Welcome to our first installment of week in review, top picks. In this column I'll talk a little bit about the different video game announcements and news that I saw this week.
Early this week. Grand Theft Auto V announced a website update where you could visit the counties of Los Angeles and Blaine on interactive travelogue. In typical tongue-in-cheek style, the "travelogue" gives an overview of the different aspects you'll find in this next release of Grand Theft Auto. Everything from new cars to characters and new maps, all with the tagline of "Where cultural apocalypse meets environmental disaster."
Just in case you didn't have enough of Grand Theft Auto V announcements, video of the new Grand Theft Auto Online play has been released. The online play will be available to all retail purchasers of the game, Grand Theft Auto V, and can accommodate up to 16 players. Players will be able to customize their character and their vehicles, own personal property, as well as take part in missions, jobs and activities in a persistent and dynamic world. Grand Theft Auto Online is free with every retail copy of Grand Theft Auto Five, which launches on October 1, 2013. See our link to the video below:
The fun continues with news about upcoming Saints Row 4 – their Dev Diary #3 titled "The Wheels of the Spaceship Go Round and Round" it's a behind-the-scenes look with Jim Boone, Senior Producer, Steve Jaros, Creative Director, and Steve Quirk, Art Director, all from Volition on how the new superpowers affect the gameplay. The latest weapons arsenal (including one particularly gross one) and alien invasion influence on it are all discussed by John Brunkhart, Weapons Designer, and David Payne, Lead Weapons Artist. For a closer look at the crazy, bombastic fun you can have in this sandbox game, check out the video below:
httpv://youtu.be/7UsD_yVNQls
Saints Row IV launches August 20th, 2013 across North and Latin America and August 23rd worldwide.
For those fans of the new MMO series, Defiance, there's good news. As most of you know, the TV series, Defiance got picked up for another season by the SyFy channel. Which means this alien invasion, post-apocalyptic shooter game will likely be around for a while. Another indication of this is the announcement of imminent release of the highly anticipated Castithan Charge Pack. The Pack will be available for download on the Xbox 360®, the PlayStation®3 and Windows® PC beginning on August 20, 2013 and is priced at $9.99 / 800 Microsoft Points on Xbox Live®. Season Pass holders get it as part of their subscription at no extra cost.
As the new add-on content pack goes live, the following additions will be made to the game for all players, regardless of whether they have purchased the new content:
- New Charge Weapons – shotguns, sniper rifles and pistols
- Sieges — a new type of dynamic content mode that combines Capture-and-Hold control points with kill scores, as enemies invade various mission locations, forcing players to band together to hold them off
- New Monolith Major Arkfall – highly challenging arkfall event with a tough new boss and loot
- Military Academy – a new player-versus-player capture and hold map
- Duels Game Mode – challenge your friends online in one-on-one combat
- Additional in-game changes, including newly enhanced map, and new chat window
Players who purchase the Castithan Charge Pack will receive access to the following:
- Play as the alien Castithan Species – create a new character or change your existing one
- New Battle Arena Game Mode – an instanced single player “horde mode”-style game that opens up a new story mission line, Castithan Charge Blade weapon and in-game item
- Unique version of the Raptor – a new four passenger truck designed to help small groups of arkhunters to quickly traverse the terraformed Bay Area
- Unique Castithan outfit
- New Xbox 360® and PlayStation®3 system Achievements and Trophies
This was definitely a good week for shooter games news, and with the new GTA expanding its horizons online, and the crazy fun of Saints Row 4, some tough times ahead for gamers all over to decide which ones their gamer budget can allow to buy. I'm definitely looking at getting the Defiance add-on, and may even try to get one of the other two if time and money allows. If you're on XBox Live, give me, ArizonaTNT, a shout and tell me which one you think I should get. Game On!
