All Witcher 3 DLC will be free, which isn't something we see much of in the triple A game space. Indie games often come with free updates such as Terraria and Minecraft but this is pretty unique for a triple A game. I have little hope that EA, Ubi or 2K would do this but one could dream.
Well, I don't know where the definitions lie for AAA and indie, really. It's hard to define. But overall, I think I call CD Projekt Red an indie company.
The weird thing is, Burnout: Paradise, developed by Criterion Games, and published by EA, is one of the best in terms of free content. The game was expanded significantly, adding new vehicles, motorcycles, game modes, and tons more content for free. It wasn't until way after release, when they released a whole new island, that they started asking for money. It hasn't been that long ago that EA was the bad-guy-turned-good-guy, but even more recently they became the bad-guy-turned-good-guy-turned-bad-guy-again.
jdodson Admin Post Author
wrote on 11/11/2014 at 05:02am
Makes sense how you look at CD Project Red BUT they own GOG too and even though they are independent they are pretty big now. I guess Valve might be Indie as they are not owned by anyone? It's a strange line between indie and non but yeah, I'd consider The Witcher 3 to be a triple A game.
jdodson Admin Post Author
wrote on 11/11/2014 at 05:02am
Cool to hear about the free updates to burnout. I haven't played it before, but do like the occasional racing game.
That's great to read! I really enjoyed the first two Witcher games and I've pre-ordered the third one back in August when GOG offered it for 20% off if you owned the first two (even if purchased on Steam). I'll be happy to get some free DLC as it comes out.
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So most of us played Duck Hunt on NES and remember the Dog. The Dog that never stopped laughing at our failure. I never really hated the Dog, but some have negative memories of it. In a move I didn't quite foresee, Nintendo is adding the Duck Hunt Dog and Duck to Super Smash Brothers on Wii U. The way they play looks interesting and I can wait to give this character a try.
What do you think, does this new Smash Brothers character look cool enough to use in a Smash match?
Azurephile Super Member
wrote on 11/11/2014 at 02:47am
Duck Hunt is indeed a new character in the game, but it's not just the dog, the duck is with him, too. This character, called "Duck Hunt," is kind of a like a two-in-one, some what similar to Olimar who is Olimar and his Pikmin. Some of Duck Hunt's special movies includes 8-bit characters that shoot. You can also shoot cans and clay "pigeons" to hurt your enemies. I was delighted to see Duck Hunt in the game. Since I've had the 3DS verson of Super Smash Bros., I've had some time playing with Duck Hunt. Also, when "Duck Hunt" jumps, the duck carries the dog. It's really cool.
Azurephile Super Member
wrote on 11/11/2014 at 03:31am
Yes, you do, Travis! =) The game comes out in 11 days. I have it pre-ordered along with the new Pokemon games. =)
Azurephile Super Member
wrote on 11/11/2014 at 03:43am
Oh! I should also mention that Nintendo's amiibo figures are supposedly going to be being released at the same time (in 11 days). I pre-ordered Link for myself and my son chose Fox. I saw something about the Link figure being able to function in Hyrule Warriors. Speaking of Hyrule Warriors, I still love the game. I have completed Legend mode and not yet tried any of the other modes yet. I collected all of the "easy" Gold Skulltulas, but have not yet collected all the more difficult ones. I did also purchase all of the DLC for the game.
Back to Smash Bros., I still don't have a favorite character, I like almost all of them. Over the last few months, I've spent a lot of time with the 3DS version unlocking characters, stages, and doing the various challenges. Both games are supposed to interact some how. On the main menu is a button for the Wii U, which is a feature that is currently unavailable. The stages are supposed to be different in both versions, with the 3DS having more handheld stages (such as a stage based upon The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Train). I'm also sure that while the 3DS is missing the "story" mode, it will be on the Wii U. I have been pretty impressed with the game. Little Mac is really strong! The Villager (from Animal Crossing) is also a cool new character. I thought that the Gamecube version of the game was pretty deep with lots of trophies, but the Wii version expanded upon that and thus so has the 3DS. I expect the Wii U version will be even better than the 3DS version.
jdodson Admin Post Author
wrote on 11/11/2014 at 04:59am
Interesting. I wonder how the games will be related?
Azurephile Super Member
wrote on 11/11/2014 at 05:10am
I'm not sure, but I haven't looked into it. I forgot to mention that the Wii U version will support 8 characters battling together at once on the same stage.
Azurephile Super Member
wrote on 11/23/2014 at 12:21am
Now that I have the Wii U version of the game, I thought I'd leave a comment about some of it. It seems most of the characters are already unlocked, although I apparently unlocked Falcon. I was surprised that Ganondorf was available on the character selection screen, since I had to unlock him on the 3DS version of the game. The game looks awesome on the big screen TV in high-definition. The graphics do not look like the 3DS version. Sadly, story mode was not included. I read an article that said the creator of the game decided not to include it and the cut scenes since people were uploading them to the Internet. I think I saw my son watching one of them, so maybe cut scenes some where, some how.
There is an amiibo button in the Vault menu (I think). The game will tell you to place the amiibo on the bottom-left side of the game pad to access it. You can customize the amiboo fighter by changing it's color, equipment, and moves. I added my Link amiibo, gave him some of the strongest available equipment, and changed his outfit color to blue. Other abilities were not available, perhaps they will be in due time. To get the amiibo to fight in a Smash game, you have to select the customize option on the game. Then, you can put the amiibo on the game pad and select which character place it will be. It sounds confusing, but it's not. My amiibo played on its own and I even watched and lose to Zelda. It did level up to 6 or 7 and it can level up to 50.
The 3DS version of the game can connect to the Wii U version by using the 3DS icon on the main menu of the Wii U game or the Wii U icon on the main menu on the 3DS game. You can use the 3DS as another controller and you can copy over customizations back and forth between the two versions of the game.
The game manual also shows that a GameCube controller can be used to play the game using a new adapter. I'm not sure if this adapter is available yet.
I may make a main post about the game later after I spend some more time playing it.
Azurephile Super Member
wrote on 11/24/2014 at 01:10pm
I made a correction in my Super Smash Bros. post about the amiibo figure/character. You don't have to turn on "Custom Fighters" on the character selection screen, just put the amiibo on the designated spot on the GamePad. I've just start doing team battles with my amiibo Link.
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Blizzard dropped quite a bit of interesting news at BlizzCon yesterday. Not only is Blizzard dropping the last installment of Starcraft 2 on fans but they are also working on an entirely new game called Overwatch. Billed as a team based hero shooter, Overwatch looks really interesting and features a very unique art style that isn't common with existing Blizzard games. There are certainly characters that have the Blizzard feel, but overall, the art style is very sleek and has a very comic book feel.
Blizzard isn't sure if this will be a standard priced game or be free to play. Many people have compared Overwatched to Team Fortress, DoTA or League and I think those comparisons seem fair. For an entirely new IP that seems to compete with other free to play games, free to play does seem to make sense for this game.
What do you think of Overwatch? Does Blizzards upcoming shooter excite you?
This looks like a ton of fun. It looks like sort of a cross between TF2 and the Halo games. I didn't read your post fully, but I see that you mentioned the comic book feel. I agree completely. Not quite as cartoony as TF2, but lighter than Halo.
I would love to see a 1st person shooter with the amount of heroes as in Dota or LoL. I worry that this could get lost as "just another 1st person shooter." More variety in heroes and abilities would make for a more varied experience.
jdodson Admin Post Author
wrote on 11/10/2014 at 08:01pm
I watched the Blizzard panel about Overwatch at BlizzCon and they only revealed 12 heroes, they plan on adding a ton more.
Star Wars VII finally has a new name and it is "The Force Awakens." It is a nod to the new chapter in Star Wars that Disney and JJ Abrams are starting. 2015 can't come soon enough.
What do you think, does the new name feel like Star Wars?
Yeah there was a lot to dislike about the prequel movies, and midichlorians is probably my most hated addition, except for maybe youza-know-who...
I think the new movie will probably make little to no reference to the prequel movies. I doubt they'll directly contradict the prequels, I just think they'll ignore them. I remain cautiously optimistic about the new Star Wars movie. I've been hurt in the past, but I think I'm ready to love again. We'll see if JJ and Disney can make it happen.
jdodson Admin Post Author
wrote on 11/07/2014 at 02:21am
If I were JJ I might put in some joke reference to the prequels. That said, if you want the movie to be timeless it might be a good idea to avoid that sort of thing.
Still, a Gungan that trips and falls off a cliff OR Leia kissing Luke on the cheek would be some epic fan service that would cause nerds to lose it. In a good way
Azurephile Super Member
wrote on 11/07/2014 at 05:11am
Hm, well "the force" awakened a long, long time ago in a galaxy far, far away. Perhaps the title may refer to "the force" awakening within a character. I'm a fan of JJ. I liked Heroes and his Star Trek movies. I think he's a great guy and he'll do well with Star Wars.
That said, I don't understand the midichlorians (if that's how we're spelling it) dis-like. I am also one of those rare Star Wars fans that not only enjoyed the pre-quels and has the Star Wars: Complete Collection on Blu-Ray, but I also like Jar Jar!
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Last week I saw Eitr being discussed in various gaming circles as the developers had just dropped a very impressive gameplay trailer. What impressed me the most was how great the tone of the game was and how well it looked. I reached out to Eneme Games because I wanted to know more about how the game is progressing. I want to thank them for responding and wish them to a speedy Kickstarter and launch!
jdodson: Will the choices you make in Eitr affect how your character plays? For instance, can you focus on choosing certain abilities to be more magical or abilities that are more attack focused?
Eneme Games: Absolutely. We've both played RPG's for the majority of our lives and understand how important character building is as an aspect of character progression and re-playability. We plan on having a range of abilities in the game for players to choose from, players won't have access to every ability in the game with one character, you'll have to build your character in a style that suits you and use abilities that compliment your statistics.
jdodson: What is the tech stack you are using for Eitr? Gain +2 Dex for using QuickBASIC.
Eneme Games: We're building the game in Unity using 100% C#.
jdodson: Who are you working with on the music for Eitr?
Eneme Games: We haven't finalised this yet, but what I can say is that we're in discussions with a composer to bring music to Eitr, also shout out to all the composers that have pitched their music and CV's to us thus far, we love you all!
jdodson: Eitr looks like an incredible love-letter to Diablo. Has Blizzards first foray in hell influenced your development of Eitr?
Eneme Games: Of course, I mean, if you're making an Isometric Action RPG these days and you haven't played Diablo, what are you doing? Haha. Diablo is a wonderful series and one that we have sunk our teeth into for many hours, but it doesn't stand alone as our only source of inspiration, there are many others including Path of Exile, Zelda, Golden Axe, Lineage One and of course the Souls series - this list could easily go on, but these are just some of my personal favourites of the genre and ones that have inspired us.
With that said, we believe Eitr will stand on it's own two feet and I hope that when people play, they will think "this is a great game" rather than "this is just like X or Y".
jdodson: How have some of your recent playtests of Eitr gone?
Eneme Games: Pretty hilarious actually, we've had some of our close friends and family play-test the game, whilst watching them either in person or over Skype and I can confirm everyone so far has died to rats. Hahaha, there's a strange magical feeling about watching your creation wreck people.
Most of our friends have managed to make it through the demo after a few attempts, we also tested a Hard Mode where we just added more enemies and increased their statistics, no one made it. :)
Don't get me wrong though, we don't want Eitr to be the worlds hardest game, but it definitely is challenging, that is a part of the game design.
jdodson: What is the one thing you want people to say about Eitr?
Eneme Games: We want to hear people say that they've completed everything it has to offer. Playing a game and thinking it's great is one thing, but playing a game to completion says something else, it says that person was fully engaged in your title, they know what's good and they know what's bad, these people can offer constructive criticism that is of immeasurable value.
jdodson: Will Eitr feature narrative that will expand as you progress through the game. If so, wondering if you can share some of it with us?
Eneme Games: Well I can't talk much about the story quite yet, beyond what we've already told, but yes there will be dialogue that develops as players progress through the game.
jdodson: I saw Dawn of the Planet of the Apes in the theater. I wanted to see an ape kill a man and it took over an hour for that to happen. My first question is if you were directing the film how long would it take you to have an ape kill a man? My second question is would you include space travel because the movie omitted it entirely and I nearly asked for a refund because of this.
Eneme Games: We watched that film just the other day actually! It was... an experience. The monkey that killed the first guy was pretty sick though, I personally would've based the entire film around him, in which case a human would've probably died in the opening scene. Hah.
jdodson: Some people that are reading this may be considering getting into game development, do you have any thoughts for them or people doing it now?
Eneme Games: Sure, for people considering game dev, just jump in man, you'll find out real fast whether it's for you or not. Trust me. Once you make that first character move on the screen - it's really a love it or "meh" moment. Go get a program that's easier to start off with like Construct 2, or Game Maker and watch some tutorials on Youtube and really just mess around and have fun.
For those of you already doing it, send us a Tweet! We'd love to see what you're all working on.
jdodson: You have been in development of Eitr for some time, about how far do you anticipate we have to wait for the early beta and final version?
Eneme Games: We still consider the game to be in early development, when we launch our Kickstarter in the coming months, there will be an option for people to gain access to the Alpha, however this may be limited. As for the final version of the game, we don't have a release window set at this time.
jdodson: What games are you all playing right now? Anything we should be checking out?
David: Pretty hooked on Hearthstone at the moment, really anticipating the release of Bloodborne and Dragon Age: Inquisition. Tobi: "dat Last of Us tho"
jdodson: Fast forward some and Eitr releases to good acclaim. Riches abound, cars, houses and boats for everyone. What’s next for ENEME?
Eneme Games: Oh man, well it's always going to be games that's for sure. If things really went that well we would probably just expand our team and start up the next project. Definitely would love to work on something at a much greater scale.
jdodson: Thanks for taking the time to get back to me, anything you want to say before we wrap things up?
Eneme Games: Thank you, Jon! Honestly the response we've had from Eitr so far has astounded us, we've received such good feedback from the press and the public, it was completely unexpected. When we put up our gameplay footage, really we were just anticipating viewers on our DevLog and possibly a couple others and it kinda just spiralled out of control - (notice our footage isn't a trailer and is just raw gameplay footage). Regardless, we want to thank the public for all the positive response we've had and we can't wait to show you more.
I got the Humble Bundle 13 and it came with a few extra copies of Risk of Rain. Since I can't play 3 copies, I have decided to give them away. Risk of Rain is an awesome indie side scrolling rogue-like that is on Windows, Mac and Linux.
Let me know if you want a copy in the comments and i'll hand them out to the first people that ask.
The game looks neat, i might have to get myself a copy! mulitiplayer capable?
jdodson Admin Post Author
wrote on 11/06/2014 at 05:36am
Yeah, it has co-op online and LAN multiplayer.
Azurephile Super Member
wrote on 11/07/2014 at 12:29am
Did anyone change the default keyboard controls? I wanted to go with WASD movement and I made the skills numeric. I assumed I could attack with a click (or double-click) with the mouse, but it seems you have to use the skills. I noticed there are gamepad controls and I wonder if it might be better with that or the default keyboard controls. What do you think?
jdodson Admin Post Author
wrote on 11/07/2014 at 01:03am
I always play with a controller. For me, it's much easier/more fun.
Azurephile Super Member
wrote on 11/07/2014 at 01:08am
I've had that discussion already although I don't recall all of the results of it. I believe Travis said he uses a Logitech controller. What do you recommend? I know there's a way to use the PS3 (or XBox) controller, too, but that didn't quite work out as well as I wanted in Morrowind. It's been ages since I've actually used a controller on a PC. Maybe I should invest in one.
jdodson Admin Post Author
wrote on 11/07/2014 at 02:18am
I have a XBox 360 controller for PC and it works great. I'd recommend that, it's a solid controller.
Azurephile Super Member
wrote on 11/07/2014 at 02:35am
That's right, I think that was the general agreement with the PC controller discussion some of us had some time ago. The only XBox I own is the very first one and I have no interest in the newer versions. When I tried to get my PS3 controller working for Morrowind, it seemed like the XBox 360 controller was perhaps easier to use and configure. This was evident because, to get the PS3 controller to work, I had to use a program to get it to emulate an XBox 360 controller. Thanks for the reminder and the tip. Perhaps I'll get one eventually or soon. I am expecting to visit Gamestop in a few weeks to pick up Smash Bros. for the Wii U and both of the new Pokemon games for me and my son.
All that said, are you using the default controller configuration for the game?
jdodson Admin Post Author
wrote on 11/07/2014 at 02:52am
Yep, controller defaults for me.
Azurephile Super Member
wrote on 11/07/2014 at 03:20am
Cool. So far my first impressions of the game are still the first impressions I had of the video. Like Starship Rubicon, I don't survive very long nor have I played very long. The game also reminded me Edge of Space, similar graphics, similar size (I have it on a high resolution). I was happy that I learned that holding down a key for the first ability makes it continue to fire, instead of constantly pressing the key.
Azurephile Super Member
wrote on 11/21/2014 at 09:24pm
Today at GameStop, one of the things I bought was an Afterglow XBox 360 controller. It is "see-through" and glows blue when plugged in. I got this controller because it attaches via USB cable, which i thought would be the best way to connect a controller to my PC as I'm unsure if my PC is Bluetooth-capable. I plugged the controller into my PC and it installed quickly. I decided to test it out in Risk of Rain and I found that the only configuration I had to do was to select "enable gamepad." I was then able to use the controller in the game and I understood why you, Jon, use your controller in the game. They keyboard settings for the game are just weird to me, but the gamepad configuration feels perfect. Thanks for the recommendation!
jdodson Admin Post Author
wrote on 11/23/2014 at 03:48am
No problem. I tried the keyboard and the controller is WAY better.
Azurephile Super Member
wrote on 11/23/2014 at 04:26am
I totally agree, as I said the keyboard configuration just seems weird, while the controller seems perfect.
One thing about this game though is it's title. I keep think it's called "Risk of Ruin," which seems much more fitting.
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You played Final Fantasy VI and you were left wanting more. You wanted to know more about the company that brought Magicite and Espers to our collective minds. Wait no longer because you can learn all about Squaresoft in about a minute.
Last week we dropped the Greenlight for Starship Rubicon and we appreciate everyone checking it out. We wanted to get out a few videos showing off the game and are now releasing the all new gameplay trailer you can watch above. The gameplay trailer shows off the games randomized universe, ships, customization and even more gameplay! We are working hard to get the game out by years end so stay tuned and if you haven’t already, check us out on Steam Greenlight.
Azurephile Super Member
wrote on 11/04/2014 at 09:39pm
Two is the number of times I said, "wow!" I still suck at the game that I have (Kickstarter version), but I believe (more strongly now) that I will buy (or pre-order) the game. Reading the comments on the Green Light sight, I thought it was cool that there were ships that you could ram into other ships. However, this video really excited me by showing off some new weapons that look extremely useful and easier to use, such as the homing missiles and the thick, laser beam. Keep up the good work!
Azurephile Super Member
wrote on 11/04/2014 at 09:43pm
Ok scratch the belief "that I will buy (or pre-order)," I have pre-ordered the game. Thank you for making it an easy transaction (much like my Cheerful Ghost membership). I look forward to being able to play the latest version of the game.
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Well, I don't know where the definitions lie for AAA and indie, really. It's hard to define. But overall, I think I call CD Projekt Red an indie company.
The weird thing is, Burnout: Paradise, developed by Criterion Games, and published by EA, is one of the best in terms of free content. The game was expanded significantly, adding new vehicles, motorcycles, game modes, and tons more content for free. It wasn't until way after release, when they released a whole new island, that they started asking for money. It hasn't been that long ago that EA was the bad-guy-turned-good-guy, but even more recently they became the bad-guy-turned-good-guy-turned-bad-guy-again.
Makes sense how you look at CD Project Red BUT they own GOG too and even though they are independent they are pretty big now. I guess Valve might be Indie as they are not owned by anyone? It's a strange line between indie and non but yeah, I'd consider The Witcher 3 to be a triple A game.
Cool to hear about the free updates to burnout. I haven't played it before, but do like the occasional racing game.
Burnout Paradise is probably my favorite racing game. It's cheap on Steam and goes on sale in nearly every holiday sale, if you're interested.
That is, if you like arcadey racing and not realistic racing. I could never get into Gran Turismo and Forza, and those kinds of racers.
That's great to read! I really enjoyed the first two Witcher games and I've pre-ordered the third one back in August when GOG offered it for 20% off if you owned the first two (even if purchased on Steam). I'll be happy to get some free DLC as it comes out.