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0 CommentsHoloGrid: Monster Battle isn't Star Wars: HoloChess, but it's close and on Kickstarter
It takes less than five minutes into my meeting with Mike Levine, president of developer HappyGiant, before he smiles behind his beard and drops his first goodnatured f-bomb.
"It's really a giant fuck you to the free-to-play model," Levine tells me standing among tens of thousands of attendees at PAX East, in front of an iPad showing a pre-release version of his unreleased game, HoloGrid: Monster Battle. He's explaining his plan for the game, and it's nothing if not bold.
I have no idea if it'll work. Sometimes, there'a a fine line between bold and unrealistic. Either way, I can't stop thinking about it.
HoloGrid: Monster Battle, he tells me, takes the world's most popular app distribution ecosystem but rejects the most lucrative way to make money there. It takes a bit of inspiration...
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18 CommentsThe Hearthstone legendary cards you must craft ASAP
With last week's release of the Whispers of the Old Gods expansion and the introduction of standard mode, a lot of new players are checking out Hearthstone and old players who wandered aware are returning. Whatever your status, one cold truth of reality is shared by everyone: There are a lot of cards in Hearthstone, and it's hard to know which ones you really need.
In the smart video above, popular and talented Hearthstone streamer Kripparrian runs down his choices for the most must-have legendaries in the game right now. For his list, Kripparian splits the legendaries into three tiers of desirability. The best of the best are in tier one, the best class legendaries are in tier two, and strong but situational legendaries can be found in tier three. He stresses that legendaries in the...
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May 2, 2016
Their future is Epic: The evolution of a gaming giant
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16 CommentsCracker Jack abandons a century of prizes for QR codes and mobile games
Gen Xers who remember scoring the coveted weather predictor, smearing on a temporary tattoo or throwing out yet another useless magnifying glass today saw another symbol of their childhood annihilated: Cracker Jack is replacing the toy with a QR code for some mobile games.
The Toy Surprise has been in every box of Cracker Jack for more than 100 years — going back to 1912. But it now gives way to QR codes for baseball themed games, which one accesses after downloading another app, called Blippar, on their iOS or Android mobile device.
Oh boy, kid, here's your prize. Yay.
The games are "baseball-inspired mobile digital experiences" as Cracker Jack doubles down on its nostalgic ties to the game thanks to a song. The four "experiences" range from a dance cam...
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6 CommentsMiitomo celebrates 10 million downloads
Miitomo has been downloaded over 10 million times worldwide, Nintendo announced in a press release. That's a major milestone for the app, Nintendo's first for smartphones, reached just shy of a month since its stateside release.
To celebrate hitting 10 million users on iOS and Android, Nintendo will host a special promotion for users April 29-May 9. During the period, players will be treated to daily bonuses, including Miitomo coins and tickets. Nintendo will give away a total of 5,000 Miitomo coins and 12 game tickets by the end of the 10-day event.
Three previously Japan-exclusive Miitomo Drop stages will also be available during the celebration. Players can look forward to spending all of their game tickets in one go on the "Look sharp! Smart Dresser!" Miitomo Drop boards running...
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12 CommentsFire Emblem and Animal Crossing are coming to mobile devices
Nintendo will release a pair of mobile apps based on its Fire Emblem and Animal Crossing franchises, the company confirmed today. Both are targeted for release sometime this fall.
Fire Emblem for mobile devices will be "more accessible in comparison to the Fire Emblem games for Nintendo's dedicated gaming systems," Nintendo said in a release, but will "offer the great value of a role-playing strategy game."
The mobile version of Animal Crossing will connect somehow to at least one of the Animal Crossing games for Nintendo's dedicated gaming systems, though the company didn't specify which titles would feature connectivity. Nintendo's most recent games in the franchise include Animal Crossing: amiibo Festival for Wii U and Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer for 3DS.
Nintendo...
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31 CommentsHow to get 13 free Hearthstone: Whispers of the Old Gods packs starting tomorrow
Tomorrow marks the launch of Hearthstone's third full expansion, Whispers of the Old Gods, and Blizzard is celebrating by giving players a lot of card packs for free. In total, you'll be able to get 13 packs with just a little bit of effort. Here's how it works.
First off, simply logging in to Hearthstone after Whispers of the Old Gods launches will get you three packs of cards from the new expansion.
You'll also receive a quest upon logging in to win two games in the new standard format, which bans cards from the Goblins vs. Gnomes expansion and The Curse of Naxxramas adventure set. Winning those games will net you five more packs.
As a follow-up to that initial standard format quest, you'll receive another quest to win seven games in standard format. Pulling off this feat gets you...
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9 CommentsFinal Fantasy 15 livestream announces more collector's sets, mobile game release date and more
Final Fantasy fans had to wake up early to catch this morning's Active Time Report presentation, although new details on this fall's Final Fantasy 15 were light. The Japanese-only livestream, embedded above, reunited the game's director Hajime Tabata with marketing director Akio Ofuji as they discussed release dates for two major Final Fantasy 15 side projects and a reprint of the limited edition package.
More copies of the $270 Ultimate Collector's Edition set will be printed worldwide, the pair confirmed during the stream. Square Enix later tweeted to confirm that although another production of the sold-out package was in the works, the company could not guarantee that buyers of the second printing would get their copies by the game's release date.
The Ultimate Collector's Edition...
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6 CommentsSplatoon stuff is coming to Miitomo
A series of Splatoon-inspired items — headwear, clothing and more — are coming to Nintendo's social app Miitomo next week, giving squid-themed shooter fans the opportunity to dress their Miis like Inkling boys and girls. Getting your hands on some of these stuff is going to require some work, however.
Two items — the Inkling boy wig and Inkling girl wig — will be given away for free, provided Nintendo fans retweet the promotion's official hashtag enough on Twitter. At 10,000 retweets the boy wig will unlock, and at 20,000 the girl wig will unlock. Seeing as how the original post containing the hashtag (#Miitomo_Splatoon_RT) has already been retweeted more than 7,000 times, chances are good.
Other items will be available through Miitomo's pachinko-style game,...
News
24 CommentsHearthstone nerf alert: major changes coming to classic cards
When Blizzard announced that it was creating a new standard format for Hearthstone earlier this year, it also revealed that it would be tweaking an undisclosed number of cards from the classic set to ensure they wouldn't remain overly powerful in standard format. In a blog post today, Blizzard has finally revealed which cards are being changed and how substantially.
As suggested by Blizzard in various interviews leading up to this announcement, the Druid class core card were hit the hardest. The seven-mana-cost Ancient of Lore used to allow players to choose between drawing two cards or restoring five health. While its cost and stats, as well as the health restore, will stay the same, it can now only draw a single card if that effect is chosen.
One of the deadliest combos in the game...
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8 CommentsThe Walking Dead: Michonne's finale launches next week
"What We Deserve," the third and final episode of the miniseries The Walking Dead: Michonne, will begin rolling out April 26, developer Telltale Games announced today.
The episode will be available next week on Android, iOS, Mac, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Windows PC, Xbox 360 and Xbox One. Here's the synopsis from Telltale:
In "What We Deserve," feeling the weight of choices both recent and long ago, Michonne tries to protect an innocent family... but Norma and the vengeful Monroe crew are closing in. As reality shatters and the ghosts of the daughters she abandoned demand to be heard, your choices will determine who lives, who dies, and what redemption really means in a world gone to hell.
If you've played the second episode, "Give No Shelter," you can watch the video from...
News
9 CommentsHearthstone: Whispers of the Old Gods expansion arrives next week
The third full-sized expansion pack for Hearthstone, Whispers of the Old Gods, was announced over a month ago, but at the time Blizzard said only that the expansion would release "in late April or early May." Now the developer has revealed the exact date, and it's almost here.
Blizzard announced today that Hearthstone: Whispers of the Old Gods will finally be available next Tuesday, April 26, in North America and Europe. It will arrive in Asia the following day, April 27.
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Everything we know about Hearthstone's next expansion
Whispers of the Old Gods will introduce 134 new cards to the game, including "corrupted" variations on some classic minions. About half of the new cards have been revealed already, and Blizzard is planning to host a stream...
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7 CommentsHere's how you can play Counter-Strike on your smartphone
Counter-Strike players are usually limited to consoles and computers in order to check out Valve's popular multiplayer shooter, but a new mod allows Android users to play on the go. A team led by modder Alibek Omarov created the download, which offers nearly perfect compatibility with the latest version of Counter-Strike.
Android owners must have a copy of the game on Steam in order for the mod to work. Downloading the APK file also requires players to download the Xash3D software for Android. Doing so will allow Counter-Strike fans to play the most recent update, April 2013's version 1.6, on their phones.
You can get a sense of what that looks like in the video above. Directions for installing the client are available on its download page.
Report
1 CommentHow the UN used a video game to raise awareness for land mines
Instagram is a massively popular social network where hundreds of millions of people share photos and videos with the world. It's the platform of choice for shots of fancy meals, poorly lit bar scenes and cute animals. Now it can also be used to play a video game — albeit one that's hacked together.
Earlier this week, the United Nations observed the International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action. The annual event began a: decade ago, on April 4, 2006, as a way for the UN to highlight mine action: the effort to clear land mines and related explosive devices from countries around the globe; educate people about the dangers of such weapons; assist victims of land mines; advocate for a mine-free world; and destroy stockpiles of mines. The UN currently supports mine...
News
10 CommentsRomancing SaGa 2 coming stateside for first time ever
The Super Nintendo-era role-playing game Romancing SaGa 2 is coming stateside, according to the game's official Twitter. An English-language version of the game is currently in development on iOS and Android.
Romancing SaGa 2's worldwide debut remains unscheduled. Japan received mobile ports of the game in late March; Square Enix also published the remastered release on PlayStation Vita.
More information about the release will come later this month, according to the game's Twitter. In the meantime, it offered a first look at the game's English debut.
We’ll announce further information within this month, so stay tuned! #romasaga2 pic.twitter.com/2a1MaHGrzq
— ロマンシング サガ２公式 (@Romasaga2_PR) April 8, 2016
The RPG made its debut on Super Famicom in December 1993. Its predecessor,...
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21 CommentsKingdom Hearts Unchained χ comes to Android and iOS this week
The next entry in the Kingdom Hearts series — and the first for Android and iOS mobile devices — is coming to North America on April 7.
Square Enix confirmed the English-language release of Kingdom Hearts Unchained χ, which touches on the earliest days of the Kingdom Hearts narrative, is finally making its way stateside. (The game was released in Japan last year.)
Kingdom Hearts Unchained χ, a free-to-play role-playing game, is set prior to the franchise's Keyblade War and stars a player-created Keyblade wielder. It's based on the browser game Kingdom Hearts χ and features a cast of new characters, as well as appearances from well-known Disney characters.
As Square Enix notes on the publisher's official blog, Unchained χ narratively ties into other Kingdom Hearts...
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22 CommentsClash Royale's top-ranked player has spent over $12,000 on the game
Clash Royale, the new mobile game from the developer of Clash of Clans, has become something of an obsession for some members of the Polygon office, as well as millions of other players all around the world. It's also received plenty of criticism for its microtransaction-centric structure that rewards players who are willing to dump cash into the game.
It's no surprise, then, that one of the game's most successful (and popular) players has poured a ton of money into it.
Writing in a Reddit AMA earlier this week, Clash Royale player Chief Pat revealed that he's spent a total of $30,000 on developer Supercell's games — $18,000 on Clash of Clans, which he's been playing for years, and a whopping $12,000 on Clash Royale, despite it just having come out at the start of 2016.
"I've never...
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