Monthly Archives: January 2015

First 3 Chapters of Total War: The Sword of Attila Available For Free

The Sword of Attila Cover

The latest Total War™ novel, written by New York Times best-selling author David Gibbins, will be available from January 29 on eBook, hardback and paperback in the UK, France, Germany and US (check your favorite local retailer for specific formats and release dates). But you can read the first thrilling chapters right now.

Against the backdrop of a crumbling Western Roman Empire, The Sword of Attila charts the birth and meteoric rise to power of the Hunnic warlord. Seen through the eyes of Flavius, a Roman Tribune thrust into a world of turmoil and strife, this deeply researched tale blends intrigue, high adventure and tactical analysis with scenes depicting the glory and horror of large-scale battle.
The first three chapters are available to read for free on the Total War Wiki and you’ll be able to recreate Attila’s story for yourself in the forthcoming Total War™: ATTILA on February 17.

Amplitude Studios Announces “Endless Day” 4th Birthday Events

Recently nominated at the D.I.C.E. Awards for Strategy/Simulation Game of the Year for Endless Legend and Dungeon of the Endless as well as Outstanding Achievement in Game Design for Dungeon of the Endless, Amplitude Studios is heralding its fourth year anniversary tomorrow with its first-time ever “Endless Day” event.

EndlessDayAmplitudeEvent

Amplitude’s Endless Day will unlock a mysterious set of events in each game, Endless Legend, Endless Space, and Dungeon of the Endless, encouraging gamers to uncover “Endless” secrets that then permanently unlock exclusive in-game content for each title, all starting at 12 am, Wednesday, January 21 until 12 pm, Sunday, January 25. After the clock starts ticking, Amplitude will follow up with a whole day of giveaways, developer Twitch streams, goodies, and more.

The celebrations during Endless Day will continue tomorrow with a host of events, including:

-FREE KEYS ON TWITTER: Starting at 1 am PST, 9 am GMT (10 am CET) on Twitter twitter.com/amplitude and running all day, Amplitude Studios will give out free keys for all three of its games.
-FOUNDERS STREAM: Amplitude Studios founders Romain De Waubert and Mathieu Girard will host a Twitch stream and chat at 2 am PST, 11 am GMT (12 am CET) where they will talk about upcoming plans for the Endless games and more.
-SPOCK TALK: A Twitch stream hosted by Amplitude narrative director and leader writer Jeff Spock at 5 am PST, 1 pm GMT (2 pm CET) where he will discuss the intricacies of the Endless universe and hand-out prizes such as signed game copies.
-VAULTERS FACTION UNLOCKED: All owners of Endless Space Disharmony expansion will also see the Vaulters faction unlocked.

More details about the Endless Day and a full run-down of the planning can be found on the mini-website here.

PlanetSide 2’s PS4 Closed Beta Launches Today

Planetside 2 PS 4 CBT

Sony Online Entertainment LLC (SOE) announced that the Closed Beta begins today in the United States for PlanetSide®2, the critically-acclaimed, free-to-play massively multiplayer online first-person shooter (MMOFPS), through the PlayStation®4 computer entertainment system.

“PlanetSide 2 is defined by its massive size and strong camaraderie amongst players, making it an exceptional fit for the PlayStation 4’s powerful hardware and social community,” said Clint Worley, Executive Producer, PlanetSide 2. “We didn’t just create a port — we created a full console first-person shooter experience. The Closed Beta allows us to gain invaluable player feedback, ensuring a heart-pounding, action-packed massive experience at launch.”

As the only PlayStation 4 game that brings massive communities of players together to fight simultaneously across enormous battles, PlanetSide 2 offers a truly massive world combat conflict. Players can still register for the Closed Beta, which begins today with a few thousand initial invites followed by a steady increase throughout the Beta period. Players will be invited to Beta chronologically and can opt in by email for a chance to participate in Closed Beta via the PlanetSide 2 website.

The Beta period for PlanetSide 2 on PlayStation 4 will enable SOE to test servers, performance and various other aspects of the game. Players in Beta are fully encouraged to offer constructive feedback through community forums and official PlanetSide 2 social channels.

PlanetSide 2 Closed Beta is now available for the PlayStation 4 in the United States, though the Beta will expand to future countries and territories in the near future. A final game launch is slated for later this year. For additional details on the PlayStation 4 version and the Closed Beta, visit the PlanetSide 2 FAQ.

Lords of the Black Sun

Lords of the Black Sun is an epic-sized, complex, and dense turn based 4X strategy game for the PC set in space. Take the command of one race to join the struggle for supremacy in the galaxy. As the leader of your empire you are to deal with exploring the stars, colonizing new worlds, manage your empire and conquer whomever dares to oppose.

Features:

Vast Universe: There are eight major races each with their own ship designs, technologies, unique traits and unique abilities, meaning playing with each race is a different challenge and offers new ways to approach the game. In addition to the major powers, independent races and pirate clans also claim the galaxy as their residence; their existence can be an annoyance, or a blessing if you can take advantage of them.

Economic and Political Depth: War isn’t the only way to weaken your rivals. Diplomacy, intelligence and trade can be one of many powerful tools that, if used properly, can be very effective as well. Unrest might lead rebels to start a civil war, which in turn might lead to the creation of a new, independent empire that might grow to rival your own.

Plotting and Espionage: Secretly finance a war against your rivals in order to weaken them or prepare a surprise joint war along with your allies in a bid to destroy that frighteningly fast growing empire. Beware of spies and whistleblowers though; your plot might be uncovered before you put it in action and the consequences can be dire.

Much More: Rule your empire as you wish, turning it into a dystopia, a utopia or something in between, it’s up to you. The game has modding support, human-like AI that doesn’t cheat and plays by the same rules as human players, while presenting a constant challenge, and strategic turn-based combat.