UPDATE: Confirmed RUMOUR: Metro Redux Coming To Next Gen

From the depths of an Italian forum (which is admittedly only a few notches higher than "a friend of a friend says" and a little lower than an unheard of online retailer listing on the rumo-nitor) comes news of a new metro game... well not new.

Update: Deep Silver has confirmed Metro: Redux is real and details are coming "This side of E3"  and the above image is out of date.

This image was found on Italian gaming forum "ForumEye" which claims this is a remaster of both Metro 2033 and Metro Last Light bundled with all of the DLC and "enhancements". No actual details was revealed other than it'll come with Art cards and soundtracks (fairly common re-release mcgubbins) and an supposed release date Luglio 2014, that'll be June to you and me.

It's seems likely that the enhancements are likely the Ultra graphics from the PC versions and some additional tweaks. Though people are saying Metro 2033 will receive some of Last Lights improvements (improved stealth for one). Time will tell as June is not that far way.

Abe's Take
Metro 2033 is hard to get hold of now on consoles and Last Light reviewed rather well, So a remaster would make sense and would certainly help Deep Silver recover some of the funds they spent on acquiring Metro and it's developer. I really enjoy Metro Last Light and would love to play it and it's prequel on my Xbox One.  *However I feel the image is a fake, the box art looks a little off and the description mentions a PC version but no PC box is shown, usually these sorts of images contain either just the art from the box art with out any console borders or all the boxes layered.

* Update: well looks like I was wrong about that

Dead Space 1 "On The House" Act fast

Seem's that not being voted worst company in America for the third time has made EA very happy, So happy in fact they are giving people free games "on the house".

First up grab you copy HERE. Unless your against EA giving you free things though their Origin service then you're done here. Dead Space is the first title in their "on the house" promotion. Which is a little different to other free game give always, actually it's a little closer to the Black Friday flash sales. Titles and DLC will randomly loose their price tags for a unset amount of time before returning to their previous price.

Abe's Take
Free games are always nice (though current internet opinion seems to demand more) and Dead Space is a great game. This offer whilst a little odd works well for EA as it will cause Gamers to "window shop" Origin's store looking for the deals

Sonic: Lost World FREE Zelda DLC Looks The Part

After the slightly lacklustre reviews of both the core game and the first Yoshi themed DLC, hopes wasn't exactly high for the next bout of free DLC. But the next chapter certainly looks the part.

Screenshot jacked from IGN, they have exclusive rights to the trailer for the moment.

The next DLC is Zelda themed and not only will Sonic gain links traditional tunic and hat but the content will also include a fully explorable, free roam Hyrule field. Not much is know about it other than there will be Zelda characters and creatures and not generic Sonic ones inserted into Hyrule.

The DLC will be out tomorrow March 27th, so Sonic: Lost World owners can tell us how great it is.

Abe's Take
Well done Sega you have my considering buying Lost World just for this content.
Looking at the screenshot I cant help but think that prehaps this is Sega's audition for making an Zelda game.

Oddworld: New n' Tasty Price, Sequel Detailed

The HD remake of Abe's Oddysee (not me!) has been slowly gaining media attention as it release date of "later this year" approaches and the game appears at various events. Now we know more about it's future.

First things first this isn't like the HD ports of recent years. They havent just grabbed the old game and made it bigger for modern TV's. This is a true HD remake, they have built everything from scratch, entirely from the ground up. It's $30 dollar price tag reflects this (when it hits over here it should be around £20). When asked Oddworld creator Lorne Lanning “This game will play better, look better, and you’ll have more fun with for more hours of play than games you’re paying $60 for. That’s a promise. And I can say that with absolute confidence. If this had a publisher, the price would be higher and they’d be calling in triple A.”

As for the series future? if New n' Tasty sells 250,000 units they will give the same treatment to Abe's Exoddus but if it sells 500,000 units then they will be able to craft an brand new Oddworld game.

New n' Tasty is set to release on PS3, PS4 and Vita later this year. With a PC and Wii U versions to follow. The Wii U will also receive Stranger Wrath HD after Nintendo directly contacted the developers and asked for it  CEO of Just add water the new developer of Oddworld had this to say “Indeed, their developer relations man is a fan of the franchise so reached out to us to ask for that title specifically, that’s where the discussions started. In terms of what are they like to work with, they’re fantastic. I’ve NEVER had a problem with working with Nintendo in respect of their people and teams, it’s been a case of a problem in terms of the hardware and indeed the lack of a competent digital outlet, until now.”



Abe's Take
As a fan of the Oddworld games i am grateful to see it return both in a true HD remake and possible fresh content.

Facebook Buy Oculus, Minecraft Leaves

Well I suspected someone was gonna buy Oculus but I wasn't expecting Facebook being the one to drop $2 Billion for it.

Facebooks plans to not just to produce games for the rift but also want to "extend" into additional services and social activities.

Mark "Facebook" Zuckerberg had this to say "Mobile is the platform of today, and now we're also getting ready for the platforms of tomorrow," Zuckerberg said in a statement. "Oculus has the chance to create the most social platform ever, and change the way we work, play and communicate."

On his Facebook timeline, Zuckerberg further discussed the acquisition. “After games, we're going to make Oculus a platform for many other experiences. Imagine enjoying a court side seat at a game, studying in a classroom of students and teachers all over the world or consulting with a doctor face-to-face -- just by putting on goggles in your home.”

“This partnership is one of the most important moments for virtual reality: it gives us the best shot at truly changing the world,” the Oculus team says. “It opens doors to new opportunities and partnerships, reduces risk on the manufacturing and work capital side, allows us to publish more made-for-VR content, and lets us focus on what we do best: solving hard engineering challenges and delivering the future of VR.”

Changing Views
Now a lot of hardcore gamers saw the Oculus Rift as the next step in gaming and the console's crushing defeat. This buy out is all ready changing peoples views on the tech. they are uncomfirmed reports of people attempting to cancel their kickstarter pledges.

But one person is publicly pulling his support is Minecraft creator Markus "Notch" Persson who has cancelled Mincecraft for the platform. Clarifying his thoughts on his Blog "Facebook is not a company of grass-roots tech enthusiasts," Persson writes. "Facebook is not a game tech company. Facebook has a history of caring about building user numbers, and nothing but building user numbers."

He goes on to acknowledge that social might be a great use of VR technology (business meetings and virtual cinemas are two examples), but says unequivocally that he does not want to work in that space. Persson reinforces his interest in virtual reality, but is clear that he will pursue it in another way.

"I definitely want to be a part of VR, but I will not work with Facebook," he states. "Their motives are too unclear and shifting, and they haven’t historically been a stable platform. There’s nothing about their history that makes me trust them, and that makes them seem creepy to me."

Persson concludes by wishing both parties well after stating that he feels his $10,000 funding was simply used to build value for a Facebook acquisition.

Abe's View
I've been hesitant about VR and Oculus Rift in particular. Whilst i think the tech is amazing, I don't see people wanting to strap an monitor to their face when they want to relax (seeing as wearing 3D glasses is too much for some people). On a Practical note to truly have VR you need the headset, the Omi-directional treadmill and controls that work with each VR expiration. On a note slightly more lighter note who can trust the others in the room whilst your vision and hearing are occupied?

50 Unity Titles Coming to Wii U

Well it seems that Nintendo's lack of third party support is getting a untraditional boost - Unity powered Indie games.

Before the launch of the Wii U Nintendo announced a partnership with Unity. Bundling a Wii U Unity extension with all Unity engines and by offering unity free with every Wii U dev kit.

In an interview with Siliconera Damon Baker, Senior Marketing Manager at Nintendo of America's Licensing department, revealed that Unity for Wii U was proving pretty popular "Over the course of this show, we have nine games on display, (GDC)" Baker said. "We have 17 that are currently in the pipeline, that have been submitted. So they will all be out within the next two months." But then he dropped this info bomb "And then, we have another fifty that are waiting in the wings, that are coming; so we've got a lot of Unity content on the way."

News also comes that they are also attempting a similar deal with Unity for 3DS

Abe's Take

A lot has been said about the state of the Wii U's third party support but it's Indie support is hard to ignore.

I imagine that alot of console owners own multiple systems for different reasons. Nintendo consoles have always sold on the strength of their 1st party titles and the occasional 3rd party exclusives. I would be delighted to add Indie titles to the list of reasons 

The Final Ultra Street Fighter IV Character Is Revealed

After month of teasing and hints Capcom finally announces the fifth and final USFIV character Decapre.

Decapre is the last of the dolls and a DNA clone of Cammy. Many online have misunderstood that as she is a pallet swap of Cammy. Decapre is Russian (like the rest of the Dolls is named after he birth month; December), She wears a mask to cover her burned face (likley at the hands of Vega) and is equipped with psycho energy claws for her close range attacks and whilst her specials have a Cammy/Doll feel to them they are all charged attacks and feature abilities such as teleport.

Check her out in the trailer below



Abe's Take
Capcom is taking some flak by online commenters for Ultra Street Fighter IV (the forth retail version of SFIV) and Decapre misunderstood status as "clone" isn't helping. However Capcom isn't expecting most SF IV players to buy this. The target for this release is tournament players with it's match recorder, direct Youtube uploading, the ability to play as different versions of the characters from the different SF IV releases and even it's release timing is geared towards the pro player, releasing the Digital version (both full and as DLC) in time for EVO 2014