of control this week as a number of people speculated that Bethesda had shown their newest Fallout game behind closed doors at E3, but the publisher says that's just not true. It started with a tease by 2old2play.com writer Derek Nolan, who hinted that he had seen something unannounced at Bethesda's booth during E3 in Los Angeles last week. Gaming forum NeoGAF picked up the tweets, and the breathless speculation began. An unannounced game? At E3? Fallout 4? Fallout 4, of course, has not been announced yet, although Bethesda recently said that the Skyrim team has moved onto their next project, which many have assumed will be the next game in their post-apocalyptic open-world RPG series. Then, a website called Bubblews said that Fallout 4 had been shown at E3, and that it would be out for current- and next-gen consoles in 2015. Popular video game websites like VG247 reported this news. Bubblews also posted what they say is a logo for Fallout 4, which looks a whole lot like an image from deviantART. I was curious, of course, as we hadn't heard about any unannounced Bethesda titles at the show floor, and I thought this whole thing sounded rather ridiculous. So I asked Bethesda, and they sent over a statement: We showed three games at E3 - Wolfenstein: The New Order, The Elder Scrolls Online and The Evil Within. We did not show any of our games behind closed doors. That's about as straightforward an answer as you can get. If Fallout 4 was shown to press at E3, it's news to us—and it seems like it's news to Bethesda, too.

Android micro-console GameStick will now ship to its Kickstarter backers at some point in August, the start-up hardware manufacturer announced yesterday in an update. Originally slated to release back in April, GameStick was then delayed until June after changes in the manufacturing process were required.

This latest delay stems from the fundraiser's $300 "DESIGNED BY ME!" donation level, which promises 50 backers exclusive early access to development kits for the purpose of beta testing and refining the system's user interface. Getting these devices to the backers took longer than expected, and so has implementing their feedback into the GameStick's UI.

"We have therefore taken the decision to push back the whole project by one month to ensure we can fit this process in," the update reads. "We appreciate that this will frustrate backers keen to get their hands on their device but we did not feel it was fair to bypass this step as it was a key pledge and the feedback will be really welcome."

Sony is trying to figure out what went wrong with PlayStation 3 firmware update 4.45, which was offered to PS3 users last night but then pulled when it appeared to start breaking consoles. "We are aware of reports that the recent PlayStation 3 system software update (version 4.45) has caused the XMB to not display on a small number of PS3 systems," a PlayStation spokesperson told Kotaku. "We have temporarily taken 4.45 offline and are investigating the cause of the problem. We will announce when the system update is available for download as soon as possible. We apologize for the inconvenience." The firmware was supposed to improve the PS3... PS3 system software update 4.45 coming soon, Trophy notification options and improved system stability are on the way — PlayStation (@PlayStation) June 19, 2013 ... but as soon as it went live, we got reports from readers that it was rendering some systems inoperable. As of this morning, the firmware was no longer available. Console firmware is routinely updated to add functionality, squash bugs and/or foil homebrew developers and pirates. The PlayStation platforms have been notorious for receiving a lot of firmware updates, though Sony has introduced auto-updating of firmware updates to ease that hassle. New games tend to only run on PlayStation systems that are running new firmware. A Sony rep said the company is currently "confirming the number" of PS3's affected by the now-pulled 4.45 firmware. As for those who downloaded 4.45 and currently have a bricked system because of it, Sony tells us, "We kindly ask PS3 users to wait for further details. We will announce when ready." Good luck to those of you whose systems got mangled by this. If anyone out there comes up with a fix, let us know. To contact the author of this post, write to stephentotilo@kotaku.com or find him on Twitter @stephentotilo.

Dennaton Games is moving quickly with Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number, but given how weird and fun the first game was, that's a-okay.

You might not have heard about the security guard that groped a journalist at this year's E3. Or the writer who gave a PR woman his business card by slipping it in her dress. Or the women presumed to be booth babes simply because of the way they looked. E3 is the busiest time to be working in the games industries or as a reporter covering the scene. It's the biggest, most important event of the year. But with roughly 50,000 attendees, it's also sometimes the creepiest. It can be weird to be a female journalist, PR representative, developer, whatever, in this world. I can't tell you how many times people have asked me, "So, do you play games?" after I tell them what I do for a living. When you're female and working in or alongside this industry people make assumptions. Assumptions that you just know aren't being made about your male counterparts. But I brush it off and answer the question matter-of-factly, because it's all I can do to try to defend my legitimate interest in games when, meanwhile, I dedicate my livelihood to it. That much is tolerable—expected, even (sadly). But after speaking to a few female journalists and PR reps who attended E3 this year, I learned that, in the midst of all the excitement, they were unhappy to admit a more offensive common theme of this year's show: they called it the "creepy-rapey-E3." (For the record, the ESA, the group that organizes E3, says they received no reports about any instances of sexual harassment from show security. In the event that they would have, I'm told, they have personnel around the convention center to investigate the issues and determine the appropriate action.) This might be upsetting to read. I get it, I really do. And as much as I can't understand the vitriol that typically comes from some gamers in the wake of stories like these, I do understand the source. We love games. We don't want to admit that there are problems in the world of gaming. But we have to. And these "creepy-rapey-E3" stories? These are things we don't want to admit that our colleagues and peers and people who share our passions are capable of. But many of us don't have the luxury of denial. Because it's right in our faces. The Touchy Security Guard A few days after E3, I hopped on the phone with a fellow female games reporter. She told me about an all-too-close encounter at E3. "What do you do when the person that's supposed to be keeping an eye out for everyone is doing that to you?" she asked me. She confessed her nervousness after being grabbed by a security guard manning a particular booth on E3's show floor. What started out as friendly, albeit awkward chitchat quickly crossed the line. It was early last Wednesday morning, and this female journalist—who asked not to be named—was all set to interview the creative director of a game. Through the whirlwind of news and appointments, she already had a lot on her mind, she told me. She waved to a friend. A security guard who was covering the back rooms where these interviews took place mistakenly thought that wave was meant for him. He approached her. She responded to his small talk casually—in a friendly manner, she said—her eyes darting to the flashy big screen that showcased new trailers for upcoming games. She wasn't invested in the conversation, she told me. It showed. Suddenly, he was standing over her. "Looming," she told me. He wrapped his hands around her shoulders in such a way that "he could have easily moved" her. "I was physically compromised," she told me. "I wasn't in a position I could've slipped out of. I had to shake him off." "What do you do when the person that's supposed to be keeping an eye out for everyone is doing that to you?" She recalled that when she managed to slip from his grip, she took a few steps back. Not knowing what to say, she nervously went back to staring at the big screen, to her a clear indication that she didn't want to talk anymore. She felt helpless, she told me. Who was she supposed to turn to? "You're the security guard," she remembered thinking. "What am I supposed to say? You are the security guard." But the security guard persisted. He continued the conversation, going so far as to approach her yet again, this time rubbing her arm instead of grabbing it. At this point, she said she backed up again, this time saying, "Don't do that." "I was nervous," she recalled. "He laughed, and said, 'It's just that it's funny, because I'm here and there are all these hot girls here and then you find out they're gamers. I didn't know girls like this existed, and I'm basically getting paid to stand here all day and look at them.' "I'm really ashamed of myself that I didn't punch him in the face first thing." The conversation was benign, she told me, until it wasn't benign. And now she says she's afraid to make smalltalk with random people. Fortunately, her story has a happy ending. She reported the security guard to the PR people behind the booth. Soon afterwards, she learned that the guard's management company had fired him. (I reached out to the PR company in question and confirmed that the guard was indeed fired at the show.) The female journalist told me over the phone that the staff could not have been more responsive or helpful. They apologized multiple times and were apparently very comforting. But this incident, like many incidents that happen to women at events like this one, left her uneasy about getting too comfortable on the E3 show floor. "It's like walking into a shark tank and you don't know which ones are the shark." Four Groping Hands One night of E3, a public relations representative for a well-known game company went to a bar with some other PR reps, some marketing employees, and an indie developer. "I remember not wanting to go into the bar in the first place because they were playing Star Wars: Episode I," she joked with me on Monday. After chit-chatting with the developer at the bar for some time, she got up to go to the restroom. "As soon as I got up I felt him rubbing my head around the temple area," she recalled. "I thought, 'Ok this is obviously a drunk person who thinks this is funny.'" She did not think it was funny. She turned around to tell him to stop. "As I was turning, he kissed the top of my head. I got paralyzed. I stopped turning." Things only escalated from there. "As I was turning, he kissed the top of my head. I got paralyzed. I stopped turning." "A second guy started rubbing my shoulders and kissing the side of my neck. I freaked out." Meanwhile, she told me, the indie developer knocked off her glasses while rubbing her temples. She didn't know if it was intentional, but it was scary. "I'm useless without my glasses," she told me. "I couldn't see anyone I knew. I thought that, while I was talking to the indie developer, my friends might have left without realizing and that I was alone. I started panicking. I don't know if he set me up to be in this situation and left me here. I felt paralyzed. Like I couldn't move." She said she couldn't even shake her head, let alone reach down to pick up her glasses. "Yeah, I wasn't moving at all." Then, the two men stopped. She doesn't know why. Maybe they sensed her discomfort, or maybe they were just too drunk, she said. "I guess they got bored." Are You A Booth Babe? It's an unfortunate and uncomfortable reality that female attendees at shows like E3 are constantly mistaken for booth babes, who are women hired to wear revealing clothing and stand at company booths. Here are two of those stories. A female journalist was waiting for a PR rep to take her to her next appointment. "I accidentally made eye contact [with some guy]," she told me over the phone. "So, what booth do you belong to?" the guy asked. She lifted her media badge in defiance, simultaneously moving away from him. In order to avoid comments and looks in the future, she told me, she plans to wear jeans. That time, she said she had been wearing a "nice, modest dress" that stopped just above her knees. She had a similar experience the next day, with trails of stares following her down the hallways. She learned that, as proud as she is of her fashion sense, it'd be more comfortable to cover up. "That's not flattering to me at all," she lamented, while remembering the looks she had gotten. "Some girls think it's an ego-booster. The only thing it taught me is that I can't wear cute clothes." She said the E3 show floor is a "cesspool of sexism and hormones." "If you're a booth babe, isn't it your job to take pictures with me?" A female PR representative with a similar story was hosting her big E3 party one night of the show. One party attendee—a stranger—approached her and asked for a picture. Her answer was obvious: no thank you. And then, as she recalled to me, he responded: "If you're a booth babe, isn't it your job to take pictures with me?" Not How You Give A Business Card During a separate party that same evening, the PR representative accused of being a booth babe earlier was discussing the situation with a journalist, relaying her disappointment that she apparently cannot wear a party dress to a party. While talking, they were approached by a male writer the PR rep didn't know. "Maybe this is what I get for wearing a dress. Maybe this wouldn't have happened." "All of a sudden he pulls his business card out and slowly moves towards my breasts," the PR rep told me. "He obviously thought he was being cute, 'cause he was obviously drunk." I spoke to the PR rep later immediately after the incident and she painted a vivid picture: the PR rep looking on in horror; the journalist saying "no, no, no"; the stranger slipping his business card into her dress. "I looked at him and said, 'No,'" the PR rep recalled to me. "And he walked away." As we chatted about what happened, her tone was furious, then sad. "Maybe this is what I get for wearing a dress. Maybe this wouldn't have happened." Creep Shot A female PR representative was taking a quick break on the E3 show floor. She found herself at the Nintendo booth, where there was a big display for the newly-announced Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze. Nintendo's professional photographers offered to take a shot of her on the display. She was down. So she hopped onto the Donkey Kong stage, posing for the camera. A male onlooker snapped a photo at the same time. Nothing too strange about that—I've taken photos of displays with people in them before, just to get a snapshot of the moment. But right afterwards, the PR rep told me, someone came up and told her something chilling: the onlooker had zoomed in and taken a photo of her breasts. "I didn't know about it until after the fact," she told me. "Another guy came up saying that the guy had zoomed in on my breasts and took a photo. He questioned him and he denied it. He said, 'That was really rude and disgusting,' and asked him to delete it. And he still denied it. So he took the guy's camera and deleted it." The Worst Kind Of 'Pick-Up Artist' Jenn Frank—whose fantastic writing has been featured on Kotaku before—had her own uncomfortable, insulting experience while attending an E3 after-hours event. She explained in an email to me yesterday evening how she met two "pick-up artists" who seemed to only want to insult her. Here's her story, in her words: I and a female friend went up to the bar to obtain drinks. We were buying drinks for a group of coworkers, and this includes a drink for my friend's brother, an editor at a major video games news outlet.As we were waiting, a man at the bar started mocking me, saying my glasses were cute but I am not, and my friend laid into him. I, an idiot, repeatedly apologized for her "behavior." Soon enough we were flanked by two men, one of whom admonished my friend for "being insecure."These two men, I soon learned, are developers at a noted AAA studio. I advised them to "google me," and I left to return to our group. My friend's older brother, an editor at a major games news website, wanted to talk to them (or beat them up). I teased him: "We don't need you to white-knight us." Then he was upset, and I promised I was kidding.The two men, noticing my friend and I knew other people at the party, started following us around. At one point they sent a female coworker over to bum a smoke off me."Women, huh?" one of the two asked my friend's older brother, who is, again, an editor at a major site. The editor remarked he didn't catch the dev's meaning, so the dev continued, something about "if you can make a woman feel bad about herself you can sleep with her, but it just isn't working tonight." Jenn told me she found the entire situation rude, to say the least. These are just some of the stories I've heard and experienced over my years covering the video game industry. They're not just limited to E3: unwanted advances, creepy statements, and inappropriate acts like this are way more common than anyone would like to admit. It's become a fact of life, in other parts of life but particularly in the world of gaming. It's something many of us have come to accept and learned how to deal with over time. You might want to think that these women should have said or done something to defend themselves. Don't. Because there's a common theme here: immobility. When you're approached or attacked like this, you can find yourself paralyzed. Confused. Unsure of how to respond. Over time, many of us find our own ways to deal with these situations. They're always uncomfortable, but at least we can be prepared. I've never written a story like this before. I've admittedly been afraid to in the past. These confessions are always met with skepticism and hatred and accusations. The bravery to step up is rarely celebrated. It's seen as whiny and entitled. That reaction is baffling. And I'm glad that the women who spoke with me for this story shared their experiences. They're why I know I can't be afraid anymore. I don't have that choice. To contact the author of this post, write to tina@kotaku.com or find her on Twitter at @tinaamini. Top photo from E3 Insider.

With a 3.1-inch display and a physical keyboard, the BlackBerry Q10 is an extremely limited device, but it may not be as bad as you think.

Here’s what’s going on Talk Among Yourselves, our reader-written blog: Zarnyx spins a chilling tale of a creepy Animal Crossing: New Leaf encounter. Odin updates Ani-Club with a rundown of three episodes of Ouran High School Host Club. And I_Kluge bitches about the last boss in Tekken Tag Tournament 2, who deserves much bitching about. And you can always go join the voices talking about video games and life in TAY Classic and in the TAY: Open Forum.

These aliens can't even deal with your mad strategery.

Nordic Games brings us what appears to be an Indiana Jones-esque first-person globe-trotting experience called Deadfall Adventures. Also involved: shooting and explosions aplenty. In Deadfall, you play as Quatermain, an adventurer from 1938, whose job is to escort and guard Jennifer Goodwin, a US secret agent in search of an ancient artifact, The Heart of Atlantis. Together, they journey "across stormy deserts of Egypt to the icy depths of the Arctic and all the way to the steaming jungles of Guatemala," all the while keeping ahead of two other factions trying to get their hands on the artifact—you can probably guess by this point that these are the Nazis and the Russians. Here's what the game looks like in motion. Developers The Farm 51, the Polish group behind NecroVision and Painkiller: Hell & Damnation, built Deadfall using Unreal Engine 3, the same engine powering the Borderlands games, DMC, and the new Thief. They hope to deliver "one of the most jaw-dropping spectacles this generation has enjoyed." That's quite the claim to live up to! Deadfall Adventures is scheduled to come out for PC and Xbox 360 on September 27 (pushed back from July 30, the date mentioned in the trailer above). You can check out the box art and a few fresh screenshots below. Questions? Comments? Contact the author of this post at andras-AT-kotaku-DOT-com.

Devolver Digital has officially announced the sequel to last year's bloody and surreal top-down action game, Hotline Miami. The game, subtitled Wrong Number, will let you take control of several different characters with their own, distinct storylines as you slaughter your way through the new levels. And, of course, there will be new weapons. Check out Devolver Digital's press release below: You’re a murderer. You murder people. Again. And again. How certain you are of your actions and what is, and what is not, real is what you must determine in Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number, due out later this year from developer Dennaton Games and publisher Devolver Digital. The epic finale to 2012’s blood-soaked hit follows an escalating level of violence through multiple factions born from the events of the original game — all within the confines of blistering combat, the unmistakable visual style, and another powerful and intense soundtrack that pushes you to the limit and forces you to question your own thirst for blood. Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number commands you to step into the murderous minds of several distinct characters - each with their own motivations and methods of execution – as storylines intersect and reality slips away into a haze of neon and carnage. Witness hundreds of new sprites and animations in lush new areas to clear floor-by-floor, and harness a variety of savage new weapons to satisfy your murder lust. Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number is scheduled to hit the PC (Windows, Mac and Linux) this year.

The sleek side-scrolling action-RPG you can see above is Capcom's Chronicles of Mystara, an updated re-release and bundle of two of their older arcade games, Tower of Doom and Shadow over Mystara. In addition to reworking the graphics, Capcom also included a bevy of new features, including drop-in/drop-out co-op for four players, a House Rules mode which lets you customize the campaign in various ways, and a Challenge system that gives you level-up points in return for completing various objectives. Here's the press release: Capcom worked closely with Wizards of the Coast to bring these beloved games back for all the D&D fans on today’s consoles. Developed by Iron Galaxy, Dungeons & Dragons: Chronicles of Mystara brings together two arcade classics – Dungeons & Dragons: Tower of Doom and its sequel Dungeons & Dragons: Shadow over Mystara – fully updated with HD graphics and a wealth of additional features. The highly requested games had previously only been available in arcades in the west and can now be enjoyed by a wider gaming audience. Both titles mix intense 2D side scrolling action RPG to deliver a truly deep gameplay experience for up to four players as they battle online or locally against the iconic monsters of Dungeons & Dragons with a mix of melee, range and magic attacks. Dungeons & Dragons: Chronicles of Mystara is powered by GGPO to offer seamless drop-in/drop-out online gameplay for up to four players in each of the title’s two modes. In addition to the classic arcade mode with its branching paths and multiple endings, players can utilize the all new House Rules feature which offers stackable game options to customize gameplay for a completely different experience. For instance, “Vampirism” awards health for every attack dealt to an enemy and “Lockpick” causes all chests to be open. Further additions include a dynamic Challenge system that sets players in-game goals in return for character level-ups and points which can be spent in the Vault: a treasure trove of unlockables and gameplay loot. Dungeons & Dragons: Chronicles of Mystara also features the Character Visualizer which lets players track which characters they and their friends use most often and can help create a more balanced multiplayer dungeon party, or point out which characters are most under-used; with further gameplay stats tracked via a global leaderboard. Lastly, owners of the Wii U version will be able to use the GamePad touch screen to select spells and items with ease, allowing for a more streamlined gameplay experience. Chronicles of Mystara is available now on Steam and for the PS3 via PlayStation Network, and is scheduled to hit XBox Live today, with a Wii U eShop release following "soon after." Questions? Comments? Contact the author of this post at andras-AT-kotaku-DOT-com.