Monthly Archives: March 2014

Sony Changing PS3 Box Art

I’ll readily admit that this weekend was a slow weekend in the gaming news sphere. I assume that’s because all the big sites were busy reviewing Titanfall. However, I did see this news item that I found interesting, albeit not earth shattering.

Very quietly, it appears that Sony is changing the design of the box art of PlayStation 3 games to keep it more in line with that of the PS4 and PS Vita. Gone is the greyscale top bar and in is the new Sony standard of blue and white branding.

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Tags: PlayStation 3, PS3, Sony

NASL Shuts Down, ESL Takes Over WCS America Production

Mar 10

Posted by Steve Murray

The company in charge of production of the Americas region of the StarCraft II World Championship Series announced on Friday that they would be ceasing to produce WCS effective immediately. In a statement on their website, the North American Star League announced that they would no longer producing StarCraft content.

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Posted in eSports

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Tags: Blizzard, ESL, eSports, NASL, Starcraft II, WCS

Geek Links of the Week

Mar 7

Posted by Steve Murray

In news that should surprise absolutely no one, Naughty Dog’s hit The Last of Us is going to become a feature film. [Deadline]

Goat Simulator is actually happening. It’s coming April 1st which almost makes me question if this isn’t a joke but April 1st is a Tuesday. Here’s the developer’s tale of going from goofy test footage to an actual game. [Gamasutra]

Twitch is starting work on bringing streaming to iOS and Android games. You’re going to be able to stream everything before long. [Joystiq]

I’ve never really considered doing it before but the dumpsters behind GameStops can be treasure troves of free, discarded games wares. Just make sure it’s not illegal in your city first. [IGN]

Steve Ballmer’s departure as CEO of Microsoft may have been as a result of his legendary temper getting him in hot water with the Microsoft board of directors. Stuff like that tends to backfire. Personal experience talking. [Computer World]

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Fourteen Game of Thrones Deaths as GIFs

Mar 7

Posted by Steve Murray

Good news! It’s Friday! The work week is just a few hours from ending which means that it’s time for Fridays of Ice and Fire. This week, I have something definitely more spoilerish. It’s a look at some memorable deaths from the first three seasons (and there have been a lot of them) in 8-bit GIF form.

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Posted in TV/Movies

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Tags: A Song of Ice and Fire, Game of Thrones, GIF, HBO

Microsoft to Unveil DirectX 12 at GDC

Mar 7

Posted by Steve Murray

Despite some beliefs to the contrary, Microsoft’s next gaming API is coming soon to your PC and mobile devices. Microsoft will officially unveil DirectX 12 at the Game Developers Conference in two weeks time.

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Tags: DirectX, GDC, Microsoft

Jack Tretton, Sony Computer Entertainment America CEO, to Resign

Mar 7

Posted by Steve Murray

We often lament when athletes retire at the top of their game but what about when corporate executives step back at the height of their powers?

Jack Tretton, the current President and CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment America, has announced that he is resigning from his post effective March 31st. Shawn Layden, Executive Vice President and COO of Sony Network Entertainment International, will take over Tretton’s job on April 1st.

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Tags: Business of Gaming, Jack Tretton, PlayStation 4, SCEA, Shawn Layden, Sony Computer Entertainment

The Elder Scrolls Online Beta Impressions: Prison Break

Mar 7

Posted by Steve Murray

I think I’ve mentioned it a couple of times before that I’m not a fan of MMOs. If the subscription model (that requires you to pay the equivalent of four games to play for that first year) and microtransactions aren’t enough to scare me off, the grinding and fetch quests seal the deal.

I’m not unwilling to put my previous experiences aside to give MMOs another try. For example, I got into last weekend’s beta session for The Elder Scrolls Online and was willing to give that a try to see if I’d like it.

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Posted in Game Reviews

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Tags: Bethesda, Impressions, MMO, The Elder Scrolls Online, ZeniMax

This House of Cards / Walking Dead Intro Mashup is Appropriate and Awesome

While politics interests me, I often find it painful to follow and discuss with people. Any optimism I once had about politics has long since been washed away by cynicism. That’s convenient because I’m getting cynical about The Walking Dead since I just assume that it’ll be dreadfully dull to watch and discuss.

Okay, that segue is a pretty poor introduction to this mashup of House of Cards and The Walking Dead but it can’t be any worst than the obligatory “This is awesome!” that this intro by District 7 Media deserves.

Posted on March 6, 2014 | Video

Lara Croft and the Knight in Shining Armor

Mar 6

Posted by Steve Murray

I’m a little behind the rest of the world but I finally finished the reboot of Tomb Raider this weekend. The delay in completing it wasn’t because it was a bad game. If I was to give it a rating, I would probably give it an 8.0 or an 8.5. There was just something about the game that meant I put it down after a few hours last year.

Playing it through over the last couple of weeks made me conscious of what I disliked about Tomb Raider. It wasn’t the gameplay or the plot but the portrayal of Lara Croft throughout the game that I found odd and off-putting.

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Posted in Games, Long Read

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Tags: Crystal Dynamics, Lara Croft, Sexism in Gaming, Square Enix, Tomb Raider, WPLongForm

Uncharted Director and Writer Amy Hennig Leaves Naughty Dog

Mar 6

Posted by Steve Murray

The driving force behind Naughty Dog’s smash hit Uncharted series has left the developer. It was announced yesterday that Uncharted franchise writer and creative director, Amy Hennig, has left Naughty Dog.