Penny Arcade's On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness 4 is now available on Steam, and is coming soon on Xbox Live Indie Games "as soon as the proper sacrifices are completed." The asking price on both platforms is $5, though you can snag it for $4.49 on Steam for the next week.
If you haven't followed the Penny Arcade games, they've had a rather unusual development path. The first two were developed by Hothead Games. The third, initially canceled, was resurrected by Zeboyd games, creators of Cthulhu Saves the World. The same team is behind Rain-Slick 4 and, if the last game was any indication fans should be in for a treat.
For how advanced CryEngine 3 looks, we had just assumed it would jive with PS4, but today Crytek has confirmed it. Developers anxious to create a PS4 game can get rolling with CryEngine 3 starting today with the latest SDK, featured in the video above.
The PS4 announcement indicates all consoles will support CryEngine 3 going forward. Crytek CEO Cevat Yerli confirmed CryEngine 3 runs on Wii U in addition to Xbox One.
You could try to make sense of the latest Killer is Dead trailer, but we wouldn't recommend it. ...
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Longtime Sonic the Hedgehog series collaborator Dimps is developing the Nintendo 3DS version of Sonic: Lost World, Sonic Team's Takashi Iizuka revealed in an interview with IGN this week.
Iizuka notes that Sonic: Lost World features unique content on the Nintendo 3DS. Though it shares similar settings with its Wii U counterpart, level layouts are entirely different in order "to match the screen size and hardware so players can enjoy both versions with a fresh feeling," Iizuka said.
The 3DS version also boasts an exclusive versus mode for up to four players, along with features that can be unlocked by linking with the Wii U edition.
Dimps previously tackled the Sonic Rush series on the Nintendo DS, and worked with Sonic Team to produce both episodes of Sonic the Hedgehog 4. The company was also responsible for the portable versions of Sonic Colors and Sonic Generations.
Iizuka notes that Sonic: Lost World features unique content on the Nintendo 3DS. Though it shares similar settings with its Wii U counterpart, level layouts are entirely different in order "to match the screen size and hardware so players can enjoy both versions with a fresh feeling," Iizuka said.
The 3DS version also boasts an exclusive versus mode for up to four players, along with features that can be unlocked by linking with the Wii U edition.
Dimps previously tackled the Sonic Rush series on the Nintendo DS, and worked with Sonic Team to produce both episodes of Sonic the Hedgehog 4. The company was also responsible for the portable versions of Sonic Colors and Sonic Generations.
The iam8bit gallery in Los Angeles premiered its latest video game-related art show last night, called the iam8bit Entertainment System. The centerpiece of the show was Travis Chen's homemade two-player console, which is a custom-made PC running MAME encased in natural bamboo, with two homemade controller boxes playing three different indie games: Canabalt's two-player version, the Sportsfriends bundle's BaraBariBall, and Chen's own Adventure Time game jam game, Bad Atticube.
Chen is a former Neversoft developer who now works on both iOS games with Scopely and his own indie creations, including the recent Typing Karaoke. iam8bit pitched the new show to him as "being kind of like a mock release of a game console" (in the shadow of next week's E3 and its two new consoles), and Chen said he emailed iam8bit co-founder Jon Gibson to say, "Jon, I'm building the console."
Chen's work is impressive: The "iES" wood case was laser-cut (though Chen says some sanding was needed to bring it all together), and the front of the console has an LED screen that shows various ASCII text. There are colored buttons on the top of the main unit, and pressing those changes whatever's shown on the screen, from crazy visualizers to a running dialogue between the console and its player.
The console is being offered for sale in the gallery, and Chen says if it does sell he wants to customize it for the buyer. But if it doesn't sell, Chen has other plans in mind. "I want to enter it into Indiecade and maybe even the IGF," he says. "Not too many guys are entering hardware, and I think that's really interesting; the idea of indie hardware."
The iam8bit Entertainment System, and the rest of the work in the show, will be on display through June 30 at iam8bit.
Chen is a former Neversoft developer who now works on both iOS games with Scopely and his own indie creations, including the recent Typing Karaoke. iam8bit pitched the new show to him as "being kind of like a mock release of a game console" (in the shadow of next week's E3 and its two new consoles), and Chen said he emailed iam8bit co-founder Jon Gibson to say, "Jon, I'm building the console."
Chen's work is impressive: The "iES" wood case was laser-cut (though Chen says some sanding was needed to bring it all together), and the front of the console has an LED screen that shows various ASCII text. There are colored buttons on the top of the main unit, and pressing those changes whatever's shown on the screen, from crazy visualizers to a running dialogue between the console and its player.
The console is being offered for sale in the gallery, and Chen says if it does sell he wants to customize it for the buyer. But if it doesn't sell, Chen has other plans in mind. "I want to enter it into Indiecade and maybe even the IGF," he says. "Not too many guys are entering hardware, and I think that's really interesting; the idea of indie hardware."
The iam8bit Entertainment System, and the rest of the work in the show, will be on display through June 30 at iam8bit.
Double Fine's crowdfunded strategy-RPG Massive Chalice will include same-sex relationships and marriage as part of its generation-based gameplay, developer Brad Muir revealed while talking with Rock Paper Shotgun.
Muir notes that feedback from Kickstarter backers inspired his team's decision to include same-sex options. "We did not talk about [the possibility of gay marriage] until we launched the Kickstarter," he told RPS. "We were so focused on pure pragmatic mechanics and how it would work and coupling and all these things that we hadn't [considered it]."
"One of the cool things is we have the opportunity to think about it and address it because we brought it to the community," Muir continued. "We brought it to a broader group of people, and then there were some people who brought it up and wanted to talk about it. There's a raging thread on our forums."
Muir previously expressed a desire to have an equality between sexes in this video discussing Massive Chalice's design. "We wanted to make [gameplay] sex-agnostic," Muir said. "[Both sexes are] both going to be super-badass on the battlefield, killing demons together."
Muir notes that same-sex gameplay aspects may have never been considered, had Double Fine opted for traditional publisher-driven development. "We might just overlook something like same-sex coupling all the way until we announce the game." he told RPS. "If somebody did think about it during that whole thing, they would've probably just killed it because it is such a controversial issue. They'd probably not want to have it associated with the game at all."
Massive Chalice met its funding goal earlier this month, and its Kickstarter campaign will conclude on June 27.
Muir notes that feedback from Kickstarter backers inspired his team's decision to include same-sex options. "We did not talk about [the possibility of gay marriage] until we launched the Kickstarter," he told RPS. "We were so focused on pure pragmatic mechanics and how it would work and coupling and all these things that we hadn't [considered it]."
"One of the cool things is we have the opportunity to think about it and address it because we brought it to the community," Muir continued. "We brought it to a broader group of people, and then there were some people who brought it up and wanted to talk about it. There's a raging thread on our forums."
Muir previously expressed a desire to have an equality between sexes in this video discussing Massive Chalice's design. "We wanted to make [gameplay] sex-agnostic," Muir said. "[Both sexes are] both going to be super-badass on the battlefield, killing demons together."
Muir notes that same-sex gameplay aspects may have never been considered, had Double Fine opted for traditional publisher-driven development. "We might just overlook something like same-sex coupling all the way until we announce the game." he told RPS. "If somebody did think about it during that whole thing, they would've probably just killed it because it is such a controversial issue. They'd probably not want to have it associated with the game at all."
Massive Chalice met its funding goal earlier this month, and its Kickstarter campaign will conclude on June 27.
Don't stop or you'll die.
This is the prevailing theme of State of Decay, Undead Labs' sandbox survival-horror game for Xbox Live Arcade. It's a game focused on the chores of survival in a post-apocalyptic world: scavenging for supplies in vacant buildings; trading with and aiding neighboring groups; comforting and managing emotional states of your own survivors; and, of course, dealing with the occasional zombie attack on your home.
State of Decay is constantly pulling you in many directions, making it difficult to decide what mission you should take next or what resource you should hunt down. The deluge of missions, radio messages and scavenging cycles never stops, and the hostile nature of the environment itself hardly provides incentive for pause to soak in the scenery.
This is the prevailing theme of State of Decay, Undead Labs' sandbox survival-horror game for Xbox Live Arcade. It's a game focused on the chores of survival in a post-apocalyptic world: scavenging for supplies in vacant buildings; trading with and aiding neighboring groups; comforting and managing emotional states of your own survivors; and, of course, dealing with the occasional zombie attack on your home.
State of Decay is constantly pulling you in many directions, making it difficult to decide what mission you should take next or what resource you should hunt down. The deluge of missions, radio messages and scavenging cycles never stops, and the hostile nature of the environment itself hardly provides incentive for pause to soak in the scenery.

Everybody's favorite ninja-turned-skeleton-head-ghost-ninja (Mortal Kombat's Scorpion, obviously) will fight his way back from the grave and into the DC Universe this Tuesday, June 11, when he becomes the latest DLC character for Injustice: Gods Among Us.
Scorpion's implementation in Injustice appears faithful to his incarnation in 2011's Mortal Kombat, though he won't play identically due to differences in Injustice's engine and gameplay mechanics. Ol' Scorps' toasty new threads were designed by legendary comic book artist Jim Lee, seen above talking design with NetherRealm's Ed Boon.
Scorpion will cost $5.
Speaking to VG247, Square Enix community manager George Kelion confirmed that a game set in the same universe as Crystal Dynamics' Legacy of Kain series is under active development by an unnamed studio.
"Nosgoth exists and is in active development, but is not a traditional Legacy of Kain action-adventure game," Kelion said. "Nosgoth is set in the same universe as previous LoK games, but on a different branch to the Blood Omen and Soul Reaver series. The community should not be thinking of Nosgoth in terms of a single-player experience."
Kelion added: "Nosgoth is not being developed by Crystal Dynamics. Crystal Dynamics are not working on a Legacy of Kain game."
References to the titles "Nosgoth" and "War for Nosgoth" were discovered in the driver files for an AMD Crossfire patch last month. Earlier this year, Square Enix registered the domain "WarForNosgoth.com," though the site itself does not yet exist.
"This isn't something we'd normally do," Kelion explained, regarding the decision to confirm the game's existence, "but we wanted to just give folks a bit more context for the direction, rather than just batten down the hatches."
"Nosgoth exists and is in active development, but is not a traditional Legacy of Kain action-adventure game," Kelion said. "Nosgoth is set in the same universe as previous LoK games, but on a different branch to the Blood Omen and Soul Reaver series. The community should not be thinking of Nosgoth in terms of a single-player experience."
Kelion added: "Nosgoth is not being developed by Crystal Dynamics. Crystal Dynamics are not working on a Legacy of Kain game."
References to the titles "Nosgoth" and "War for Nosgoth" were discovered in the driver files for an AMD Crossfire patch last month. Earlier this year, Square Enix registered the domain "WarForNosgoth.com," though the site itself does not yet exist.
"This isn't something we'd normally do," Kelion explained, regarding the decision to confirm the game's existence, "but we wanted to just give folks a bit more context for the direction, rather than just batten down the hatches."
Next week, when the PlayStation Store updates on June 11, three new games will be added to the PlayStation Plus free Instant Game Collection library: Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception, XCOM: Enemy Unknown and LittleBigPLanet Karting.
Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception will include the full single-player campaign for PS Plus subscribers and the free-to-play multiplayer side. Both XCOM: Enemy Unknown and LBP Karting are their full retail offerings, joining a June that has already yielded a free copy of Deus Ex: Human Revolution and will later gift Saints Row: The Third.
Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception will include the full single-player campaign for PS Plus subscribers and the free-to-play multiplayer side. Both XCOM: Enemy Unknown and LBP Karting are their full retail offerings, joining a June that has already yielded a free copy of Deus Ex: Human Revolution and will later gift Saints Row: The Third.
Activision announced that its kid-friendly action-adventure sequel Skylanders Swap Force will launch worldwide in October.
As part of today's announcement, the company also added PlayStation 4 and Xbox One versions of Swap Force to its multiplatform lineup, joining previously announced ports for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii U, Wii, and Nintendo 3DS.
The Skylanders series allows players to summon playable characters via collectible toy figures. Skylanders Swap Force introduces a new series of toys that can be split in half and reassembled for unique mix-and-match ability combinations. Figures released for previous Skylanders games are also compatible with Swap Force.
Series creator Toys for Bob is taking a break for this year's Skylanders release. The console versions of Swap Force are helmed by Vicarious Visions, who previously tackled the 3DS port of 2011's Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure. The Nintendo 3DS version of Swap Force is being developed by Heroes of Ruin creator n-Space, while developer Beenox is working on the Nintendo Wii version.
Skylanders Swap Force will launch in North America on October 13, Australia on October 16, and Europe on October 18.
As part of today's announcement, the company also added PlayStation 4 and Xbox One versions of Swap Force to its multiplatform lineup, joining previously announced ports for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii U, Wii, and Nintendo 3DS.
The Skylanders series allows players to summon playable characters via collectible toy figures. Skylanders Swap Force introduces a new series of toys that can be split in half and reassembled for unique mix-and-match ability combinations. Figures released for previous Skylanders games are also compatible with Swap Force.
Series creator Toys for Bob is taking a break for this year's Skylanders release. The console versions of Swap Force are helmed by Vicarious Visions, who previously tackled the 3DS port of 2011's Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure. The Nintendo 3DS version of Swap Force is being developed by Heroes of Ruin creator n-Space, while developer Beenox is working on the Nintendo Wii version.
Skylanders Swap Force will launch in North America on October 13, Australia on October 16, and Europe on October 18.
Deus Ex is, by nature, a complicated game. You can start by simply moving around a level: There's cover to move in and out of, and stealth movement requires good timing and precision. Then, there's all of the abilities you have, from using various gadgets and weapons to choosing your bio-implants and playing the hacking mini-games. That's a lot of buttons. In making Deus Ex: The Fall for iOS devices, Square Enix Mobile was given the task of putting all those functions into a device that has only one button.
In that respect, the most exciting news about this game is that it works. For the most part, that is. You can't hide bodies, for one thing.
In that respect, the most exciting news about this game is that it works. For the most part, that is. You can't hide bodies, for one thing.

Beyond the fact that Project M.O.J.O has been "designed to interact seamlessly" with Mad Catz's Gamesmart line of peripherals, nothing else is known about the product with regards to its technical specifications, pricing structure or even what its real name is – we're assuming "Project M.O.J.O" won't be going on the box.
Surely, the answers to all (or most) of these questions will be revealed sometime next week, at which point we'll see how Project M.O.J.O stacks up against the Ouya, Gamestick and Gamepop.
This week's Super Joystiq Podcast can now confirm that it requires an Internet connection to play.
It's a one-segment show this week, but that doesn't mean we don't hit the big releases, the news, and even some listener questions. First up, the four man crew of Xav, Richard, Ludwig, and Jordan discuss the two big reviews of the week: The Last of Us and Remember Me.
In news, things start with a breaking news discussion on Microsoft's clarification of the online requirements of the Xbox One. The crew also cover the leaked details of Respawn Entertainment's Xbox/PC exclusive Titanfall, the announcement of Kiefer Sutherland as Snake in Metal Gear Solid 5, and a slew of Twitter questions.
Check back early next week for what will surely be the first of many podcast specials out of E3 2013. Also, due to E3 craziness, there was no live show this week, and subsequently no video after the break per usual, but you can always head to the Joystiq YouTube page for previous weeks' editions.
Listen to the Super Joystiq Podcast: Details and relavent links are available after the break.
It's a one-segment show this week, but that doesn't mean we don't hit the big releases, the news, and even some listener questions. First up, the four man crew of Xav, Richard, Ludwig, and Jordan discuss the two big reviews of the week: The Last of Us and Remember Me.
In news, things start with a breaking news discussion on Microsoft's clarification of the online requirements of the Xbox One. The crew also cover the leaked details of Respawn Entertainment's Xbox/PC exclusive Titanfall, the announcement of Kiefer Sutherland as Snake in Metal Gear Solid 5, and a slew of Twitter questions.
Check back early next week for what will surely be the first of many podcast specials out of E3 2013. Also, due to E3 craziness, there was no live show this week, and subsequently no video after the break per usual, but you can always head to the Joystiq YouTube page for previous weeks' editions.
Listen to the Super Joystiq Podcast: Details and relavent links are available after the break.
Using the PlayStation Eye camera, Daylight will take a picture of the "exact moment that a scare happens." You can then keep the pictures as a novelty, share them on social networks, or just pass them directly to the NSA.
Microsoft's Twisted Pixel studio (The Maw, 'Splosion Man) announced today that its upcoming LocoCycle will be an Xbox One launch title. An Xbox 360 version of the game is also under development, with a "not yet determined" release window.
The game will be playable at E3, but here's a preview of the game from late last year.
This is Portabliss, a column about downloadable games that can be played on the go.
Ron Gilbert's Beep Games has a new game out on iOS called Scurvy Scallywags (subtitle: In the Voyage to Discover the Ultimate Sea Shanty), and it's a match-three puzzle game with light RPG elements and plenty of pirate humor. It's only 99 cents in the App Store right now, and that's probably all of the inspiration you need to go and download it, right matey?Oh all right, ye lousy landlubbers, I can put an X on yer treasure maps for ye. Scallywags is a bit of pirate-infused joy. It's a simple game with mechanics that don't always light the cannon fuse, but it's got enough charm, depth, and solid fun to justify the very cheap cost of admission.
Plus, there are real sea shanties included.
Thief has reportedly had a troubled development. Don't take this live-action E3 trailer – after five years of development – to be a sign of issues. Let's hope we see some real gameplay at E3 next week, since the game is supposed to launch next year. ...
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Dead Island creator Techland wants to bring first-person parkour back onto our screens with Dying Light - and perhaps provide competition for a certain would-be-sequel. While scavenging, combat, and stealth are all being billed as big parts of Dying Light, this CGI trailer shows the kind of agility required to keep your footing - and your flesh - in the game's zombified dystopia.
Dying Light is coming to Xbox One, PS4, PS3, and Xbox 360 next year.
Here's a longer look at Deus Ex: The Fall, the recently announced mobile game set in the world of cyber espionage hacking networks this summer. ...
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The Joystiq Podcast
Super Joystiq Podcast 041: Tomb Raider, SimCity, Runner 2
Latest episode: Friday, March 8th, 2013

