Earthquakes and hurricanes be damned, I’m still kickin’ over here on the East Coast. Surprisingly, this week was a bit tamer than usual in the gaming industry. Let’s take a look at what this week has to offer.
- Diablo III is coming. Blizzard is getting ready to move into the beta testing phase, and, with that, the Diablo III information well is about to burst. But a popular Diablo fan community (Diablofans.com) leaked some information from an “ex-Blizzard employee” earlier this week. Among all the pretty pictures is a video of the new, refined, and downright sexy character selection screen. Check out the screen and the character classes below:
Of course, it’s my sad duty to have to remind you that Diablo III is still without an official release date.
- Sony showed off the latest prototype of their new 3D head-mounted display recently. The device, set to debut in Japan this November, is expected to retail for approximately 60,000 yen, which, right now, is roughly $780.54 USD. That may seem like a lot, but let’s see what’s inside. Gameranx shined some light on the specs for the new peripheral: it features two 1280×720 OLED panels that apparently give users “750 inches of display space.” Also, integrated headphones will offer a full 5.1 surround sound experience for users. Given all of that, the price tag doesn’t seem all that outrageous. You can check out some conference attendees getting some hands-on time with the sleek device below:
- Yet another MMO is going free-to-play. Following an acquisition by MMO-oriented company Perfect World, MMO site Massively broke the news that a free-to-play model is in development for Star Trek: Online. Cryptic Studios, the game’s developer, is aiming to switch the game to the free-to-play model by the end of the year. If the STO free-to-play model follows others, users can expect free access to all the game’s normal content. For some time now, Cryptic has offered access to premium content, such as ships, upgrades, and items, through a marketplace. It is logical to assume that the Cryptic marketplace will be integrated into the free-to-play model.
- Telltale Games showed off some gameplay footage for their upcoming Jurassic Park. There isn’t much to be found in the way of the story, but it delivers on the central tenant of JP: dinosaurs. The game, set a short time after the events of the first film, will feature some intrepid souls who return to the titular resort to tie up some loose ends from the first movie (namely, the Dennis Nedry/sabotage subplot). As with all Telltale Games, the game will be released in an episodic sequence (except on the XBOX 360). The first episode is set for release on November 15th. In the meantime, check out this video of dinosaurs trying to eat people:
- Did you really think I’d let you off without talking about Portal 2? A small title update was released this week for the game. The only notes offered are as follows:
“Preparations for launch of Portal 2 updates this September.”
So, keep an eye out for that long-awaited Portal 2 DLC. It should be dropping any day now.
Tags: Blizzard, comic booked, Cryptic Studios, Diablo 3, Diablo beta, Diablo III, free-to-play, FTP, Gamer Pulse, Jurassic Park, Kyle Black, Perfect World, Portal 2, SONY 3d head mounted display, Star Trek: Online, Telltale Games
About the Author
Written by Kyle Black
Any day now? Don’t you mean the DLC should be released Soon?