Aion Goes Free to Play
NCSoft‘s Aion is now free to play: all classes, areas, quests, equipment, professions and PvP will be freely available to all players!
European players will be requested to transfer their accounts to Gameforge, the new publisher of Aion.
Indie Royale – The Alpha Collection
The next indie bundle from the Indie Royale is out: The Alpha Collection! This bundle features three games which are currently in alpha: Towns by SMP, 3079 by Phr00t and Wyv and Keep by a jolly corpse.
First Max Payne 3 PC Screenshots!
The first screenshots for the PC version of Max Payne 3 have been revealed!
Be Mine Impressions – Part 2
This is Part 2 of my mini-review/impressions of the games in the Be Mine Indie Game bundle, covering Beep, a physics-based platformer by Big Fat Alien, The Ball, an action-puzzle game by Teotl Studios, and as a bonus for achieving the first goal of $3,000, a point and click adventure game called Nikopol: Secrets of the Immortals, by White Birds Productions.
Part 1 can be found here, with thoughts on Wasteland Angel, Sideway New York, and Xotic.
Beep, a physics-based platformer by Big Fat Alien, is the fourth game in the bundle. In the future, robots are sent out to explore the galaxy.. small expendable robots, which are dropped off onto a planet’s surface to explore before being beamed back up to the ship again. (more…)
Mass Effect 3 DLC Appears Pre-Launch
The first Mass Effect 3 DLC pack appeared briefly on the Xbox Live Marketplace today, almost two weeks before the launch of the game. The DLC is called From Ashes, and the description itself included some spoilers for the game: the DLC unearths some secrets from the past.. and adds a new character to your squad: a Prothean. Via VG247.
Indie Gala Fruit Blitz!
Another bonus game has been added to the recent Indie Gala bundle: Fruit Blitz!
Fruit Blitz is a mobile game for the Android, by Rubicon Development; featuring 90 second games with a simple matching mechanic. (more…)
GAME Closing Stores
GAME has announced that they will close Gameplay.co.uk next week, with customers being directed instead to Gamestation.co.uk.
They have also announced that another 35 stores are to be closed, with GAME and GameStation stores being reduced to 550 outlets by Christmas. Via MCV.
This follows the news that GAME are not stocking a number of titles, including PS Vita launch titles.
Borderlands 2 Release Date and Trailer!
2kGames have revealed that Borderlands 2 will be released on 18th September in North America, and on the 21st for everyone else. They’ve also released a three-minute official trailer for the game:
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p8GbEvsk3_8] (more…)
Sins of a Dark Age
Ironclad, creator of Sins of a Solar Empire, have recently announced their second game: Sins of a Dark Age!
Sins of a Dark Age is a team-based RTS hybrid, with teams consisting of one Commander and a group of Heroes, who face enemy teams or co-operate against AI in a variety of scenarios. Players can choose to take on the role of either Commander or one of the Heroes, with the Commander overseeing the battle while the Heroes take on the enemy on the front line.
PlayStation Store Updated with PS Vita Games
The PlayStation Store has been updated ahead of the launch of the PS Vita at midnight tonight, to include games, apps, DLC, demos and videos! The full list is available on the PlayStation blog.
Owners of Hustle Kings, Top Darts or Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom DLC on the PS3 will be able to use them on the PS Vita for no charge.
Engadget posted an in-depth review of the PS Vita here, while CVG and Eurogamer also posted reviews, with another in-depth technical analysis from Digital Foundry.
The PS Vita will be going on sale at midnight tonight across the country, with a range of prices from just under £200 up to £270 with other bundled items. The cheapest place to buy is said to be ASDA, where the Wi-Fi version is available both online and in-store for £197. Via Eurogamer.
The device has been on sale in Japan since December 2011, but didn’t perform as well as expected, seeing a 78% drop during Christmas week.