PlayStation News Message Board older than one year ago
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Here it is! The most anticipated day of 2014 from all of us at Tribute Games: the launch of Mercenary Kings on PS4!
It’s a thrill for us to finally share this labor of love (and explosions, tanks, maniacal warlords…) with all of you. Mercenary Kings air drops you into a colorful world of stylized, cartoonish warfare. When the Cybernetic Loyalist Active Weapon clan (CLAW) steals the Mandrake Formula, capable of reshaping any living thing into a dangerous weapon, King and Empress are sent in to retrieve it. CLAW’s leader, Commander Byron Baron — aided with his dog Alpha and a cloned army of miscreants — controls the entire laboratory base of Mandragora Island and seeks to make it the birthplace of a new, terrifying age.
Assisted by their own crew of experts, the Kings take on a multitude of missions where they must slice and blast their way through Baron’s band of bad guys, retrieve the formula, and save global peace.
Mercenary Kings might feel like something from the 16-bit past, but — like the Kings’ weapons — it’s crafted with brand new pieces into an explosive, modern package. Vanquished enemies drop a variety of materials that you can later craft into almost anything to give you an edge against CLAW. You can build with more than 300 firearm parts to mix and match into any weapon you can think of.
Build a scary-looking rifle, or a toilet-shaped machine gun. Or forge impressive or incredibly silly blades. Scavenged parts can be made into stronger armor, or turned into bio-mods, upgrading your mercenary’s strengths and reducing his weaknesses. Fruits from the jungle become ability-granting meals. Mercenary Kings’ boasts IMMENSE crafting mechanics that spread throughout the gameplay.
The areas in which you find these materials are not mere obstacle courses, but huge environments in which you can explore and find new treasures, fulfill secret mission objectives, hunt massive bosses, or find hidden resistance operatives.
Sometimes, a mission might just seem TOO BIG for one mercenary. But that’s no problem, because Mercenary Kings offers multiplayer options (both online and local) and three other mercenaries can join in on the CLAW-smashing fun. Is there a better way to cement friendship than going out and toppling a madman’s empire? We don’t think so.
Do you want to join the fight against Commander Baron? Mercenary Kings is available for PS4 on PlayStation Store today! Time to grab a controller and get ready to kick some CLAW!
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Ragnarok Odyssey ACE on PS3 and PS Vita is a game about slaying giants, and now that we’re finally at launch, some of us feel like we’ve fought one ourselves!
Not just because it’s a large game, although it certainly is. ACE is a massively expanded version of the original Ragnarok Odyssey, with enough new content to make it about twice the size this time around. The most prominent new feature is a 400-story tower, with enough monsters and new story content to fill it; you’ll see that once you reach the original game’s ending, which is now the new game’s midpoint. Throughout the game, you’ll also discover new character skills, new weapon types, new NPC sidekicks, and a slew of other new features and conveniences.
ACE is the first Ragnarok Odyssey game to appear on PS3 as well as PSVita, with readily available cross play (for up to four players) and cross saving between the two. The game also allows players to import their save data from the original Ragnarok Odyssey, bringing over their character’s name, appearance, and cards (except for any cards equipped on their outfit or acquired through NEAR) for a new trip through the expanded game.
The game’s developers, GameArts and GungHo, had to rewrite much of their infrastructure just to make those features possible (which is one of several reasons why ACE couldn’t have been a regular DLC pack). On our end, making all those features available in North America has involved extensive QA, bulk data entry, and working side by side with PlayStation every step of the way. (On that note, thanks to everybody on the PlayStation team who helped us through the process!)
At launch, you’ll see a dozen different available downloadable packs in the ACE section of PlayStation Store. Seven of those packs are costume pieces from the original Ragnarok Odyssey; if you’ve played the original, and you already own one or more of those packs, you’ll be able to re-download those same packs you already own for free in the new game*, as a “thank you” for coming back. (Newcomers can pick up those seven packs for $0.99 per pack.)
There are also five other packs available at launch: two extensive collections of musical tracks (both free forever), a collection of costume pieces from Grandia (also free forever), and two other costume downloads, the Royal Ball Outfit Set and the Gorgeous Headwear Set, both of which will be free for the first two months as a bonus to early adopters.
We’re on schedule to release three or four packs of absolutely free DLC every week from the start of April until the start of June. Each of those weekly releases will include one set of licensed costumes from various other games, plus two or three other goodies, such as other costume pieces or special quests.
All those things together have built up to a fair-sized mountain of a project — at least by the standards of a small company like ours — but we’ve only got a little time for a breather before the next step comes our way. Very soon, we’ll be working with the developers and PlayStation to bring you a major content patch for ACE, which will include new server-based quests, daily login bonuses, leaderboards, a new boss rush mode called Prison of the Gods, and a variety of other features, most of which will be accessible from the Norn Exchange in-game.
We’d like to thank new fans and those returning for checking the game out, and we hope you enjoy all the shiny new features and hefty new content. Ragnarok Odyssey ACE debuts today, in both physical and digital form, for PS3 ($39.99) and PS Vita ($34.99 for digital, $39.99 for the first print-run Launch Edition physical version — which includes a nice soundtrack CD). Happy hunting!
*We’d like to clarify previously released information regarding the seven costume packs from the original game: Each of those seven packs is only free if a player already owns the original game’s version of that specific pack. Our apologies the information was not clear when we initially announced it.
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Today marks the release of the Insurgent Pack, the first major multiplayer expansion pack for Killzone Shadow Fall. In addition to the new Insurgent character class, this pack adds a ton of exciting new content to the Killzone Shadow Fall multiplayer experience.
Here’s a full breakdown of everything you’ll get with the Insurgent Pack:
The Insurgent
The Insurgent is a brand new multiplayer class with two unique abilities: Steal and Hack.
- Steal ability: The Insurgent starts out with only a pistol, but his ‘Steal’ ability allows him to swipe weapons and abilities from downed enemies. The use of stolen abilities is limited, but the Insurgent can continue to use stolen weapons throughout the game – even if he falls in combat. Stolen abilities are l
- Hack ability: By using the ‘Hack’ ability, the Insurgent can change enemy ground automata into friendlies, swiftly turning the tide of battle.
3 New Abilities
The Assault, Support and Scout classes receive additional abilities, which have been balanced against the existing counters and abilities:
- E-Pulse Emitter: A deployable beacon for the Assault class that sends out an E-Pulse, making it difficult for enemy units to install automata in that area.
- Tactical Echo Emitter: A deployable beacon for the Support class that sends out a Tactical Echo from a fixed location, making the area hard to infiltrate by hidden enemy units.
- Guard Drone: A stationary buddy drone for the Scout class – deploy it in one place and it guards the location from a ground level.
3 New Weapons
These classic Killzone weapons are added for the Scout, Assault and Support classes. When dropped, other players can use them as well.
- M82: The legendary ISA assault rifle makes a triumphant return for the Support!
- StA-14: A sturdy Helghast battle rifle for the long-range combat arsenal of the Scout.
- LS12 SMG Pistol: Also known as the M66, this sidearm for the Assault packs considerable punch.
2 New Game Modes
- Campaign Elite Mode: The nightmarish difficulty of the Elite Mode will test even the hardest of warriors. Can you beat Killzone Shadow Fall’s single player campaign on the hardest difficulty level with only three lives?
- Multiplayer Collectibles Mode: Insurgent Pack owners can hunt for online collectible crates during matches to earn points and win in-game rewards!
New Trophies and Challenges
New content means a new set of Trophies and Challenges to unlock. Here is the full Trophy list for the Insurgent Pack:
Bronze Hacktivist Reach the maximum level for the Hacking Ability. Bronze Kleptomania Reach the maximum level for the Stealing Ability. Bronze All Flavors Make a kill with all primary weapons as an Insurgent. Bronze Finders Keepers Collect 25 Online Collectibles. Bronze Remember Me? Make 25 kills with each one of the Retro weapons. Silver New Toys! Reach the maximum level for the E-Pulse Emitter, Tactical Echo Emitter, and Guard Drone. Gold Like A Boss Finish the game in Elite mode.Expansion trophies will not be required for Platinum.
Insurgent Personalization Pack
To top it off, the Insurgent Pack comes with personalization content, including:
- 3 Spotlight Moves: Humiliate your enemies with the Head Kick, the Finger Breaker and the C4.
- 1 Voice Pack: New multiplayer battle chatter voices for both Helghast and VSA factions, designed to match the Insurgent character’s devious personality and style of play.
- 1 OWL Skin: Inspired by the stealth bomber paint scheme, this will give your combat automata a sleek and stealthy appearance.
The Insurgent Pack will be available later today on PlayStation Store for $9,99. You can also get it for free with the Season Pass, which gives you the best value for all essential Killzone Shadow Fall multiplayer DLC!
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Experimental Gamer is proud to announce that the Wild West-flavored RPG Boot Hill Heroes is now on PlayStation Mobile. The first game in a three part saga, Boot Hill Heroes has been in development for three years and is finally ready for the PlayStation community.
The premise of the game goes like this; after an alleged attack by the Chepakwik Native American tribe, Bronco County is on the brink of war. Only a farm boy who knows the truth can stop it. Together with three companions – a gun slinging desperado, a Native American princess, and a Calamity Jane – he must expose a conspiracy by bringing to justice the six outlaws of the notorious Saints-Little Gang.
Imagine those classic RPGs of the 90s (Final Fantasy, Earthbound, Chrono Trigger) but reinvented as a gritty, spaghetti western with vicious outlaws, brave lawmen and the untamed wilderness. It’s a journey through cow towns, Native American villages, ranches, mines, prisons, and into the soul of the American Wild West.
But what makes Boot Hill Heroes more than just being a Dragon Quest game based in the Wild West, is its fast-paced, real-time/turn-based hybrid combat. You must stay on your toes, as victory is determined not only by what actions are chosen but when they are executed!
And what RPG could be complete without an epic musical score? We have the terrific and prolific Jake ‘virt’ Kaufman behind the soundtrack – the genius behind titles like “Shantae,” “DuckTales Remastered,” “Double Dragon Neon,” and too many other masterful soundtracks to name here.
Finally, Boot Hill Heroes is coming to PlayStation Mobile with exclusive content, “The Hangman’s Ballad.” In this side story, featuring new areas, weapons, and bosses, you must traverse a treacherous mountain pass to track down a blood-thirsty outlaw.
Gameplay Strategies:
- Talk to people! Not only do conversations with the residents of Bronco County add flavor to the story, but occasionally their words will give you various “perks” that assist you in combat.
- Try out new Vantages as you learn them and consider their effectiveness. Even if a Vantage does not appear useful at first glance, it may be effective in the right situation or when used with other complementary Vantages.
- Anticipate your opponent’s attacks by looking for the white line indicator on their power bar. If the indicator is further to the right of the power bar then, the cost is greater, and you can assume the attack is likely to cause more damage. Make sure your characters activate an evasive or blocking stance before the attack is executed to mitigate that damage.
- Likewise, if an opponent is using an evasive or blocking stance, it might be a good idea to wait until the stance wears off and conserve your power. Or else, use a stunning attack to force them to drop the stance immediately.
- Pummeling your enemy with status ailments is often a good strategy. Keep in mind that status ailment-causing vantages will stack with status ailment-causing weapons. For example, using the “Flame Arrow” Vantage with a bow that is already imbued with fire attributes will further increase the chances it will set the enemy ablaze.
- Look around for materials you can pick up in towns and in the wilderness. Materials can be sold for cash to buy better equipment. They can also be used to imbue weapons and armor with various status ailments and properties.
- Winning a challenging battle often comes down to using the right move and the right time. So if a battle becomes too heated, keep in mind you can pause the battle clock at any time and carefully queue up your actions.
Want to know more about the story, mechanics, or cool features of Boot Hill Heroes? Ask me in the comments below! Also you can reach out to me through Twitter or our website.
PS Vita owners can download Boot Hill Heroes from the PlayStation Mobile section of PlayStation Store for $7.49; Owners of PlayStation certified devices such as the Sony Xperia Z1S smartphone, HTC One or Sony Xperia Tablet Z, can also get it through the PlayStation Mobile Store. Click here for a full list of the certified devices or here for installation instructions.
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The Major League Baseball season has started, so now it’s time to see how your team will do when you’re controlling all of the action as MLB 14 The Show launches today on PS3 and PS Vita. The Show is the highest rated sports video game over the past eight years, and we at San Diego Studio want The Show to keep getting better, because we think baseball is better. We feel incredibly fortunate that our game will be available across three different platforms this year, so that every PlayStation gamer can experience all of the new additions that we incorporated into The Show.
You can pick up a copy today and check out our new additions, which include: Quick Counts, which helps you play a full nine-inning baseball game in less than 30 minutes, a revamped Road To The Show experience, and an all-new Online Franchise mode. Also, don’t forget to check out the PlayStation Sports Pack Vol. 1 as well, which includes both MLB 14 The Show and NBA2K14 for PlayStation 3.
This year’s version of The Show will be feature complete on PS3, and when our PS4 version launches on May 6th, you’ll be able to carry over all your save data to the next generation. So, dust off your cleats, get in the box, and get ready to take your team to the World Series, because MLB The Show is finally here.
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Hey! This is Jakub from Grip Games. I’m here today to announce that we’re bringing our incredible racer/platformer hybrid franchise, Jet Car Stunts, to PS3, PS4, and PS Vita.
If you haven’t heard about Jet Car Stunts before, it’s a critically-acclaimed racing franchise that originated on mobile. Jet Car Stunts is unique because it lets you drive a Jet Car — a combination of a race car and a jet plane — and sends you on an adrenaline-fuelled race, miles above the ground.
This version of Jet Car Stunts is a remake of the original game. We’ve redone everything — the graphics are new to match the PS3 and PS4 level of visual quality, we’ve added new cars, new game modes, asynchronous multiplayer, and DualShock controls. But we’ve left everything that makes Jet Car Stunts great… the thrills, the crashes, the need for precision, and the obsession to improve your times again and again.
Jet Car Stunts is like nothing you’ve seen before — from its sleek style to gravity-defying stunts. It’s as much a platformer as it is a racing game. You’ll be required to strategically use your jet engine’s fuel to help you jump over incredible distances, from one platform to another. You’ll be doing loops, corkscrew maneuvers, you’ll be freefalling and avoiding obstacles, and you’ll be drifting near the edges of platforms.
Jet Car Stunts will be released simultaneously for PS3 and PS Vita, followed later by the PS4 version that will contain even shinier graphics and effects. You’ll definitely be hearing more about the game here on PlayStation.Blog as the release date comes closer.
In the meantime, you can follow the game via our Facebook, Twitter, or the game’s official webpage.
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It’s been a very forward-looking week on PlayStation.Blog, from this list of every game coming to PS4 in 2014, to our first look at upcoming PS4 stunners Alien: Isolation and Batman: Arkham Knight, this year is shaping up pretty nicely so far!
The indie dimension-bender Fez and Destiny of Spirits are out now, Hatsune Miku is getting an encore in North America, we still love PlayStation developers (1,000 and counting!), April’s PS Plus Instant Game Collection got an official unveil, There’s a handy new PS Vita system software update available, and Ubisoft dropped a hot new trailer for Watch_Dogs that details the finer points of their futuristic Chicago.
Dark Souls II still rules my life — 45 hours in and I think I’m getting near the end… but I could be horribly, maddeningly wrong. Who else is playing? Have you finished it yet?
- I’m playing: Dark Souls II, Luftrausers
- I’m watching: Seinfeld, Dark Souls II Twitch streams
- I’m listening to: The TowerFall Ascension soundtrack (so good)
PlayStation Blogcast 114
This Week’s PlayStation Store Update
This Week’s PlayStation Plus Update
Most-Watched Video of the Week
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The EA Flash Sale offers a lineup of games for up to 75 percent off, now through Monday, March 31 at noon PT. Games on sale include Alice: Madness Returns for $10, Battlefield 4 for $25, Battlefield 1943 for $5, Dead Space 3 Ultimate Edition for $31.50, Madden NFL 25 for $25 and Crysis 3 Ultimate Bundle for $22.
Check out the full lineup here. [Image: Sony]
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The gang is back together! This week, we’ve got plenty of inFAMOUS Second Son and Dark Souls II talk, new Batman: Arkham Knight details (dat Batmobile!), Mercenary Kings (free on PS Plus in April!), and an extra-beefy interview with the Sportsfriends themselves. All in addition to the new releases for April 1st, 2014.
Subscribe via iTunes or RSS, or download here
Stuff We Talked About- inFAMOUS Second Son
- Project Morpheus
- Batman: Arkham Knight
- Sportsfriends
- Mercenary Kings
- Fez
- Luftrausers
- And yep… Dark Souls II
- Episode 113: Meet Morpheus
- Episode 112: Praise the Son!
- Episode 111: 1001 Snipes
- Sid Shuman – PlayStation Social Media Manager
- Nick Suttner – PlayStation Account Support Manager
- Justin Massongill – PlayStation Social Media Specialist
- Ryan Clements – PlayStation Social Media Specialist
[Editor’s note: PSN game release dates are subject to change without notice. Game details are gathered from press releases from their individual publishers and/or ESRB rating descriptions.]
- Thanks to Cory Schmitz for our beautiful logo and Dormilón for our rad theme song and show music.
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Hi everyone! March is almost over and time is flying by. Take a break this weekend and grab some great PS3 games from EA at up to 75% off. The Flash Sale starts right now and ends on Monday, March 31st at 12:00 p.m. Pacific.
We’ve got a little bit of something for everyone with top EA games like Battlefield 4, EA Sports FIFA 14, Madden NFL 25, Dead Space 3 Ultimate Edition, Need for Speed Rivals and more available at some sweet discounts over the next couple of days. Check out the full lineup below.
What EA games are you going to pick up this weekend? The Flash Sale starts now and ends Monday, March 31st at 12:00 p.m. Pacific, so don’t miss out.
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Here at VidZone HQ we love variety and we know you do too. So this week we have made sure to bring you the very best from across the Zones – whether you’re a JT super fan, like your Hip-Hop to ALWAYS include some Pharrell or simply wish you were a part of The Black Parade. We make sure that there’s always something here for you.
Read on for more info and to find out what else is new!
Artist Of The Week: Justin Timberlake
‘Not A Bad Thing’ is the third single from Justin Timberlake’s massively successful two-part album The 20/20 Experience and VidZone is proud to bring you the brand new music video! The loved-up mini documentary about a mystery couple who tied the knot on a Long Island train has inspired us to make JT our Artist Of The Week. Check it out now in his Featured Playlist! #haveyouseenthiscouple
And here are the highlights from the hottest Zones…
Hip-Hop Zone
Future has not one but TWO new music video additions to his Center Stage Playlist on VidZone this week! Watch both ‘Covered N Money’ and ‘Move That D***,’ which sees the rapper team up with Pharrell, Pusha T and Casino, now.
- Future – Center Stage
- Juicy J – Artist Spotlight
- YG – Must See Video
- 2Pac – Flashback
Dance Zone
DJ Snake is the Grammy-nominated producer who has worked with Lady Gaga and Diplo. Now he has a collaboration with Lil Jon on the brilliant, bass-heavy track ‘Turn Down for What’. There aren’t really any words for how amazing the music video is…so just go and check it out now. TRUST US.
- DJ Snake & Lil Jon – Must See Video
- Spinnin’ Records Playlist
- Daft Punk – Random Access Memories Playlist
- Adventure Club – One To Watch
Rock Zone
Gone but never forgotten. We’re paying tribute to My Chemical Romance, who just released their greatest hits compilation May Death Never Stop You this week. Re-visit the great New Jersey band’s biggest and best music videos like ‘Helena,’ ‘The Ghost Of You,’ ‘I’m Not Okay (I Promise)’ and more!
- My Chemical Romance – Greatest Hits
- Fall Out Boy – Artist Spotlight
- Skillet – Artist Focus
- Epitaph Records TV
Latest Videos
Check out our other great selections this week…
- DJ Snake & Lil Jon – Turn Down for What (Dance) EXPLICIT
- Justin Timberlake – Not a Bad Thing (RnB) EXPLICIT
- Jennifer Lopez – I Luh Ya Papi (Pop) EXPLICIT
- YG – My Hitta (Hip-Hop)
- Fall Out Boy – Rat A Tat (Rock) EXPLICIT
- Miranda Lambert – Automatic (Country)
- Korn – Love & Meth (Metal)
VidZone brings you a world of music videos tailored completely for you. Download it now for free from PlayStation Store for both PS3 and PS4. As always, keep in touch on Twitter and Facebook. We read everything and love your comments, so don’t be shy! Got any requests for VidZone? Let us know!
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PS4 has been met with an amazing amount of enthusiasm and excitement from both gamers and developers alike since its launch back in November, and the 6 million gamers who have already bought PS4 have really embraced this next-generation gaming experience. We’ve got more than 100 games scheduled to launch on PS4 this year alone, including Watch_Dogs, The Elder Scrolls Online, Destiny, and The Order: 1886.
That amazing lineup is made possible by the development community, who have been hard at work with our hardware, already pushing it to do things that we never expected. Recently we reached a significant milestone with more than 1,000 developers licensed globally to self-publish on our platforms, 200 of those licensed in North America since PS4 was unveiled in February 2013.
A year ago at the Game Developers Conference, we kicked our support for independent developers into high-gear. Since then, we continued to partner with some of the world’s best and brightest independent developers committed to bringing their titles — some of the most creative and innovative games I’ve seen — to PlayStation platforms. We’ve already seen some great content hit PS4 — from crafting waffles in Don’t Starve to scaring the pants off of people with Outlast. We’re looking forward to some of this year’s self-published titles like Octodad, Transistor, N++, GALAK-Z, Rogue Legacy, Binding of Isaac: Rebirth, and The Witness, and you know we’re all already playing a metric arrow ton of TowerFall Ascension.
This year’s GDC was awesome, as usual. We had a blast meeting with developers, both partners we’ve worked with time and time again, as well as new up-and-coming talent. We also continued collecting feedback from developers on what they’ve discovered while spending time with our platforms, and we introduced some new tools that will help ease the process of bringing their games to PlayStation gamers… not to mention how we peeked into the future of PlayStation.
To developers, to fans: THANK YOU for helping us make history with PlayStation 4.
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Salutation, PlayStation! The team members at Defiant Development are thrilled to announce that our Kickstarter-funded, tabletop roguelike deck builder, Hand of Fate, will be coming to PS4 and PS Vita.
For those of you who haven’t heard of Hand of Fate, it’s a roguelike that blends tabletop card gaming and video game magic. Inspired by tarot and fantasy, all bets are off as you create your own journey by building a collection of cards used to deal out a boardgame-like dungeon teeming with enemies, treasure, and adventure. Upon entering combat, the cards come to life as the player is propelled into a beautiful 3D environment to brawl it out with foes. Draw your cards, play your hand, and discover your fate.
Being a roguelike, Hand of Fate’s strength is its nearly endless combination of cards and ways to play. The deck builder lets you determine a mix of combat, chance, and equipment cards for your deck before you set out on your quest. Equipment selection ramps up replayability as the player is introduced to a slew of artifacts, weapons, and armor that modify gameplay. The player has the freedom to choose their cards, but how and when they are dealt out is purely up to The Dealer.
Hand of Fate is lovingly made by a talented team of board game, RPG, and roguelike game enthusiasts. So it’s a real treat to see our passion being brought to a new audience thanks to PlayStation.
Keep up to date with us via Twitter and Facebook.
We can’t wait for you to play Hand of Fate!
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Since taking over as stewards of the Spider-Man console gaming franchise, we’ve seized the opportunity to explore new territory with each game release. The Amazing Spider-Man 2 on PS3 and PS4 created a great opportunity to build and improve on something rather than starting from a blank slate. The gameplay walkthrough we’ve prepared for you today shows off some of the ways we’ve gone about doing that, but I’d also like to briefly flesh out some of those details with a little more context.
The new mechanics of web-swinging are more than just a visual tick, and that’s why we often start off pointing them out. Controlling separate sides of Spider-Man with separate sides of your brain has a great psychological effect, and it really immerses you even deeper into your character, particularly when you have to decide to use the right or left trigger based on the physical location of buildings as you swing through the city.
Your cell phone is more than just a glorified menu and map — it’s also how you gauge your progress as New York’s guardian arachnid. The new “Hero or Menace” system is a way for us to personalize the act of safeguarding everyday citizens’ lives, by adding real consequences for Spider-Man and the city as a whole based on your actions (and inactions). We really want you to feel like you’re the hero behind the mask, and that means giving you all the challenges and choices that ol’ Webhead has to deal with moment-to-moment.
And that also means letting you take off that mask to experience a slice of life from Peter Parker’s perspective by investigating multifaceted characters, as well as letting you go home to visit Aunt May and take care of personal business. The sight of Peter’s wardrobe is a cool one, and we’re excited for players to get their hands on the range of suits we’ve included in the game. As with the shift in web-swinging, these costume choices offer far more than just a cosmetic effect.
You’ll notice the combat scenario we show off in the video takes place in an open, outdoor environment. We’ve got this great wide world to play with in Manhattan, and we thought it would be a shame to just restrict you to a series of linear corridors. That’s not fun for you or for us. So indoors and out, The Amazing Spider-Man 2 tries to give you legroom, with enough space to explore and experiment.
As you can see in the combat section of the walkthrough, you can go wherever you want in this area, which really frees you up to do whatever you want, too, from stealth prowess to up-close-and-personal combat, and we’ve expanded Spidey’s skill set to reflect that.
It’s the same city as before, but it’s definitely a different world, and we can’t wait for you to discover all the other reasons why when The Amazing Spider-Man 2 arrives on April 29th.
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I’ve always said that working on a Batman game is a huge privilege for us. Even though we have been working on Batman for over seven years, we’ve never lost sight of the fact that we are the current custodians of a very special universe.
So it was with great excitement, and not a small amount of trepidation, that we decided to add the fully playable Batmobile into the Arkhamverse, knowing that it would disrupt all of our existing systems and bring with it a huge amount of pressure to deliver on expectations.
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I guess this is what excited me most about integrating this very special vehicle. Taking on challenges which don’t have an easy answer is where the best innovations come, because you are forced to do the unexpected. As it was with taking on a character that cannot kill and is powerful but vulnerable, so it is with taking on a car that is (in most right-minded people’s heads) the single greatest vehicle ever.
Integrating the Batmobile married up with our design philosophy at Rocksteady: to focus on features that improve the very core of the game, and hence continually refresh the experience.
Anyway, enough waffle. I thought I’d share three of my favorite features of the Batman: Arkham Knight Batmobile, and how we are hoping this helps to deliver a unique experience:
1. UNSTOPPABLE
When playing Arkham Knight, one of the phrases we use in the office repeatedly is whether that is the “Batman experience.” What I mean by that is simply, “Do I feel like Batman performing that action?” (Can you believe I get paid for this level of wisdom?)
When driving the Batmobile through the streets of Gotham, it quickly became apparent to us that there was a paradox between creating a populated* next-gen city full of detail, but at the same time avoiding the player getting stuck or having to weave their way through all of this detail just to navigate around. We’ve all played open world games where you get stuck on odd bits of road debris, but we were adding an unprecedented level of detail, and that meant more objects to get stuck on or avoid, which wasn’t the “Batman experience.”
“Do I feel like Batman?”Therefore, we made the decision early in development that to truly feel the power of the Batmobile, this car needed to be unstoppable. It changed the way we designed and built the game from that point forward. Nothing should stop the Batmobile. If you want to stick to an open road then that is your choice, but if you want to take a shortcut through a pillar, wall or statue then that’s fine too!
I’ve been asked a few times: why this game is only possible on next-gen systems? This level of destructibility in an open world city is one of the key reasons.
We are only going to add the Batmobile if we can do it right, and making it unstoppable was a key requirement in doing that.
* To pick up on the population point, I just wanted to clarify that while the city is evacuated, it is still fully populated. The various gangs have taken over the streets. Gotham is in the middle of a full scale criminal occupation.
2. INSTANT EJECT INTO GLIDE
This move typifies our “man and machine” strategy perhaps better than any other. We never wanted to create the Batmobile mechanics in isolation from the Batman gameplay. It is essential to us that the two dovetail together. Our goal was to make this something that felt like it was always part of the core experience; that the Arkhamverse was always designed with this in mind.
Combining the gliding and grappling was a key feature of Arkham City. The grapple boost in particular, once mastered, gave you the unique feeling of being Batman gliding above your city. The eject into glide takes this on to the next level, by launching Batman up into the air, but taking all of your forward momentum into the glide, allowing you to travel much further and faster than ever before.
If there’s a feature that is responsible for more lost development than any other, this is probably it! I’ve lost countless hours ejecting and gliding around the city.
3. INSTANT ACCESS
It is critical that the Batmobile is never a burden on the player. This must be something that contributes positively to the experience in every way. This also needs to be a vehicle that you could call on at any time you are on the streets of Gotham. So we have a button assigned to do just that. With a single press of L1, wherever you are, your Batmobile will skid around the corner at high speed and Batman will jump straight in.
If you’re in the middle of a fight and getting outmaneuvered, call in your car for instant protection. If you’re gliding, or on top of a building, and want to transfer into the Batmobile, just look down at the road and press the Batmobile button and the car will be there waiting for you. It is never more than a button press away.
Combining the Batman and Batmobile gameplay in a seamless way was a key part of the design goal for the game, because this isn’t just a normal person jumping into any old car on the street. This is the Batman and this is his Batmobile. They have a unique relationship, and the gameplay systems have to be designed to emphasise this bond.
THE LOOK
Finally, a quick word on the look of the vehicle. It can be easy to underestimate how much time it takes to create a new version of something as iconic as the Batmobile. This was a daunting part of taking on the Batmobile challenge — if it’s wrong, it just feels wrong, and everyone knows it.
The Arkham Knight, a new villain created in conjunction with DC Comics.
While we loved the design of the Batmobile in Batman: Arkham Asylum (its Hot Wheels model has a special place in my Batman collection!), what became immediately apparent was that it wasn’t especially practical for getting around Gotham. The clearance of the wheels and suspension meant that this dragster design would struggle on uneven ground, and it was important to us that the city had dynamic terrain.
“If it’s wrong, everyone knows it.”
So with that design rejected, we actually started with ideas that were driven by a purely pragmatic approach. After a number of iterations, we felt that this never captured the spirit of Batman. While he is not someone who ever shows off for the sake of it, it is very important that you know when Batman is around. He doesn’t build a distinctive vehicle just because he likes to drive a flash car. He drives a unique vehicle for the same reason he wears his cape and cowl – it’s part of his persona of intimidation.
This led us to the design we have now, which I think is a great balance between a practical vehicle and one that is undeniably, uniquely a Batmobile. It doesn’t matter if you know nothing about the game, you know that when you see this car, it can only be Batman’s car. I think Dave Hego (Art Director) and his team did a great job in realizing this vision.
Anyway, there’s lots more to come. For now I hope that gives you a small taste of why we’re so excited to have added the Batmobile to the Arkhamverse, and how we feel this refreshes and expands the whole experience.
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