Castlevania: Lords of Shadow is getting two story-based downloadable content packs in early 2011. The first pack, titled “Reverie,” puts players back into the Castle. Apparently slaying the Queen let out an evil presence that she was keeping at bay, so Gabriel has to save Laura from it. This first pack is due in February.
Sony Online Entertainment’s DC Universe Online was supposed to have launched on November 2, but was pushed into 2011 back in October. It turns out it wasn’t pushed very far, though — IGN reports the superhero MMO now has a new date of January 11 (14 for Europe) for the PC and PlayStation 3 versions.
While the date is new, the previously announced pricing details remain the same: It’ll run you $49.99 on the PC and $59.99 on the PS3, with both versions allowing a 30-day free trial before requiring players to pay a $14.99 monthly subscription rate. There will also be an option for a $199 lifetime subscription.
The game is currently in beta for the PC and for PS Plus subscribers on the PS3, and game director Chris Cao revealed a few details they’ve gleaned from it so far. Evidently Superman has been the most popular “mentor” among hero players, and heroes are out-numbering villains, with around 60 percent going the goodie-two-shoes route (although there are more villains on the player-vs.-player servers).
Activision Publishing, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATVI) is recruiting donors to take part in Blood Drive, the ultimate post-apocalyptic bloodsport, available now for the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft and PlayStation 3 computer entertainment system. Regrettably, half the development team at Sidhe were eaten alive by zombies during the creation of the game – bad news for them, but good news for gamers who like their action drenched in gore!
Blood Drive mixes feisty undead brain-cravers and over-the-top vehicular combat in a televised sport for a twisted new age. Contestants must deftly control their heavily armored death steeds of steel to battle each other and hordes of zombies in an all out fight to the death. Blood Drive features several events set up as tournaments in the game’s six unrelenting environments, each an unbelievable gorefest not for the faint-hearted – or those without a sense of humor! Multiplayer modes allow up to four friends to drop in and drop out of the mayhem at any time. With each environment packed with countless undead frat boys, cops, strippers and bachelorette partiers, players will find extreme pleasure in sending these lowlifes back to hell one tire tread at a time.
Blood Drive is out now for $49.99 on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. The game is rated M for Mature. For more information, visit www.activision.com.
Sega has posted its fiscal year results and, in the process, revealed its best-selling games of the previous year.
As expected, the company’s report shows that Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games was by far the best-selling game for Sega, with Aliens vs. Predator, Bayonetta and Sonic & Sega All-Star Racing taking slots two through four.
The full list of Sega’s best-selling games for its fiscal year follow:
1. Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games (Wii, DS) – 6,530,000
2. Aliens vs. Predator (PS3, 360, PC) – 1,690,000
3. Bayonetta (PS3, 360) – 1,350,000
Could StarCraft II eventually find a home on consoles? Lead designer Chris Sigaty hinted that Blizzard is growing more and more open to the idea as developers tinker with new methods for playing real-time strategy games using a controller.
“Console is not on the radar for us right now, but there have been a lot of interesting moves in that direction — taking RTS to consoles — and there’s been some pretty cool things on the control side,” the Blizzard designer said in an interview with CVG.
Super Street Fighter IV launched in North America on Tuesday, in Japan Wednesday, and the UK and Europe today. And while it’s early days yet, Capcom is confident the game’s glowing reviews will make it a best seller along the lines of 2009’s Street Fighter IV, which shipped over 2 million copies within a week of its launch. That game helped the Japanese publisher hit nearly $1 billion in annual sales during its last fiscal year.
In preparation, Capcom today announced it has already shipped 1 million units of Super Street Fighter IV to retailers worldwide. The figure puts lifetime shipment figures for console Street Fighter games at 29 million units internationally, since, as of March 31, the series had already shipped 28 million units, according to Capcom. The series started in 1987 with the arcade original and will continue with the arcade version of Super Street Fighter IV, which was just announced for the Japanese market.
The final project from the studio formerly known as Secret Level will receive a posthumous release this week, as Iron Man 2 ushers in a huge May of new releases.
Arriving in stores May 4, Iron Man 2 won’t be a note-for-note adaptation of the big-budget feature film launching just a few days later. While the game takes its visual style from the big screen, it will feature more nods to the character’s comic book roots, including an original story involving the Crimson Dynamo, Ultimo, and the bucket-headed criminal organization AIM.
The week’s only other multiplatform launch won’t actually be appearing in stores at all, as Activision and Infinity Ward’s Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Stimulus Package add-on arrives on the PlayStation 3 and PC. Released on the Xbox 360 at the end of March, the $15 Stimulus Package was an instant success, as gamers downloaded it more than 2.5 million times in its debut week. The add-on from controversy-plagued Infinity Ward includes three new multiplayer maps and two updated arenas from the original Modern Warfare.
EA Sports is clearly making an effort to connect with fans with the latest entry in the Madden NFL series. After letting fans choose Drew Brees as the cover star for Madden NFL 11, they now let them choose the teams that’ll be featured in the upcoming demo: the Indianapolis Colts vs. the New York Jets.
Fans were able to vote for the match-up on the official Madden NFL 11 website, and evidently they wanted to see a rematch of Super Bowl III more than Super Bowl XLIV (sorry, Saints fans). Except, you know, this time it’ll be Peyton Manning vs. Mark Sanchez, not Johnny Unitas vs. Joe Namath.
Xbox 360 owners have Gears of War costumes to look forward to with Capcom’s Lost Planet 2. PS3 owners aren’t being left out of the exclusivity game.
In Japan today, Capcom announced a PS3-exclusive Monster Hunter costume. Once you have this download content, you’ll be able to play Lost Planet 2 using a fully equipped hunter from the Monster Hunter series.
This promotion makes a lot of sense for the PS3. Monster Hunter has become one of Japan’s biggest series, with the last PSP entry now over the four million mark in shipments.
The demo for Skate 3 is now available for mass consumption. Fans can hit up the Xbox Live Marketplace to try out the latest entry in EA’s skateboarding franchise in either single-player or multiplayer.
It hasn’t hit the PlayStation Store quite yet, but PlayStation 3 owners should also be able to take a crack at the Skate 3 demo once Sony updates their digital marketplace later this afternoon.
