We have a whole bunch of contests lined up here at DigitalBattle, and we’re kicking it off with a big one: a chance to win a limited edition Gears of War 3 Xbox 360 console, with two controllers, a copy of Gears of War 3, and 3 months of Xbox Live.
The contest ends on December 31 and is open to entries from around the world. The winner will be notified via Twitter.
UPDATE: The contest is now over, the winner has been notified via Twitter. Thanks to everyone who participated, we have a new contest lined up for next week!
We’re already anticipating the 5th installment in the Hitman series, called Hitman: Absolution. However, according to a new trademark filing in Europe, developer IO Interactive is looking to trademark “Hitman: Profession“. This could possibly be the next installment in the series, after Absolution is released next year. However, it could also be a spin-off, possibly a mobile game. Or perhaps it could be something completely different: a book, comic book, etc. Let the speculation begin!
Epic games have announced that Gears of War 3 will be getting a new DLC called “Fenix Rising”, which is slated for arrival on January 17, 2012. The DLC will retail 800 MS points, or $10, and will include 5 new multiplayer maps. On top of that, Fenix Rising will include new multiplayer skins and an updated experience system called Re-Up, which gives players over the level 100 a chance for another tour of duty. The five new maps are called “Academy”, “Anvil”, “Depths”, “Escalation” and “The Slab”.
Last week we reported that STALKER developer GSC Game World had shut down and let go of its 50 strong workforce. Now according to a Tweet from the developer, “there is cause for hope”, as they put it. It went on, saying that there won’t be any official news until January 2012 regarding the state of the company. The Tweet said:
Dear Stalkers: We will not be releasing any official news until around mid January. However there is cause for hope! Good hunting!
It looks now that GSC GameWorld is at least somewhat-alive, although we don’t know how many employees the company employs or what state it’s in. We’ll have to wait until next month to find out.
According to the Associated Press, one of the bastions of journalism out there, Valve’s shooter /slash/ puzzle game Portal 2 is the best game of 2011. Associated Press made a list of top 10 games of 2011, a list which includes Skyrim, Deus Ex Human Revolution, but lacks heavy hitters like Modern Warfare 3 and Battlefield 3. The full list:
Portal 2
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Deus Ex: Human Revolution
Bastion
Batman: Arkham City
InFamous 2
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword
Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception
Rayman Origins
Dead Space 2
What do you think? Any of your favorite games in 2011 that didn’t make the list?
Rockstar has released a pack of new screenshots of the upcoming Max Payne 3, showing Max like we’ve never seen him before. Sort of, because we’ve seen the bald Max Payne for a while now. For more on Max Payne 3, check out the latest multiplayer details on the game.
EA has announced that due to harsh censorship rules in Australia, the upcoming shooter Syndicate won’t see a release Down Under. EA told Joystiq that the game was recently refused classification in the country, which effectively bans it from stores, as most retailers won’t carry games that aren’t classified.
Developed by Starbreeze Studios, Syndicate is an upcoming first person shooter set in 2069, where multinational corporations (syndicates) rule the world and are fighting over dominance. The game is scheduled for release on Feb 21, 2012 on PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.
Battlefield 3 developer DICE and publisher EA have announced a video community challenge where players can make an awesome Battlefield 3 video and get a chance to win a trip to DICE headquarters in Sweden. In order to enter the “Only in Battlefield 3″ contest, you have to record and upload an unscripted Battlefield 3 video showing just how great/awesome you are at Battlefield 3. You can check out the full list of rules and regulations for the contest here.
APB was supposed to be Grand Theft Auto taken into the massively multiplayer online realm. However, the game turned out to be a dud — lack of content, and huge stability and gameplay issues that ultimately resulted in the game being shut down.
But APB didn’t die, as GamersFirst acquired the rights to the game, and went on to patch and update the game with new content. APB has since been re-released on Steam as APB Reloaded, and according to GamersFirst, it already has over 3 million registered users, which is a huge improvement over the original 130,000 players.
GamesFirst also announced that APB Reloaded will be going back to the store shelves where it will be priced at $30.
The original Max Payne and Max Payne 2 were some of the best noir-inspired shooters ever made, and practically invented “bullet time”. However, they did lack one thing: multiplayer. That’s something Max Payne 3 will make up for, as it will become the first Max Payne game with a fully fledged multiplayer component, and developer Rockstar just revealed the first details.
The main multiplayer mode in Max Payne 3 is called “Gang War”, which is an objective-based team mode where players get new goals throughout the match, depending on how the match progresses. Max Payne 3 will also support “perks”, called “bursts”, which players can unlock during a match. One of the Max Payne 3 Bursts is called “Paranoia” sounds particularly interesting: it makes enemies “paranoid” and makes them see their teammates as enemies. Of course, the trademark Max Payne bullet time is back as well, and will be available in multiplayer as well.
We’ll keep you updated on the latest Max Payne 3 details here on DigitalBattle!
