The full list of Final Fantasy XIV's peculiar, discipline-based classes was recently outed by Famitsu (as translated by fansite FFXIV Core). If your idea of an MMO class roster boils down to Wizards, Warriors, Rogues, etc., you're probably going to be perplexed by the game's profession-centric composition. Don't get too bogged down in thought, though -- you'll be able to switch between these jobs at will once the game drops for the PC in September.
For a full breakdown of class distribution between the combat-focused Disciples of War, the wizardly Disciples of Magic, the gathering-adept Disciples of the Land and the crafty Disciples of Hand, just click past the jump.
This will be the first year since the start of the Ratchet & Clank Future series that the franchise will be quiet on the PS3. Fans of Insomniac's space-venturing duo need not fret too much, though. DC Comics' WildStorm imprint is releasing a brand new Ratchet & Clank comic series this September, written by Insomniac's TJ Fixman.
The new series will follow the events of the last game, A Crack in Time, and should satiate fans' appetites for the series' continuation. The comic will be available in retail stores and on the PSP Digital Comics service.Ratchet & Clank comics coming September 8
#art
Pascal Eggert, gun nut and currently artist at Crysis developers Crytek, got his job doing what he loves: designing firearms for video games. More »
If your anticipation for the co-op treasure-plundering action of Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light is so strong that you're seeking for outlets through which to give Crystal Dynamics money, here's your chance. A handful of Avatar items based on the XBLA title will arrive on the Xbox Live Marketplace July 29. The particulars and prices of these items have yet to be revealed, though a handful of images posted in the gallery below indicate costumes for Lara, her partner-in-raiding Totec, a Tomb Raider-themed T-shirt, a hideous matted wig and ... some kind of ... demon suit.
The background featured in these images is actually available on the Marketplace today for 240 MSP, under the title "The Lava Tomb." It's perfect for those who think their menu navigation experience could use a bit more molten rock and ugly statuettes.
#comiccon2010
Square Enix, in addition to making fancy video games, also makes a fancy toy or two. The company's Play Arts Kai line of highly detailed figures is welcoming Halo: Reach to the fold with two waves of posh toys. More »
#jaws
There have been two (well, technically three) games based on the world's first Summer blockbuster, 1975's Jaws. And they all sucked. Doesn't the quintessential underwater villain deserve better? More »
While it's unlikely Scott Pilgrim vs. the World will be sold out when it launches on the PlayStation Store's virtual shelves next month, you may still want to pre-order the game. Ubisoft's official online store is throwing in a special bonus: a free "Sex Bob-omb" t-shirt for your PlayStation Home avatar.
Okay, this may not be the most exciting pre-order bonus ever concocted, but there's still good reason to be excited. The Ubishop has Scott Pilgrim listed at $9.99, bucking the recent trend of $15 downloads. We definitely approve.
#ps3
Three screenshots, all from the same PlayStation 3 game. Look closely and you can figure out which one. Credit the developers for diversity of content, shall we? More »
TechCrunch and VentureBeat both have sources claiming Disney is ready to purchase social gaming developer Playdom for over $600 million. There are currently obscene amounts of money being invested in the social gaming arena; just last year EA purchased Playfish, another big player in the space, for $300 million.
Disney Interactive Media, which continues to have annual losses, has been working on making or buying a mega-money maker. Split/Second obviously isn't panning out, but Club Penguin seems to be doing fine. There's also the question of how the company will eventually incorporate the Marvel properties, unless it opts to continue licensing those out. The Playdom purchase, if true, would give the company access to a demographic that its current mouse house of studios doesn't directly service.
#comiccon2010
While running about doing quests and exploring planets makes up most of the Star Wars: The Old Republic experience, during a Comic-Con panel today, BioWare revealed that space combat will play a part in the massively multiplayer role-playing game. More »
When we're closest to death, that's when we feel most alive. We're pretty sure somebody said that once. What better way to truly feel alive than to fight ferocious animals to the death? Too bad all of those guns and vests and airfare really add up.
We've got a relatively safer and cheaper solution: Cabela's North American Adventures. It's the newest entry in the Cabela line of titles, Activision announced today -- set to grace the Xbox 360, PS3, PS2, PSP and Wii systems this September. The Wii version will ship with the Top Shot gun peripheral that debuted with Cabela's Big Game Hunter 2010.
Cabela's North American Adventures will ship with a custom gun utility that allows players to create their own weapons from a variety of different receivers, stocks, barrels and scopes, and also provides players with their own in-game cameraman. He should come in handy should you run out of ammo and need something to distract the bears while you make your escape.
The Xbox 360 and PS3 versions of the game will allow up to four players to connect via the internet and engage in group hunts. Performances will then be added to an online leaderboard to find out who's best at killing Bambi's mom.
#thq
UFC Undisputed 2010's poor sales, earlier reported to be down more than 50 percent from last year's breakout hit UFC 2009 Undisputed, now have a reason: THQ says Red Dead Redemption sucked up all the oxygen in May. More »
This is a friendly reminder that our free Joystiq iPhone / iPod Touch app is now available -- it's real purdy. Also, even if you don't have one of the compatible iDevices, it's still important to rate the app on iTunes and/or leave a comment requesting it for other mobile doohickeys (like Android) on our announcement post. See, apps are made by developer fairies and they are fed with wishes and praise. So, you understand, it's important to do both for the current app.
#comiccon2010
Didn't make it to Comic-Con? Don't worry neither did we. But Capcom did and they were nice enough to film this video for us of their booth. More »
The free-to-play Company of Heroes Online won't fully replace that disc copy of Company of Heroes you have, as there's still at least one important piece of content for which you'll need the disc -- even if that piece of content is a Company of Heroes Online extra.
"We are urging people to hang onto their CD keys," producer Greg Wilson told PC Gamer. "We don't have the details yet, but we really appreciate our current retail CoH fanbase, we love them and we recognise that they helped us get where we are today with this franchise. We want to make sure they feel appreciated, so there will be something special for people who are retail owners. News of that will come." So if you were going to shatter your disc in rage about the freemium followup, keep the CD key. Just in case.
As for people who haven't yet discovered Company of Heroes, and who play other free-to-play stuff on Facebook, Wilson hopes that some of the millions of players participating in social games will "get tired of that fast food style of gameplay, and they'll want to graduate to something a bit more - whether that's a triple-A PC title or something in between."
#bowlin
As we reported earlier, the Kane & Lynch 2 demo is already available for PlayStation Plus subscribers, with the rest of you rabble getting it on July 27. IO Interactive also released the full game's trophy and achievement set today. More »
If your cash flow has been irreparably dammed by some unknown stoppage, yet you're looking for a meaty action-RPG to chew on this weekend, EA's offering a deal which seems right up your alley. For this weekend only, you can grab the original Mass Effect on PC for five American dollars.
#comiccon2010
It starts with a box, says the developer of the follow up to the hugely successful Fallout 3. Oh, but don't call that box a post apocalyptic role-playing game. That's a pretty crappy way to describe it. More »
The public demo for Kane & Lynch 2 -- requiring no subscriptions or hoop jumping -- will release sometime next week. The PlayStation 3 demo will go live Tuesday, July 27. As for the PC and Xbox 360 versions, um, Square Enix doesn't seem to be too sure, but the company line is "next week." The demos should be available in North America, Europe and other PAL territories.
Kane and Lynch's Dog Days will start on August 17 and 24 in North America and the PAL lands, respectively.Kane & Lynch 2 demo assaults the public next week
#science
And now for some much-needed perspective on our place in the universe, courtesy of science and Photoshop. In this image, we see our fiery life-giving orb the Sun, represented as a single pixel. And this is the more flattering picture. More »
North Carolina is going to provide some epic tax breaks to video game developers. According to the ESA, a bill signed by Governor Beverly Perdue will provide a 15 percent tax credit on "wages and compensation for employees involved in digital media production, or the creation of a platform or engine to run such media." Of course, the big winner here is North Carolina-based Epic Games, which swims in a lake of Unreal Engine money and develops games in its spare time. However, other benefactors of the tax breaks include Electronic Arts, Ubisoft and another dozen or so developers in the state. The incentives take effect January 1, 2011.
Publishers, developers and governments use tax breaks like Ezio wields the hidden blade. It's a weapon, either for financial defense (which seems to be the case in North Carolina) or aggression. With Canada's relentless siren call of tax incentives, if other countries and states don't step up their game, The Great White North will continue its Tim Hortons-fueled march to eventually developing most of the world's video games.
#clips
Were I Thor, this isn't the debut I'd want to make, being paired against Amaterasu from Okami. Because if you win, which he is, briefly, you're a god beating the crap out of a dog. And if you lose ... More »
