Category: Platforms

Parent Category for All Gaming Platforms discussed on Twinstiq

What We Know About Microsoft’s 2015 E3 Plans

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Microsoft is trying to cater to core gamers with the Xbox One as they leave behind the focus on Kinect and entertainment media. This June, Microsoft will try and push their exclusive lineup, advanced accessories, and still provide surprises that will try to get a lock on the US market once again, according to independent analyst Billy Pidgeon. Here's a breakdown of what we know about Microsoft's E3 presentation so far.
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  • There will be live coverage by Major Nelson, Graeme Boyd / Xbox Live's Acey Bongos, with guest stars from various developers collaborating with Microsoft.


  • Microsoft's E3 presentation will take place June 15th at 9:30am PT / 12:30pm ET, and will last 90 minutes.

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  • Assassin's Creed Syndicate, Battleborn, Call of Duty: Black Ops 3, Destiny Expansions, Divinity: Original Sin Enhanced Edition, Doom 3, Forza 6, Guitar Hero Live, Magic Duels: Origins, Naruto Ultimate Ninja Storm 4, Rock Band 4, and Star Wars: Battlefront are all games for Xbox One that are confirmed by IGN to be at E3 in some form.

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  • There are rumors that Microsoft will launch a hard core controller, going after hard core FPS and driving game fans.


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  • There will be "a lot of surprises," according to head of US Xbox Marketing Aaron Greenberg. The holiday lineup will be detailed, including Halo 5, Tomb Raider, Forza Motorsport 6, Fable Legends, all Xbox One exclusives.


  • You can watch the Microsoft E3 keynote presentation on xbox.com live.

Are there any titles or announcements you're hoping for in particular?

New Steam Store Releases: The Witcher 3

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Again we see that the stand-out release on a digital store this week is none other than the The Witcher 3. And it seems to be with good reason, if our own First Look at the game is any indication. Also out this week is an update of a controversial classic, a Minecraft clone with guns, and an old-school cyberpunk adventure game. Track your quarry past the break to see more of this week's new releases.
[Image: CD Projekt RED]

Andrew J Amideo

New Nintendo eShop Releases: Mega May (Week 3)

Mega May continues this week with the release of Mega Man Zero 2 for the Wii U Game Boy Advance Virtual Console. If you've never played any of the Zero series games before, I'd highly recommend giving one of them a try. They are all excellent. Also out this week is the Mario edition of Puzzle & Dragons for the 3DS, and the Super Nintendo port of an old arcade shmup called Earth Defense Force (no relation to the current series). Get ready, equip your Z-Saber, and then jump past the break to see the complete list of new releases.
Wii U

3DS

[Image: Capcom]

Andrew J Amideo
[Source: Business Wire]

Windows 10 Beta on Xbox One Time Frame

An Xbox One Beta of Windows 10 will be coming after the operating system launches on PC. "It will be post-summer," tweets Phil Spencer, head of Microsoft's Xbox Division.
We already know that Windows 10 will feature many Xbox apps and services, such as native support for friends lists, messaging, and activity feed, Xbox Live support, Game Streaming, Game DVR. On the Xbox One, DirectX 12, and Windows 10 app support will be coming, as well as the possibility of "universal" games that run both on Windows PC and Xbox One hardware.

What else could be shared between the two? Do you hope to see a dashboard overhaul on the Xbox, or mostly a behind the scenes update?

Source: Neowin

Nvidia and AMD in Each Others’ Hair

Like AMD's TressFX before it, Nvidia's HairWorks is a software routine that's optimized for their own GPU line. Nvidia's technology is closed source, making it difficult for AMD to optimize routines in the software to run better on their GPUs.  This results in lower performance for users when it is enabled on AMD hardware.
A CD Projekt Red developer says "unsatisfactory performance may be experienced, as the code of this feature cannot be optimized for AMD products."
The incentive for a GPU manufacturer to develop a proprietary API optimized for their hardware is high, especially if it raises their product above the competition. For game developers, the main draw in using these APIs is help from the hardware maker, or sometimes a marketing deal. Many games have sported the "Nvidia: The Way It's Meant to be Played" splash screens. In other markets there are similar strategies, Intel has their own code compiler optimized for their CPUs, for example.

Perhaps these features would never have made it in if it weren't from help from the hardware developer, but this situation unfortunately results in a fragmentation of the end user experience.

High end graphics cards are expensive, so it would be difficult to justify buying both an AMD and Nvidia GPU to have the optimal experience at any given time. As a PC gamer, what do you make of this situation?

Source: ArsTechnica

Rumour: Armello [And Other Games] Potentially Coming To GOG? [Update!   Rumour confirmed]

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This post has been updated with new information, please see the final paragraph for the update.

While browsing through the GOG releases from the past few years, I stumbled across – hidden way deep down in the bowels of pages and pages of games – potential listings for Armello, Nekro, Starcrawlers, World of Magic and Satellite Reign.

For a little more information about each of the games and what might be going on with regards to their potential release to the GOG store, feel free to head past the break.

None of these are for sale yet, and all of these might turn out to be false positives, but it is worth noting that Armello, Starcrawlers and Worlds of Magic at least, have store pages.  Right now, all one can do on these is wish list the game in question – the other two simply lead to the listing of games you might have been looking at whenever you click on them.
The Game Page for Armello listing it's various GOG attributes plus the ability to wishlist it.

Would I like to wishlist Armello? If I could do it more than once, I totally would.


Nekro seems like a strategy/rpg hybrid in the vein of games like Sacrifice, Overlord and Dungeon Keeper where you use a necromancer to summon vile demons to aid your cause in taking over everything and everyone that stands in your path.

Nekro released to early access on 2 May, 2014

Satellite Reign looks to be a modernized, more colourful version of Syndicate. In Satellite Reign you take a handful of soldiers and let them loose on a cyberpunk-influenced world.

Satellite Reign has no release date attached to it but went into Early Access on 11 December, 2014.

Starcrawlers is a Legend of Grimrock in space.  It is essentially a turn-based role playing game in which you play a collection of Crawlers [folks who take jobs for fame, fortune and the like] who roam around the galaxy.

Starcrawlers released into early access on 17 March, 2015

Worlds of Magic is essentially Master of Magic for modern machines.  This means that it is a fantasy-styled 4x game that is turn-based.  In Worlds of Magic, you create a hero from a faction who attempts to control the land via spellcraft, diplomacy or pure force.

Worlds of Magic released to Steam on 19 March, 2015

Armello is a dark, turn-based fantasy-themed board game that has card-game and strategy elements.  It utilizes a Studio Ghibli approach to its visuals, which are quite charming.  Each of the factions you can play is an anthropomorphic animal of some sort.

Armello released into early access on 22 January, 2015

One of the potential reasons none of these are out on Gog yet is that they are all in Early Access [except for Worlds of Magic] and have yet to move into 1.0/release status.  Gog generally doesn’t tend to sell games that are still in a beta of some persuasion.

Update!  Armello is confirmed for a GOG release at some stage.

Source:  Gog Games Listing [this WILL change with time as more games are added to the GOG list]

Source:  Armello Game Page

Updated Source:  Tweet confirming that Armello is coming to GOG

Humble Sale Day 13

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2 Days to go, and a new round of publisher deals that accompany those: Telltale Games, Focus Home Interactive and Nordic Games.

On the Telltale side you can go for pretty much everything besides Jurassic Park, Nordic offers Darksiders 1&2 for -80%, Red Faction Guerrilla for -75% and if you are into click and point adventure games Unwritten Tales for -80%, and Focus has the enjoyable, but rough Sherlock Holmes games on sale (-50/75%).
Deals of the day, by Dr. S:

Proteus -80%
Not much of a game, but great for relaxation. Stroll through a beautiful and mysterious pixel-art world, not much else to say, not much else to do. Still a nice experience though.

OlliOlli -75%
Think Tony Hawks Pro Skater in 2D with 1 life per run. If you already own the sequel, you can skip this one, but if not: go for it.

Botanicula -80%
A highly creative and fun point and click, with an amazing soundtrack. Most puzzles are weird and might require some thinking outside the box, but far from impossible. Great game and really cheap.

Freedom Planet -63%
Disclaimer: I’ve never actually played this myself, but word on the “street” is, that this is the best classic Sonic game available. Probably will buy it myself.

Home -77%
Can a horror game work in 2D? Home proves: yes, it can. The atmosphere is so thick, you couldn’t even slice it (you know, because it’s so thick it’s hard? Does that make any sense?). Most of it comes from the superb sound design, so make sure to play it with headphones. It’s dirt cheap, so if you like horror games, give this one a try.

Little Inferno -72%
One of my favorite games ever. Again not much of a game, because all you do for the most part is burn stuff, but the deeper message in it and how it’s delivered is great. It’s a very unique experience, calming and smart at the same time.

The Evil Within’s Final Piece of DLC Coming May 26th

The Evil Within's final episodic download will be released May 26th, priced at $4.99. Different from the previous story-focused and stealth-heavy DLC, this add-on will pit players in battle arenas against signature enemies, earning you new weapons and upgrades as you progress.
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You play as The Keeper, and this safe-headed maniac's back story will be uncovered as you explore the Manor House of the Victoriano Estate. Brutal melee attacks can be executed in the first person, offering a new gruesome perspective on the mayhem.
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Source: Gematsu