First Details: Black Ops 3 Eclipse DLC

Get ready, PlayStation nation: the next DLC map pack for Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 is called Eclipse* and it’s launching first on PS4 19th April. Eclipse will give you four new multiplayer maps to flex your skills on — including a modern reimagining of the classic Call of Duty: World at War map, Banzai — as well as the next chapter in the Black Ops 3 Zombies saga: Zetsubou No Shima.

For multiplayer fans, Eclipse will introduce four new maps that cater to a variety of playstyles and transport you to new destinations. Here’s a quick rundown of what to look forward to on 19th April:

Spire: Spire takes Multiplayer combat to a futuristic sub-orbital airport terminal set high in the clouds. Multiple levels and open areas promote intense, mid-range combat around a clean, high-tech civilian environment. Watch your step, because one wrong move could send you plummeting back through the stratosphere.

Rift: Head to the core of a harsh futuristic military complex, set high above an active caldera. Rift funnels and forces tight, intense engagements, where the only way through is forward. Utilise the unique core movement opportunities to outsmart and outplay enemies as you traverse the suspended rail system.

Knockout: Housed in a traditional Shaolin Temple with a retro twist, Knockout sets the stage for a bloody Kung Fu tournament. This mid-sized map showcases a sharp contrast between the mid-range engagements of the traditional exterior architecture and the tight close-quarters of an eclectic 1970’s styled interior.

Verge: In this re-imagination of the classic Call of Duty: World at War map, Banzai, Verge drops Multiplayer combat into the center of a distant post-apocalyptic future, where two warring factions are entrenched in constant battle. Take control of the key bridge, fortresses, tunnel systems and waterfalls as you engage in high-speed action through this medium-sized map.

If battling the undead is more of your thing, don’t worry; Zetsubou No Shima is sure to satisfy. Continuing their fight to stop the zombie apocalypse, Treyarch’s Origins characters will face new threats on a World War II-era Pacific island. But don’t let looks fool you — this is no tropical paradise. Experiments with Element 115 have had horrifying effects on human, animal, and plant biology and you’ll have to fight them all. Zetsubou No Shima also introduces new transport mechanics, devastating traps, and classic Zombies side quests.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 — Eclipse will launch on 19th April, but in the meantime, keep your eyes peeled for more intel here on PlayStation.Blog and on the Activision Games Blog.

Until then, see you all online!

*Eclipse DLC content not available on PS3.

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Makers & Gamers: Street Fighter

Hi PlayStation.Blog! This is Yoshinori Ono from Capcom. It’s been a busy month with the launch of Street Fighter V and the start of the 2016 Capcom Pro Tour season. A game without a community is a game that won’t last, and I’m always proud to tell people that Street Fighter has one of the most passionate communities out there. As a game creator, what we ultimately want is to see fans have a blast and enjoy the product that we pour our hearts and souls into.

I was very happy to be able to participate in the Makers & Gamers: Street Fighter documentary and feel it truly shows how the love for Street Fighter can bring together people from all different backgrounds around the world.

The director, Lucy Walker, demonstrated the pedigree she earned from working on other acclaimed documentaries, such as The Crash Reel and Waste Land, and has done a superb job of telling my story as a game creator, as well as Snake Eyez as a game player. Snake Eyez has an amazing story and his journey to overcome all the odds against him is truly inspiring.

As long as Street Fighter exists I look forward to seeing our community grow! Rise Up!

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A beginner’s guide to Stikbold!, out on PS4 next week

Welcome to the world of Stikbold! It’s dodgeball with a dose of ’70s style and handsome moustaches, and set in wild arenas where anything goes. Throw bees at your opponents, squish them with a whale or pursue them with a minivan – it’s all allowed.

We’re pleased to tell you that Stikbold! is coming to PlayStation 4 on 5th April. To prepare you for that special date we’re going to share some secrets with you. This info will not only let you get one up on your friends from launch but it will also let you peek into the inner workings of our blazing fast gameplay.

Throwing

Throwing is the most fundamental mechanic in Stikbold!. It’s how you knock other players out of the game, and ultimately how you score points. Press and hold R2 to build up power, and release when the meter underneath your character is flashing to throw a power ball.

As your friends become familiar with the timing of the build-up, you will need to get more creative to avoid get caught out when attacking over longer distances. To mislead rivals try flicking the right stick immediately after releasing the ball. This puts a deceptive curving arc on your throw that can catch unsuspecting players off guard.

Bonus tip: Curving shots have a slightly higher chance of turning into a one-hit-kill critical hit (Stinger)

 

Catching

Diving out of harm’s way is your best chance to avoid getting tagged by the ball. There’s an old saying that “If you can dodge a wrench… yada yada yada”. However, as you gain experience and internalise the timing of the game, catching the ball instead becomes a reliable and powerful countermeasure.

Catching is performed automatically when a character is hit by the ball while dodging. However, you can’t hurl headlong at every ball. There’s is a slight delay after initiating the dodge before your player can successfully catch. You’ll need to anticipate your opponent’s attacks rather than just react to them if you want to catch like a Stikbold pro.

Bonus tip: After a successful catch, you can instantly throw a power ball without building up power by simply tapping R2.

Pushing

Sometimes offense is the best defence – if the player holding the ball gets close to you try knocking it out of their hands and stealing it for yourself. Pushing goes further than just ball stealing though. Try shoving opponents into hazards our out of the arena entirely. Move quickly though, in Stikbold the tables can turn in the blink of an eye.

Bonus tip: With a little practice you can do a ‘secret’ trick. Press R2 to initiate a push and then immediately press L2 to dodge. This will override the animation of the push, but not the underlying logic. The result is that your character will leap forward and immediately shove your opponent when they connect, effectively increasing the range of your push attack.

Take these tips and go forth on your very own dodgeball adventure. The world needs a Stikbold! champion and it could be you when we launch on 5th April.

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Become a dual-handgun-wielding badass in PS4 action platformer Seraph

Hello PlayStation fans! My name is Daniel Leaver I’m delighted to be posting here once again. You may have heard of Dreadbit‘s previous game, Ironcast, but today I’m proud to announce something entirely different, Seraph, coming to PS4 in 2016.

Seraph is an acrobatic platforming shooter with a unique difference; all weapons are automatically aimed by Seraph, our title character!

That’s right, Seraph will aim at the demon-spawn of hell for you whilst you are left to focus on snapping off controlled bursts of gunfire as you back-flip from walls and tumble through the air. It’s high-octane platforming action without the limitations of aiming.

“But, Daniel, what is this madness? How can you possibly have a skill-based shooter without aiming?!” I hear you cry. Well, having grown up with mind-blowing action films such as The Matrix, Christian Bale’s Equilibrium and, of course, anything directed by John Woo, I’ve always dreamt of playing a video game that could truly deliver on the promise of the player becoming a dual-handgun-wielding-badass too! There have been some games that came close, but it always felt to me that the slick acrobatic choreography often came second to the player having to aim at the same time. A task made even more tricky if aiming two weapons at different enemies!

So, I thought, why not ditch the requirement for the player to aim altogether and instead let them focus 100% of their attention on acrobatic evasion and, of course, accurately landing Seraph’s divine special powers? Seraph effortlessly aims her dual pistols at the oncoming demon hordes whilst the player shoots, flips and dodges the rapidly moving unholy spells and attacks. The thought turned into a playable prototype within a few days… and we were utterly convinced.

“But, Daniel, if you don’t aim isn’t the game just easy-mode-auto-win casual fodder?”

Another excellent question from our astute PlayStation fans! The answer is of course not. Because the player doesn’t have to aim we instead allow them to focus on all of the stuff that matters more: evading exploding pillars of flame, sliding down a wall firing an SMG one-handed, and cartwheeling over a boss whilst simultaneously unloading a shotgun shell into its demonic face. Because the player doesn’t have to aim we have room to make this kind of gameplay really challenging!

This is what playing Seraph is all about – looking and feeling amazing.

In addition, Seraph also features an on-screen, dynamically scaling difficulty rating, so it will always match your ability level. The better you play the harder the game becomes! But don’t worry, the higher the difficulty rating the greater the rewards dropped by slain demons for our crafting and upgrade systems.

Ultimately, if you’ve watched the trailer then you’ll already have a pretty good idea of what it feels like to play Seraph. There’s tonnes of unlocks, daily challenge modes and special Twitch streamer features we’d love to talk about more but I’m out of time.

Thanks for having me, PlayStation fans! Why not drop some questions in the comments section below and I’ll get right back to you.

Follow us at @DreadbitGames for loads more news and development livestreams of Seraph in action over the next couple of months.

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Final Fantasy XV out 30 September

Uncovered: Final Fantasy XV is a wrap! For months we’ve been teasing what we were going to do with a mysterious “March Event” with the hope that we would announce the release date for the next Final Fantasy.

With Final Fantasy XV we had to bundle things down into 15 items… so if you missed it, here’s the quickest recap of all time!

1. Hironobu Sakaguchi — the man, the myth, the legend — took center stage to open up the show to talk about how he’s looking forward to Final Fantasy XV becoming a challenger yet again.
2. A brand new trailer titled Reclaim Your Throne showed off new combat and a brand new rendition of the classic song Stand by Me, which is the theme song to Final Fantasy XV.
3. Yoshitaka Amano, legendary Final Fantasy artist, designed a brand new animated project titled Big Bang!
4. Stand by Me was revealed to be sung by none other than Florence Welch of Florence and the Machine.
5. All-new gameplay was unveiled featuring chocobo riding, updated battle mechanics, magic, and how Titan is summoned.
6. World of Wonder: Environment Footage brought a soothing tone to showcase how vastly open-world the game is looking to be.

   

7. A brand new surprise, Brotherhood Final Fantasy XV was announced! A five part anime series telling the backstory of all of the friends — the announcement trailer and episode 1 are available to watch here.

   

8. Kingsglaive: Final Fantasy, a fully CG movie was announced! Blurring the lines between animation and reality, Kingsglaive tells the story of Nyx — a member of the elite armed forces, the Kingsglaive.
9. A partnership between Audi was uncovered to show a one of a kind, exclusive Audi R8, themed after the world of Kingsglaive .
10. An all-star voice cast for Kingsglaive was revealed! Aaron Paul, Lena Headey, and Sean Bean headline this star studded affair.
11. Justice Monsters Five, a brand new mobile game was showcased to the world for the first time — a brand new pinball mini-game will be available on smart phones later this year.

    

12. A completely free and quirky demo, Platinum Demo — Final Fantasy XV was shown. Set in a whimsical dreamscape, you play as a child Noctis traversing the world with your new pal, Carbuncle.

    

13. Two blockbuster editions were announced! The deluxe edition which contains both Final Fantasy XV and the Kingsglaive movie will be available in limited quantities. And in even more select quantities is the ultimate collector’s edition (which contains more content than this entire blog!) — pre-order your edition of choice here!

    

14. The release date was finally uncovered and confirmed! September 30, 2016 worldwide!
15. Lastly, the Uncovered Extended trailer debuted even more gameplay and dove deeper into the story.

We have a solid 6 months to make 2016 the year of Final Fantasy XV, so we hope you’re just as excited for Final Fantasy XV as we are!

Now more than ever, please be excited.

What were you most surprised by?

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PlayStation Plus in April: Zombi, Dead Star, Shutshimi, more

Hi everyone – we’re happy to announce the monthly games for April. Whether you’re looking to pilot a warship escaping from a dying star or survive zombie-infested London, we’ve got you covered.

First up we have Dead Star, a fantastic team-based space-shooter-meets-RPG that we are excited to have launch as a PS Plus title. Dreamed up by the folks at Armature Studio (founded by key members of the Metroid Prime team!), Dead Star is the result of a “wouldn’t it be cool if…” process that started with a space shooter foundation that builds in elements from strategy and RPG titles.

The result is a 20-player (yes, 10v10) online experience that’s both easy to pick-up-and-play and also offers a great deal of depth (skill trees, ship upgrades, team strategy, and more). Dead Star has been a big hit at shows like PSX and PAX, with players finding something really special in the game.

The second title this month is Zombi, a survival-horror FPS from the same Ubisoft studio that brought us Rayman and Beyond Good & Evil. Given that legacy it’s easy to see why this is such an intriguing title! The London setting combined with deliberately-paced gameplay really sets Zombi apart as something a little different within its genre. Add-in the extra challenge of the ‘permanent death’ feature and it’s easy to see why this game has become a cult favourite.

As a lifelong gamer, I love seeing the evolution of the medium. In the last several years, we’ve seen lots of experimentation with the blending of genres and this month’s PS4 titles are shining examples of this kind of rich, layered gaming experience.

Here’s your full line-up of games for next month, launching on 5th April:

• Dead Star (PS4)
• Zombi (PS4)
• I Am Alive (PS3)
• Savage Moon (PS3)
• A Virus Named Tom (PS Vita)
• Shutshimi (PS Vita)

See you in the comments section. Enjoy.

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Shadow of the Beast release date announced

Hi PlayStation Blog readers. We’ve finally reached the point where we have to stop putting things into the game – the last tweaks to combat have been made and the final Easter eggs are hidden for you to find. So now we are focused solely on fixing bugs and getting Shadow of the Beast ready to appear on PlayStation Store.

We have been working closely with Sony to find the best time to release and now we have a definitive release date: 17th May 2016.

 
Our small team has been using the extra time to the fullest – we’ve been able to push the game to a solid 60fps throughout, something we feel passionate about as fans of the fighting genre. With the increased response time that comes with this we’ve been fine tuning the combat experience even more; upgrading Aarbron to the full extent of his abilities and equipping him with some of the mystic artefacts that you find will really add much more depth to the gameplay. It feels quite different to other combat-adventure games, but hopefully people will find it very rewarding!

Just before we go, we’d like to share a few new screenshots from the game, including one that reveals a feature we haven’t talked about yet – the gun!

 
Finally, we are also very excited to be able to reveal exclusively here on PlayStation Blog that pre-ordering will net you a fantastic free dynamic theme featuring a brand new original creature designed by acclaimed artist Roger Dean! Roger was the creator of the cover art for the original Shadow Of The Beast game and its sequel, so it’s a massive honour to have him revisit the universe with our game!

Here’s a sneak peek preview image of what you can expect….

 
If all that has you interested, then the game is available to pre-order on PlayStation Store now – and with the new dynamic theme you can fully immerse yourself in the world of Karamoon when the game arrives on 17th May 2016!

Thanks for taking the time to read about our game, it is genuinely appreciated!

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Trippy old-school FPS Lovely Planet is PS4-bound

Hidy ho, PS Bloggerinos! It’s Alex Nichiporchik here ready to tell you about yet another new tinyBuild game coming to PS4. We already told you about Party Hard and No Time to Explain, and now it’s time for Lovely Planet.

We know you love your first-person shooters on PlayStation (So do we!), so we’re excited to be bringing our own… unique brand of shooter.

What a lovely day!

Lovely Planet is what we describe as a first-person shooter gun ballet. Yes, you read that correctly. This planet may look lovely, with a colourful palette of bright, abstract shapes and sounds, but the inhabitants here are anything but.

 
In each of Lovely Planet’s fast-paced levels, your aim is to shoot all the nasty dudes, save the innocents, maybe defuse a bomb or two, and reach the goal in the fastest time possible.

Then you’ll notice that thousands of other players reached the goal before you on the leaderboards, and you’ll think “Okay, fine, I can do it quicker.” Then several hours later, when your eyeballs are dry and your knuckles are clenched, you’ll break down in tears, screaming about how it’s impossible that someone called “tehmast3r449” has managed to beat the level faster than you.

Welcome to Lovely Planet.

I’ve got a lovely bunch of bullets

Here’s the thing about Lovely Planet: it’s a back-to-basics first-person shooter. There are none of these fancy medpacks, or regenerating health, or gritty realism to be found here — you shoot, you jump, you get hit, you die, you try again.

And just to top it off, Lovely Planet is easily one of the trippiest first-person shooters you’ve ever played — don’t take our word for it, that’s what Kotaku called it!

In fact, one of my favourite descriptions of the game came from a writer at Gamasutra. They described Lovely Planet as “If Katamari creator Keita Takahashi made Turok.” We should hire that guy for marketing!

And you’ll be trippin’ for quite a while too, with 100 levels to master over five worlds and online leaderboards crammed into every single one. There are also tons of secrets to discover, stars to unlock, and a storyline so packed with subtlety that you’ll start to wonder whether it… doesn’t actually exist.

 

How lovely

This is Lovely Planet, then: a trippy first-person shooter gun ballet with five worlds to explore, 100 leaderboards to top, and an approach to shooters that will take you back to the golden days of classics like Doom and Wolfenstein. Except with less blood and more rainbows.

And if you thought this was all you’d see from tinyBuild, you’re so very wrong! You can expect to see a lot more from us in the coming months.

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Isometric arcade adventure Lumo arrives on PS4 & PS Vita next month

Hello there! I’m Gareth Noyce, the developer of Lumo, an isometric arcade adventure game that’s coming soon to PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Vita.

“Isometric arcade adventure game? What’s that, then?!” Well, I’m glad you asked! Back in the mid ’80s – when computers made beeping sounds and colour TVs were wheeled into your home from the back of a Radio Rentals lorry (i.e. moving vehicle) – 3D was a bit tricky, so clever programmers used to fake it using isometric projection. You’d explore their worlds, room by room, completing the odd puzzle along the way, and engage in some proto-platforming gameplay. Simple stuff by today’s standards, but massively popular and often stunning to look at back then. In fact, the isometric craze spawned some stone cold classics – games that are fondly remembered to this day: Knight Lore, Head Over Heels, Amaurote, Chimera, Solstice & Equinox, to name just a few!

 
One of these games – Head Over Heels – was the first game that I ever owned. It had a massive effect on 10-year-old me, so much so that I used to scribble down ideas for new rooms on paper! In a sense, it started me down the path of becoming a game developer, so when the opportunity to make my own game came around – spurred on by Ste Pickford, co-developer of some of the best isometric games ever made (a few of which are in that list up there) – it seemed like too good an idea to pass up!

If only I’d kept those scribbled room ideas from when I was a kid, though…

 
Lumo (Finnish for ‘enchantment’) isn’t a remake of those classic 8-bit games – instead, it’s my attempt to answer, ‘what would those games be like today?’ We can do things with physics, light and sound that just weren’t possible back then, not to mention being able to auto save (!), so Lumo smooths off some of those old-school edges and brings the genre bang up-to-date.

It’s a much bigger game than its predecessors, clocking in at nearly 450 rooms split across four different zones, including secret paths, tons of hidden rooms, ducks to rescue, coins to collect & spend, and six mini-games to find and unlock!

 
It’s not just about getting from start to-finish – instead, it’s going to reward your exploration skills. Try and jump out of rooms and bend the game mechanics. Who knows, maybe you’ll be the first person to find all the cassettes and complete the mini-games? If you do, be sure to try it against the clock in Old School Mode, Lumo‘s Time Trial set-up.

I’ve had so much fun making Lumo over the last two years that it’s turned into a bit of a love letter to gaming in the ’80s, capturing the feelings I had as a wide-eyed 10-year-old falling in love with his first computer game.

 
Retro-gamers will chuckle at some of the references to ’80s magazines and developers that I’ve snuck in – keep your eyes open! – while players new to these games will be able to experience a fresh, modern take on a genre that’s just as fun today as it was 30 years ago. (But if you decide to scribble down your own ideas for new rooms, please take a photo of them and upload them to the cloud. You never know when they’ll come in handy!)

Lumo will be available (with Cross-Buy) for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Vita on 22nd April 2016.

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