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Batman: Arkham City swoops to PC on November 18

Ben Gilbert — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 11:30:00 EST

Warner Bros. has deemed today the day to reveal Batman: Arkham City's delayed PC launch date as November 18, one month to the day after its arrival on consoles.

The Games for Windows version was delayed last month via a terse WB announcement, which didn't provide an explanation at the time. We can exclusively reveal why today: Bruce Wayne is exhausted, y'all. He's got a lot going on, between film and TV and video games, and he just needed a few weeks to chill. Okay, that and PC version bug fixes.

Continue reading Batman: Arkham City swoops to PC on November 18

Batman: Arkham City swoops to PC on November 18 originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 18 Oct 2011 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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SSFIV Arcade Edition PC to discourage piracy (and frustrate buyers) with 'limited' offline mode

James Ransom-Wiley — Thu, 26 May 2011 17:58:00 EST

Okay, so there is a catch. We figured Capcom had a "solution" in place when it confirmed that Super Street Fighter IV: Arcade Edition was coming to PC. The problem? Piracy -- the threat of which kept Capcom from releasing vanilla SSFIV on PC just a year ago.

In a blog post on Capcom-Unity, company VP Christian Svensson has addressed some "Stuff You Want to Know About SSFIV:AE for PC." Scroll down and you'll get to the catch.

"SFIV unfortunately was plagued by pirates and hackers that messed up leaderboards," Svensson writes of the original iteration on PC (which still sold well by Capcom's earlier account). "To hopefully remedy that, SSFIV:AE will be making use of what is called SSA technology."

While not as random as certain TSA measures -- SSFIV:AE players can still wear shoes and needn't limit their beverages to 3.4-ounce bottles -- the game's Software Security Assurance protocol is no less strict. Players are required to be signed into Games for Windows Live in order to access most of the game's features and content.

In offline mode, SSFIV:AE is reduced to a sort of demo, with players limited to local play only (obviously), but also restricted to 15 of the 39 fighters and unable to save settings or challenges progress. DLC is inaccessible when playing offline, as well.

Should the GWFL connection be lost mid-game, the player is given a chance to sign back in at a "logical break point" -- but should that fail ... you're in demo mode. And if you don't live in a GFWL-supported region? Svensson calls that a "buyer-beware situation."

Prospective purchasers should also be aware that Steam and Impulse will implement their respective "security solutions" (in addition to SSA), and that Steam users won't use GFWL Marketplace to purchase DLC. "We'll provide more details on that wrinkle at a later date," Svensson notes.

SSFIV Arcade Edition PC to discourage piracy (and frustrate buyers) with 'limited' offline mode originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 26 May 2011 17:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Games for Windows Marketplace gets competitive, relaunching Nov. 15

David Hinkle — Fri, 22 Oct 2010 03:01:00 EST

In November, Microsoft will reboot its Games for Windows Marketplace. In doing so, the company aims to beef up its online portal with more games -- and not just those few that align themselves with the Games for Windows Live branding -- and provide a more competitive and comprehensive retail experience. Peter Orullian, who helped develop digital distribution strategies for Xbox Live, has been tapped to effectively manage the relaunch.

Gallery: Games for Windows Marketplace mock-up images (November 2010 relaunch)

Continue reading Games for Windows Marketplace gets competitive, relaunching Nov. 15

Games for Windows Marketplace gets competitive, relaunching Nov. 15 originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 22 Oct 2010 03:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Xbox Game Room bringing arcades back to Xbox 360 and Games for Windows Live users [update 3]

Xav de Matos — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 22:18:00 EST

Update 3: An online fact sheet [.doc link] from Microsoft reveals that the Game Room itself will be free, while games will range in price from 400 ($5) for a dual-license purchase of arcade classics, 240 ($3) for a single-platform license or 40 ($0.50) for "two quarters" worth of play. Users can try arcade titles for free within a friend's room. For full details, check out our follow-up post.

Update 2: According to Major Nelson, Game Room users will have the ability to purchase games for their virtual arcade and play them on both their Xbox 360 and Windows PC. Additionally, new Game Room titles will be made available every week. Users will be able to invite Xbox Live friends into their respective (and customizable) rooms to show off their arcade collection. Stock up on Microsoft Points, kids.

Update 1: During its CES 2010 keynote, Microsoft's Robbie Bach announced 30 arcade titles will be available in the Xbox Game Room when the service launches this spring for the Xbox 360 and Games for Windows Live.

Original: Hours following a leaked interview featuring Robbie Bach, Microsoft has confirmed the existence of a virtual arcade room for Xbox Avatars via this trailer unveiled at CES 2010. The Xbox Game Room is slated to hit the Xbox 360 and Games for Windows Live this spring, allowing players to visit a virtual room filled with classic arcade titles. According to the video, users will be able to customize their arcade rooms (presumably for Microsoft funny money) and challenge friends to a plethora of original arcade versions of games such as Centipede, Outlaw, and Star Raiders.

The news that Game Room will also launch for Games For Windows Live raises the question, will the service see Avatars added in the near future? As the upcoming arcade is centered around entertainment for your virtual identity, we'd hope the service would see an interface upgrade bringing it closer to the Xbox's current NXE, rather than locking our poor Avatars up inside of an executable program.

Xbox Game Room bringing arcades back to Xbox 360 and Games for Windows Live users [update 3] originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 06 Jan 2010 22:18:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Metareview: Shadowrun (Xbox 360, PC)

Ludwig Kietzmann — Tue, 05 Jun 2007 20:32:00 EST

Filed under: Microsoft Xbox 360, First Person Shooters, Metareviews

As far as weird decisions go, exhuming a popular pen-and-paper RPG franchise and transforming it into a cross-platform shooter isn't nearly as disastrous as you might expect. Indeed, most Shadowrun reviewers concur that the gameplay is enjoyable and pleasingly distinct from your space donut shootouts. As for the decisions that led to a dearth of single-player content and a comically high price tag, well, those are every bit as disastrous as you'd expect.

Eurogamer (6/10) considers Shadowrun to be a "well-designed, well-conceived game," but faults its anemic features and "counter-productive" price. "There's nothing wrong with a game choosing to specialise in either offline or online experience, of course," notes Kieron Gillen. "But if you decide to completely ignore one pole of the experience, you have to offer something generally astounding and/or groundbreaking to justify yourselves."
Gamespot (6.9/10) feels the game, which is "about $30 too expensive," makes poor use of the Shadowrun license and doesn't offer enough variety. Despite finding the combat unique and the customization choices to be meaningful, Jeff "8.8" Gerstmann ultimately labels Shadowrun as "a pretty shallow experience."
IGN (6.8/10) loathes the game's presentation, one of many criticisms it piles atop the "well-designed nucleus of gameplay." Charles Onyett finds the whole thing to be unrewarding, explaining that, "As gamers, it's rewards we crave, be it of the narrative variety, in-game items, new options or modes, or something entirely different."

It's a shame to see Shadowrun providing "something different" to a crowded genre, only to clumsily stumble its way into the retail world with a heavy price on its back. We're sure the brilliant executives at Microsoft will pin the blame for inhibited sales on the license itself: "What? Shadowrun tanked? Well, that could only be due to the fact that nobody likes the Shadowrun universe anymore! Let's put that one back in the closet, eh chaps?"

Read -- Metacritic on the PC version
Read -- Metacritic on the Xbox 360 version

Metareview: Shadowrun (Xbox 360, PC) originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 05 Jun 2007 20:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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