170°

Why Games With Gold For April 2016 Is The Program’s Best Month Yet

ThisGenGaming says "Microsoft promised just a few days back that this month would be one for ‘blockbuster’ offerings for Games with Gold but they still managed to exceed expectations. Now, there’s a lot of debate over whether these games are ‘free’ or not but for £5.99 a month (or your local equivalent) you can’t really complain about the 4 free games Microsoft have started offering since the introduction of backwards compatibility on the Xbox One and now April 2016 is arguably the best month in the history of the Games with Gold program."

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thisgengaming.com
WrestlingNewsFan2969d ago

First time I can say I'm interested in every title offered.

OldGuyStillGaming2969d ago

I remember when just about every month ps plus had big name titles just like this..but I'm just happy to finally see X1 come out swinging with the free games..
Let's hope the trend continues and hopefully ps plus gets the ball rolling soon

thekhurg2969d ago (Edited 2969d ago )

Now I get to watch Sony give away two more crappy indie games in April...

They need to give something good away at some point. Please... Give away killzone. It'll give the online part of that game some extra life.

Griever2969d ago (Edited 2969d ago )

GReat offerings. Sony really needs to step up their game. Indies can be good but there is a limit to everything. I cannot be happy receiving nothing but indies for 6 months in a row. Enough is enough; I am tired of getting no-name terrible indies (Dragon Fin Soup anyone?) or some decent at best indies every month. I am starting to envy the GwG lineup recently.

Blastoise2969d ago (Edited 2969d ago )

Dragon Fin Soup was shockingly bad. I could give a big list of questionable games we've had on Plus recently.

I have enjoyed some indies on Plus though, The Binding Of Isaac and Rogue Legacy for example

Takwin2968d ago

Dragon Fin Soup was bad. It was one of the few games I backed on Kickstarter that I disliked. But yeah, it was just not good at all and a total bore.

CyberSentinel2969d ago

Excellent offering, M$ stepping their "game" Up!

Indigon2969d ago

I must admit this is a mighty strong month for MS. Sony better have something good this time.

psforward2968d ago (Edited 2968d ago )

Hope this pushes Sony to give at least one AAA game. I don't mind indies but would like some bigger games as well.

Indigon2966d ago

Indeed. Therefore I'm glad MS is having such a strong month.

TheGreatGamer2969d ago

To make it even better it's a month where I've yet to play any of these 4 games, going to be a very good month for me indeed!

KwietStorm_BLM2969d ago

You never played Dead Space? What are you doing..

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200°

EA Japan Exec Criticises Japanese Ratings Board

An executive of Electronic Arts Japan has criticised the Japanese video game ratings board for allowing upcoming action game Stellar Blade to be released uncensored while EA's own Dead Space was banned in the country.

CrimsonWing6917d ago

He’s got a point. If a game is M-Rated, which is the equivalent of an R rating, I don’t get why you need to censor anything. The rating is the indicator of the content and the age appropriate. If it’s appropriate for adults… why treat them like children? 🤷‍♂️

Eonjay17d ago (Edited 17d ago )

This is about gore... not about anything sexual. And specifically I think it is about the realistic depiction of gore. Unfortunately I don't know the nuance of the CERO board or how it is relevant their specific culture (as a prohibition on gore may transcend age) so I hesitate to make a statement. Can anyone else provide insight to what kind of gore is considered unacceptable?

CrimsonWing6917d ago (Edited 17d ago )

Yea, I know this is about gore, but thanks for pointing that out.

My point still stands, if a game is essentially rated for a mature audience then why censor for them as if they’re too young to view it? Makes no sense.

To answer your question: Decapitation, dismemberment, like… anything gore. They have been censoring that since CERO was established. Look up RE4 chainsaw decapitation or any MK games that made it there.

Cacabunga16d ago

EA Japan? Wtf never heard of that

ZwVw16d ago

Yet, the Oneechanbara series (y'know, the game with half-naked samurai females slicing up zombies to bloody pieces) get released in Japan uncensored.

The CERO ratings board is an equilibrium.

Smellsforfree16d ago

This confuses me since I've seen so many gory Japanese movies and anime. For example, Battle Royale.

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 16d ago
gold_drake17d ago

definitely has a point.

but .. its japan. are we really surprised?

VersusDMC16d ago

I don't know if the EA executive is going off the one close up of an arm being cut off in the demo. Maybe it's uncensored because it's the arm of a cyborg or it doesn't happen that often (didn’t see EVE dismemberment when killed in the demo) .

In the states there's a certain amount of swear words allowed to a PG13 movie before it is deemed R. So maybe it's the same in Japan for gore?

Eonjay16d ago

Yes I think you may be on to something. The violence is gory but I wouldn't call it gruesome.

Retroman16d ago

Ea Japan please make Knack 3
in the future

Eonjay16d ago (Edited 16d ago )

Does EA Japan actually make games at all? Or are they just a regional publisher?

Retroman16d ago

I'm sorry Japan Studio made Knack

370°

One Year Later, What Was The Point Of The Dead Space Remake

The remake teased an expanded universe, but now a sequel has no chance of delivering on it.

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thegamer.com
isarai24d ago

Honestly i believe it was mainly as retaliation for the original devs breaking off and making colisto protocol. They've done this a few times, ignoring fan demands for the return of a belived ip until someone does it for them, then they retaliate by only then announcing an entry. Colisto protocol was announced and EA announced the remake shortly after, Session finally hit consoles and skate 4 was announced, shortly after Undisputed was shown off, talks started happening about a new fight night.

ZeekQuattro23d ago

I agree. Reminds me of when Inafune announced Mighty No.9 and the initial reaction of the game industry was that of celebration and suddenly Capcom said ohh shit we need to announce Mega Man 11. 😆 Still waiting for MM12 & the next X title.

isarai23d ago

Exactly, it's BS that pettiness has more power than demand for some reason.

Cacabunga23d ago

i liked the remake as much as the original.. it has so many improvements, the most noticeable to me was the seemless transition between levels which should be a must and a standard nowadays.
I cannot wait for the sequel's remake too.

Tacoboto23d ago (Edited 23d ago )

That's a very farfetched conspiracy.

Callisto Protocol was announced in February 2021 and Dead Space in July. They didn't just decide in March 2021 to "retaliate" by remaking from scratch Dead Space in under a two year timespan.

If anything, Callisto is the result of a has-been Creative Director whose only inspiration is his previous work, and EA took inspiration long before Callisto was known about from the insane success of the RE Remakes and endless calls at the time for the RE4 Remake.

0hMyGandhi22d ago

So, how do you like working at EA?

shadowhaxor22d ago (Edited 22d ago )

And yet,fans of Dead Space, myself included, have been asking EA to bring back Dead Space for a better part of a decade. To which EA refused, stating that it was done with the series. Specifically after Dead Space 3 failed to meet EA's sale goals (sound familiar?) But magically, after they caught wind of The Callisto Protocol, with Glen at the helm, Dead Space remake was greenlit.

For those not counting, The Callisto Protocol call was announced in 2019, while Dead Space remake was announced in 2021. Long before TCP was announced?

badboyz0922d ago

100% that's the way EA operates

Extermin8or3_22d ago

You know how long it will have taken to make this game, this is some rediciulous logic.

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 22d ago
Tacoboto24d ago

It was a solid game and we'll have to move on and accept it for what it is. Just because we're not getting a sequel (original or remake) doesn't mean there's no point anymore in what is a great, tense, well-paced single player experience. No one's taking Dead Space Remake away.

I just hope that the game isn't so technically stitched together on PC that driver updates render the game unplayable like what happened with me and my RTX 4070 last year, requiring a driver downgrade just months after the game came out. If you're a console player then you've got no worries.

TheProfessional23d ago (Edited 23d ago )

Yeah but it was a pointless remake since the original still looks pretty good. They should've done a sequel, something original or Dante's Inferno 2.

Way too many remakes now. Even resident evil 4 had already been remastered twice before the most recent one. No originality. Why not just hire the original team to make a new game instead?

Harkins172122d ago

For the hopes to get a new generation of people into the game. OG still looks good but it stopped selling long ago. So I get why they do remakes.

Knightofelemia23d ago

Most likely for EA to cash in on the remake craze that followed Capcom when they started remaking RE games. I am glad EA did it I enjoy the game. DS is one of my favorite franchises love the sci fi horror shit. What I don't like is EA not remaking DS2. So DS1 remake did not do well with the numbers so what. DS2 has a solid fanbase and is probably the best entry in the franchise depending on the fan. DS2 remake would have been a day one for me but I got a reminder on why I hate EA. Scrap the DS2 remake for a shitty Iron Man game.

chicken_in_the_corn23d ago

It's because the gaming community want remakes and remasters over new games.

mandf23d ago (Edited 23d ago )

Thank you for recognizing that. One group always complains over remasters or remakes.gamers want them and they sell. To the once’s that complain your console has no games to do again. If you did ,they would remake them.

Crows9023d ago

Or maybe we can tell most of these devs can't deliver good new IP for some reason.

isarai23d ago

When it's hard to find a modern game that isn't broken, incomplete and monetized to hell, remakes are a sure bet for having a complete experience as older games weren't plagued with those issues

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Fonsecap23d ago

I think that is for the best of the franchise o be left alone then to be turned into a game as a service or something like that, EA has the awful habit of trying to monetize everything.

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320°

10 Years Later, Sunset Overdrive Still Remains A Beloved Xbox Exclusive

Does it still hold up in 2024?

We've still got a few months to go, but October marks the 10-year anniversary of this Insomniac Games title, with the developer having since moved on to work on the Marvel's Spider-Man games for PlayStation. It was assumed that Sunset Overdrive might make its way to other platforms eventually, but that hasn't happened as of yet.

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purexbox.com
Christopher35d ago

So beloved that it sold so well that there's a sequel and Insomniac never had the opportunity to go back to Sony to develop games exclusively for Sony.

RaidenBlack35d ago

ngl, I was low-key expecting Sunset Overdrive to migrate to PS as well along with Hi-Fi Rush and SoT

Christopher35d ago

I think that would require Insomniac going back to work on it to port it over, probably why that's not happening.

RaidenBlack35d ago

Didn't Sony help with SoT port?

Christopher35d ago

I think only in so far as they support every piece of software heading their way? They have that team who specializes in helping people port games, not just SoT, and then the one team that takes PS5 games and ports them to PC (that's their full time job essentially). But that team, the former mentioned one, doesn't do all the work, just help out with how to best do things. So, that team wouldn't port a whole game like Sunset Overdrive.

RaidenBlack35d ago

Ok I thought you meant Insomniac reluctant/Sony not permitting them to go back and work on Overdrive. Hence I added the participation from Sony's side.
But yea, In actuality its Insomniac not having spare dev time to get involved in the port work, atm.

Christopher35d ago

*** But yea, In actuality its Insomniac not having spare dev time to get involved in the port work, atm. ***

Definitely this. They're working on two major IPs as it is and Sony forced them to layoff some people at the end of last year as well. So, likely not capable of sparing the time because resources are being fully utilized.

badz14935d ago (Edited 35d ago )

There was an article awhile back talking about the situation with SSoD. Insomniac does own the IP and Sony now owns it after they bought Insomniac but the publishing right for SSoD is owned by MS - at least the 1st game still is. MS has to sell the publishing rights like they did with the first Mass Effect game to EA after EA bought Bioware before Sony can do anything with the IP.

Einhander197234d ago

Nobody cares about Sunset Overdrive, except all the xbox fanboys who didn't buy it but like to come into articles about the game and try to act like it's somehow Sony's fault for whatever reason.

+ Show (5) more repliesLast reply 34d ago
darthv7235d ago

there was supposed to be a sequel. IG had it all planned but MS said no. And Sony wont greenlight a sequel if they cant get the first one away from MS. Plus... IG has other projects they moved on to anyways so...... yeah.

fr0sty34d ago

Well, with the recent change in policy towards exclusivity, I imagine Sony could get MS to port it over.

Zeref35d ago

Because a game needs to sell 10 million copies for it to be considered beloved 😂

Christopher35d ago

I mean, it's also not a highly rated game, not even in Insomniac's top ten or even top ten on Xbox that year. With this logic, any game can be beloved and so throwing around the word beloved means absolutely nothing. Doesn't have to sell or have great critical reception, just a handful of people need to love it.

Hofstaderman35d ago

You guys are so starved for games you reminiscing about a decade old game made by a now Sony studio. Of course it never sold 10 million, the vast majority of people bought a PS4.

LucasRuinedChildhood35d ago

A game not played by many can still be beloved by those who played it, yeah.

Only making a profit of $567 after 10 years shows that it was not as beloved as it should have been though. That's really bad.

As much as people complain about AAA games not being unique or having fun ideas or bringing in new IP, a lot of gamers don't show up for them. Even less people seem to have played Hi-Fi Rush.

romulus2334d ago

What's it considered if it just sells 1.8 million copies like it did?.

FinalFantasyFanatic34d ago

It was okay when I played it on PC, idk if I'd consider it one of the more beloved games of that generation.

Zeref34d ago

@Christopher

8s and 9s is not highly rated, okay buddy 😂

+ Show (3) more repliesLast reply 34d ago
MontyeKristo34d ago

I mean, it sounds like you're just hating on the game - but, I loved it. It was one of my favorite games of it's time and that generation. Replayability could have been better, but I still managed to play it several times. I would have greatly appreciated a sequel and definitely would have been in line to pick it up..

Things happen.

Christopher34d ago (Edited 34d ago )

***I mean, it sounds like you're just hating on the game***

No, that's all the people who refused to accept that this game was beloved and never even bought it. I, on the other hand, bought, played it, thought it was 'okay' and moved on.

Now, what hate did you see in my post other than listing the fact that it's not as beloved as the few who liked it? This and Days Gone get way more love in online discussions than they do in sales and support, I find. Both are okay games, not much more. But for some **unknown** reason, people prop them up often as more than they are.

Profchaos34d ago (Edited 34d ago )

It's in noabs land unfortunately as Microsoft own the publishing rights to sunset overdrives original game while insomniac own the IP.

So Microsoft would have to be onboard with publishing this game on PlayStation systems with the understanding the would not profit from any subsequent games in the franchise unlike the games they are currently releasing on ps5 to get players into their franchises this would be a small cash injection build a fanbase around a game they no longer own then nothing.

ChasterMies34d ago

I really don’t get the love for Sunset Overdrive. It’s one of the few games I bought, played a few hours, gave up, and never returned.

+ Show (3) more repliesLast reply 34d ago
isarai35d ago

Not beloved enough for Xbox owners to buy it apparently, Xbox was the worst possible audience for that game.

Obscure_Observer35d ago

Sony couldn´t give a f* about Insomniac´s freedom of creativity, that´s why you don´t have a port for that game and will not be getting a sequel either!

That franchise wil probably never make a comback thanks to Sony´s greed for money, which have turned Insomniacs into a Marvel´s slave factory until 2030.

It´s sad, but it is what it is.

ApocalypseShadow35d ago (Edited 35d ago )

I didn't know that Ratchet and Clank were part of the Avengers of Marvel? Hidden in the ending credits of Guardians of the Galaxy or something? Captain Marvel?

Beyond the "cry me a river" of your comment that these Marvel games aren't on Xbox, it was Insomniac that was approached by Sony to work with Marvel to make a game. And let them decide what character they wanted to develop. They chose Spider-Man. Must be highly profitable for them. Wolverine is a profitable, recognizable character. And the X-Men definitely are a hot property that gamers would love as a story based videogame. Being that X-Men 97 brings back a popular Saturday morning cartoon and the introduction of the X-Men into the MCU movies coming up.

It was Microsoft's continued incompetence in cancelling the Marvel MMO game and turning down Marvel in making a super hero game as they were asked first.

Keep the tears flowing. It's not greed. It was smart business to say yes. And maybe Insomniac wants to make these games. And not a game that didn't sell well to an audience that doesn't buy games.

Christopher35d ago (Edited 35d ago )

Neither does Microsoft either, based on your own argument here. Microsoft denied the sequel, not Insomniac/Sony. There's also no sign that Microsoft is allowing a port. They control the next two games in the IP and any DLC or the like for the first. But, nothing.

What's sad is people trying to use this game to blame businesses for doing business things that they are both doing as some way to make them look worse. Microsoft wants to use Insomniac to make a good IP that sells their platform and Sony wants to use Insomniac to make a good IP that sells their platform. But, no, Sony bad!

Don't know why the truth that these companies are very much alike is so hard for people to accept.

romulus2334d ago

Your comment literally contradicts itself but troll statements typically do. If Sony is so greedy for money as you proclaim than wouldn't it behoove them to not only release the first game on their console but a sequel as well, as that would be a way for them to make profit and that's apparently their focus according to you? Speaking of profit and greed, I suppose Microsoft bought all those Developers and Publishers in hopes that they wouldn't make any money from it, right? Your ability to troll on this site with impunity is whats sad, but it is what it is.

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PhillyDonJawn35d ago

I bought it, along with at least 1-2 million others.

PrinceOfAnger35d ago

Very fun game that need a sequel.

-Foxtrot35d ago

Insomniac: “We went with Microsoft because we want to own the IP so it’s ours”

Microsoft: *owns publishing rights preventing the studio to re-release the original game, make a remaster, remake, any DLC, massive expansions and multiple sequels on other platforms*

The logic is just…I never got it

Owning the IP was Insomniacs main defence when they announced they were making a game exclusively for MS and yet they’ve ended up “owning” an IP they can’t do anything with.

If they went with Sony like normal you might have seen a sequel by now.

Tacoboto35d ago

The winner of the Logic Cake has to be Bungie, though.

Wanted to be free from Halo and MS, so they buy themselves out, only to partner up with Activision, in the same timeframe as Activision ousting the heads of Infinity Ward, for a full decade with Destiny.

... And then things start falling apart in that relationship almost immediately, whodathought!

Christopher35d ago

Hey, when Sony offers to overpay you for your services and signs a contract that says they won't force you to do anything you don't want, who would say no? Such an overpriced purchase from Sony. Poor business, IMHO. But, honestly, I'm not a business person. But, still, I don't understand it.

darthv7235d ago

...and it seems this conundrum is also why the game cannot receive any sort of FPS boost patch for Series consoles. IG wont make it, and Ms can't get another team to do it without consent from IG. I liked it on XBO, but now I also have this on PC and I can tell ya... it definitely benefits from a 60fps frame rate.

badz14934d ago

been playing it at 1080p144fps on my modest pc. not the hardest game to max out and yeah this game definitely needs to be played at high fps considering all the actions

darthv7235d ago

Sadly this may never get the proper fps update it deserves on XB (or even PS) but I now play it on steam and it definitely feels better at 60fps than it did at 30. Its a fast paced game... you need that 60fps in this one.

babadivad34d ago

This game was so fun. Me and my brother put many hours into this one.

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