Bethesda Zenimax

The Elder Scrolls Online: Gold Edition Welcomes in New and Old Adventurers Alike

/ Dustin Murphy / Leave a comment

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Adventurer’s are you ready to once more take to Tamriel? If so Bethesda Softworks has released a game just for you! To those who have not had a chance to adventure into The Elder Scrolls: Gold Edition for Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC. This newest iteration of this game comes with a reason to pick it up for fans of the series. For adventurers are ready to take off across the frozen lands of Skyrim, to the deserts of Daggerfall, only to ake to the Gold Coast to see the oceanic waters.

For players that haven’t downloaded the DLC, this version comes with all content up to date as well as the Guilds and Glory content, but also finds itself available for 59.99 USD starting now. This includes the hundreds of hours of content, the new quests, abilities, and even the new regions including Orsinium and the Imperial City. The DLC includes the Imperial City, Dark Brotherhood, Thieves Guild, Orsinium, and many more for you to enjoy. For players looking to upgrade? You can grab this content now through the in-game store.

About the Writer:

dustin_batgr_prof

Dustin is our native console gamer, PlayStation and Nintendo reviewer who has an appetite for anything that crosses the boarders from across the big pond. His interest in JRPG’s, Anime, Handheld Gaming, and Pizza is insatiable. His elitist attitude gives him direction, want, and a need for the hardest difficulties in games, which is fun to watch, and hilarity at its finest. You can find him over on Twitter, Google+, and or you can find him on PSN with RaivynLyken.

 

Sit-Rep: DOOM (Multiplayer) – A Bloody Good Time

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Pros:
+Weapon load-outs take away the need for hunting down basic weapons, leaving only power weapons to be found via pick-ups.
+The verticality in maps allow for players to traverse into combat how they please.
+Demon rune changes the entire approach to combat that players may have.
+Maps variate between UAC themed and Hell themed while some use both in “Unto the Evil” DLC pack.

Cons:
–Intermittent lag issues can cause some to be deterred from playing.
–Connecting issues can cause some frustration when connecting to the servers.

Editor’s Note: Our review for the multiplayer portion of DOOM features Unto the Evil DLC content. The content is now available for 14.99 USD or through the Season Pass for Season Pass holders.

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Heralding in the multiplayer genre via LAN or Online; DOOM as a franchise has remained at large as one of the greatest arena style shooting games of all time. In the recent years, we’ve seen a decline in games that follow the idea of fast momentum, no camping, and constant blood bathing as foes are turned into masses of viscera.

Something that DOOM has always been known for is its constant push for fast movement speeds, shotguns, blood, and a constant need for fragging enemy players. With a smash-hit campaign, DOOM‘s multiplayer is just as strong as its single player campaign in its own creative rights. So much so, that we decided to give the game its own individual review from the rest of the game. While the formula changes from being a badass taking on Hell to badass Space Marines chasing other badass Space Marines in order to see who can acquire the most objectives completed. This renders the game rather different from the singleplayer experience. While it’s damning to say, the game feels more like Unreal than it does DOOM or Quake.

This isn’t because the game is actually bad; instead, it makes since with the recently announced Quake Champions seeking to fill the arena shooter aspect of the game. With loadouts in the game, DOOM seeks to fill those familiar spots with random pick-ups such as speed boosts, demon runes, invisibility, and even things such as regenerative health. Even weapons such as the Gauss Rifle (railgun renamed), and even the BFG have made sporadic appearances through ever game mode in timed intervals.

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While sniper weapons like the vortex rifle remain useful, they aren’t mainstay weapons like one would hope, which leaves them as weapons that could potentially be hyper lethal almost useful. Their diluted usefulness is mostly due to weapons such as the rocket launcher, lightning gun, and even the chaingun as weapons that can be placed in player loadouts from the get-go. This even has something to do with the fact the game’s doublejump from the campaign has made its way into the multiplayer, which eliminates camping from the game overall. If you aren’t used to this style games? Weapons such as the Vortex Rifle and the Stasis Rifle can dish out some heavy amounts of damage in a short few seconds.

Along with virtually every gun being able to be used in loadouts, there are a few new additions as well such as hack mods that will allow players to gain unique advantages in combat such as shared XP with the Osmosis perk, Bloodtrail, which allows players to hunt down enemies as they run away during combat. While these are usable for those instances, accessories have also made their new debut. These little tools include things such as the personal teleporter that allow players to move through combat in an instant while putting out as much damage as possible. Accessories such as the kinetic mines allow players to set lethal traps for their enemies while maneuvering throughout the battlefield. A long with these comes weapons such as the Siphon Grenade that allow players to regain health while damaging enemies as much as possible.

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The most unique change to combat isn’t necessarily just the games hack mods, but also a few disgruntlement’s that also lie within the game. First and foremost is the fact that most alternate fire modes are limited to the games overall progression. Players are limited to the combat shotguns grenade round, the heavy assault rifles scoped mode, the rocket launchers remote detonation, and the plasma rifles heatblast that allows for players to cover an area in heated plasma in order to take out enemies. Even weapons such as

While I’d have loved to have seen all the modes stripped away all together, DOOM does offer a clean and unique vision of what the multiplayer should be like. Unfortunately, the reason behind why some of these may not be possible? Is because things such as the Heavy Assault Rifles rocket rounds may not be all that favorable with the games netcode. That or just the fact it could quite possibly do too much damage in the short term. If anything, it does leave room for glory kills to remain satisfying as players take one another out in rapid combat while smashing each others skulls in. The netcode issue shows true as it won’t be uncommon to see players connections drop from 3-4 bars ping only to hit yellow or red for the rest of the match. However, this is infrequent, and shouldn’t take away from the games overall enjoyment.

Overall, DOOM’s multiplayer offers a unique vision of what a game could possibly do in the near by future with game modes such as Team Death Match, Soul Harvest (kill confirmed for those who have played Call of Duty), Warpath (King of the Hill with a moving objective), Freeze Tag, and a few others. Each of the modes offer a unique blend of variation while keeping players amused and combative against one another while completing their objectives. Game modes such as Exodus (Capture the Flag), which force players to cooperate while locking down a traveling turn-in point.

Our review is based on a retail copy of the game and a season pass we purchased. For information about our ethics policy please click here.

 Final Score: 8 out of 10

About the Writer:

dustin_batgr_prof

Dustin is our native console gamer, PlayStation and Nintendo reviewer who has an appetite for anything that crosses the boarders from across the big pond. His interest in JRPG’s, Anime, Handheld Gaming, and Pizza is insatiable. His elitist attitude gives him direction, want, and a need for the hardest difficulties in games, which is fun to watch, and hilarity at its finest. You can find him over on Twitter, Google+, and or you can find him on PSN with RaivynLyken.

QuakeCon Has Wrapped Up, but the Memories are Here to Stay

/ Dustin Murphy / Leave a comment

Alas Quakecon 2016 has come to an end – It was a great three days. When you first walked into the exhibit hall you were at a stage where you could compete in the DOOM “Unto the Evil” Death Match Tournament. The screens were set so spectators could watch the action from the front of the stage – it is a great DLC that I will have to get here soon.

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Credit: David Murphy | Build Credit: Cyberpower PC/Thermaltake

Thermaltake had their booth decked as usual. We’ve been looking at expanding our reviews to do more PC gaming and at the beginning of our adventure – the Thermaltake Core P5 Case had my interest. Once our adventure ended – the Core P3 case became the case of choice. Shannon Robb was a tremendous help in closing our decision. He had a P3 set up very close to what we’d been speccing and it will work perfectly for what we know.

In the back of the exhibit hall Bethesda had a short Doom and Fallout 4 VR example you could play. One that relied on the HTC Vive. I had never tried to play a game with the Vive VR headset. Those two games are excellent normally, but the VR took it to a whole different level of intensity. It will be a must down the road when they are available.

The people of DXRacer were there again this year. I love the look of their chairs. I sat in several during the event. These gaming chairs are special – they are made in many sizes with a decent enough price range between each type. I found two, both of which I really liked and took notes. Later this fall we are going to order one and do a review on it. We will start with how hard it is to assemble and then a follow up on how it is holding up and how we feel about it.

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Credit: David Murphy | Game: Dusk by New Blood | Chair: DXRacer

There were several new games there again this year. The one that caught my eye was Dusk by New Blood Interactive. It’s a fast paced first person shooter – one, in which, I loved the retro look and feel of. There isn’t much story, but there is a lot of stuff that needs killed.

There were several seminars we attended. All of them were well thought out and the panels very informative as to what went into gaming, development, and story writing. We will have articles on those in the coming days.

When you’re at QuakeCon you always have to go by Modders Inc – the builds they have on display are always top notch and the best of the best on the floor. I love going over because I can ask whatever question I have and they try to answer it. They’ve never treated me with the look of “that was a dumb question”, and I know I’ve asked several of those. Instead they are happy to share their knowledge so you can do your build and just enjoy your PC builds and gaming.

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Credit: David Murphy | Booth: Modders Inc.

We did see three games coming up that will have to be on the get list. We saw trailers for Prey, Dishonored 2 and Quake Champions. All three of these looked great. Dishonored 2 will be out this year on 11/11/16 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC. Prey and Quake Champions is a bit further out. I can’t wait to see more on these titles.

Last, but not least, I want to thank all the people and sponsors that put this on each year. Without the companies like Alienware, Bethesda, id Software, DXracer, Nvidia and everyone I missed, we wouldn’t be able to enjoy this.

About the Writer:

David_Murphy_Vault_BoyDavid Murphy is B.A.T.G.R.’s behind the scenes man who helps get things up and going as well as keeping things in order. Don’t  be surprised to know that the old man contributes rather heavily to editing, news, and information he digs up so that editorials as well as articles are done properly. He also likes Fallout… A lot. We’re not sure he’s not secretly the Vault Boy in disguise.

QuakeCon’s Annual Welcome Features Dishonored 2, Prey, and Quake Champions

/ Dustin Murphy / Leave a comment

UAC-Badge-Featured

QuakeCon 2016 is almost upon us. The show will undoubtedly herald in a higher anticipation than ever for some of their upcoming titles that have already received a heavy round of applause. On August 4th, at 10am CT, the doors for QuakeCon will open, welcoming in thousands of the publishers fans from all walks of fandom. Remaining open till 12pm CT on August 5th, fans will prepare to see a rather large kick-off at 3PM CT where they will open up the show with the highly anticipated title Quake Champions only to give attendee’s some exclusive gameplay presentations of their recently announced Prey and the follow up title Dishonored 2.

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If you can’t make it in time for the Thursday presentation? Arkane Studios’ Harvy Smith and Raphael Colantonio will return to the Ventrillo stage on Saturday, August 5th, where they will lead up with encore presentations of both Prey and Dishonored 2 for another exclusive look at the game.

 

Along with these presentations, Bethesda has announced that attendee’s will have a chance to experience DOOM‘s multiplayer, Fallout Shelter for PC, and the in-beta title The Elder Scrolls: Legends. In addition to this, players can also head down to the Exhibit Hall where they can get their hands on Bethesda VR. While down there, attendee’s can also meet up with featured exhibitor events, exhibitors, and sponsors for the event. 

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If you’re looking for something to do Friday and Saturday – look no further. Bethesda is offering the opportunity for attendee’s to see their developers as well as industry personalities discuss the importance of creating entertainment, giving fans a behind-the-scenes looks at went on behind the scenes with the development of DOOM and much, much more. Take a peak at the full list below. If you are attending? Head over and download the official QuakeCon App on your Apple, Android, or Windows mobile device to ensure you don’t miss a thing! The app will contain a full listing of daily events and will be continually updated throughout the show.  It’ll be updated over the course of the event.

If you can’t attend? Don’t be worried, you aren’t being left out, you can head onto Twitch.tv/Bethesda for live streaming of select panels and presentations, as well as Twitch.tv/QuakeCon to watch all of the official QuakeCon tournament action in real time. So stay tuned for our coverage as we will be covering the event live at QuakeCon with constant article updates, and possibly some live interviews!

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Before we wrap up, we want to give a special thanks to all the support that both id Software, Bethesda Softworks, the exhibitors, the 2016 event sponsors, and all of the Volunteer Staff give for the event to happen. If you are interested in attending, head on over to http://registration.quakecon.org, and pre-register now. For more information on QuakeCon 2016, you can check out: www.quakecon.org.

Official Schedule

(Please note: All times listed are Central Time.) 

FEATURED EVENTS AND ACTIVITIES

 

Thursday, Aug 4th 

 

 Annual QuakeCon Welcome

3:00pm | Streaming Live from the Ventrilo Main Stage

 
 

Friday, Aug 5th 

 

  

Panel: Uncapped: DOOM and the Power of idTech 6

Moderated by Marty Stratton, Game Director

2:30pm – 3:30pm | Sapphire Room

·         Sit down with members of id Software’s technology team  (Robert Duffy, Chief Technology Officer; Billy Khan, Lead Programmer; Tiago Sousa, Lead Rendering Programmer; Shale Williams, Technical Specialist) to get an inside look on how they drive technology decisions and push the limits on graphics, framerates, and performance.

 

Panel: Creating Worlds: A Discussion About Bringing Life to Games, Movies, and Books

Moderated by Andrea Rene and Geoff Keighley

3:30pm – 4:30pm  | Streaming Live from Topaz Room

·         Join Hugo Martin (id), Harvey Smith (Arkane), Ricardo Bare (Arkane), Andrew Reiner (Game Informer), Scott Porter (Actor), and Rick Malambri (Actor/Streamer) as they discuss the creative process and differences behind entertainment.

 

Fast as Hell: Live Speedrun

Moderated by Bethesda’s Global Community Lead, Matt Grandstaff and id’s Peter Sokal (Gameplay Systems Designer) and Kurt Loudy (AI Gameplay Designer)

4:30pm | Streaming Live from Sapphire Room

·         Watch as record-holder DraQu puts his world class speed-running abilities on display while playing DOOM running on Vulkan.

 

Master Pancake Theater

9:00pm – 12:00am | Ventrilo Main Stage

 
 

Saturday, August 6th 

 

  

PC Perspective Hardware Workshop

10:00am – 12:00pm  | Streaming Live from the Ventrilo Main Stage

·         Get ready for two hours of prizes, games, and raffles during the annual PC Perspective Hardware Workshop

 

Panel: Creating Hell: The Art and Design of DOOM

Moderated by Adam Sessler

12:00pm – 1:00pm | Sapphire Room

·         Join key members of id Software’s development team (Marty Stratton, Game Director; Hugo Martin, Creative Director; Shinichiro Hara, Animation Director; Jerry Keehan, Level Design Director; Chris Hite, Audio Director) to get a unique look at creating and designingDOOM’s epic single-player.

 

QuakeCon Attendee Exclusive Presentation of Prey and Dishonored 2

2:00pm | Ventrilo Main Stage

 

Panel: Bringers of DOOM

Moderated by David Houghton (GamesRadar+)

3:00pm – 4:00pm | Streaming Live from Topaz Room

·         Join DOOM’s senior leadership team (Marty Stratton, Game Director; Hugo Martin, Creative Director; Robert Duffy, Chief Technology Officer) as they share stories about their journey to bring DOOM to a modern audience.  Learn about their reactions to the post-launch acclaim as well as get an exclusive look at never-before-seen production assets and art.

 

Official QuakeCon Tournament Finals Party!

6:00pm | Streaming Live from the Ventrilo Main Stage

 

 

QUAKECON TRIALS

Participants in this year’s QuakeCon trials will need to complete five unique goals tied to DOOM, Dishonored, The Elder Scrolls Legends, Fallout Shelter, and Quake Champions for a chance to win raffle tickets for Ventrilo ‘Ultimate Power Up’ sweepstakes. All participants will also have an opportunity to win $5,000 during the QuakeCon Finals Party. The QuakeCon Trials will be held Thursday, August 4th – Saturday, August 6th from10:00am – 5:30pm in the Exhibit Hall. Visit booth #212 to register.

 

FEATURED TABLE TOP VILLAGE ACTIVITIES

Table Top Village will be open for the duration of QuakeCon (Thursday, August 4th at 10am – Sunday, August 7th at 12pm) and the full schedule of events will be available on the Official QuakeCon App.

 

FEATURED EXHIBIT HALL EVENTS AND ACTIVITIES

This year’s Exhibit Hall hours, exhibitors and sponsors are listed below. In addition to the schedule of events above, the Exhibit Hall’s Alienware Event Stage will feature numerous presentations and activities from our 2016 exhibitors and sponsors. The full Alienware Event Stage schedule will be available on the Official QuakeCon App.

 

Exhibit Hall Hours:

Thursday, August 4th: 10:00am – 6:00pm

Friday, August 5th: 10:00am – 6:00pm

Saturday, August 6th: 10:00am – 6:00pm

QuakeCon 2016 Sponsors

  • Alienware (Premier Sponsor)
  • AMD  (Premier Sponsor)
  • BenQ America Corp. (Premier Sponsor)
  • Corsair
  • CybertronPC
  • DXRacer (Premier Sponsor)
  • iBuyPower
  • Fatal1ty
  • HTC VIVE
  • Intel (Official Tournament Sponsor)
  • Magic Box
  • NVIDIA  (Premier Sponsor)
  • Razer
  • Ventrilo  (Premier Sponsor)

 

QuakeCon 2016 Exhibitors:

·         1UpOnCancer
·         Alienware

·         Altex Computers and Electronics
·         Attic Space Games
·         BAWLS Guarana
·         BenQ America Corp.

·         Bethesda Softworks

·         Catalyst Mints
·         Cheshire Cat Studios
·         Corsair Components Inc
·         CPU Magazine
·         Dallas Pets Alive
·         Devolver Digital
·         DXRacer

·         Extra Life
·         FSP Group USA
·         Glitch Gaming Apparel
·         iFixit
·         Inspired by Nerd
·         Modders, Inc.
·         New Blood Interactive
·         NVIDIA
·         Roll2Play
·         SolarFlare Games
·         Steam Knight
·         ThermalTake USA

·         Think Geek

Attending? Let us know, we’d love to meet up, and talk!

About the Writer:

dustin_batgr_prof

Dustin is our native console gamer, PlayStation and Nintendo reviewer who has an appetite for anything that crosses the boarders from across the big pond. His interest in JRPG’s, Anime, Handheld Gaming, and Pizza is insatiable. His elitist attitude gives him direction, want, and a need for the hardest difficulties in games, which is fun to watch, and hilarity at its finest. You can find him over on Twitter, Google+, and or you can find him on PSN with RaivynLyken.

Could Bethesda Just Teased a New Game? Or Was Prey “Colossus”?

/ Dustin Murphy / Leave a comment

If you had a keen eye, you noticed this screen I”ll be posting below.

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In the screen, we can take notice of titles we know rather well such as Keen, Wolfenstein 3D, Wolfenstein: The New Order/Old Blood, DOOM, and a few others, but what we don’t get a description of? Is what New Colossus is. If anything, we’re beginning to assume that New Colossus could very well be the title of the next upcoming Wolfenstein or Rage titles. While it seems more logical due to the other, we’re definitely curious to what Bethesda hasn’t announced quite yet.

What are your thoughts? Do you think it’ll be a new title exclusive to QuakeCon or one of the main stage events this week? Let us know in the comments.

About the Writer:

dustin_batgr_prof

Dustin is our native console gamer, PlayStation and Nintendo reviewer who has an appetite for anything that crosses the boarders from across the big pond. His interest in JRPG’s, Anime, Handheld Gaming, and Pizza is insatiable. His elitist attitude gives him direction, want, and a need for the hardest difficulties in games, which is fun to watch, and hilarity at its finest. You can find him over on Twitter, Google+, and or you can find him on PSN with RaivynLyken.

Prey Reboot Announced With a Creepy Trailer

/ Dustin Murphy / Leave a comment

Prey_Trailer_SC01

You may remember a title by the name of Prey. The title was originally made as a successor to take along the roles of titles like Quake, DOOM, and eventually would fall silent. To some? It took the spirit of Turok and evolved it. To others, it was a title that merged what we loved about Quake and others.

Today, Arkane Studios Austin and Bethesda Zenimax have openly announced that the title is in development for PC and new-gen consoles. If development shows as it is, the title will fit in perfectly with the 2017 lineup with Quake Champions and The Elder Scrolls Legends.

About the Writer:

dustin_batgr_prof

Dustin is our native console gamer, PlayStation and Nintendo reviewer who has an appetite for anything that crosses the boarders from across the big pond. His interest in JRPG’s, Anime, Handheld Gaming, and Pizza is insatiable. His elitist attitude gives him direction, want, and a need for the hardest difficulties in games, which is fun to watch, and hilarity at its finest. You can find him over on Twitter, Google+, and or you can find him on PSN with RaivynLyken.

Dishonored 2 Gets Fully Unveiled – Collector’s Edition Announced

/ Dustin Murphy / Leave a comment

As many of you know, Harvey Smith and Arkane Studio’s have been rather busy with the game. With the announcement, we’ve learned that game will feature a new engine, fully voiced protagonists, new abilities, and an all around new approach to it. Hot with the announcement, we’ve learned that a collector’s Edition and the pre-Order bonuses have been revealed. The collector’s edition, much like Fallout’s, will be very limited and will launch on November 11th, 2016 on Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC.

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In addition to a copy of the highly-awaited game, the Dishonored 2 Collector’s Edition includes:

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  • Corvo Attano’s Mask Replica and Stand. This recreation of Corvo’s in-game mask stands at 13.5” (H) x 6” (W) x 5.5” (D).
  • Emily Kaldwin’s Ring Replica and Display Box. This wearable replica of Emily’s ring is constructed of zinc alloy and includes a premium, embossed black ring box with purple velvet inner lining.
  • Full Color Propaganda Poster Print. This limited edition full color print is issued by the infamous Propaganda Office of Karnaca.
  • Collectible ‘Legacy’ Metal Case. Exclusive to the Dishonored 2 Collector’s Edition, the limited–edition metal case is decorated with the portraits of Empress Emily Kaldwin and Royal Protector Corvo Attano.
  • Digital Imperial Assassin’s Pack. Earn exclusive bonecharms like Duelist’s Luck and Void Favor. Discover new lore and art including an Antique Serkonan Guitar and the book Goodbye, Karnaca – A Musician’s Farewall. The Imperial Assassin’s Pack also includes 500 coins to acquire new gear and weapons within illegal black market shops.

Dishonored: Definitive Edition. This premium package will also include a digital copy of Dishonored: Definitive Edition. Remastered for this generation of consoles, the Definitive Edition includes the original critically-acclaimed game in the Dishonored series which won more than 100 ‘Game of the Year’ Awards plus all of its add-on content: Void Walker’s Arsenal, Dunwall City Trials, The Knife of Dunwall and The Brigmore Witches.

The Dishonored 2 Collector’s Edition is available for pre-order through participating retailers and is priced at $99.99 (US), €99,99 (Europe), £79.99 (UK), and A$189.95 (Australia).

For a limited time only, pre-order Dishonored 2 at participating retailers and receive a free digital copy of Dishonored: Definitive Edition.

About the Writer:

dustin_batgr_prof

Dustin is our native console gamer, PlayStation and Nintendo reviewer who has an appetite for anything that crosses the boarders from across the big pond. His interest in JRPG’s, Anime, Handheld Gaming, and Pizza is insatiable. His elitist attitude gives him direction, want, and a need for the hardest difficulties in games, which is fun to watch, and hilarity at its finest. You can find him over on Twitter, Google+, and or you can find him on PSN with RaivynLyken.

DOOM to Get New DLC, Free SnapMap Content Updates, Starting Soon – First Level Free This Week Only

/ Dustin Murphy / Leave a comment

SNAP_DOOMx64_2016-03-14_13-57-17-06_1463158192

If you haven’t tried DOOM, but you’ve read the reviews? You know that DOOM has been taking the world by storm by taking on the world with perfect scores around the world. Hot on the heels of the release, Tim Willits has announced that DOOM will be receiving free content for the games lifetime, this includes new demons, weapons, commands, and even the ability to make single player missions.

With this announcement, id Software has also announced that the first DLC is coming soon while original gameplay styles such as Free-for-All, Classic Team Death Match, and Capture the Flag. The content will require the season pass for players to enjoy as it will be coming out within the next month. Stay tuned for more information as the DLC gets closer to its launch.

In addition to this news, Pete Hines has announced that DOOM will be free-to-play for the first mission only through PlayStation Network, Xbox Live Marketplace, and Steam; this week only.

About the Writer:

dustin_batgr_prof

Dustin is our native console gamer, PlayStation and Nintendo reviewer who has an appetite for anything that crosses the boarders from across the big pond. His interest in JRPG’s, Anime, Handheld Gaming, and Pizza is insatiable. His elitist attitude gives him direction, want, and a need for the hardest difficulties in games, which is fun to watch, and hilarity at its finest. You can find him over on Twitter, Google+, and or you can find him on PSN with RaivynLyken.

 

Bethesda Zenimax’s E3 Announcements Could Be Huge – What We Expect May Be There

/ Dustin Murphy / Leave a comment

You probably already read our article about BE3 starting tomorrow for Bethesda Zenimax. You may also already know? They’ve released one of this years biggest titles already that has kept me reeling in demon’s for the slaughter and even has kept me busy from finishing my review for the multiplayer of DOOM. If that’s not enough? We also have been hammering out plenty of their possible titles that could be coming out and ones we know are. With the announcement they’ll be showcasing entirely new games this year, we’ve decided to take down a list of things we know will be there since they are about to release, and ones we expect could be the announced titles for this year. If it’s good to say anything now? We know id Software may have something to showcase pertaining to DOOM or an entirely new title all together.

So what games can we lean towards being there for sure? It wouldn’t be a surprise if we got to see a few announcements regarding content updates for both DOOM, Fallout 4 as well as The Elder Scrolls Online: Tamriel Unlimited. Why? These games are the hot cookies for Bethesda Zenimax right now. However, all this can change when the announcements start rolling out tomorrow. So what exactly can we expect out of them outside of new content for the previously mentioned titles? Lets take a look at sequel possibilities first.

Prey 2

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 Originally announced back in 2011, Prey 2 was slated as an ambitious futuristic title that would have sated the masses that wanted a new cyberpunk-esque title. Prey 2 would have taken us on the road as Killian Samuels, a U.S. Marshal who had started out on a passenger flight, which just suddenly happened to crash into the Sphere (recall the plane crash in Prey back on PC or 360? Direct reference). Ending with a short lived battle against a few aliens, which he lost by default, Samuels returns several years later as a bounty hunter on the alien world known as Exodus. Even though he has remained aware of his past, Samuels has also gained some new skills, and has also been thought to be the only human on Exodus until he runs into former protagonist Tommy Domasi. Unfortunately due to his memory loss, Samuels doesn’t remember Domasi at all, and resumes on his way.

With the title having gone through development for quite some time before being cancelled, it won’t be surprising to see if Bethesda Zenimax lets this title return to us in a new format, and hopefully an open world one utilizing the astonishing id Tech 6 engine we got to know with DOOM. With all the buzz circling the title? There’s a good chance we’ll hear something about it with E3 kicking off for Bethesda today.

Rage 2

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While the series has been dead in the dark for quite sometime, Rage remains one of Bethesda Game Studio’s most beloved title to have come out of id Studio since DOOM 3 and the recently released DOOM (2016). Rage, for those unfamiliar with it, takes place on Earth after most of the world has been wiped out by an asteroid that just happened to target Earth head-on. With a few survivors in cryogenic stasis in special units, a few people managed to hide underground unscathed. While Life on the outside remained normal for most survivors, some have turned into gangs, cannibals, and all around psycho’s while the existing “government” wants survivors for their own reasons if they are coming out of the cryochambers.

While it sounds outdated, the open-world FPS title could very well turn into a rather influential and positive series. With DOOM having proven there’s still love for such titles, even though DOOM is more of an FPS, the possibility for a sequel is fully there. The question now is? Will Bethesda take us once more into their non-nuclear post-apocalypse with a new title from id Software? We’ll see.

Quake (Reboot)

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Riding on the heels of DOOM’s success, it wouldn’t be surprising to see id Software take another spin with the fan favored Quake franchise. Fortunately for us? That means that Quake will be done the way a remake should be done and their success with DOOM proves they have the resources to do it. Quake, as many know, is one of the most influential arena shooters out there when it comes to multiplayer. Much like its online, the campaigns have always been fast, furious, bigger, better, and even more drenched in blood than ever. Unlike DOOM, however, Quake doesn’t offer up demon’s from Hell, but instead the twisted and menacing mysterious enemy force known as “Quake”, which are extra-dimensional being’s seeking to wipe out humanity. Later this involved an enemy foce known as the “Strogg”, which were half human and machine combined to make a lethal force.

While the idea of seeing a Quake reboot in the plausible future might not be realistic, we know that DOOM’s dev team has been hard-on-heels to flesh out the minor bugs, and working on the multiplayer DLC to bring more fresh content to the PvPer’s that have been at DOOM for countless hours since its launch.

The Elder Scrolls VI

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While there have been many “leaks” stating Argonia or Valenwood are next? I’m hard-pressed to believe we may see a new title announced this soon, especially with the success rate of The Elder Scrolls Online: Tamriel Unlimited, and its constant updating with new content. Granted the content ranges between $20-$30, it’s popular. While it has been stated they’ll be releasing a new entry in the series, it’ll be interesting to see the elven lands of Valenwood in the flesh with its own standalone title outside of The Elder Scrolls Online.

We can only predict the new title will be using many of the mechanics from the Fallout 4 engine as well as the Fallout 4 engine itself with possible mod support in the future, just like Fallout 4. If this title is announced? We’re sure it’ll have a lot shown later this year at QuakeCon while we are only teased a glimpse of it at E3.

The Evil Within 2

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If Tango Gameworks didn’t screw with your mind the first time, we’re not surprised if Shinji Mikami and his team won’t try again. After the success of their first title, a masterpiece of horror, mind you, we can only hope they’re working on a follow up. With the first title having left many questions behind what was going on and the long term effects of the experimentation’s that lead up to the games major events, we can only keep our fingers cross hoping the effects were more widespread than we thought.

While it will be hard for Shinji in his team to surpass their spectacular work from the first time around, we can hope that Shinji is looking for new ways to make our skin crawl outside of rooms made out of giant porcelain baby doll faces. Excuse me while I find a blanket to hide under.

While we can speculate across the countless franchises that Bethesda Game Studios produces, we already know there’s a few we’re half expecting to be at E3, and a few that may just surprise us if they are. So lets take a look at the games we’re sure will be there with some new content and a bit more information regarding them.

Dishonored 2

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Following up the works of Corvo, we know that Ms. Emily isn’t the little royalty we thought she would grow up to be, not after her family was assassinated infront of her and her guardian framed for it. With Corvo having retired from his “civic” duties, Emily is now well on her way to mastering her prowess as an assassin while wielding the mask and even grappling with mastering her equipment and abilities. Dishonored 2 by Arkane Studios has been one of the most anticipated first-person open-world titles that takes us into a beautifully portrayed steampunk world that fuses both modern sensibilities with colonial beauty.

While the title is slated for a release later this year, we’re highly anticipating finalized gameplay and new additions prior to the games release this week.

Fallout 4: DLC/Mod Support

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We know that Fallout 4 is taking the sand-box world by storm since it’s bridging the gap between consoles and PC with mod support. Launching here shortly on Xbox One and later on PlayStation 4, we know mods have been a big deal with the franchise. Be it upped graphics, appearance items, new gameplay mechanics, companions, even some more adult-oriented content; Mods are a huge deal. With Fallout 4 it’d be surprising not to see something in regards to another large DLC along the scope of Far Harbor, which has recently been released for all platforms, and is rather enjoyable with the framerate fixes for consoles.

Since DLC’s are this games big deal, we’ll most-likely see something in regards to this manner. What we see? Now that’s the mystery.

Closing Thoughts

While the list of games we could see announced already and existing is slim, we know titles like DOOM, Dishonored 2, and Fallout 4 will more than likely be there, Bethesda Zenimax has a lot of ammunition up their sleeves. The question is now? How much of it will they spend before QuakeCon this year or will we be seeing it all at once with touch-ups on previous announcements? Right now it’s all wait and see.

About the Writer:

dustin_batgr_prof

Dustin is our native console gamer, PlayStation and Nintendo reviewer who has an appetite for anything that crosses the boarders from across the big pond. His interest in JRPG’s, Anime, Handheld Gaming, and Pizza is insatiable. His elitist attitude gives him direction, want, and a need for the hardest difficulties in games, which is fun to watch, and hilarity at its finest. You can find him over on Twitter, Google+, and or you can find him on PSN with RaivynLyken.

Bethesda to Kick Off E3 2016 with the Bethesda 2016 E3 Showcase

/ Dustin Murphy / Leave a comment

 

As many of you know, E3 is this weekend, starting June 12th. To get the party started? Bethesda Zenimax E3 spirit by celebrating their games, their developers, and of course you, their fans with the BE3 Plus experience. The event will be headlined with Bling-182 performing live while media, industry insiders, and you, their biggest fans as you get to experience a Showcase for all their attendees with a first-hand special Bethesda E3 Experience, which has game demos, hosted interviews, and even an unforgetttable performance by the blink-182.

 

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For those unfamiliar with it, Adam Sessler & Morgan Webb, the former hosts of G4 TV’s X-Play, will be opening the show as well as setting the stage for some of the publishers largest new gameplay reveals coming this weekend. Bethesda has announced they will be returning later this Sunday evening to be broadcasted live from BE3 – Plus for exclusive interviews. The schedule can be found below.

Official Bethesda Press Information:

 

Tune In to Watch Live

For those who can’t make it in person, we’ll begin broadcasting at 6:15pm PDT live on our official YouTube (www.youtube.com/BethesdaSoftworks) and Twitch (www.twitch.tv/bethesda) channels, taking E3 out of the confines of Los Angeles and into the homes of millions of fans from around the world. The Showcase will begin at 7:00pm.

Standby Line 

Don’t have a ticket? At BE3 2015 we had over a thousand fans in the audience, and this year we plan to have at least as many in attendance! If you’re local or find yourself in LA, we will once again have a ‘Standby Line’ for our E3 Showcase. The event takes place at The LA Hangar – 2627 Medford Street, Los Angeles, 90033. The standby line opens at 1pm. The line starts forming along Medford Street. There will be signs and staff around if you have any questions.

Any reserved tickets not claimed by 630pm will be released to stand-by fans. We also have an outdoor theater set up that will be streaming the Showcase where we can accommodate an additional 300 people. Everyone that is allowed inside our event space to watch the Showcase is invited to join the BE3 Plus festivities that take place in the same location directly following the Showcase.

 

P.S. Keep an eye on our social channels for more info and updates about BE3 2016. And be sure to tune into the streams, which you can find on our official YouTube (www.youtube.com/BethesdaSoftworks) and Twitch (www.twitch.tv/bethesda) channels.

About the Writer:

dustin_batgr_prof

Dustin is our native console gamer, PlayStation and Nintendo reviewer who has an appetite for anything that crosses the boarders from across the big pond. His interest in JRPG’s, Anime, Handheld Gaming, and Pizza is insatiable. His elitist attitude gives him direction, want, and a need for the hardest difficulties in games, which is fun to watch, and hilarity at its finest. You can find him over on Twitter, Google+, and or you can find him on PSN with RaivynLyken.