Blog Archives
Verizon and Redbox To Take on Netflix?
Will this be able to keep up with Netflix?
Verizon and Coinstar announced today that they will be teaming up for a new video streaming service in the second half of this year.
Coinstar, the parent company of Redbox, has been saying for some time now that video streaming was a priority for its DVD rental kiosk empire. While other rumors had been going around for a some time now that Verizon was possibly looking to purchase Netflix as it wanted to enter the video streaming market, it seems that Big Red is instead going to go the route of starting something entirely new while helping Redbox out with its dreams.
Details on the new service are very light at this time with the press release only stating that the new service will offer “subscription services and more in an easy-to-use, flexible and affordable service that will allow all consumers across the U.S. to enjoy the new and popular entertainment they want, whenever they choose, using the media and devices they prefer.” Beyond that there is no name as of yet, no clue as to what the cost will be, if any plans will include rentals from kiosks or what content partners they have signed agreements with. Suspicions are running strong that all of that information will be held back until closer to the launch date in the latter half of this year.
The number of streaming options out there is quickly growing with Netflix, Hulu and Amazon already in the marketplace, and with the money behind Verizon and Coinstar now coming into play, it could get very messy, very quickly.
Twisted Metal Demo For PS3 Finally Realeased
Twisted Metal is Back!
If you’re at all interested in the work being done by David Jaffe and the folks at Eat Sleep Play on the brand new Twisted Metal, the game’s official demo is now available on the PlayStation Network.
Twisted Metal is the relaunch of an old brand that hasn’t seen a new console game since 2001. It’s a series that was (and likely still is) adored by fans and known by almost everyone who has played games for a decent stint of time.
Here’s something that will probably shock the older gamers among us: the original Twisted Metal released back in 1995. I vividly remember playing the game for weeks on end at a friend’s house when it first released. We were fans of the franchise and bought into the original, its sequel and the third title. I still remember being disappointed by Twisted Metal III; it just didn’t feel as good as the other games.
I have still not had a chance to check out this new Twisted Metal. I don’t even think I’ve seen it in motion outside of trailers and assets. I’ll be snagging this demo later today, for sure, and will probably wind up dumping way too much time into it than I can afford. I know going in that my first concern will be whether or not the gameplay model still makes sense under today’s standards.
The full Twisted Metal for the PlayStation 3 will release on February 14th. If you buy the game early, as this offer is limited to the first few batches produced, you’ll get a voucher code to download Twisted Metal: Black (released on the PlayStation 2 in 2001) for free.
Mass Effect 3 Has A Multiplayer Trailer!
Mass Effect 3 coming to three major systems March 6!
Mass Effect 3′s Multiplayer Gets a Trailer!
Here is the trailer!
Mass Effect 3 will have a cooperative multiplayer element. The mode is called “Galaxy at War,” and what players team up and do within it will actually affect the outcome of the single player campaign. Completing the missions will supposedly give players higher odds of attaining a perfect ending for the game.
It’s not mandatory, but it looks like skipping the multiplayer mode entirely will affect your single player experience. I’m not sure how to feel about that.
You’ll play brand new characters here, as no one from the campaign is playable. Although, as the trailer above shows, at least Commander Shepard will make a cameo in the multiplayer mode.
BioWare’s Patrick Weekes, Senior Writer for Mass Effect 3, wrote up a blog post to accompany the multiplayer trailer. In it, he takes time to lay out a step by step gameplan for playing with a Vanguard on your team. Having one in your party, according to Weekes, dramatically changes the way battle scenarios should be played.
It’s an interesting read that sheds some light on the tactical nature of the multiplayer experience in Mass Effect 3.
You’ll be able to try the multiplayer side of this game when the title’s demo launches on February 14th. Mass Effect 3 will officially drop for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC platforms on March 6th, 2012.
Mass Effect 3 Is Much Easier to Understand
Will you be understanding this new game?
If you played Mass Effect 2 without playing Mass Effect 1 (like me), then you’ll be able to attest to the fact that certain moments in the game simply didn’t make sense. For me, and playing the second without playing the first came down to a matter of free time, reading story summaries and fan wikis didn’t account for every plot detail referenced throughout the sequel’s campaign.
Of course, I never once complained about the references to the original. It was my fault for skipping the first, and I fully welcomed BioWare‘s decision to reward players that completed Mass Effect in its proper order.
For Mass Effect 3, however, BioWare aims to eliminate this problem for brand new gamers. Nick Clifford, who’s responsible for Product Marketing on Mass Effect 3, spoke with IGN about handling new players with the third beat in this trilogy:
“In all honesty, we didn’t do a really good job of new player orientation…If you didn’t play the first game then 2 was pretty jarring for the first half hour…
…If I’m a new player and some guy walks up to me and is like ‘Ohhhh Shepard! Remember that one time?’ I would be like ‘No. I don’t remember that one time’…So we wanted to make sure that there aren’t those moments that the player is like, ‘Who is this? What’s going on? What are they talking about?’”
According to IGN, BioWare will accomplish that by including a “story so far narrative” in the game for those that play without previous Mass Effect save files; they don’t detail the feature much more beyond that.
I will say this: having played the sequel without playing the original, I can’t possibly fathom jumping into the trilogy at its conclusion. So much happens between the first two games that starting off with the third doesn’t make much sense. If money and time are your enemies, then maybe I can see doing it. Otherwise? Play the games.
Mass Effect 3 drops for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC on March 6th, 2012.
BioShock Infinate Gamplay and New Modes!
Check out the E3 Gameplay here!!
Irrational Games have announced that BioShock Infinite, the third game below the BioShock series, will have a brand new 1999 mode of play within. This mode will make the choices gamers make permanent, and progress a little more challenging for the campaign in this upcoming title.
The “1999″ bit is a reference to one of Irrational Games‘ earlier works, System Shock 2. 1999 was the year that game released. At the onset of BioShock 2, players had to pick a path and stick with it throughout the game. Even further, every choice in the game was final and had huge impacts on how the player would experience the title.
The 1999 Mode in BioShock Infinite will cash-in on that sense of play, and that’s something that a lot of diehard fans really want. Here’s the message from Ken Levine, Creative Director at Irrational Games, regarding the fan influence in adding this mode:
“I’m an old school gamer. We wanted to make sure we were taking into account the play styles of gamers like me. So we went straight to the horse’s mouth by asking them, on our website, a series of questions about how they play our games. 94.6 percent of respondents indicated that upgrade choices enhanced their BioShock gameplay experience; however, 56.8 percent indicated that being required to make permanent decisions about their character would have made the game even better.”
Where do you stand when it comes to making permanent, game-changing decisions in titles like BioShock?
BioShock Infinite will launch for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC in 2012! Are you as excited to see this game as I am?
Mass Effect 3 Has Kinect Operation, and a Launch Date!
Mass Effect 3 coming to three major systems March 6!
EA and BioWare announced today that a Mass Effect 3 demo will be made available on the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC platforms on February 14th, 2012.
“The extensive demo will allow players to experience the all-out galactic war against an ancient alien race known as the Reapers from multiple fronts, including the mind-blowing opening attack on Earth that kicks off the single-player campaign. Players will go deeper into the campaign and also get a taste of the franchise’s new co-operative multiplayer mode as they preview the epic story, adrenaline-pumping action and deep customization options that lie ahead when Mass Effect 3 launches on March 6, 2012.” (EA and Bioware press release)
Xbox 360 gamers with the Kinect add-on in operation alongside their console will also be able to sample the voice control features touted back at Microsoft’s E3 conference. Gamers will be able to give voice commands to companions in battle as well as use their voices to select dialogue options when those moments approach.
This is the first pre-launch demo to support full Kinect voice recognition functionality, according to a blip in the release.
Mass Effect 3 will launch for all three platforms on March 6th, less than two months from today and one month from the demo.
Final episode? What do you think we will see in the final game?
Starhawk Finally Getting A Date!
Today marks the first day of the Starhawk public beta period that’s opening up the PlayStation 3 owners. The beta itself will roll out to a different set of users over the next month; gamers with PlayStation Plus subscriptions will have acces to the action today. Here’s the full schedule, as shared by the PlayStation Blog:
January 17: All PlayStation Plus subscribers and all Private Beta participants (who haven’t erased their original Private Beta files). You can learn more about PS Plus here.
January 31: UNCHARTED 3 Beta key holders. These voucher codes were found inside of North American copies of UNCHARTED 3.
February 7: Visit GameStop and PlayStation on Facebook and see how you can get early voucher codes.
February 14: IGN.com (details to be revealed soon)
February 21: Everyone with a PlayStation Network account…in other words, everyone who wants in, gets in!
In addition to the beta’s opening and the brand new trailer you see above, Sony officially announced the release date for the spiritual successor to Warhawk. Starhawk will launch for the PlayStation 3 on May 8th, 2012.
As the trailer indicates, Sony plans to rely on feedback from the beta period to make this gaming experience as good as it can be. If you do happen to partake in this free multiplayer madness, make sure you do your part and provide a bit of commentary regarding what you liked and hated within the experience. That includes reporting bugs. Here are Sony’s instructions for doing so:
Where do you report bugs?
Go to http://us.playstation.com/psn/ and use your PSN ID to log in. All Beta players will get private access to the Beta forums. If you find a bug, post it here, but remember, we need specific steps on how to reproduce your issue. You can also visit www.StarhawkTheGame.com and have discussions on our official forums. But please use the Beta forums to post any bugs.
Are you as excited as I am for this epic addition? Tell us what you think!
Welcome to Toys and Geek
Toys and Geek
Hello my friends, my name is Steven Trudeau, Editor at Large for ToysandGeek.com. I am here today just to give you an idea of what we are going to be doing for all of you. At ToysandGeek.com we are going to be bringing all types of news and reviews right to your computer or phone.
We have broken ourselves down into two major groups; toys, and technology. For everything included in toys we have our hands on items found at Comicon, Disney Theme Parks, and new releases from Hasbro and many other major toy companies. The Technology portion is a bit more in depth however. This includes everything from new technology releases, reviews on different mobile devices, computers, movies, video games, and systems.
I love technology and Toys, from all of us here at ToysandGeek.com, we thank you for reading and hope you stay tuned for more content soon to come!