MMORPGs

Battlestate Games, a Russian game development studio, has revealed the first gameplay video of Escape from Tarkov, the hardcore online shooter with RPG features.

Two private military companies, USEC and BEAR, clashed in conflict on the streets of a Russian city, forcing the local civilian population to flee. However, anarchy and lawlessness stroke a chord with some people, who are now called Savages around these parts. They flock into packs and fight for territories and resources on par with professional soldiers.

Shots and screams are incessant sounds hanging in the air, and tossed grenades are referred to as a “present”. Harsh reality is abound in the game – one hit, and your character may be killed right away or bleed to death.

Follow the news and sign up for beta at the official Escape from Tarkov website.

Developer Diary 10 explores the game’s soundscape

Hundreds of carefully crafted sounds constitute the vast and varied audio of World of Warships. The latest installment of Developer Diaries invites players behind the scenes to discover how the soundtrack for World of Warships was created in the St. Petersburg studio.

This massive undertaking began when the game was still in development. From every shell fired, ship damaged, and wave broken, the team has worked diligently to create a cinema-grade soundscape that narrates a player’s battlefield journey.

Explore the most difficult and exciting aspects of sound design for World of Warships: getting the deafening salvos and angry reports of gunfire just right, forming a ship’s “sound passport”—consisting of dozens of unique clips—and recreating a tangible atmosphere of naval combat. Learn how the audio design adjusts and adapts depending on where the player is in relation to their surroundings and changes when going from first-person to third-person to create a real sense of warfare.

Follow the Audio Team in their quest to build the musical score that engages the player and ratchets up the tension during key moments of battle.

For the latest game information, visit the official World of Warships website.

Source: Blue’s News

Battlestate Games announces Escape from Tarkov, a “hardcore online game set in a Russian setting” coming to Windows and OS X next year. The game’s official website is online, offering signups for closed beta testing, and this lengthy cinematic trailer showing lots of gunplay in a war-ravaged urban environment. The announcement also refers to this as an “MMO,” and describes a conflict in a cut off region called Norvinsk:

With every new day the situation in Norvinsk oblast becomes stranger and more complicated. Panic reigns as the city is plunged into armed conflict: citizens flee while those who stay begin to scavenge whatever they can. Taking the new realities as a matter of course and huddling up into well-armed gangs, scavs start their own battle for territories. Today, Tarkov is divided by unseen borders set by bandit groups. Up-for-anything, they won’t stop short at killing innocents or waging a war against two private military companies.

Players will enter the battlefield as surviving ex-mercenaries. After choosing one’s side, USEC or BEAR, the protagonist starts off in the middle of the city. Tarkov is blocked by UN forces and Russian military, supply lines are cut, communications are lost – in these realities everyone decides by himself or herself, how to survive and get out of city.

World of Tanks Update 9.12 has gone live today in North America and Europe, with Asia, Korea and China to follow on November 19. The update features a new game mode, adds an exclusive map, reworked, high definition vehicles and the first ever PvE tutorial on PC.

This all-new game mode challenges even the most proficient tank commander by adding fresh mechanics such as respawns, Garage Battles, tank repair stations and a Capture the Flag variant. It also brings new “Artillery” and “Airstrike” abilities, capable of inflicting major damage on the battlefield. Now players must evolve their strategy and tweak their tactics to claim victory. The new map—“Berlin”—is also available for this mode, as well as a special season of Personal Battle Missions. Doing well in these missions will earn commanders the impressive Tier 10 T-22 sr. tank and offers achievement hunters the chance to obtain unique medals for proving their prowess in battle.

Update 9.12 continues to enhance World of Tanks by rolling out twenty-eight high definition vehicles and an improved tank customization interface, allowing players to buy and set camouflage, inscriptions and emblems. The British tank line updates its ranks by replacing the Tier 10 FV4202 medium tank with the mighty Centurion Action X. Finally, a PvE tutorial arrives giving new tankers the chance to hone their skills before taking to the online battlefield.

For more information on update 9.12, visit the official World of Tanks website.

Destructibility Improvements, New Maps and First British Tanks

Gaijin Entertainment today announced that its award-winning MMO WWII online game, War Thunder, will be introducing a host of new and upgraded features in a forthcoming update for War Thunder’s 10 million players to enjoy.

War Thunder is starting to implement an improved version of its engine, known as Dagor Engine 4.0, and part of this is physically based rendering. War Thunder has always prided itself on its unrivaled attention to detail, even going as far as to correctly interpret the way light interacts with objects within its environment, including the diffusion and reflection of light on shiny and opaque surfaces and materials, such as wood, steel, rubber and glass. In short, it means that War Thunder will look even more realistic than ever before.

Another part of the improved engine is the integration of NVIDIA GameWorks technologies. NVIDIA PhysX Destruction aids War Thunder’s quest for increased realism by enabling the introduction of larger destructible objects to the game: wall fragments, ruins and entire buildings will all react to in-game ballistic physics. Players now have the ability to destroy enemy’s cover or create new firing positions, changing dynamics of tank battles.

The inclusion of NVIDIA WaveWorks technology generates incredibly realistic waves and foam for oceans, seas, rivers and lakes, which will also factor wind direction and strength. All of the maps in the game will benefit from this addition, aerial and ground combat ones alike.

The name “Firestorm” for update 1.53 comes from the introduction of a deadly set of new multiple rocket launcher systems: namely, the American M26 Pershing tank with mounted T99 system, the German Panzerwerfer 42 and Russian BM-24-8. These vehicles provide a formidable barrage of high-explosive rockets and continue to expand the armored vehicle design variation in the game.

Fans anticipating British tanks will rejoice, as an initial set of four exclusive vehicles become available: the A13 Mk II, the Sherman Firefly, the M10 Achilles and the A43 Black Prince Infantry tank. The main British Ground Force line-up will appear in War Thunder in the next updates.

In total, there are over 20 new vehicles in update 1.53, including the amphibious Soviet tank PT-76, Cold War-era Jagdpanzer 4-5 and, eagerly awaited by fans, the top-range British jet fighter the Hawker Hunter.

Finally, two new ground combat locations were added, a winter map of the Stalingrad tractor plant district, which has been painstakingly reproduced based on real photographs taken during the bloody battles for the city and “Advance to Rhine,” based on late-war Cologne with its towering cathedral and maze-like streets that will provide the optimum challenge for urban warfare.

Steam Achievements are now available for the PC version of the game. There are many more improvements and features in this update, of course. To see a detailed list, click here. Or visit the War Thunder developer’s blog.

Discover new maps, tackle a new game mode, and reap greater rewards in Ranked Battles

Wargaming is excited to announce update 0.5.1 for World of Warships will go live on November 5 in North America and on November 6 in Asia, the CIS and EU. This update brings a boatload of great content including three new maps—with the very first night map—a brand new game mode “Zone”, and further improvements.

Three new maps for World of Warships are set to test players’ skills by plunging them into new and exciting waters. For the very first time, commanders will find “Northern Lights”, a reimagining of a once-familiar locale, doused in darkness and the spectacle of the Aurora Borealis. New maps include “Land of Fire”, inspired by South America and “The Trap”, which is modelled on the fierce battles between U.S. and Japanese fleets, complete with an active volcano.

The new game mode “Zone” pits opposing teams in contention of one giant base in the middle of a map. However, this base only becomes available for capture two minutes into the battle. With “Zone”, players will have to reevaluate their old tactics and techniques, trading off the vulnerability of open waters for glory. Also in update 0.5.1 are various additions and enhancements such as “Events”, “Challenges”, “Missions, and “Daily Missions”.

Ranked Battles now feature even more rewards in the form of flags to deck out a vessel and make it the envy of others on the high seas. Also for those still finding their sea legs, Introductory Missions have been added with a tutorial to help commanders develop their tactical skills and strengthen their grasp of the game.

For the latest game information, visit the official World of Warships website.

Obsidian Entertainment and Paradox Interactive today announced that Pillars of Eternity, the critically acclaimed computer role-playing game (CRPG) made possible by a record-setting crowdfunding campaign, has crossed a new milestone, and has now sold over 500,000 copies worldwide. Including fans who backed Pillars of Eternity on Kickstarter, over half a million players have purchased the game worldwide, making it one of the best-selling games on Steam this year. Pillars of Eternity has gone on to be one of the best reviewed PC games of 2015, and in addition to its two-part expansion The White March, Obsidian has plans to continue to expand upon its rich universe across several forthcoming releases.

“Every one of these milestones, from the completion of our crowdfunding campaign to the game’s release and beyond, is a surreal moment when you consider where this journey began,” said Feargus Urquhart, CEO of Obsidian Entertainment. “Pillars of Eternity has been a life-changing experience for me, and for everyone involved in its creation. Knowing that over half a million people have gotten to share in that is both flattering and humbling. I want to deeply thank all of our fans and supporters. We can’t wait to share what we’ve got next for the world of Eora.”

For more information on Pillars of Eternity, visit eternity.obsidian.net.

Discover new vessels to unlock, upgrade, and master

In the wake of World of Warships’ release just over a month ago, captains can now get behind the helm of vessels from two distinct nations: Germany and the Soviet Union.

On the horizon for the German fleet are Dresden and Hermelin cruisers, swift vessels capable of running rings around opponents. If that’s not enough, this new line of German cruisers boast great endurance—especially as players progress up the Tech Tree—along with solid armor and powerful guns.

The Soviet Tech Tree is ready to make some waves with Izyaslav, Gnevny and Tashkent destroyers—plus many more. These vessels are the sharpshooters of the sea; easily picking off targets from afar with their hard-hitting canons and superb accuracy. Soviet destroyers are also extremely rapid making them a hard target to scuttle. When adding their strong anti-aircraft armaments and rapid turret rotation into the mix, players have a set of devastating attack runners on their hands.

Click here for the announcement video.

For the latest game information, visit the official World of Warships website.

360° experience produced in cooperation with Google immerses viewers in a historic 1941 battle recreation

Wargaming today released “1941 Battle: 360° Reenactment”, a unique 360° virtual reality video that teleports the viewer into the heart of battle with four tanks, 40 infantry reenactors, artillery and warplanes for the first time ever.

“Wargaming is excited to share our passion for history, and to use innovative technology to bring history alive,” said Tracy Spaight, Director of Special Projects at Wargaming. “Recreating this historic tank battle in 360°, with iconic tanks like the T-34 and Panzer III, will reignite the past like never before.”

Earlier this year, Wargaming’s global PC phenomenon World of Tanks, in partnership with Google and The Bovington Tank Museum, released a series of five 360° videos titled “Virtually Inside the Tanks”. Covering famous vehicles such as the M4 Sherman from the movie “FURY”, viewers could discover some of history’s most notable tanks, inside and out.

Click Here for more information about World of Tanks.

A new pack of destroyers is set to hunt down the competition

Wargaming today announced that the Soviet Tech Tree will be joining the armada beginning October 19. Setting sail to cause some destruction will be a full destroyer line, including the legendary Izyaslav, Gnevny and Tashkent, the lead destroyer of Project 20 I whose cobalt blue color earned her the nickname “blue cruiser”.

Soviet destroyers bring unique features and strengths to the fight. The hard-hitting cannons deliver great accuracy making hitting even the fastest targets at long distance a breeze. Coupled with extremely high speed, strong anti-aircraft armaments and rapid turret rotation at higher Tiers, these new Soviet vessels are capable of delivering devastating attacks run.

“We’re looking forward to letting players command this line of Soviet destroyers,” said Daniil Volkov, World of Warships Development Director. “Working towards new and interesting content to give players different ways to battle is a priority for the team and these upcoming additions will open up some distinct vessels for commanders to discover and leverage in combat.”

Alongside the USSR Tech Tree, World of Warships will also be welcoming German cruisers to the fleet. These stalwart vessels boast high endurance, solid armor and powerful weaponry, making the invaluable in the most hectic battle. Soon these two lines of ships can clash with those from Japan and the U.S. to determine who really rules the waves. Check out the new Soviet Destroyers & German Cruisers video here.

For the latest game information, visit the official World of Warships website.