Hello everybody and welcome yet again to your weekly update on everything you missed while you were out doing whatever the hell normal people do when they leave the house. This week was all about the Xbox One, so I’ll make sure you’re up to date with all the rumour, speculation and “gaming is ruined” laments running uncontrollably around the internet, as well as a bit of gaming news, a big crop of new videos and a few other things in between. Dive in after the jump.

Console News

Obviously, the biggest news of the week was the unveiling of the Xbox One (not Infinity, thank you Microsoft for sparing us 6 years of that. The results are in from the judge, jury and executioner of all new product launches (the Internet) and they have decided that the Xbox One sucks.

Yup, pack up your things and go home everyone, we’re all buying Playstations and that’s that. GamesIndustry called the reveal “boring and confused”, and many others echoed the sentiment. So what was the problem then? Well, it was a gaming console reveal with very little talk about games. Microsoft is clearly trying to turn their console into an all-in-one (ah, it all makes sense now) home entertainment device, and dedicated a lot of the press event to talking about US-centric television streaming and other such nonsense. As GamesIndustry put it, “Here is a company which is so arrogantly confident in its dominance of the core gaming space that it believes it no longer has anything to prove.”

It plays games too. I think.

Needless to say, the gaming audience was angered – and they’re a rowdy bunch. Disgust swept across the internet like herpes in a brothel, and Microsoft has been scrambling to reassure their core user base.

Xbox UK marketing director Harvey Eagle promised that the Xbox One showcase at E3 will be “all about the games, including tonnes of exclusives and world premieres.” In case you have some kind of intellectual impairment, he goes on to say that “E3 is gaming, gaming, gaming.” Okay Harvey, we get it. Gaming.

Unfortunately, that’s not all gamers are upset about. One particular bone of contention is Microsoft’s approach to second-hand games, which nobody actually knows anything about. First we were told that if you want to borrow a friend’s game then “you’ll have to pay for it”, which was then denied by the Xbox Twitter account. There’s been a lot of confusion surrounding the whole thing, but Microsoft has clarifying throughout the week. At the moment, what it looks like, is that second-hand games will have a paygate which prevents you from playing them. According to Microsoft corporate vice president Phil Harrison, customers will likely to have to pay the same price to activate the pre-owned content as the original buyer. It’s still very much up in the air at the moment, but honestly it doesn’t sound good. For a full look at what we know so far, check out the NAG overview here.

Your money. Microsoft wants it.

The always-online drama is another sore issue. While it was confirmed that the Xbox One would not require a permanent internet connection, after the reveal there was a pervasive rumour that you would actually have to connect at least once per day. This sent everyone running for their torches and pitchforks again, and things only got worse when Phil Harrison confirmed this to be true as well.

Despite the spotlight being on next-gen for this year’s E3, Microsoft Game Studios exec Phil Spencer has said that the old-hat Xbox 360 will also be getting a “huge announcement”. He also said that he thinks the aging console still has a lot of life left in it.

Sony checked another box in the win column when talk of Xbox One’s hardware began to indicate that perhaps Microsoft wasn’t offering quite as much as the Japanese tech giant.

Chief technical officer at Just Cause developer Avalanche Studios was asked to compare the two consoles, to with he said, “The specs on paper would favour the PS4 over the Xbox One in terms of raw power,” going on to add that “there are many other factors involved so we’ll just have to wait and see a bit longer before making that judgment.”

We also have to “wait and see” what the damn thing even looks like.

One thing we do know is that the hardware is “a generation ahead” of current high-end PCs. Wait, what?

This was the claim made by chief technology guy over at EA, Rajat Teneja. Now we have to give him the benefit of the doubt here since it’s hard to know exactly what he means. The assumption is that he is referring to raw power, which is an obviously laughable claim. He may be talking about the architecture of the console itself, however, which I am not qualified to talk about. However, if you’re going to make these kinds of statements in the public space, you’d really be better off clarifying your position.

Sources: GamesIndustry, CVG, NAG, Kotaku, NAG, Kotaku, Gamespot, Edge, NAG

Gaming News

Gaming news was a little sparse this week, with more focus being placed on the disappointing lack of game reveals rather than anything else. However, there’s more to the industry than Microsoft, and there were a few things we can talk about.

Need for Speed Rivals was announced this week, set for release on Xbox 360, PS3, and PC on November 19th this year, and Xbox One and PS4 sometime after that. You may notice the absence of the Wii U – this is an EA game, and is thus using the Frostbite 3 engine, which EA have confirmed will not be getting Wii U support.

In true Hot Pursuit fashion, you get to be either a scumbag racer or a law-abiding police officer – each with its own unique set of challenges. We’ve all played NFS games before and there’s nothing truly groundbreaking here – if you like the series, you’ll probably like this one.

In another bit of console vs PC drama, executive producer of the game Marcus Nilsson says the PC version will look “easily as good as next-gen”. Take that, Rajat.

See if EA can win you over with the teaser trailer:

The as yet officially confirmed Mirror’s Edge 2 may be getting an E3 reveal, after a listing for the game was posted on Germany’s Amazon.com.

While there was nothing concrete like official art or a release date, it wouldn’t be the first time the retailer had unwittingly outed a new title ahead of an announcement. With E3 around the corner, it could be the perfect time for EA to finally unveil a sequel.

Techland, the studio behind survival horror game Dead Island, is currently working on a “brand new first person action title” called Dying Light, and yeah it’s also a survival horror game. Zzz.

According to the announcement, it’s going make use of a “game-changing day-night cycle”. Which will apparently work like this:

“During the day, players will traverse an expansive urban environment overrun by a vicious outbreak, scavenging the world for supplies and crafting weapons to defend against the growing infected population.

“At night, the hunter becomes the hunted, as the infected become aggressive and more dangerous. Most frightening are the predators which only appear after sundown. Players must use everything in their power to survive until the morning’s first light.”

Wow. A zombie. Cool.

Is anyone else getting annoyed with this flavour of the week crap? Call of Duty makes a Modern Warfare title that takes off, and immediately everyone ditches the World War genre and the market is flooded with futuristic war games. Now it seems like every other week we get a new zombie game. I like zombies, zombies are cool, but seriously can we get something a little more original?

Sources: PC Gamer. CVG, Examiner

Videos

Much of the gaming videos for the week came from the Xbox One reveal, so let’s dive into those first.

Firstly, for you racing enthusiasts, we have a very pretty Forza 5 trailer. Mmm, shiny.

Second, we have something a little more original with Remedy’s new title, Quantum Break. The creators of Alan Wake and Max Payne are delivering something very different with this, a game that seemingly mixes gameplay with live-action scenes. The last time developers tried this was with those awful FMV games we’d all rather forget about, so let’s hope Remedy can pull it off. Still, it’s good to see game makers taking more risks – this could be something really incredible. Check it out:

Lastly from Xbox we have a tech comparison video, showcasing the advances of the new engine by comparing Call of Duty: Ghosts and Modern Warfare 3. It’s pretty interesting to see what we can get ouf of the next generation, even if you’re a CoD hater. Give it a look:

Moving away from that console no one is going to buy anyway, Sega released a new Company of Heroes 2 trailer this week, this one focusing on the story, as seen through the eyes of a Russian soldier.

Best of NAG

The Xbox One reveal was obviously all over our pages this week, and we kept you well covered on what’s happening with the worst console since the Wii U.

If you haven’t been keeping up, start things off with Tarryn’s overview of everything you need to know, keeping in mind that some of the information is already a little outdated, due to Microsoft’s sublime talent for confusing PR.

If you want to have all your bases covered, then Wesley Fick aka The Man That Never Sleeps will take care of that with his full description of the press event itself, overcoming a dodgy internet connection and livestream rage to do so.

Finally, make sure you know exactly what’s happening with the used game situation with this excellent breakdown by Miklós Szecsei.

Once you’ve had your fill of all things Microsoft, take a load off with my column for the week on the best and most badass of video game heroes.

Destiny is the new first-person shooter and “next big thing” from Bungie – the blokes behind Microsoft’s biggest franchise Halo. They’ve moved on from Microsoft and have shacked up with Activision.

Destiny’s marketing campaign is about to kick into high gear. The game is due on Xbox 360, Xbox One, PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4. With E3 right around the corner, where gameplay footage will be shown off for the first time during Sony’s press conference, it seems like a good time to start releasing flashy trailers.

This trailer, entitled “The Law of the Jungle”, is a mix of live-action acting and very pretty CG. There’s something very intriguing about this game; an online single-player, open world, science fiction, first person shooter? Sounds great. Trailer after the jump.

And before you’re all, like, “Omg, I’m totally getting that”, it costs £125,000 – or just over R1.8 million – so you might have to ask your significant other first. And sell your house. And maybe one or two organs. I mean, really, what’s the point of that completely superfluous kidney or lung when you could own a car like this? Priorities, people.

The one-of-a-kind Grid 2: Mono Edition also comes with a PlayStation 3 and some custom-fitted racing gear, so that’s some real value for money right there and I’m sure your local bank manager will agree.

But seriously, this is game special editions jumping the shark. In a high performance vehicle. Like, “LOOK AT ME, I’M GOING ZERO TO FIFTEEN HUNDRED THOUSAND IN TWO SECONDS OVER THIS SHARK!”

What’s next? A spaceship with the next Mass Effect? I’m holding thumbs over here.

Source: Eurogamer

You know you’ve really buggered up a console reveal when, less than a week after the event, you still have rumours cropping up about the myriad unanswered questions. In this case, we’re all still waiting for Microsoft to give a final answer regarding trading games and the second-hand games market. You know the rumours, we know the rumours, and you can bet you sweet ass that Microsoft knows the rumours. So why haven’t they said anything other than their normal PR schlock?

MCVUK has learnt from retail sources that Microsoft has essentially flattened the second-hand games market. They’ve done this by making sure that the benefit to retail stores like Gamestop and our own BT Games is minimal. If the financial benefit is minimal to the retailer, then why should they bother?

Don’t forget that this is still rumour as it’s based off MCVUK’s own sources. Nothing from Microsoft has been confirmed. That being said, this sounds like an entirely feasible model for Microsoft and publishers; it’s also incredibly clever.

Only retailers who have signed up with Microsoft’s terms and conditions regarding game trade-ins will be allowed to be part of the Xbox One second-hand market. They’ll need to align their in-store systems with Microsoft’s pre-owned Azure system for trade-ins. When a gamer trades in a game to the retailer, the game is logged on Microsoft’s systems and that game is then wiped from the original owner’s Xbox LIVE account. This adds credence to the rumour that the Xbox One will need to “check-in” to Microsoft’s servers every 24 hours.

The retail store can then resell the second-hand game for whatever they choose, however a percentage of the sale goes to Microsoft, another percentage to the game’s publisher and the final percentage goes to the retail store. It is believed that the retail’s cut is as low as 10% of the resale price. That’s the same percentage cut as retail stores get for first-hand copies of the game, so why should they bother selling games second-hand any longer?

What does this mean if you lend a copy of your game to a friend? According to the same rumour sources, the cost for online activation could be as high as £35.00 or just over R500.00 at the current exchange rate. That pretty much rules out borrowing and lending games between friends.

If this is true then it’s a massive blow for gamers who are used to picking up their games a few months after launch and second-hand. It’s also a massive financial blow to retail stores that have traditionally made a ton of money on the second-hand games market. Don’t forget that until Microsoft confirms anything, this is still rumour. However, it seems entirely feasible based on the fact that all Xbox One games require mandatory installations and are tied to your Xbox LIVE account. For the record, this is still Microsoft’s official stance on the second-hand market and Xbox One titles:

“We know there is some confusion around used games on Xbox One and wanted to provide a bit of clarification on exactly what we’ve confirmed. While there have been many potential scenarios discussed, we have only confirmed that we designed Xbox One to enable our customers to trade in and resell games at retail. Beyond that, we have not confirmed any specific scenarios. Another piece of clarification around playing games at a friend’s house – should you choose to play your game at your friend’s house, there is no fee to play that game while you are signed in to your profile.”

It’s also worth noting at this point that Xbox One titles are also tied to the first Xbox One console they install to, which means anyone who has an account on that console will be able to play the game. That’s good news for families. All of this DRM stuff, however, relies on Internet connections to Microsoft’s servers, which means that once-off activations are probably going to be the norm for Xbox One. How often the console will need to “check-in” with Microsoft’s servers is still unknown.

Source: MCVUK
Via: Eurogamer

Iconic games company Atari is selling a bunch of its assets, including two truly iconic PC gaming franchises: RollerCoaster Tycoon and Total Annihilation.

The assets will be up for auction in July, after Atari failed to find a successful bidder that would pay the minimum of $22.2 million to buy it out.

I don’t know about you guys, but for just over R2 million, the rights to the Total Annihilation franchise sounds like a steal to me, but then again, I am a raging Total Annihilation fanboy.  The roughly R33 million price tag for RollerCoaster Tycoon is more in line with what one might expect to pay for a high-profile franchise. On top of that, Atari is selling Test Drive for $1.5 million (R14.25 million).

The last we heard from RollerCoaster Tycoon creator Chris Sawyer was that he was suing Atari for not paying him certain royalties. The case was settled out of court. Total Annihilation creator Chris Taylor  is now working over at World of Tanks creator Wargaming.net.

And not just any PCs, mind you, but the “highest-end” PCs you can buy. Brb, getting my asbestos gear and popcorn.

Writing about the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 over on LinkedIn, EA’s technology boss Rajat Teneja wrote that:

“It all begins with the raw horsepower of the platform which catalyzes the imagination and will power the next wave of innovation in entertainment. Both the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 have adopted electronics and an integrated systems-on-a -chip (soc) architecture that unleashes magnitudes more compute and graphics power than the current generation of consoles. These architectures are a generation ahead of the highest end PC on the market and their unique design of the hardware, the underlying operating system and the live service layer create one of the most compelling platforms to reimagine game mechanics.”

Emphasis mine, because I’ve decided that every Friday should be Ready, FIIIIIIIIIGHT! Friday. Isn’t that a catchy name? We should do T-shirts and mugs and stickers and stuff.

Next week on Ready, FIIIIIIIIIGHT! Friday: “Your favourite game is rubbish,” says somebody important. “And I hate what you’ve done with your hair.”

You guys! You guys! Now, I don’t want everyone getting too excited, but in case you haven’t inferred from the very, very obvious headline, the German branch of Amazon.com has listed Mirror’s Edge 2 for pre-order. Did you hear that? That was the sound of a bajillion fans squeeing in unison.

In the past, Germany’s Amazon has been pretty good at outing games before they’re announced. They were responsible for revealing that Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Premium Edition a few days before Bethesda planned supposed to do the same. They’ve also just outed a possible PC version of GTA V, but that one is still up for debate.

Naturally, EA’s Department of Buzzkilling has responded to the listing with the following statement: “We appreciate fan enthusiasm for Mirror’s Edge, especially fans throughout the retail channel. This is not official EA material. We have nothing to announce at this time.” Yeah, whatever Mr. Buzzkillington; just shut up. E3 is right around the corner and what with all this new console hardware flying around, it just seems about the right time for EA to unveil Mirror’s Edge 2 and simultaneously “win” E3 in the process.

Source: Shacknews

One of the exciting parts about getting a new generation of consoles is that developers get to dazzle us with new gaming engines powering their games. One of the biggest gaming franchises on the planet, Call of Duty, has been running on the same Infinity Ward Engine (IW Engine) for years now. To put it in perspective, the IW Engine is basically a modified id Tech 3 engine, which first made an appearance in 1999’s Quake III Arena.

When Activision Publishing’s CEO Eric Hirshberg hopped on stage during the Xbox One reveal event, he showed off Infinity Ward’s Call of Duty: Ghosts for the first time. Much of his preamble leading to the reveal trailer was peppered with the phrase “entirely new”, including his mention of the game being “built on our new, next-gen Call of Duty engine”. This prompted speculation as to what the new engine was called and for how long it’s been in development.

Infinity Ward has since come forward to say that actually it’s not a new engine, but rather another modified iteration of the IW Engine. “When we’re talking about a new engine,” Infinity Ward’s animation lead Zach Volker said, “we’re talking about upgrading significant systems within that engine. We’re not talking about throwing it all away and saying we’re starting from the ground up.”

Are you surprised? Should you be surprised? Do you really give a damn so long as things look better? If you need to see how much better it’s going to look, and how big of an improvement the IW Engine has seen, then check out the following comparison video.

Source: OPM
Via: VG24/7

UPDATE: Megarom has confirmed both editions for South Africa. The Special Edition will set you back R899.00 while the larger Collector’s Edition will sell for R1, 699.00.

ORIGINAL STORY: Rockstar Games’ Twitter account has just unveiled two editions for upcoming GTA V: a Special Edition and a larger Collector’s Edition. Both editions are already available for pre-order in certain territories, but the South African region on Rockstar’s official pre-order page is yet to be updated. We’ve requested more information from local distributor Megarom.

The Special Edition of the game comes in the traditional SteelBook case and packs a number of digital goodies for use in-game. Things like bonus character outfits, extra tattoos, Stunt Plane Trials and additional weapons are detailed. Additionally, the Special Edition will come with a Special Ability Boost: each of the three protagonists has a special ability that can be activated once the ability bar is full – the Special Ability Boost fills the bar 25% faster. It’s not cheating; it’s a Special Edition perk! This edition of the game also comes with a blueprint map of the city and surrounding areas.

The Collector’s Edition comes in a nice large box containing everything in the Special Edition. You also get a Los Santos branded cap as well as a lockable safety deposit bag branded with GTA V and Rockstar logos. Hit the jump for full descriptions.

Full retail copy of Grand Theft Auto V
Collectible SteelBook with Exclusive Artwork
This special SteelBook features double-sided, never-before-seen artwork of Michael, Trevor and Franklin. Custom color and metallic treatments bring out the detail of the artwork created exclusively for this SteelBook.

Blueprint Map
This exclusive, additional 21.5” x 26.75” map displays a blueprint view of Los Santos and Blaine County. Cryptic markings indicate locations for fast cash and other points of interest for the up-and-coming entrepreneur.

Special Ability Boost
Michael, Franklin and Trevor each have a unique special ability. With this boost, the special ability bar will generate 25% faster.

Stunt Plane Trials
Single player Stunt Plane Trials let you take on additional aerial challenges spread throughout Los Santos and Blaine County.

Bonus Outfits, Tattoos and More
Michael, Franklin and Trevor get bonus outfits in their wardrobes, character specific tattoos at tattoo parlors, and special deals from shopkeepers across Los Santos and Blaine County.

Additional Weapons
When visiting Ammunation stores in single player, merchants will have special weapons in their inventory available for free: the Pistol .50, Bullpup Shotgun and melee Hammer.

Collector’s Edition extras:

Grand Theft Auto V Security Deposit Bag with Logo Key
Inspired by the heists in Grand Theft Auto V, this custom 10.75” x 8.5” money bag features a pop-up style lock and laser cut logo key to secure important items. The reverse side features a pressed Rockstar Games logo on the security mount with a framed ID window.

Grand Theft Auto V New Era 9FIFTY™ Snapback Cap
This exclusive New Era 9FIFTY™ cap features an embroidered Los Santos logo on the front, a stitched, black Rockstar Games logo on the wearer’s left side, a Grand Theft Auto ‘V’ logo applique on the opposite side, and snapback closure for an adjustable fit.

Custom Characters for Grand Theft Auto Online
Get classic Grand Theft Auto characters to use within the GrandTheftAuto Online Character Creation System.

Unique Vehicles and Garage Property
Players will instantly receive a garage to store custom vehicles. In single player, the garage will be stocked with the 1930’s style Hotknife hotrod and the CarbonRS sports bike. In Grand Theft Auto Online, players will get the high-end Khamelion electric car.

Source: Rockstar
Via: Twitter

Hours before the Xbox One (or Xbone as it’s being lovingly/jokingly/begrudgingly referred to at the moment) was revealed, Tarryn and I were gushing about how great the imminent announcement of Alan Wake 2 was going to be. We were holding thumbs for the long overdue sequel to be an Xbox One launch title, so when Remedy came up on screen during the reveal event, it felt like everything was falling into place. And then they announced a new IP instead, Quantum Break.

At the moment, very little is known about Quantum Break so it’s hard to be excited about anything aside from the fact that it’s a new Remedy game. Obviouly, the slight disappointment that I felt (and no doubt Tarryn did as well) was felt by loads of other people across the Internet. Remedy is aware of it as well, and that’s why their creative director, Sam Lake, has put together a really nice video message for Alan Wake fans.

The bottom line is this: the eponymous Alan Wake will return at some point, but that point is not now. It’s really all about money and finding somebody willing to back a sequel that’s good enough for fans and good enough for the franchise. From the sound of things, that’s proven to be a tough job for Remedy.

“When Alan Wake came out, it was not a huge hit on day one,” Lake explains in the message, “It has been doing really well since then; it’s become a cult classic, which is really nice.”

The cult classic bit is probably one of the major problems. Publishers don’t like cult statuses on IPs because they imply a smaller fan base, which means lower expected sales. This despite the fact that the original Alan Wake has sold 3 million copies worldwide.

Remedy did start a sequel, but in Lake’s own words “the sequel wasn’t happening, the time wasn’t right for that.”

“Wake is dear to me and everyone at Remedy. We knew from the beginning that when Wake ends up in the Dark Place, getting out from there is going to be a long, hellish journey and a hard struggle. And I guess that where we are now is fiction becoming reality.”

And so now we have Quantum Break, which is clearly a new IP that Microsoft is willing to publish. For Remedy, it is their “next big thing” and something “where we could take everything we’ve learned from Alan Wake, everything we’ve learned from Max Payne, and… put that all together to create what could be called the ultimate Remedy experience.”

At present however, Remedy has worked with publishers to put every item of Alan Wake content on special. If you head onto Xbox LIVE, you’ll be able to pick up DLC, Avatar items and everything else at discounted prices. Better than that, however, is the fact that Remedy has partnered with Humble Bundle to put together an Alan Wake Humble Weekly Sale. Pay what you want for the original game and all DLC, as well as the standalone expansion (of sorts) Alan Wake’s American Nightmare.

Give the message below a watch; it’s great for many reasons but above all it’s sincere. The ending is also super-nerdy so watch the whole thing.