Nvidia unveils a portable gaming device called Project Shield

Well this is a surprise. The graphics card maker Nvidia just announced during CES 2013 that they are entering the handheld arena. During a press release,they unveiled Project Shield, a handheld device that plays Steam games and Android games.

The handheld, in design looks very similar to an Xbox 360 controller, but with a 5 inch screen that has a 1280x720 HD retinal multi-touch display. The device has the standard button layout found on the actual 360 controller and PS3 controller, has HDMI (Which I have a feeling would utilize Steam's new Big Picture feature), a headphone, mini-USB outs, microSD memory slot, and its own speaker system.

Android Games on Google Play and Nvidia TegraZone are all accessible through device. With Steam games, the device can stream Steam games as long as you are near the PC. Games mentioned are Skyrim, Assassin's Creed 3, Battlefield 3, and many more are said to be playable on that 5 inch screen. It is also mentioned that Project Shield can access Android apps like Hulu and Netflix.

It is said that Project Shield can last up to 10 hours of game time and 24 hours of video playback.

Together with the unveil, Nvidia announces the Tegra 4, which they are stating to be the fastest mobile processor with 72 cores and a Quad-core A15 CPU. It is also compatible with LTE networks. Project Shield is being powered by the new Tegra 4.

Not too sure why they'd like to venture on to portable gaming now. Feels like a big risk, with a world now filled with smart phones, tablets, and iPhones/iPads. The PS Vita and Nintendo 3DS is struggling as it is, so I'm not too sure if they will do any better. Since Steam games can only be played on Project Shield if you are near your PC, then Android games is the only option if you want "On the go" gaming, but smart phones and tablets got that covered. The big question is how much it would cost? So far, no details regarding the price.

Project Shield is planned to be released during the second quarter of this year.

For more information, you can visit the official site for the device.

[Source: Nvidia Project Shield, GameInformer, VG247]

An end of an era, Sony Ends PlayStation 2 Production Worldwide

 

A sad day for Playstation 2 fans. Sony just announced that they will be ending all production of the most successful console to date. 

It was first announced that all production will cease in Japan, but Sony confirms to Guardian that they will be ending the PS2 reign worldwide.

Can you believe it? The console was in production for 12 years and since it's launch in 2000, Sony sold over 150m consoles worldwide. I still remember the day I got my Playstation 2, I was in 2nd year high school, I came from the mall and I couldn't wait to set it up at home. My first games were Devil May Cry, Final Fantasy X, and Metal Gear Solid 2.

It's definitely the most successful console to date. To survive more than a decade, living side by side with its successor the PS3 for years? But good things must come to an end.

[Source: GameInformer]

Monday Impressions: Hawken Open Beta

When you say mech games nowadays, there's so little that pops in my head. It's a style that we rarely see in this generation. Well, Hawken is here to hopefully fill that void. Hawken is now on it's open-beta stages since December, so I took the opportunity and played a few rounds of mech warfare.

Developer: Adhesive Games Publisher: Meteor Entertainment Release Date: Currently on Open-beta

This multiplayer Free-To-Play title caught my eye when I first saw a couple of screenshots of the game's HUD. It gave the impression that they want to make players feel as if they are really inside a mech with a first person perspective. When I finally got a chance to play a match, it certainly felt that way. The movement in the cockpit plus the sounds it makes while move really sold it.

Hawken is surprisingly fast-paced. You will die if you are not paying attention and just like most online games nowadays, the spawn rate is so fast that you can instantly get back into the action. I mostly played Deathmatch and Team Deathmatch (There's still Missile Assault and Siege game modes) to just go all out with the carnage and I was having a blast. Dashing from left to right, boosting up to catch someone above, and hiding in a corner to use my repair bot in order to repair any damage I've taken. The overall feeling was just right.

It was definitely something different and it's hard to believe it's Free-To-Play, especially on how great the game looks like on max settings. Tons of detail on the map environments and seeing an enemy mech blow up in front of you is quite satisfying.

Another thing I quite like is the fact that every mech in the game can level up and be customized to your playstyle. Down to countermeasures, offensive items, to internal parts to improve certain stats. Nothing like Armored Core though, where you need to think about every single part, but it will do. You can also customize it cosmetically, but that requires real money to get those damn paint patterns.

Gameplay trailer

Aside from paint jobs, you can also spend your hard-earned cash on unlocking new mech and new parts to play around with, but these can be earned without spending a dime, just be ready to spend a good amount of time with the game. The points earned after every match to buy is quite small that I instantly felt the need to grind. I'm still questioning if players that do buy new mechs and parts with real money get an advantage. But so far I see no problem taking down mechs with the basic machine given at the start.

The latency is a bit of a problem at times. With me living in the Philippines, I filter to join the asian and oceanic regions to lessen the lag. But even with me filtering to a closer server, I occasionally experience latency up to 200, which can ruin gameplay, especially when using rockets that has a delay when launched.

They also have a story all planned up. Not in the game though, a web-series, which is planned for release this year. Check the trailer below.

Is it worth a try?

Yes, definitely. This is the mech game that should have been made years ago. Plus, its free. All you lose is HD space if it's not your kind of game. For me, I don't see myself playing this everyday though, just small bursts. It's still in open beta after all, so I will definitely log in every now and then to see the new improvements and added content.

If you'd like to give a go, go ahead to Hawken's official website and create an account now. Download the client and start playing.

Weekend, What are you playing?

 

First "What are you playing?" post of 2013! Actually it's been awhile now since we last did this, so I decided to bring it back. It's the first weekend of the year and I've been consumed with a strategy game that I just love. 

Quash: Civilization V is currently my game of choice. Thanks for Steam giving a 75% discount on the game's Gods & Kings expansion pack, I instantly got it. I thought at first after making the purchase that I might be just hoarding the game for the sake of getting the 75% off,  but when I ran the game with the expansion for the first time, 5 hours literally passed. It made me realize how I love strategy games. With the expansion installed, the game felt more addicting and quite unpredictable compared to the vanilla version.

It's funny that I was getting all excited that I was the first civilization to establish a religion, or that I'm a couple of turns away from building The Great Pyramid wonder because I really needed that 15% increase in wonder contructions. I got addicted fast. I was exposed to the game way back. When I was a kid, I used to watch my brother and get really curious about the game, when I got a chance to try it, I had a difficulty time progressing through the game. Thankfully when I was a bit older, I gave it another shot come Civilization IV, and I was an instant fan of the series. Civ V is just amazing, but when you compare it to the fourth, well that's for another time.

Arlie: Happy New Year everyone! The Open Beta Test of  the first English version of Ragnarok Online II The Legend of the Second launched last January 3 and I've been squishing Porings since then. It was intended only for players who are based in Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam but other countries can play. Unfortunately Philippines and some other countries are IP blocked from this game but using VPN (I use Hotspot Shield) or proxies can be used as a workaround to bypass the IP block. I'm playing in Jormungand Server as a Artisan Archer, and my path is to be a Ranger.

Migoy: Went over to my cousin's place and played a buncha games with him and his 2 brothers. Those games being NBA 2k13 where the 4 of us played as teammates and got beat by the CPU so hard. Can't say that teamwork was a factor since we didn't really have any, lol. We got into the fighting games too. Did the whole Street Fighter x Tekken thing going on, both regular combat and scramble mode. Played a bit of Super Street Fighter IV: Arcade Edition with the iCore arcade sticks I bought a while back (which surprisingly still work pretty darn well). And of course we played dat Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 that we love so much.

What about you? What are you playing?

Street Fighter X Megaman getting some tweaks this month

To celebrate Megaman's 25th anniversary, Capcom released Street Fighter X Megaman last December for free. It was a great was to please fans of  megaman. Now they are showing a bit more love by releasing version 2 of the game, which fixes the many bugs that game with this free PC game. No new content was added, but its good to see Capcom is providing support to even a free game like this. 

The news of the update was brought up during an interview with Capcom's senior community manager Brett Elston. Elston.

Brett Elston also tweeted that version 2 will be released sometime this month.

If you guys are unfamiliar with Street Fighter X Megaman, it's really the old school megaman with stages themed based on the Street Fighter characters, with those characters being the bosses at the end. It's a great way to start Megaman's 25th anniversary. Again, it's free, and if you want to give it a try, head over to CapcomUnity for the download.

[Source: MegaManNetwork]