Video: GTA 5 Enters Virtual Reality With This Oculus Rift Mod

A rudimentary modification to GTA 5 on PC has allowed Oculus Rift owners to view Los Santos in virtual reality for the first time.

Footage published on YouTube shows players stepping into the skin of protagonists Michael, Trevor, and Franklin, using an Oculus Rift DK 2 to simulate the game in first-person mode.

Though developer Rockstar North has not officially provided Oculus Rift support for its latest Grand Theft Auto title, players have found a way around this by using the latest version of VorpX, which is a software program that allows various game builds to be compatible with VR.

For now, the experiment only offers basic VR functionality, in that head movements are used to move the first-person camera. Due to the game's code not being optimised for virtual reality, the results may be unpleasant and uncomfortable for some users.

Footage aired so far shows one player walk around Michael's house in VR (below), while another captures a bike ride at night (above).

Grand Theft Auto V shipped on PC on Tuesday, April 14, and quickly became the most played non-Valve game published on Steam, with more than 300,000 people playing the game simultaneously.

GameSpot's GTA 5 PC Review offered a strong recommendation to try the game: "GTA V shines on PC thanks to 4K-grade textures, the availability of additional post-processing effects, and an unlocked frame rate."

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Racing Game F1 2015 Is 1080p on PS4, 900p on Xbox One

Yet another multiplatform game will run in a higher native resolution on PlayStation 4 than Xbox One.

Developer Codemasters has announced that its upcoming racing game F1 2015 will run at 1080p on PS4 and 900p on Xbox One. Both versions, however, will run at 60fps.

Game designer Stevn Embling confirmed the resolution and frame rate details Thursday in an interview with Eurogamer.

"On console we've had it very, very close to 60fps, certainly on PS4," he told the site. "Everyone at the studio is doing a fantastic with the optimization, and we're in the final couple of months before release where there's a big push that we hit that 60fps, and that's the plan."

Earlier this week, developer Slightly Mad Studios confirmed that its own racing game, Project Cars--now due to launch in early May--will also run at 1080p on PS4 and 900p on Xbox One. In addition, Slightly Mad is targeting 60fps for both console editions.

F1 2015 was announced late last month, and is due to launch across PS4, Xbox One, and PC in June. The game is being developed on a new version of Codemasters' EGO engine and aims to deliver the "ultimate Formula One video game experience."

For a closer look at F1 2015, check out some work-in-progress images in the gallery below.

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More Free Xbox 360 Games Now Available

It's April 16, which not only means it's Futurama voice actor Billy West's 62nd birthday, but it's also the day when more free games have become available for Xbox Live Gold members on Xbox 360.

Available now are Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag and Army of Two: The Devil's Cartel. The games are free through the end of the month.

They replace Gears of War: Judgment and Terraria, which were free April 1-15.

At school or work? You can queue up your download by way of the Xbox Store online through these links:

• Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag
• Army of Two: The Devil's Cartel

Alternatively, you can use SmartGlass on your phone or tablet to start the download process or through your Xbox 360 itself.

Microsoft is offering a total of four free games to Xbox Live subscribers on Xbox 360 this month, which is double the number of games is typically gives away.

Xbox One owners, meanwhile, can download Child of Light and Pool Nation FX for free all month long.

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Wolfenstein Prequel Has Nazi Zombies, Brutal-Sounding Pipe Weapon, More

Ahead of its release next month, Bethesda and developer MachineGames have published a new blog post that reveals some new gameplay details for Wolfenstein: The Old Blood, a standalone prequel to last year's The New Order. First, protagonist B.J. Blazkowicz will wield a brutal-sounding pipe melee weapon.

Players will acquire this "handy helper" early in the game and will use the multi-purpose melee item throughout. "The idea was to have something new--something different than the knife," executive producer Jerk Gustafsson said.

The pipe can also be pulled apart so that players can dual-wield it, dealing even deadlier damage. In addition, players can use the pipe for a variety of non-lethal purposes, including climbing and breaking through walls, among other things. "It's equally a progression tool as it is a weapon," Gustafsson said.

Bethesda also says that takedowns with the pipe are going to be brutal, bloody affairs, and can vary depending on its single- or dual-wield status. Plus, since the pipe is hollow, "if you gank someone, there's a good chance a geyser of blood's gonna spurt out the other end."

Also in the blog post, Bethesda confirms that Nazi zombies will make an appearance in The Old Blood (see below), and that MachineGames is aiming for an overall "pulp B-movie vibe" with the game. Check out the full blog post to learn even more about The Old Blood.

The Old Blood launches May 5 for Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC. As mentioned above, since it's a standalone game, it does not require The New Order. The Old Blood will sell for $20.

It includes two main campaigns: "Rudi Jäger and the Den of Wolves" and "The Dark Secrets of Helga Von Schabbs." The game plays out across eight total chapters.

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Xbox Exec Congratulates Sony on Bloodborne's Strong Sales

Xbox executive Phil Spencer, the top gaming boss inside of Microsoft, has spoken out to congratulate Sony on selling 1 million copies of the new PlayStation 4 role-playing game Bloodborne. Though the game was developed by a veteran team in From Software (Demon's Souls, Dark Souls), Bloodborne is a new IP. That makes the game's strong initial sales all the more impressive, Spencer said.

Bloodborne was released exclusively for PS4 in late March. The game's 1 million sales counts copies sold up until April 5.

Producer Masaaki Yamagiwa published his own post yesterday, thanking fans for their support.

"We are amazed and very grateful for the way in which the community has embraced Bloodborne," he said at the time. "As you may have seen, we've just announced that Bloodborne has now sold through over one million copies worldwide. Thank you to everyone who has supported the project!"

Looking ahead, From Software will release a new patch for Bloodborne later this month that should reduce load times and more.

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New Destiny House of Wolves Info Revealed in Data-Mining Leak

That didn't take long.

Just hours after Bungie released the latest patch for Destiny--1.1.2--players have mined the update and found what might be new details about the game's upcoming expansion, House of Wolves.

The details are rounded up in this Reddit post. According to the post, House of Wolves will add two new social spaces--Queen's Bay and Halls of Amentet--along with one new Strike called The Shadow Thief. House of Wolves will also reportedly add three new story missions, three quests, and up to five new PvP maps.

Bungie said earlier this week that House of Wolves will not include a new Raid. However, Destiny will introduce The Prison of Elders, a new co-op endgame activity, through House of Wolves. The Prison of Elders is described as a new activity "focused on variety, replayability, and skill."

Also discovered in the Destiny 1.1.2 patch notes were 46 ship schematics and references to Treasure Maps, among other things. Check out the Reddit post for lots more on what might be coming to Destiny by way of the House of Wolves expansion.

One thing to note here is that, of course, this information is not coming directly from Bungie and could change. Responding to an earlier House of Wolves leak in February, Bungie's community manager David "Deej" Dague urged caution to fans when looking at leaks of this nature, saying, "anything you know about [House of Wolves] can change."

Officially, Bungie has committed to the scheduled listed below for when it will announce new information about Destiny's House of Wolves expansion. The add-on launches May 19 for Xbox 360, Xbox One, PlayStation 3, and PlayStation 4. It's included with Destiny's $35 Expansion Pass--which also includes December's The Dark Below add-on--or can be purchased individually for $20.

Destiny House of Wolves Announcement Schedule:

• Wednesday, April 22 -- "Walking tour of the The Reef, with a live discussion about the upgrade paths for your gear."
• Wednesday, April 29 -- "Reveal and live gameplay of Trials of Osiris and its collection of end game gear."
• Wednesday, May 6 -- "Reveal and live gameplay of Prison of Elders, a brand new three-player cooperative multiplayer arena."
• Friday, May 8 -- "Stay tuned!"

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Star Wars: Battlefront Reveal on Friday Will Be Live-Streamed

With just one day to go before the Star Wars Celebration kicks off, Verizon and Disney have announced that they will live-stream certain parts of the event for all to see.

This includes panels with Star Wars director J.J Abrams and actors Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher.

It also includes Electronic Arts' reveal of Star Wars: Battlefront, which is scheduled to take place during a presentation on Friday, April 17 at 10: 30 AM PDT / 1:30 PM EDT.

The Star Wars Celebration website has also been updated with an official description for the Battlefront panel, which is expected to last one hour.

"Join the talented team from DICE as they give fans their first look at Star Wars Battlefront and debut the official reveal trailer for this highly anticipated game. Learn how unprecedented access to the Lucasfilm archives and the award-winning Frostbite technology is helping to create an immersive experience that is truly 'most impressive.' DICE will also show fans how Star Wars Battlefront will give them the chance to live out their epic Star Wars battle fantasies."

The Star Wars Celebration begins tomorrow, April 16, in Anaheim, California at the Anaheim Convention Center. Live-streaming programming begins at 10 AM PDT on April 16 through StarWars.com. The show wraps up on Sunday, April 19.

Battlefront, in development at Battlefield maker DICE, is scheduled for release during holiday 2015 on Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC. Earlier this week, we learned that--like so many other EA games--Battlefront will be available to play first on Xbox One by way of EA Access.

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Metro Redux Sells 1.5 Million Copies

4A Games and Deep Silver have announced that they have sold more than 1.5 million Metro Redux games worldwide, which includes Metro 2033 Redux and Metro: Last Light Redux. Both are remastered versions of the last-generation games for current-generation systems and PC.

In addition, Deep Silver says that the Metro Redux bundle for Xbox One and PlayStation 4 has now outsold Metro: Last Light for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 in "multiple territories." This is an "unprecedented feat" for a remastered game (and there have been quite a few), Deep Silver says.

"When measured against sales of the previous generation release, Metro Redux is the best performing remaster of this generation," Deep Silver claims.

Sales numbers of other recent remasters, including The Last of Us Remastered, Tomb Raider Definitive Edition, and Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin, have not been announced.

Deep Silver has also announced that it's released Mac versions of Metro 2033 Redux and Metro: Last Light Redux on Steam. These new versions were developed by 4A Games and use OpenGL 4 to offer up "one of the most technically advanced games to appear natively on the Mac platform."

You can buy the games today on Steam, which are available until April 17 at 50 percent off. If you already bought a copy of any Steam version of Metro Redux, you'll also receive a copy of the new Mac edition at no extra charge.

"We are thrilled with the performance of Metro Redux," Deep Silver executive Menno Van der Bil said. "4A Games have created one of the benchmarks by which other re-masters will be judged, and we have seen their efforts rewarded with fantastic critical and commercial success. Metro Redux has introduced many new fans to the series, and we look forward to reaching a whole new audience on Mac."

The Metro series is based on the Metro 2033 novel by Dmitry Glukhovsky.

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Star Ocean 5 Announced for PS4, PS3

Image credit: Kotaku

Square Enix's "secret" game, which the company started teasing last week, has been officially revealed. The Final Fantasy publisher on Tuesday announced Star Ocean: Integrity and Faithlessness, the fifth game in the main series. Kotaku and Siliconera have the first details for the game.

Star Ocean 5 is in development for PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4 at Star Ocean creator Tri-Ace. No release date has been announced, but a report in Weekly Famistu claims the game is about 30 percent finished.

In terms of story, Star Ocean 5 is set between Star Ocean 2 and Star Ocean 3, featuring Fidel Camus as its hero

For gameplay, "seamless real-time" battles are promised. Siliconera writes: "In addition to having plenty of event scenes like in past Star Ocean titles, there will be seamless events where enemies will attack you in the middle of some events. If party members get captured by enemies in these events, it can change the story and ending of the game."

The game's prologue, courtesy of Kotaku, reads:

Do the depths of space forbid peace for mankind

Centuries after leaving Earth, after a multitude of trials, with the creation and spread of the 'Galactic Federation,' humanity was on the verge of unified order and peace.

But the embers of conflict have begun to burn again.

Over 6,000 light years from Earth, on the unsettled planet, 'Feycreed.'

Just as so many times before, the waves of history begin from a remote planet.

Star Ocean 5 is the first entry in the series since 2009's Star Ocean: The Last Hope.

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Mortal Kombat X Has Microtransactions for Easy Fatalities, More

NetherRealm's new fighting game, Mortal Kombat X, features microtransactions that allow players to buy "Easy Fatalities" and more, it has been revealed. The game's Xbox One and PlayStation 4 product pages show that players can buy five Easy Fatalities for 99 cents or a pack of 30 for $5.

Fatalities, the Mortal Kombat franchise's gruesome signature finishing moves, can be difficult to pull off for some players. That's where Easy Fatalities, which allow you to perform the moves with "simplified inputs", come in.

"We've learned through years and years of study that there are a lot of people who just can't pull off Fatalities, or they get freaked out or they can't figure out the timing," NetherRealm said at the end of March.

"There are certain places you can unlock those and things like that," the studio added. "So you'll always have access to Easy Fatalities--if you want to use them."

At the time, NetherRealm didn't say anything about having an option to pay for these finishing moves. But--given the growing trend of microtransactions for console games today--it's not surprising to learn that paying for Easy Fatalities is an option for Mortal Kombat X.

In addition, NetheRealm is offering an "Unlock All Krypt Items" option for $20. As its name suggests, this unlocks everything in the Krypt, a place players can visit to spend their in-game currency on new items. Everything available in the Krypt can also be attained through regular gameplay. The "Unlock All Krypt Items" is meant to give players a way to access everything right away to save time.

Mortal Kombat X launches today, April 14, for Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC, while the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions have been delayed. We're holding our full review until we can test the game's online servers. But you can read our review in progress right now.

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Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate Ships 1 Million in North America and Europe

Capcom's action-RPG Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate has now shipped more than 1 million copies since its release in North America and Europe in February. That figure, announced Tuesday by Capcom, counts copies shipped at retail as well as Nintendo eShop sales for both regions.

The Nintendo 3DS game was released in Japan last year as Monster Hunter 4G.

Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate's release in North America and Europe earlier this year coincided with the arrival of the New Nintendo 3DS. This helped the game to become the first entry in the franchise to ship 1 million units in the west, Capcom said.

Capcom also provided a new franchise sales tally for Monster Hunter. Since the series debuted more than a decade ago in 2004, it has sold more than 32 million units around the world as of February 2015.

Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate, a sequel to March 2013's Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate, is described as the "biggest and most accessible" game in the series to date. Capcom also points out that the game's online play "is in strong demand," especially in North America and Europe.

Another reason Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate is selling well, Capcom said, is because the publisher is supporting the RPG with free DLC on a regular basis. The most recent free add-on brought new character skins based on Mario and Sonic to the game.

For more on Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate, check out GameSpot's review.

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Vietnam Shooter Men of Valor Goes to Darksiders Publisher

Publisher Nordic Games has added another franchise to its stable. The company, which previously acquired the rights to Darksiders, Red Faction, and de Blob from THQ, announced Tuesday that it had entered into an agreement with 2015 Games to buy the Vietnam-themed Men of Valor franchise.

Nordic Games didn't announce any plans for a sequel to the 2004 Xbox and PC game.

But the company pointed out that the title has a rich history, having been worked on by Vince Zampella and Jason West, who would later go on establish Infinity Ward and Respawn Entertainment.

"With said IP, our shooter portfolio gets enriched with a real classic," Nordic Games executive Reinhard Pollice said in a statement. "It feels great to have a piece of FPS-history under our umbrella. At 2015 Games, a lot of talented people, including the founders of Infinity Ward and Respawn Entertainment amongst others, shaped the first person shooter genre with their games."

Before Men of Valor, 2015 Games worked on Medal of Honor: Allied Assault

Men of Valor (see GameSpot's review) puts players into the boots of new recruit Dean Shepard as he and his Marine squadmates battle through Southeast Asia in the 1960s during the Vietnam War.

Would you like to see another Men of Valor game? Let us know in the comments below!

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New Pokemon Movie Announced

The Pokemon franchise is growing further still with a brand new movie.

Announced Monday was Pokemon the Movie: Hoopa and the Clash of Ages, the latest animated feature film based on the uber-popular video game franchise.

The 70-minute film will follow Ash and Pikachu as they travel "to a desert city by the sea" and meet a new mythical Pokemon called Hoopa. This creature, using its "magic rings," can summon all manner of things, including people and other Pokemon.

Here's how The Pokemon Company sets up the story for Hoopa and the Clash of Ages:

"After a scary incident, they learn of a story about a brave hero who stopped the rampage of a terrifying Pokemon long ago. Now, the threat that has been bottled up for years is in danger of breaking loose again! Can Ash help his new friend overcome the darkness within…or will a dangerous secret erupt into a clash of legends?"

Hoopa and the Clash of Ages will debut sometime later this year on Cartoon Network, though an official premiere date was not announced. A trailer for the film is available above.

A variety of Pokemon movies are currently available on Netflix streaming, including Pokemon the Movie: Genesect and the Legend Awakened and Pokemon the Movie: Kyrum vs. The Sword of Justice, among others.

The most recent new entry in the core Pokemon video game series was Pokemon X/Y, which launched in 2013. These were followed up by 2014 remakes of GameBoy Advance titles Ruby and Sapphire for 3DS,

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Watch Game of Thrones Episode 1 for Free on Xbox One

Microsoft has partnered with HBO to offer the first episode of Game of Thrones Season 5 for free on Xbox Live.

Between now and April 16, Xbox One and Xbox 360 owners can watch Game of Thrones Season 5 Episode 1 online for free via a stream available through Xbox Live. It appears that the offer is only available to customers based in the US; GameSpot has contacted Microsoft to clarify.

Along with this, both Xbox systems will host additional content such as virtual on-set tours, trivia questions, and various video clips.

The entirety of the show's fifth season can be purchased through the Xbox HBO GO app, which is also available on a range of platforms including Apple TV and PlayStation 4.

The Game of Thrones season 5 premiere aired across North America on Sunday, and is set to air in the UK on Monday evening. To mark the occasion, Telltale Games, which is developing the episodic interactive series based on the show, is offering its first episode for free for Android devices.

Over the weekend, the first four episodes of the new series leaked online.

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Xbox One Price Drops to £300 in UK

Microsoft has reduced the UK retail price of Xbox One to £299.99, the corporation has confirmed, as part of a new sales promotion.

The discount is the latest development in a long-running series of revisions to the Xbox One's retail price, as part of a wider bid to remain competitive with the industry's current best-selling home console, the PlayStation 4.

Though it launched in November 2013 at £429, the Xbox One's price was cut to £400 just four months later. Then in May 2014, Microsoft scrapped Kinect as a mandatory accessory and began listing the console for £350. By September, that solus version was cut to £330 as part of a price promotion--which Microsoft said was temporary at first, but became standard over time.

The latest revision pulls the Xbox One price below the £300 mark for the first time. Microsoft has told MCV that it was UK retailers that have spurred the changes, though the corporation is advertising the deal on TV.

It is not clear whether retailers will revert the Xbox One price back to £330.

A Microsoft spokesperson said: "This is a UK-only retail promotion and offers great value for fans looking to buy an Xbox One ahead of the launch of 2015's highly-anticipated games like The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain and Batman: Arkham Knight, along with Xbox exclusives such as Rise of the Tomb Raider, Forza Motorsport 6 and Halo 5: Guardians."

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GTA 5 PC in 4K is an "Eye-Opener," Rockstar Says

The long-awaited PC edition of Grand Theft Auto V features a multitude of high-end graphics options, one of which is stunning 4K resolution. Now, developer Rockstar Games has boasted that this visual quality, for people whose computers are strong enough to handle it, will change the way they see Los Santos.

"4K is an eye-opener when you see if for the first time," the studio told PC Gamer. "It really does make you look at the world differently and in greater detail as you would expect."

"That said, you could probably say the same thing about a lot of the other high-end graphical options and ultimately it will be personal preference which particular resolution and graphical settings that each player decides to settle on."

Rockstar also outlined the PC specs players will need to run GTA 5 in 4K at 30fps and 60fps.

"To run the game on a 4K display at 30fps, you'll need at minimum an AMD HD 7870 or NVidia GTX 760 with 2GB of VRAM," the studio explained. "To be able to run the game at 4K resolution at 60fps you'll need a high-end SLI or Crossfire setup."

Addressing GTA V's graphics for the PC version generally, Rockstar said it of course cannot promise locked 60fps for everyone. The beauty of the PC as a platform, the studio explained, is that players have the freedom to emphasize graphics over frame rate or the other way around.

"The optimal way to run the game will depend on an individual's preference," Rockstar said. "Some people may want to dial the settings down to hit a really high frame rate, while others may appreciate a slower frame rate with the graphical settings dialed way up. Overall, with so many variables in various CPU/GPU configurations and depending on game settings, frame rates will vary widely."

GTA V's full PC specs, minimum and recommended, are available here.

PC Gamer's interview with Rockstar goes a lot deeper and is well worth a read for fans of the GTA franchise looking for more news about the PC edition. You can read the full interview here.

GameSpot has also spoken with Rockstar about the PC edition of GTA V. Check out our interview to learn more about topics such as modding, DLC timing between PC and console, and more.

After multiple delays, GTA V for PC--which also comes with powerful, PC-only video editing tools--officially arrives tomorrow, April 14. However, gamers in the United States who buy the digital version can start playing later this afternoon.

For more on the PC version of GTA V, check out some images in the gallery below.

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GS News Top 5 - Bloodborne Easy Mode Exploits; Halo Online Gameplay!

Halo Online modders fight Microsoft to let the rest of the world play, while Google try to get you to pay to watch YouTube ads-free.

by Edmond Tran on April 10, 2015

About GameSpot News

Join Jess McDonell every weekday for a punchy wrap-up of the biggest news to come out of video games!

Schedule: weekly

Host: Jess McDonell

Crew: Edmond Tran

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Xenoblade Chronicles X Will Have "Different Play Feel" Compared to First Xenoblade

Xenoblade Chronicles eD launches today on Nintendo 3DS XL (the first game that requires Nintendo's new handheld to run), and we were able to send a few questions over to the game's developers in Japan. Check out the Q&A below that covers Xenoblade's original launch on Wii, what it took to bring the game to a portable device, and a few details about the upcoming Wii U-exclusive Xenoblade Chronicles X.

Answers were provided by Testuya Takahashi (the head of developer Monolith Soft), representatives from Monster Games (the company that worked on the 3DS port), and representatives from Nintendo SPD (an internal Nintendo developer that is lending support to Monolith).

GameSpot: The original Xenoblade Chronicles took a long time to come out in the West. Did Monolith originally intend to release the game worldwide, or was this going to be a Japan-only game?

Takahashi: This is just my personal point of view, but I think it's pretty difficult to think about markets or potential acceptance levels in a nation outside your own, with different people, different cultures and different histories -- someplace you've never even lived in. Even if you try to consider it, it's a matter of fact that you won't be able to understand all of the factors completely, and if you provide a game based on that kind of armchair thinking, you'll always wind up off the mark.

However, we are also all human beings, all living creatures, and we must all have some common points of contact or things we can all empathize with. Thus, from the time we worked on the Japanese version, we planned out the game's specs with the idea that it would be sold overseas, picking up those common points one at a time so we could reply to the demand.

What is it that you think made Xenoblade Chronicles such a critical and commercial success here in the US?

Takahashi: I think it all comes down to "empathy." As I wrote above, it may not be impossible for Japanese people to understand what people in the West feel and like, but it does take a fair amount of time. Empathy, however, is something we can all recognize. Those of us in Japan can be moved by, and can empathize with, things like Hollywood films, dramas and novels written by Western authors. I personally love the TV dramas I watched as a kid, like Star Trek, Mission: Impossible, and Starsky & Hutch; I looked forward to seeing them broadcast every week.

Even if we remastered it for Wii U, my concern was that people like that would still avoid playing it.

The things that we're moved by, the points that we can empathize with, are the same. So we decided it'd be fine if we just made something we could honestly be moved by and find fun; there was no need to fiddle around too much thinking about what we would need to achieve success outside Japan. That was a philosophy we took pains not to stray from as we proceeded with development.

What drove the decision to bring Xenoblade Chronicles to 3DS instead of a remaster on Wii U (like The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker HD)?

Nintendo SPD: Xenoblade Chronicles features a ton of depth and volume, something that earned it a lot of high praise from the people who played the Wii release. I think a lot of people began to take an interest in this game after hearing all of that praise, too. However, it's not unheard of for this game to take around 100 hours just to complete it normally, so even if people take an interest, I think some of them would give up the idea of playing it, thinking to themselves: "No way do I have the free time to sit in front of a TV and play this game for 100 hours."

Even if we remastered it for Wii U, my concern was that people like that would still avoid playing it. Remaking it for a portable system, however, will let them play it whenever they like, at home or outside, and we thought that would lead to more people trying it out. We considered making it for the original Nintendo 3DS at first, but if we wanted to achieve nearly the same quality as you saw on the original Wii version, the New Nintendo 3DS XL became all but required.

Would it have been possible to run this on the regular 3DS? If no, what did the New 3DS open up?

Monster Games: We initially tried to get the game to run on the regular Nintendo 3DS system. After months of work, we realized that the game was too big and would perform too slowly. At this point we learned about New Nintendo 3DS XL hardware and were excited to learn about the faster CPU and extra RAM. This immediately made the project seem possible, so we continued working on the conversion.

The team had to rebuild all the graphical assets while making sure it still looked as good as the original game.

Even with the system's extra capabilities, it was still a challenging project and we spent many months working on optimizations. Given how hard it was to convert the game for New Nintendo 3DS XL hardware, we can easily imagine that the port to the regular Nintendo 3DS hardware would have ended up far from the quality game play that the original Wii version had even if we had given it our all.

Were there any particular technological or UI hurdles to bringing the game to 3DS?

Monster Games: The biggest technical hurdle when porting between Wii and New Nintendo 3DS XL is that the two systems have very different capabilities. All these differences kept the project from being a simple port. Every part of the game had to be reworked to account for the capabilities of New Nintendo 3DS XL hardware. For example, New Nintendo 3DS XL has a different GPU architecture, so none of the art assets could be directly used. The team had to rebuild all the graphical assets while making sure it still looked as good as the original game. Each world was carefully optimized by the art staff and we needed to invent new techniques to render the large scenes where the player can see far into the distance. It wasn't until late in the project that we finally were able to make sure the frame rate was good everywhere.

Regarding the UI design, our big challenge was to maintain the look and feel of the original game, while taking advantage of the dual screens. There are hundreds of screens in the game and the design had to work for many languages. The design team spent over a month mocking up various UI designs until we got one that seemed to work well. Once we converted the screens to run on New Nintendo 3DS XL, we brushed up the artwork to fit the small screens and fine-tuned the placement of the elements. Given the number of screens and languages, this process took a long time and we were working on improving and fine-tuning details all the way to the end of the project.

Without revealing any spoilers, what can fans of Xenoblade Chronicles look forward to when the franchise comes to Wii U? Will it feel familiar for returning fans, or will it be a departure from what was put together in Chronicles?

Takahashi: I think Xenoblade Chronicles X will have a different play feel from the first Xenoblade Chronicles game. Xenoblade Chronicles is a pretty linear game, but Xenoblade Chronicles X is non-linear, and I think a lot of the gameplay will depend on that.

Xenoblade Chronicles' core thrust is centered around its story, but Xenoblade Chronicles X is shaping up to be a game with more focus placed on action elements that take advantage of the open world instead of the story aspects. However, both games will retain a common feel based on the core elements that serve as the foundation for the series. It may feel different to play, but it'll provide a new way of having fun within the same Xenoblade series.

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Gaming Deals: $170 PS Vita Borderlands Bundle, 10% Off Games and Systems

Borderlands 2

Today's best deal is the Borderlands 2 PlayStation Vita bundle, which Newegg's eBay account is selling for $170--less than the system alone normally costs.

Also from Newegg on eBay is the Super Mario 3D World/Nintendo Land Wii U bundle for $260.

Target Cartwheel (the company's mobile coupon app) is offering 10 percent off all electronics right now, a discount that applies to both video games and video game systems.

Groupon has manufacturer-refurbished PS4s for $330. If you'd prefer to buy from Rakuten, you can get a refurbished PS4 for $347. And eBay has them for $325.

Best Buy is offering an Xbox One controller for $10 with the purchase of the $350 Master Chief Collection bundle. The store will also take $20 off the price of a one-year Xbox Live Gold membership when you buy any Xbox 360 or Xbox One.

Below you'll find the rest of today's best deals divided by platform:

PlayStation 4

Walmart has the Last of Us Remastered PS4 bundle for $439 with a bonus controller of your choice.

Staples is offering that same Last of Us Remastered PS4 bundle, but with six months of PlayStation Plus, for $395.

The sixth week of Sony's Spring Fever event has begun, and it's focused on Dragon Age games and DLC. PlayStation Plus members can get Dragon Age: Origins and Dragon Age II for $10 each, as well as Dragon Age: Inquisition for $36. You can find the full lineup of the PSN games included in Spring Fever here.

Other PS4 game deals:

PlayStation Plus' free games for April include Tower of Guns, Killzone: Mercenary, and Dishonored, and are available now.

Xbox One

GameStop has launched a new offer where you can get a new Xbox One for $225 when you trade in a select PS3 or Xbox 360.

Walmart has the Xbox One Master Chief Collection bundle with an extra controller for $389.

Best Buy is offering a free, no-contract AT&T Lumia 635 with the purchase of the $350 Master Chief Collection Xbox One bundle.

Get $50 in Xbox gift cards for $45 at Best Buy.

Forza Horizon 2's Fast & Furious spinoff is available now for free through today, April 10.

Microsoft has two sales running simultaneously: its usual Deals With Gold promotion and the Xbox Spring Sale. Between the two, you can get Forza Horizon 2 for $48, Shadow of Mordor's season pass for $10, Alien: Isolation's season pass for $15, and much more. The Spring Sale has also expanded for the weekend, bringing The Golf Club down to $11.55 and Just Dance 2015 to $30.

Other Xbox One game deals:

The free Games with Gold titles for April are available now and include Child of Light on Xbox One and Gears of War: Judgment on Xbox 360. 360 owners will be getting twice as many games as usual this month, with a total of four on the way.

PC

Humble Indie Bundle 14 is now available, and offers select games (including Pixel Piracy) at any price. Pay $10 or more, and you'll get several more games, including Outlast, Torchlight II, and Shadow Warrior.

There's also a new Humble Weekly Bundle featuring digital versions of tabletop games like Ticket to Ride and Catan. However, if you spend $32 more, you'll get a physical Humble Tabletop Box that consists of playing cards, dice, and more.

Rockstar games are featured in a Humble Store sale, bringing Max Payne 3 down to $5, the GTA Complete Pack to $10, Bully: Scholarship Edition to $3, and more.

Blizzard's online store is offering World of Warcraft for $10, and the Warlords of Draenor expansion for $37.49.

Green Man Gaming is currently offering discounts on orders for some of the year's biggest releases. You can get Grand Theft Auto V for $46.79, Batman: Arkham Knight for $43.79, Battlefield Hardline for $50, Magicka 2 for $11.24, The Elder Scrolls Online: Tamriel Unlimited for $46.79, or Final Fantasy XIV: Heavensward for $30. You can find all the discounts in Green Man Gaming's VIP page, for which you can sign up for free.

You can get 22 percent off at Green Man Gaming with the code: SAVE22-OVERHO-LIDAYS

The original Syndicate is free on Origin.

Other PC game deals:

Wii U

Nintendo has kicked off the Super Spring Sale, discounting a variety of eShop games: Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker is $28, Pikmin 3 is $42, Golden Sun is $5.59, and more.

If you don't mind a refurbished system, Nintendo's online store has a Wii U bundle with Nintendo Land for $200, or Nintendo Land and Super Mario 3D World for $225.

3DS

Nintendo's Super Spring Sale also includes 3DS games: Mario Kart 7 is $21, Tomodachi Life is $24.49, Kirby: Triple Deluxe is $24.49, and more.

Walmart is offering a New 3DS XL bundle with Super Smash Bros. for 3DS and your choice of select Amiibo figurines for $230. Alternatively, the retailer has a New 3DS XL bundle with your choice of select games for $229. Eligible games include Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate, Code Name: Steam, and quite a few more.

Get Pokemon Omega Ruby or Alpha Sapphire and your choice of Groudon or Kyogre collectible figurine for $31 at Walmart.

PS Vita

Amazon is selling the Wi-Fi version of PlayStation Vita for $170.

Hardware

Amazon prices are accurate as of publishing, but can fluctuate occasionally throughout the day.

GameSpot's gaming deals posts always highlight the best deals we can find regardless of retailer. We also occasionally use retailer affiliate links, which means that purchasing goods through those links helps support all the great content (including the deals posts) you find for free here on the site.

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Weekly Recap: Black Ops 3 and New Deus Ex Announced, $225 Xbox One Deal

THE BIG STUFF:

Call of Duty: Black Ops III Officially Confirmed for This Year: It's finally official. Activision announced this week that, as it was rumored, Treyarch is in fact working on the next Black Ops game. It launches this fall, and more details are coming on Sunday, April 26.

Watch Deus Ex: Mankind Divided's First Trailer: Square Enix this week announced a brand-new Deus Ex game and it looks pretty excellent, at least according to its first (CG) trailer. Watch it above. Mankind Divided, which doesn't yet have any kind of a release date, is in development for Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC.

How to Buy an Xbox One for $225: GameStop has rolled out a really good deal if you're looking for a new Xbox One. Now through April 25, shoppers who trade in a PlayStation 3 (120 GB or greater) or an Xbox 360 (250 GB or greater) will receive $125 worth of in-store credit when applied toward the purchase of a new Xbox One. That means you can get a new Xbox One for just $225. Nice!

THE OTHER STUFF:

Develop has an excellent feature on the effect development on the canceled action game Prey 2 had on its developer, Human Head Studios, and what's next for the company. Read the excellent story here.

Have you ever wanted to own a life-size Dark Souls II statue? It's OK, you can admit it. Now you can have one in your home, provided you win this special GameStop contest. Check out this post for a full set of instructions on how to enter--and hopefully win!

In response to a 12-year-old girl's op-ed about the relatively small number of female characters in video games today, Temple Run developer Imangi Studios has announced that it will release a free female runner for Temple Run 2. Read the full story here.

Retailer Best Buy is opening hundreds stores at midnight next week to sell copies of highly anticipated fighting game Mortal Kombat X as soon as possible. More than 360 stores will open (or stay open, depending on the time zones) to sell the game. Here's a nice chart, courtesy of Best Buy, that explains exactly when the game will go on sale depending on where you live.

• 12:01 a.m. April 14 in the Eastern time zone
• 11:01 p.m. April 13 in the Central time zone
• 10:01 p.m. April 13 in the Mountain time zone
• 9:01 p.m. April 13 in the Pacific time zone

Smosh Games has posted its latest "Honest" trailer, this one for BioShock. Not much else to say here--check out the video below and let us know what you think.

The latest Final Fantasy mobile game, Record Keeper, has now been downloaded 1 million times, Square Enix announced this week. The game, developed by DeNA and Square Enix, was released on March 26. To celebrate the milestone, all players will be given one Mythril as a daily bonus. This special offer will starts this Saturday, April 11, and runs through April 16.

Wow, this Five Nights at Freddy's cosplay is excellent. See the full cosplay gallery at Kotaku. In other news about the scary game, Warner Bros. has announced it's making a movie based on the game.

Nazi zombies will make a comeback in upcoming shooter Wolfenstein: The Old Blood. That's according to this new Vine teaser video from Bethesda. Watch it below. The game arrives in May for console and PC.

Sad news for Smash Bros. designer Masahiro Sakurai. In the latest issue of Famitsu, Sakurai reveals that he's still suffering from an arm injury that he's had for years now. Read more about it here. Get better soon!

Bloodborne is a difficult game, you know this. But you aren't the only one struggling. Now you can watch Sony Korea executive Shiro Kawauchi play and die...over and over and over again.

DLC alert! Bohemia Interactive has released the Marksmen DLC for military game Arma 3, introducing seven new weapons, two scopes, remote laser-designators, ghillie suits, firing drills, and the new Marksmen showcase scenario. Accompanying the paid DLC is a free update for the overall game, which adds new weapon resting and deployment features, along with sound enhancements and new multiplayer mode. Get all the news about the Marksmen DLC at the Arma website.

Square Enix this week announced an all-new Deus Ex game called Mankind Divided. You can read lots more about it and see the first images courtesy of Game Informer's excellent cover story, available now through the magazine's May issue. You can buy the issue right here.

I can't be the only total Halo nerd out there, can I? I doubt it. If you're also a big fan of the series and the lore, you'll probably enjoy this latest Cannon Fodder blog post from 343 Industries. "What are the origins of the stone structures seen on Installation 05"? Read this post to find out the answer to that question and many, many others.

Activision has released a Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare Gold Edition. It retails for $60 and comes with the main game, the Havoc DLC, and the Atlas Gorge map. You can also buy all that content for the same exact price if purchased separately--$40 for the game (on Amazon), $15 for the Havoc expansion, and $5 for the Atlas Gorge map.

It may be nearly five years old, but that doesn't mean it's not worth watching. Check out this hilariously unfortunate Halo: Reach betrayal. It boggles the mind!

DICE is building an all-new Battlefield 4 map and the developer needs your help to make it happen. The studio has rolled out yet another survey asking fans what they want to see from the map. You can fill out the survey here.

Here is the first footage of Mega Man creator Keiji Inafune's next game--Mighty No. 9--running on Xbox One. What do you think? Let us know!

New Metal Gear Solid action figures are coming by way of Square Enix. The new toys are due for release later this year, starting at ¥9,800 (about $82 USD). Check out all the images of the new Metal Gear Solid toys over at ToyArk.

A new Digi-Capital study released this week predicts that the augmented/virtual reality market will reach $150 billion by 2020. The report, called "Augmented/Virtual Reality Report 2015," gives the upper hand to augmented reality, saying the revenue split will be $120 billion for AR and $30 billion for VR.

eSports giant Major League Gaming (MLG) is doing pretty well. The company announced this week that its MLG.TV network has seen viewership increase by a massive 253 percent year-over-year. Meanwhile, total revenue is up 482 percent. You can see more impressive stats at MLG's website.

Check out this fan-made live-action Uncharted 4 video that shows what A Thief's End might look like from a first-person perspective. Very interesting!

Have a great weekend, everyone!

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"I Don't Think VR Is a Now Thing," Xbox Boss Says

Virtual reality has been a major talking point in the past year and change, with Facebook buying Oculus, Sony announcing Project Morpheus, and most recently, Valve getting into the game with Vive VR. And while Microsoft has talked about creating its own VR headset some day, Xbox boss Phil Spencer says in a new interview that he doesn't think VR is going to take off anytime soon.

Speaking in the latest issue of Edge magazine, as reported by GamesRadar, Spencer was asked for his thoughts about not having a competitive device to launch against Sony's PlayStation 4 headset, Project Morpheus. Spencer replied: "It's more of an announcement than anybody really having any VR stuff right now--and that's not a shot at Sony. I mean, it's hard tech, and I think it's great what they're doing with Morpheus. But they've announced [it for] the first half of 2016, so a little over a year from now."

"I don't think VR is a now thing. I'm not saying it's five years from now, but it's not really a now now thing" -- Spencer

Overall, Spencer said he sees VR as "an interesting space," and one that's different than what Microsoft is doing in the "mixed reality" sector with HoloLens. All the same, Spencer stressed that, "there's nothing that precludes us from doing something in the VR space."

"There are partners out there, and while these guys are PC-based today, if we want to do something with Xbox... Right now, it's just been about technologies and things that I think we need to do on Xbox One to make the experience better, and that's where our focus has been," Spencer added. "And I don't think VR is a now thing. I'm not saying it's five years from now, but it's not really a now now thing."

In addition, Spencer teased that various VR companies are "very interested" in bringing Microsoft's Minecraft franchise to VR. No official projects have been announced, but Microsoft did show off a Minecraft HoloLens tech demo back in January. He also reiterated that Microsoft is currently exploring gaming opportunities for HoloLens, explaining that, while traditional VR experiences like Oculus or Morpheus are tethered to a PC or console, HoloLens aims to differentiate itself by being untethered in nature. But for people who do own an Xbox or PC, there could be gaming potential there with HoloLens. 

"Now we can say, 'Well, OK, if I do have an Xbox or a PC, what are those scenarios?' We haven't publicly talked about what those are, but you can imagine, as we continue to drive and get success with HoloLens, those scenarios will become obvious and developers will take advantage of them," Spencer said.

The full interview with Spencer is available in the latest issue of Edge Magazine, which you can buy online right here. The issue also features more coverage for Wii U shooter Splatoon and a new interview with veteran Capcom designer Yoshinori Ono, among other things.

What's your reaction to Spencer's comments about VR? Let us know in the comments below!

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Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 Set in "Dark, Twisted Future,' Zombies Will Return

Following yesterday's official announcement of Call of Duty: Black Ops III, new information about the upcoming blockbuster shooter has emerged. The Call of Duty website's source code, originally spotted by Charlie Intel, reveals new details about the game's platforms, story, modes, and more.

"Call of Duty: Black Ops III is the first title for next-gen hardware in the critically acclaimed Black Ops series," reads a line from the description, referencing Xbox One and PlayStation 4. The game is also likely to come to PC, though it's unclear if Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 will be supported this time around.

In terms of story, Black Ops III is set in a "dark, twisted future where a new breed of Black Ops soldier emerges and the lines are blurred between our own humanity and the technology we created to stay ahead, in a world where cutting-edge military robotics define warfare."

We also have now learned that Black Ops III will feature three main modes: Campaign, Multiplayer, and Zombies. All of this comes together to deliver the "deepest and most ambitious Call of Duty ever," Activision writes. Black Ops III developer created the now-popular Zombies mode, delivering the first iteration of it in 2008's Call of Duty: World at War.

Meanwhile, the Treyarch Facebook page has recently been sharing news stories about biohacking, suggesting this may play some role in Black Ops III. Given the "new breed of Black Ops soldier" referenced above, this definitely sounds possible.

2010's original Black Ops was set primarily in the 1960s, while 2012's Black Ops II took place in the 1980s and 2025.

In addition, Twitter user ThaTiemsz has posted what they call official Black Ops III art (see above). This picture was apparently found on the Call of Duty website, though we've been unable to find it ourselves.

Activision plans to formally reveal more details about Black Ops III on Sunday, April 26. The game is due out this fall, and will be a follow-up to Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare.

For more on Black Ops III, check out GameSpot's breakdown of the debut trailer where we dissect the various secrets hidden in the video.

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Xbox One/PS4 Farming Simulator Gets First Gameplay Trailer

Focus Home Interactive has released the first trailer for the upcoming console edition of Farming Simulator 15. The game launches May 19 across Xbox 360, Xbox One, PlayStation 3, and PlayStation 4.

As was previosuly announced, developer Giants Software built the console version of Farm Simulator on a new graphics and physics engine. Watch the trailer and you'll probably agree that the game does look rather nice. You can also see a variety of screenshots in the gallery below.

Originally released last fall for PC, the game has already sold more than 1 million copies for computers.

Farming Simulator 15 tasks players with managing and developing their own farm. This includes harvesting resources and taking care of animals such as cows, chicken, and sheep. You'll also need to sell your products and invest in more and better vehicles and power tools.

The game also includes a new activity: woodcutting, along with vehicles and tools dedicated to the craft. In all, Farming Simulator includes more than 140 vehicles and farming tools, including some that are exclusive to the console editions. Popular farming brands including New Holland, Ponsse, Case IH, Deutz-Fahr, MAN, and Liebherr are represented in the game.

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