Monthly Archives: September 2015

Test Your Might in Cabal 2’s Trial of Champions

Test Your Might in Cabal 2's Trial of Champions news header

Calling all warriors! ESTSoft, Inc. revealed details for its next free update for CABAL 2, available starting Sept. 10. The new update includes two new battle arenas and a rewards system for players at the top of rankings.

 

The “Trial of Champions” features two new arenas, which both require players to be level 10 to enter. There is an instanced monster arena and a PvP arena. In the monster arena, players will go in alone and fight for survival against a variety of monsters across different stages. The PvP arena will give combatants the chance to prove their skills by facing off against each other in an effort to become the ultimate champion of CABAL 2.

 

In addition to these two arenas, there is a new ranking system that will track players in events like the monster arena, PvP arena and in-game battlegrounds. This feature tracks the amount of points that players rack up during these events and gives them a ranking. At the end of each season players will be awarded prizes based off of their ranking.

 

“Expect much more to come and change the ever expanding CABAL 2 universe, as we’ve got many updates and improvements in store,” said Ajmal Popal, Assistant Product Manager, ESTSoft.

 

Red Awakening

Red Awakening is a multiplayer FPS Horror game developed by Domino Effect. Influenced by the slasher movie genre and classic FPS and stealth games of the 90s and 00s, Red Awakening lets players jump into a surreal blend of neon drenched environments, satirical storytelling, first-person dynamic stealth, parkour style movement, drug induced power-ups, ultra-violent gameplay and an unnerving “Carpenter-esque” synth soundtrack.

Features:

Freedom of Movement: Act like a ninja lunatic with Red Awakening’s fully dynamic parkour system that includes wall running, wall jumping, wall hanging, mantling, sliding, sprinting, crouching and the ability to kick.

Dynamic Detection System Enjoy a stylish stealth system where the screen changes color whether you’re detected by enemies or not.

Visceral First Person Combat: Experience up close and personal melee combat and executions, allowing players to collect, or even pull, weapons from the surrounding environment such as Fire Axes, Hammers, Circular Saw blades, shards of glass

Special abilites : Feel like the ultimate predator using stealth and thermal vision to stalk enemy players.

Fruit Attacks Mobile Review

By Jaime Skelton (MissyS)

 

Fruit Attacks Mobile Review

While mobile gaming has been a booster seat at the big kid’s table for video gaming, it’s also just as obnoxious. The games are colorful, draw attention to themselves, and often are the most awkward gaming experiences a gaming veteran can encounter. It’s no wonder that we’ve grown indifferent to them, only bothering to give a game a glance if it has one of our mental buzzwords (Did someone say Fallout?) or when one of those persistent friends or family members nag you with invites until you relent. In fact, when it comes to mobile games, we often wear our non-participation like a badge of honor. For instance, I’m still proud to have never crushed candy.

Perhaps I’m feeling a little snarky because one MMO publisher after another has slowly succumbed to the temptation of producing handheld gaming bait. To be clear, I’m not referring to games thoughtfully designed for mobile, like Vainglory or Orders & Chaos Online, or even logical ports like Forge of Empires. No, we’re talking about MMO companies jumping into the dirty ball pit of mobile gaming, full of energy walls, pay gates, and bribes to connect the game to every social network you ever existed on. It’s an easy pit to slide into when producing online games, but that doesn’t ease my sense of disappointment.

But let me step down from my soapbox and cut to the chase: En Masse has joined this group of publishers with its first mobile title, Fruit Attacks, and now a second title, Pocket Platoons. While I can’t explain why Bluehole’s western branch has jumped from playing Lolicon in TERA to destroying space fruit, I can at least break down what Fruit Attacks is all about and let you decide if it’s worth your time.

 

Fruit Attacks Mobile Review

Meeting your Daily Recommended Serving of Fruit Destruction

Fruit Attacks is a 2D, arcade-style skill shooter. Players are charged with defending the earth from invading fruit-aliens by using robots known as SATIs, along with mini-SATIs and additional power-ups. Invaders appear on screen and approach the bottom in different patterns, and SATIs use sound attacks to eliminate these evil fruit before the shield protecting earth is destroyed. Stages are split across Episodes and Acts, and also come in a variant “Nightmare” mode for the veteran players ready for a challenge. As can be expected, a few boss battles are also staggered along the way.

Players also get access to their own Home, a small room which can be customized with cats (used to fetch currency in timed hunts) and a small assortment of furniture. At home, players also can access their refrigerator, where fruit kills are bottled up to make juice. At certain fill levels, players can empty their juice container in exchange for mystery box rewards.

 

Fruit Attacks Mobile Review

This Isn’t Build-a-Bot Workshop

Though players start with only the default SATI, Dolbi, additional SATI can be unlocked through collecting blueprints (found as loot in a shell game at the end of the stage) or through purchase with either of the game’s currencies. Each SATI has an innate skill, which serves as their basic attack, and a vibro-skill, which is powered up during the stage limit-break style. To activate you need to shake your phone to get the motion sensitivity to set the ability off, which was one serious game of finger twister considering taking screenshots for this article involved pushing the power and volume button at the same time as shaking my phone! Though mastering this finger twister is needed for tackling tough stages, at least with a current range of six SATI available on the game’s release.

Mini-SATIs can be discovered through looting spare parts to build them in the Minimaker lab. Here there is a random chance of obtaining an assortment of these little fellows, which act as mini-pets and boosters to the equipped SATI. Like SATIs, Mini-SATIs have two skills. The first of these is a predetermined boost ability to the SATI, such as adding an additional drop-shot to a fully charged SATI shot. The second is a randomly determined passive bonus which might grant extra defensive or offensive bonuses. Mini SATIs can also be fused together to create more powerful versions of themselves, although this becomes rather costly.

Besides a basic upgrade function, and the ability to mix-and-match one SATI and two Mini-SATIs when entering stages, there isn’t much to speak of for customization. Bots only level when they’re upgraded and do not gain experience on their own. In fact, the Home option has arguably more upgrade functions even if they are equally as limited. It’s a shame that there are no ways to, at the very least, cosmetically alter your SATI collection.

 

Fruit Attacks Mobile Review

I’m All Thumbs

The real charm of Fruit Attacks is in the gameplay itself. Rather than a ‘tap to shoot’ or simple aimed shot system, the game uses a “hook shot” system. Using both thumbs (or whatever two fingers are the most comfortable or convenient), players create a path for their SATI’s attacks. Each finger controls a point on the shot. The first point will be straight from the SATI outward, but the second point will create an arced path from the first point.

This allows for some rather creative skill shots, as you can use the screen to twist and arc your shots just so before letting them go. Shots can (and should) also be charged by holding the fingers on the screen until the shot has reached full power. Some enemies take more than a weak shot, and each enemy comes in with its own formation, so beating each stage is a matter of increasing skill and familiarity with the attack system. This is, and remains, the most impressive feature of Fruit Attacks, enough that it makes up some for other lackluster parts of gameplay.

 

Fruit Attacks Mobile Review

Moderately App’peel’ing

For the social mobile gamer, Fruit Attacks is limited: in fact, the game has essentially no multiplayer elements outside of leaderboards, and even those are limited only to Facebook friends. I’d guess that, coming from a studio so focused in online gaming, we’d see more multiplayer elements than this, and perhaps they are simply in development to be released in a future update.

Otherwise, Fruit Attacks is colorful and charming, with an upbeat soundtrack and silly game sounds that fit the ridiculousness of destroying fruit aliens with robots that attack through sound. The gameplay is fun and engaging, and there’s a moderate amount of depth in managing your SATIs and Mini-SATIs for optimal juicing. The game isn’t without its vices though, particularly its incredibly steep costs for upgrading everything that will have you either grinding or opening your wallet by the end of Episode 1.

 

Fruit Attacks Mobile Review

Final Verdict: Good

Altogether, Fruit Attacks is a good quality arcade-style game – just don’t expect too much out of it as a free-to-play mobile game.

The Break-down:

Features (4/5): For an arcade-style game, Fruit Attacks has a pretty good variety of features. Each offers enough depth that there’s more than just stage-clearing to work toward.

Customization (2/5): Very basic progression system for SATI. Mini-SATIs have more depth in their random passive abilities and fusion. Cosmetic upgrades are only to be found in the Home section.

Control (5/5): The ‘hook shot’ dual-finger shot system makes every shot impactful. There’s no brute-forcing your way through stages: winning is a matter of skill.

Community (1/5): There isn’t any real community to speak of, even outside of the game, and the only multiplayer is comparing scores with Facebook friends.

Graphics & Audio (5/5): Bright, cheerful, upbeat, everything an engaging and addicting mobile game could want.

Voting Now Open For Second Dying Light Dev Tools

Dying Light Developer Tools Updated news header

Beyond Dying Light II, the second Dying Light Dev Tools contest is now open for public voting. The contest will see the first place winner receive an Alienware Alpha machine + a stash of Dying Light merch. The core Dying Light production team played through all the submissions and based on creativity, gameplay, and overall quality selected their top 5 which now go to the public to vote on.

”The Dying Light fans seriously continue to surprise us with their creativity and it was the exact same thing with these mods. Some of these are so unique and fun that we found ourselves even playing them in our spare time.” says Producer Tymon Smektala. “That led us to start talking about trying to make these available for our console fans. We’re looking into it, but we’ll have to see.”

The top 5 mods include:

  • The Winchester Tavern –  a near perfect replica of the famous pub from the cult-hit movie Shaun of the Dead. Grab a pint and defend your local watering hole.
  • SkyFall – an intricate and twisted journey through a man’s troubled dreams. Various levels and puzzles that get more and more warped the further you delve.
  • Escaping Death – a classic action-packed Dying Light experience full of combat and parkour.
  • Repetition: Horror House – recreating the tension of the infamous P.T. house but with a Harran-flavoured twist.
  • Little Big World – “Honey, I shrunk the outbreak.” Battle and parkour your way through an infested house, all while being the size of a bottle cap.

You can download the five competing mods from Steam workshop and cast your vote on the contest website here.

Voting closes on September 13 and a winner will be announced shortly after.

Guardian Stone

Guardian Stone is a mobile RPG developed by Delusion Studios and published by TOAST USA. As a classic dungeon-crawling adventure RPG designed for mobile devices, players can enjoy a cinematic experience featuring classic RPG class types, powerful enemies and more.

Features:

Turn-based combat: Enjoy traditional turn-based RPG combat with simple touch controls that anyone can use.

Strategic play: Make use of over a thousand guardians to form unique strategies.

Beautiful visuals: Enjoy powerful 3D animations and a cartoon art style.

Dungeons galore: Explore dozens of dungeons with lurking dragons and other creatures.

RuneScape Merchandise Store goes Cash Free by Accepting Bonds

 

RuneScape Merchandise Store goes Cash Free by Accepting Bonds news header

Jagex Games Studio – creators and custodians of the fantasy MMORPG, RuneScape – has announced that players no longer need to use real-world currency to purchase items from the official RuneScape store. In addition to such traditional methods, cash-conscious players can now use RuneScape Bonds to acquire a range of t-shirts that pay homage to the game. Further items, including god-symbol emblazoned caps, hoodies and more will be rolled out in phases.

 

Bonds are accrued either by purchasing them directly from Jagex or through bartering with other players. They have proved to be exceptionally popular with the game’s massive player-base since they launched in 2013, with more than 350,000 RuneScape Bonds transacted every month.

 

In addition to merchandise, Bonds can be traded in for RuneScape membership or used as a donation to partner charities such as WWF and Oxfam. Players can even use their Bonds to purchase their entry to the annual RuneFest fan festival on Saturday 3rd October at Tobacco Dock in London. Approximately 50 percent of attendees this year have used Bonds to buy their ticket for the event, compared with 40 percent in 2014. Additionally, many players attending have paid for their accommodation in the city – and even their flights – using only Bonds.

Warhammer 40,000 Eternal Crusade Entering Closed Alpha Testing

Warhammer 40,000 Eternal Crusade Entering Closed Alpha Testing news header

In today’s “State of the Crusade,” Eternal Crusade‘s Senior Producer, Nathan Richardsson, announced that the game will be heading into closed alpha testing on Monday, September 14.

On that day, any founders with Captain’s packs or higher and were first to buy will be granted access to the Closed Alpha in small batches, with a goal of having all of those founders in game by October. Founders who aren’t part of this group can still upgrade to a Captain’s+ pack before the Sergeants’ wave to gain closed alpha access with the rest of them.

The letter also notes that currently testing is focused on the shooter experience of the game, and will not yet feature many of the MMO features (which will be added later in testing). For full information on the upcoming test, read the blog post.

Conquer Online 3.0 Kingdom War Update Bringing New Features

Conquer Online 3.0 Kingdom War Update Bringing New Features news header

In mid-October, Conquer Online will witness the updates of the first wave of 3.0 features. The new expansion will bring several new concepts that are sure to raise eyebrows in the F2P world. Emperor and courtiers, imperial harem, Official System, the War Chariot and Tempest Wings, all these features and more come together in the long-waited Kingdom War. The Kingdom War is a global PVP event where heroes fight to become controllers of Guilds, Unions, Kingdoms and the whole CO world. Let’s learn more about the brand new features in CO 3.0 Kingdom War. Last week CO 3.0 Kingdom War merged with the Chinese version of Conquer. Heroes found it was a great stage to display their own battle power and fighting skills.

What’s a Kingdom?

The greatest union on one server will obtain the power to become the monarch of the server after the Kingdom War and the server will become an independent kingdom, and the leader of the union will be the Emperor. A Kingdom inherits all the features of a union and gains even more powerful features. A unique Kingdom exists on each server. The composition of a standing Kingdom should be: an Emperor, two prime ministers and marshals, four generals, ten imperial harems and twenty imperial guards and also includes other unions, guilds and individuals who swear allegiance to the Kingdom.

The powerful Features

An Emperor is the sovereign ruler of a Kingdom, and holds absolute power over all. The Emperor has the power to nominate and appoint important officials, imperial guards and imperial harems. Besides issuing leader tokens, the Emperor also has the right to issue the Stipend Token and Shift Token. The partial exercise of power by important officials, provides assistance to the Emperor. Important officials, imperial guards and imperial harems can draw daily benefits and welfare. Apart from these, the Emperor of each Kingdom can wage war against other Kingdoms so as to gain their resources, kill their generals, and even to seize their thrones to become the “king of kings”.

Tempest Wings

The last talisman in the world of Conquer Online, Tempest Wings! The sparkles were dazzling when heroes wore this glorious item. Besides a resplendent and magnificent look, the talisman lifts heroes’ attributes. Players can get Tempest Wings from finishing a specified quest. An Emperor’s Tempest Wings differ from those of lower ranking players.

“Kingdom War shows the darker side of the world of Conquer” said one Chinese player who has experienced the Kingdom War in the Chinese version. “When you bring your weapons, courage and wits to enter the field, you truly feel that your kingdom needs you! All fighters are fighting for their kingdoms!”

The CO team is putting extra efforts on CO 3.0 the Kingdom War English version, aiming to offer English speaking players a better game experience. Wait and behold the battlefield!