Video Games

Modern Warfare 3 Update Adds New Mode and More

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, which has reportedly earned $1 billion in sales in the 16 days following its release, recently received an update which added a new mode, Drop Zone, and Community Playlists. In Drop Zone, players must secure an area and accumulate 7,500 points. The team with the most players in the area will receive a package that gives them a point boost, but receiving the package is not guaranteed, as it can be stolen by the opposing team. Drop Zone is the first entry in the Community Playlists section, where unique private match modes created by users are made available for the public. Infinity Ward’s Robert Bowling described the Community Playlists: “Since we have such advanced private match options, we’ve been noticing a lot of user-created game modes, that in the coming weeks, we’re going to be adding to the public playlists in multiplayer…We’re going to be adding some in for the holiday, brand new modes that the users created, that we adapted, made more polished, and are putting into the game.”

Heroes and Heralds Mode Releases Today in UMvC3

Fans of fighting games who have purchased Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 have an extra reason to be joyful this holiday season, as one of the modes which was highly touted during the months leading up to release will be patched in and released as of today.  The mode that I am referring to is called Heroes and Heralds mode, and it looks to add a much deeper single player experience (in both offline and online format) for those who are looking for it.  Essentially, Heroes and Heralds will have you pick a side (Heroes or Heralds), and fight enemies in different zones to gain control of thoselocations.

As a brief aside, the faction that you choose will not limit your ability to choose your favorite characters (for example, if you choose heroes, you could still choose Dr. Doom for your team), but if you choose the heralds side, all of your characters get a silver shine to them (akin to the silver surfer, one of Galactus’s more esteemed heralds).  Personally, I think that more fighting games need systems like this, so that people who are looking to play the game, but may not be amazing at the online component have something to justify a purchase. We will all see how the reactions are once the free DLC (which will be released by the time you read this) gets into the public’s hands.

FIFA Comes to Vita

FIFA has been a marquee franchise for well over 10 years.  The last
three iterations of the console game have seen some major additions to
the game.  FIFA 10 added 360 degree dribbling, 11 saw improved AI and
player personalities along with “Be a Keeper.”  FIFA 12 saw improvement
in player physics and models along with a dramatic overhaul to defense
and strategy.  FIFA is always one of the best sports games year in and
year out and it is no surprise that it is coming to Vita and packing
some serious features.

Sony Chnages its PSVita Account Details Again

Sony has changed its story about PSVita and how it handles accounts, storage and saves a second time.

It was only last week they claimed that anyone could use any PlayStation Vita so long as they had their unique account bound memory card with them, cards that prior were revealed to be quite pricey. This statement contradicted the original details they revealed, stating it was instead one account per PSVita regardless of how many memory cards you have and apparently is now in fact the reality.

Skyrim Ships 10 Million

Well if there was any doubt that Skyrim is one of the biggest success stories of the year, Bethesda now has the numbers to back it up.

In total, 10 million copies have been shipped, generating $650 million in revenue for the RPG veterans. While some have criticized the game for having bug-related issues, it has still remained one of the top selling games across all three platforms, even becoming the number one seller on pc at a rate of 3-1 compared to other titles released in the past couple months which is quite impressive.

Gran Turismo 5 Gets More DLC

Polyphony Digital has more Gran Turismo 5 DLC coming your way.  You may recall that after an eternity of waiting, fans were just recently treated to the first downloadable content pack.  Well the folks at Polyphony figured the public might still be hungry for more and are releasing a second DLC pack.

Car pack 2 will be released next week, possibly Tuesday, and it will contain the 2010 Volkwagen Scirocco R, 2011 Mini Cooper S, 2010 Volkwagen Golf VI R and the 2012 Nissan GT-R Black Edition, because well, there aren’t yet enough GT-R’s in GT5 yet.  The DLC will cost $3.99, but wait, Polyphony isn’t finished. The game is also receiving an update.  Version 2.02 is also coming out soon.

Christmas: ‘Tis The Season To… Slice Fruit?

“If Santa were a ninja – and we all know he really is – this is how he’d keep his skills sharp in the slow summer months,” said Phil Larsen, the chief marketing officer of Halfbrick, the studio behind Fruit Ninja Kinect.  Ne’er a truer word has been spoken, as Halfbrick announced today the release of a completely free piece of Christmas-themed DLC for the title, featuring holiday-themed content such as a ‘Candy Cane Blade’ and a ‘Santa’s Workshop’level to slice fruit in.  It’s certainly festive of them, and the accompanying trailer supports that, with a heart-warming‘thanks for a great year’ message at the end.