MlB 13: The Show

MLB: The Show is a Major League Baseball video game series produced by SCE San Diego Studio, a development team that is part ofSony Computer Entertainment Worldwide Studios. The series debuted in 2006 with MLB 06: The Show for the PlayStation 2 andPlayStation Portable. There has been a new release in the series every year since 2006, and since MLB 07: The Show in 2007, every game released has also been available for the PlayStation 3. MLB 12: The Show, which was released in March 2012, it also the first game in the series to not be available for the PS2 or PSP and the first game in the series to available for the PlayStation Vita, Sony's new handheld. The series is the successor to 989 Sports' MLB series.

Sony San Diego already has the premiere baseball simulation on the planet from a gameplay standpoint, now they are attempting to brush up the appeal of the game in other aspects.

They have adopted the fan cover vote process to drive interaction and awareness of the game, per MLB.com. This process has seen huge success with other sports game franchises like Madden. 

Now they are also introducing the use of XP (experience points) into the overall experience. This concept isn’t new to sports gaming—as many franchises use it, or something similar—but the way it is explained in The Show Nation’s forum via moderator is new to this series.

Gamers will gain XP for doing any and everything in the game. The XP you earn creates a track record. This track record is called your Universal Profile, and it is used to create a gaming imprint for you that tells a story about the way you play the game.

In online modes, another user will be able to look at the XP you’ve earned, and it’ll tell them something about you as a Show gamer.

As I said, this isn’t a new concept, but in essence, it appears to be an attempt to tighten up the overall package.

The Show series has been so good from a visual and gameplay standpoint, I’m not sure there is a ton of room for growth on those fronts—at least not on this current generation of consoles.

The next significant improvement we see from a graphics/animation or gameplaystandpoint may come on the Sony PS4 or Xbox 720. For now, these types of improvements that target the gamer’s overall experience—online and offline—is a smart approach.

The moderator states:

“The Universal Profile additions in MLB® 13 are just a small first step towards much bigger plans in the years to come. We want to create a universal sense of progression for users regardless of their platform or play style, and this year’s efforts are just the beginning of this evolution.”

I’m interested to see how this concept develops in the coming months, and over an even longer time. Stay tuned for more information on MLB 13 The Show as it becomes available.

MLB 13: The Show is wisely staying out of public places until we get some beautiful spring weather, now scheduled to launch on March 5, 2013, for PS3 and Vita.

MLB 13 includes a few new features, such as a stadium setting with Playoff mode, a new beginner mode and improved Play Now, Franchise and Road To The Show modes. Franchise, Season and Road To The Show game saves can be synced among devices, whether PS3, Vita or that other PS3 you break out for special occasions.

Halo 4

Halo 4 is a first-person shooter video game developed by 343 Industries and published by Microsoft Studios for the Xbox 360 video game console. It is the first installment in the latest trilogy of Halo games, named the Reclaimer Trilogy. The game was released in most territories worldwide on November 6, 2012. Halo 4's story begins four years after the ending of Halo 3; the player assumes the role of the Master Chief, a cybernetically enhanced supersoldier. The story is mainly set on a Forerunner planet, where Master Chief encounters the alien race known as the Covenant and ancient warriors of the Forerunner empire known as the Prometheans. Master Chief is accompanied by the artificial intelligence construct Cortana.

Halo 4 was officially announced on June 6, 2011, at E3 2011. On September 26, 2012, it was announced that the game's development was complete.

Halo 4 grossed US$220 million on its launch day, with an estimated gross of $300 million in its opening week, marking a new record for the franchise.^[1] As of December 6, 2012, the game has sold approximately four million copies. The game received generally positive reviews from professional critics on release.

Gameplay

Halo 4 is a shooter game, in which players predominantly experience gameplay from a first-person perspective; the game perspective switches to third-person when using certain weapons, armor abilities and vehicles. The player's head-up display (HUD) shows real-time information on the player character's armor system, such as shield status, information on current weapons and armor abilities, and also display indicators for goals and objectives. The HUD also has a motion tracker that detects allies, enemies, and vehicles within a certain radius of the player.

The game sees the return of the Covenant as foes, and introduces a new faction of enemy called the Prometheans, who serve under theForerunners. There are three types of Prometheans; Knights serve as leaders of the group and are considered as the deadliest of the Promethean forces. Crawlers are a weaker class which often attack in larger packs. Watchers, which are deployed by Knights, offer support and have the ability to shield or revive Promethean allies.

Halo 4 features updated versions of many UNSC and Covenant weaponry from previous Halo games, as well as introducing new weapons for the humans, Covenant and Prometheans. The game also features armor abilities which were introduced in Halo: Reach. Returning armor abilities include active camouflage, hologram and jetpack; new abilities include hardlight shield, Promethean vision, regeneration field, autosentry and thruster pack. Sprinting returns in Halo 4; all players can now use it independently of their armor ability. New gameplay mechanics introduced to the series include throwing and catching which has been implemented into the multiplayer game types: Oddball and Grifball.

Modes

Halo 4's story or campaign mode can be played through alone or cooperatively with one other player in split screen and up to three other players through Xbox Live. Unlike in Halo 3cooperative campaign where each player takes the role of a different character, in Halo 4 all players assume the role of Master Chief. Players can enable skulls in the campaign menu which act as gameplay modifiers such as increasing enemy health, changing NPC behaviour or removing elements of the player's HUD. The campaign also features terminals which provide the player with additional backstory. Upon finding a terminal, a video is unlocked and can viewed in the Halo Waypoint application on the Xbox 360.

Halo 4 features a new story-driven episodic game mode, titled Spartan Ops, that can be played solo or cooperatively on two player split screen and on Xbox Live with up to three other players. It serves as a replacement for the Firefight game mode that featured in Halo: Reach and Halo 3: ODST. Season one of Spartan Ops delivers five new objective-based missions and cinematics each week over a period of ten weeks to players. The story for Spartan Ops is set six months after the events of the Halo 4 campaign. In the multiplayer component of Halo 4, titled Infinity multiplayer, players build their own custom Spartan-IV super-soldier and advance in their multiplayer career which spans across gameplay in War Games, Spartan Ops, Forge and Theater.^[17] Players can advance through ranks by earning experience (XP) by playing War Games, Spartan Ops, using Forge, and by completing both challenges and commendations. At each rank, players earn Spartan Points (SP), which are used to purchase gameplay items such as weapons, armor abilities and various upgrades for personal loadouts. Once players attain rank SR-50, they can enlist into one of the eight available Specializations, enabling players to unlock further customizations for their Spartan. Each Specialization is composed of ten ranks; players cannot switch their Specialization until they complete it. Items for visual customization are unlocked by gaining ranks, mastering commendations and completing certain goals. Halo 4 includes Forge, a map-editing tool that was first featured in Halo 3. Both Forge and War Games can be played on four player split screen, although some War Games playlists may restrict the number of players playing from a single console.

When Halo 4 launched on November 6, it debuted a new cooperative gameplay mode called Spartan Ops. Delivered in weekly deployments, each episode includes a short CGI film and five playable scenarios called chapters. Set six months after the main campaign, these episodes chronicle the exploration of the Forerunner planet Requiem by the officers, scientists, and Spartans stationed aboard the UNSC starship Infinity.

As of now, five episodes are available--the first half of the planned 10-episode season. It has been a bumpy start for Spartan Ops, as it has sometimes struggled with dull pacing and predictable design, but recent developments in the story and departures from the normal mission structure have given the novel series some intriguing momentum.

To understand why things are looking up for Spartan Ops, we need to look at how it started out. As I wrote in my review of Halo 4, the opening cutscene was a nice introduction to Infinity's new mission. We meet a squad of Spartan IVs and glean important details about each one from their idle conversations and their introduction to the boss Spartan, Commander Sarah Palmer. The cutscene teaches us what the Infinity is up to, gives us a glimpse of humanity's best soldiers gearing up for combat, and drives home the fact that this is a whole different battlefield in one memorable flourish. When the Infinity casually smashes through a Covenant capital ship as if it were merely a passing tumbleweed, you know this isn't Master Chief's struggle against the alien threat. The stage is nicely set for a new conflict, one in which humanity has some weight to throw around.

Unfortunately, once you start playing the actual chapters, this heady feeling of power dissipates. It's not that you aren't a powerful Spartan; you can have a lot of fun threshing your way through your enemies or struggling against tenacious foes, depending on your skill level and the difficulty setting. It's just that the missions themselves are routine. Clear out the Covenant, and smash things at these few checkpoints. Scientists are trapped in this building; shoot all the bad guys nearby. Press a few buttons, kill a lot of enemies, and make it to the extraction point.

From a plot perspective, these scenarios establish the Spartans as part of a workaday military operation, doing what needs to be done so the investigation and exploitation of Requiem can proceed apace. Sensible? Yes. Exciting? Not really. The waves of Covenant and Promethean enemies feel predictable, a bit too much like what you've encountered before in the campaign, and because these stand-alone outings can be completed in around 10 minutes, the experience feels disjointed.

In the campaign, you had a clear narrative impetus to press onward, as well as the thrill of new environments awaiting you. In the second episode, the narrative remains disconnected from the action. A new artifact stirs things up on Infinity, resulting in a comedic moment from Palmer and the dramatic departure of Infinity's chief engineer, Dr. Glassman. It raises an interesting question (what actually just happened to him?), but the chapters don't shed any light on these events, returning instead to a forgettable series of rote rescue missions.

The second episode also dashes any eagerness you may have had to see new areas: four of the five environments here were also used in the first episode, albeit with different enemy deployments and different follow-the-checkpoint routes. Only the second week and they're already recycling environments? This is a gut punch to the novel idea of new weekly content, and it might cause you to reflect on the fact that Spartan Ops required only a 1.5 gigabyte install from the second Halo 4 disc. Is that all just videos? Will I ever see another new place in Spartan Ops?

Well, if you've played some War Games, the answer is no, there are no new environments awaiting you. Spartan Ops uses six original maps (a few of which are repurposed from the campaign) as well as two maps from the competitive multiplayer mode (Complex and Ragnarok). These last two first appear in episode three, and it's initially odd to be fighting AI aliens where you are used to blasting fellow Spartans. Fortunately, this feeling soon falls away, thanks to some bolder scenario design. Clearing out a dusty bowl area bristling with Covenant and bringing down Banshees and Phantoms with your very own Mantis mech are some of the most invigorating combat endeavors Spartan Ops has yet offered. With more vehicles and an increased enemy presence, the pressure is intensified and the experience is noticeably better.

Episode three is also where the story of Spartan Ops takes a turn for the awesome with the arrival of Dr. Catherine Halsey, the infamous director of the Spartan program. Weathering epithets that include "war criminal" and "old lady," Halsey wastes little time deploying her steely intelligence and sharp intuition to make her presence felt, despite the fact that she is in custody. She is one of the most fascinating characters in Halo lore, but she doesn't just improve the story by adding her personality. The way the Infinity crew members treat her tells you a lot about their individual personalities as well. Dr. Halsey's influence elevates the tension and intrigue aboard the Infinity, making episode three the point where Spartan Ops starts to show some real narrative vigor.

Meanwhile, down on the surface, we discover that the vanished Infinity engineer is now in the custody of an Elite named Jul 'Mdama. His crew of vicious-looking Sangheili worship the Didact and believe that they can harness the powers of the Forerunners by accessing the Librarian (hence the engineer's usefulness). This plotline manifests itself in the chapters as missions to hunt 'Mdama and his second-in-command, Parg Vol. It feels a bit manufactured (how did we come to know all this stuff about this Covenant terrorist?), but the chapters here once again benefit from some divergence from the norm. You start one scenario by teleporting into the middle of a Covenant squad, and the final chapter is a juiced-up brawl between you and tons of Covenant forces fueled by abundant UNSC ordnance and a handful of Ghosts.

Episode five marks the point where Spartan Ops really seems to have hit its stride. Revelations about an artifact retrieved from the planet, the exposure of Halsey's secretive communications, and the drastic actions taken by one Spartan leave you speculating wildly and eagerly anticipating the next episode. Perhaps more significantly, the chapters themselves almost all represent a serious shift in mission design.

Rather than simply following checkpoints and plowing through hordes of enemies, you must now defend key structures that can be destroyed, and scientists that can be killed. You can fail the mission and be forced to start again from the beginning. In a mode that lets you die as much as you want with little to no penalty, this is a big change. Sure, you can still die, but your temporary absence gives the enemy more time to hammer your precious cargo. It forces you to approach combat differently; now you must control a certain space in addition to strategically dismantling the enemy forces. The result is a more tense and more exciting struggle.

It's a welcome shift and one that is hopefully indicative of new objectives to come in the second half of the season. By introducing meaningful variety in the mission types, Spartan Ops carves out a more appealing niche for itself and no longer feels like so many fragments from the campaign cutting-room floor. With the dynamic Dr. Halsey in the story mix, the stakes are raised and many other characters come to life. The trailer for the second half of the season shows a few glimpses of things to come, teasing the possibility of a flight-based mission and a Covenant invasion of Infinity. These tidbits are nice, but you need only look at how far Spartan Ops has come in a few short weeks to get excited about its future.

Apple iPad

Every year since 2010, there has been a new version of the iPad. In 2012, we've already seen three. One, the iPad Mini, is a different beast altogether. Still, even the third-generation iPad with its Retina Display has suddenly become the recipient of a surprising seventh-month upgrade, to a very similar-looking device now known as the "fourth-generation iPad."

Should owners of the now "old" third-gen March 2012 iPad be upset? Should new buyers be wary? The answer to the first is yes. The answer to the second is no. The new iPad (technically just known as "iPad" at the Apple Store) has a few upgrades, two minor, one significantly major. A Lightning connector replaces the old 30-pin, just like all other new iOS devices this fall. And while the rear iSight camera remains the same (5 megapixels), the front-facing FaceTime camera has been upgraded to HD status: 720p video recording and sharper self-portraits. The LTE versions of the new iPad also work with a wider range of international carriers.

Biggest of all is the new processor lurking beneath: an A6X processor, replacing the third-gen's A5X. The previous iPad was no slouch in the performance department, but as we remarked when we reviewed the iPad in March, its speed gains weren't such a huge quantum leap compared with what we got from the iPad 2.

The A6X speeds up the iPad back to levels you'd expect, and it handles Retina Display graphics even better. This is the iPad 3S, so to speak. Considering that the iPad still has the same price as before, starting at $499 for 16GB, it's an even better buy than it was seven months ago.

The landscape's changed a little bit since March. Competing tablets have become more affordable. Windows 8 and RT tablets now offer an alternative set of products. None of these can touch the iPad. The biggest competitor, really, is that innocent iPad Mini, which could be the biggest little disruptor of them all, especially when it gets its own Retina Display.

You may be concerned to buy this iPad: could Apple surprise us with more frequent updates instead of yearly cycles? I think that's unlikely. Plus, the important point is that this iPad is the best one. It's polished. It's improved over the third-gen model. If you were on the fence about buying one before, now's the time to go ahead and do it. And it's still a better product than the iPad Mini...this year, at least.

(Editors' note: updated on November 5 with additional performance tests and battery life testing results.)

Design: Deja Pad
Place the new fourth-gen iPad on a table anywhere and no one will be able to know it's the latest and greatest unless he happens to see that telltale, teeny-tiny Lightning connector. This isn't a product you can easily show off. Just like the iPhone 4S, it has the same weight, size, and overall design as its predecessor. Even the back panel doesn't give any hint that this is a newer iPad than before. For a deeper dive on what this iPad feels like, go back and read Donald Bell's review of the third-gen iPad.

My Wi-Fi review model came in black (64GB); the iPad also comes in white. Both, as usual, have differently colored front glass and the same aluminum backs.

Does the iPad's design still hold up? Yes, mainly because of its all-metal-and-glass construction, still a rarity among tablets. The 1.4-pound body doesn't feel lightweight, but it's comfortable to hold in two hands. As a one-handed device, it's awkward and cumbersome. The sleek feel makes it seem fragile; indeed, you wouldn't want to drop one on a hard floor.

The Retina Display also remains the same, and it's still as lovely as ever. The 2,048x1,536-pixel 9.7-inch IPS screen is unmatched among tablets. Color accuracy is superb, movies look great, and photos look even better. Text is crystal-clear, just like on the iPhone. It makes a big difference when looking at Web pages. Still, this is all exactly the same as the third-gen iPad.

The thicker bezel of the iPad is necessary at this size and weight; it helps keep a grip on the otherwise ultra-sleek body. The single home button still feels a little vestigial, but it's not going anywhere anytime soon. Volume rocker buttons on the side and a silence/orientation lock switch remain. Speakers, headphone jack: they're all the same.

ThinkPad X1 Carbon touch for Windows 8 arrives

Lenovo said today that it has added a touch-screen ThinkPad X1 Carbon model, as PC vendors continue to ramp up shipments of Windows 8 ultrabooks with tablet-like attributes.

The 14-inch ThinkPad now measures 20.8mm (about 0.8 inches) thick and weighs 3.4 pounds, slightly thicker and heavier than the non-touch model.

The display resolution and internals stay the same, though. That means a pixel-dense 1,600x900 resolution display and Intel Core i5 and Core i7 processors.

And, true to its name, the chassis is made from lightweight carbon fiber, which allows Lenovo to keep the weight of its 14-inch laptop below 3.5 pounds.

Other specifications have not been disclosed yet.

But the price has: $1,499. Some of that extra cost is due to the high-resolution touch display, which comes at a premium.

The Last of Us

The Last of Us is an upcoming post-apocalyptic third-person survival action-adventure game developed by Naughty Dog for the PlayStation 3. It was officially revealed on December 10, 2011 during the Spike TV Video Game Awards. One year later, on December 7, 2012, it was officially revealed that the game will be released worldwide on May 7, 2013 during the Spike TV Video Game Awards. The game focuses on Joel (voiced byTroy Baker) and Ellie (voiced by Ashley Johnson) trekking across a post-apocalyptic America, hiding from scavengers and the military forces of Ellie's home, all the while trying to avoid the clutches of the Infected.

The game is scheduled for a release on May 7, 2013 as a PlayStation 3 exclusive.

Gameplay

It has been confirmed by Naughty Dog that the player will take control of Joel, while Ellie will be controlled by the AI. The game will involve both gunfighting and melee combat, and it will have a cover system. The player will fight off the Infected — former humans who were infected by the fungus — and the Survivors — other humans that are not infected but are hostile towards Joel and Ellie. Also, a new gameplay mechanic the developers have introduced is something that they call "dynamic stealth", meaning that there are many different types of strategies and techniques that the player can use at any given time as they approach a new situation, to which enemies will react differently. Though situations can have a different outcome, it all mainly depends on the player's preference of play.

PlanetSide 2

Planetside 2, SOE’s hulking, free-to-play MMOFPS, is the kind of game that friends conjure up when they get together and let their imaginations run wild. “Wouldn’t it be cool,” someone might say, “if there was a sci-fi shooter--and you fought over territory, and it was always persistent? You’d go to sleep, and wake up, and all your bases would be captured! And you’d have to fight and reclaim them!” Then you would say, “Yeah... and there would be tons of players! Thousands at a time! And vehicles!”

Those ideas are brought to life uncompromised in Planetside 2. It’s ambitious and visually gorgeous, with the action happening on a scale--up to 2,000 players on just one of the game's three continents--that makes Call of Duty look quaint. It’s also demanding, asking players for precision, timing, and strategy to succeed. However, that reaching scope presents one of Planetside 2's biggest challenges, as reveling in its joys first requires hours and hours of clumsy and frustrating death.

But that doesn’t mean it won’t eventually send shivers down your spine or make you squeal with glee. Because when you and 10 squadmates are plowing through the desert on ATVs, headlights piercing the darkness, sneaking behind enemy lines as a massive tank battle thunders at the front, the only way to describe it is, “This kicks ass,” even if you don’t always know exactly what you’re doing.

 Planetside 2 requires patience, but pays off in a big way.

The game’s lore doesn’t matter much: The important story is the one players create. Just know there are three factions and a planet named Auraxis, which has three continents. The factions are trying to control the continents. Being a faction member means your job is to capture and defend the key strategic points around each landmass.

Choosing a faction is important because equipment and weaponry vary vastly between them. The Vanu Sovereignty, for example, uses plasma weapons that remain accurate at long distance, while the Terran Republic uses rapid-fire, low-damage traditional bullets. These differences in weaponry make for sizable mechanical shifts between the factions, meaning it might take you a few different characters to find the style you like most.

As each faction conquers land, they get bonuses to reward their efforts, and a stronger stream of resources with which to purchase vehicles and equipment. The key to successfully taking more territory is teamwork: This is not a great game for lone wolves. Your squad has to function as a unit. Players can switch at will between the game's five classes: jetpack-toting Light Assault, heal-dispensing Medic, ammo-and-turret-providing Engineer, vehicle-destroying Heavy Assault, and the mech-armor-wearing MAX class. Each of these perform a specific function in battle, and it’s players' responsibility to know their roles. Learning is overwhelming and stressful at first, but later, when your squad is firing on all cylinders and the enemy is crumbling, the growing pains are quickly forgotten.

This steep learning curve, combined with a poor new player experience, initially makes the game frustrating and filled with quick deaths. There are optional video tutorials, but otherwise new folks are dropped immediately into the fray to die quickly and pathetically. Fortunately, players always have the option to quick deploy to the under-siege spots on the map, so it’s not hard to get to where the action is (and, in the beginning, hopefully leech a few kills).

War is waged through a combination of land-based vehicles, on-foot soldiers, and aircraft. None of these modes are a cakewalk. The FPS component of the game--when you’re not in a vehicle--is deliberately paced, strategic, and unforgiving. The upgrade from a 16-player deathmatch to a 500-player all-out war feels strange at first. Smaller firefights bleed into each other, forming a messy and chaotic battle. You’ll instantly feel when your team starts to gain or lose ground. Success depends on learning when you should push and when to fall back, when and where to take cover, how to deal with specific classes, and, again, how to work as a group with your teammates. Otherwise, all you do is die.

Still, the shooting mechanics seem too punishing. Those with poor reflexes might have been better served with more accurate guns, bigger and more clearly defined targets, and the ability to take a few more bullets before dieing. At the same time, these mechanics help prevent any Rambo-style exploits, as running solo into enemy forces will only get you killed.

And piloting vehicles is no simple task. They’re easy to take a leisurely drive or flight with, but as far as actually maneuvering them successfully in a high-pressure, frenzied combat scenario? That takes a lot of practice. Even the mounted turrets and cannons take a while to get familiar with. Still, even if you’re clueless, strapping into the pilot’s seat of a gunship while two comrades man its turrets feels great, like starring in your own buddy-buddy action movie.

The game features a straightforward leveling system that can be used to customize your character. Nearly anything you do in the game--killing, destroying and repairing objectives, healing other players, and so on--nets experience points that increase your character’s level, and certification points which can be spent to unlock new weapons, armor, and passive or active abilities for each class. Using certifications, you can easily tweak your class of choice to cover your shortcomings as a player, or accentuate your strengths, but you won’t be redefining how you play the game. This system is also where most of the paid elements of the game come in. You can spend cash to expedite getting better weapons, accessories, and abilities.

$25 was spent in-game for this review, and doing so revealed that while you can get an edge by using real-world money, PlanetSide 2 is not a pay-to-win game. Even if you have the best gun for your class, it doesn’t mean much if you can’t aim for crap, or if you’re approaching a target from a poorly chosen route. However, in a match of even skill, having better equipment makes a huge difference--and the player who spends real money will have a quicker, easier route to the best gear in the game. Those who opt not to pay can still get high-end gear, only slower. Likewise, a paid account (which grants faster resource, experience, and certification gain) helps expedite the character growth process but doesn’t put subscribers in a position that non-payers can’t reach.

With a game this ambitious, technical issues are to be expected. A considerable chunk of players are experiencing problems ranging from low frame rates to frequent crashing. Many of the issues are related to poor performance on lower-end machines, while others appear to be happening regardless of hardware power. SOE remains adamant that optimization and bug-squashing are coming soon.

PlanetSide 2 will make your heart pound. It will make you feel childlike, game-induced euphoria. In a sea of FPS copy-cats, it’s a novel and refreshing experience. Sure, it may crash and stutter, and yeah, you’ll be lost for a while when you start. But sometime between being 1,000 feet above a battlefield dumping rockets on anything that moves, sniping medics from the top of a valley, leading a column of tanks toward an oblivious enemy base, and recklessly hurling yourself, rifle blazing, into a hundred-person firefight, you forget about the bad parts. By that point, you’re just playing the game you’ve been dreaming about.

Is Phantom Pain a New Metal Gear Solid Game ?

The most talked about game at this year's Spike Video Game Awards show was The Phantom Pain, a game we were led to believe was being created by new developer Moby Dick Studio.

It didn't take NeoGAF users long to throw on their Sherlock Holmes attire to investigate this new game and its developer. What they found first was Moby Dick Studio's website, which doesn't offer much in terms of content, but does detail the company in its "about" section. Here's what it says:

Moby Dick Studio is a game developing company operating out of Stockholm, Sweden. Moby Dick Studio was founded by CEO Joakim Mogren who after years of working for a major American developer brought together people out of various game studios from around the Scandinavian area to start something new.

Our goal is to deliver an uncompromising, exciting and touching game experience to people all around the globe.

We will shortly be disclosing information regarding our first major release.

The CEO, Joakim Mogren, has an interesting name. "Joakim" is actually an anagram for "Kojima." Neogaf then dissected the footage, revealing many links to the Metal Gear series, including a scar on the protagonist's face that matches Snake's from Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes. The character emerging from the fire looks a lot like Volgin. The lines above the Phantom Pain logo supposedly also spell out Metal Gear Solid V, if you use the Metal Gear font.
We'll have to wait for confirmation to know for sure, but I have a feeling Neogaf uncovered the truth behind this game. My guess: It'll be called Metal Gear Solid V: Phantom Pain.

Grand Theft Auto 5

Grand Theft Auto V, commonly shortened to GTA V, is an upcoming open world action-adventure video game being developed by games developer Rockstar North, and published by Rockstar Games. The game will be the first major title in the Grand Theft Auto series since Grand Theft Auto IV (2008), and a continuation of the fictional universe that was introduced in that game. The fifteenth game in the series overall, GTA V is to be set in fictional Los Santos in the state of San Andreas and its surronding areas, based on modern-day Los Angeles and Southern California. A rendition of Los Santos was previously featured as one of three cities in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, released in 2004.

According to Rockstar, Grand Theft Auto V is destined to be their biggest open world game to date. The game will concentrate on "the pursuit of the almighty dollar". A highly anticipated game, Grand Theft Auto V was officially announced on 25 October 2011. The debut trailer for the game was unveiled on 2 November 2011. The first demo of the game was revealed to press on 11 October 2012.

The second trailer of GTA V was announced on November 5 2012, and released on 14 November 2012.

GTA V is slated for release in the second quarter of 2013, for the PlayStation 3 and the Xbox 360.

Gameplay

Grand Theft Auto V "evolves nearly every mechanic" found in previous games in the series. GTA V's world is bigger than the worlds of Red Dead Redemption, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas and Grand Theft Auto IV combined. Areas in the game world include beachfronts, mountains, the wilderness, a "Salton Sea" region, a military base and the suburbs. The ocean floor is fully detailed and can be explored.

GTA V's single-player story is told through three player controlled protagonists. They are Michael, Trevor and Franklin, criminals whose stories interconnect as they complete missions together. During story missions, the player can switch between the protagonists as they work together to accomplish an objective; in one such mission, Michael rappels down the side of a building, Franklin provides covering fire with a sniper rifle, and Trevor controls the getaway vehicle.

Outside of missions, the player is free to swap between the protagonists and explore the game's open world, the fictional city of Los Santos, based on Los Angeles, and its surrounding countryside, whilst viewing the games wildlife, including Coyotes, in a full fledged ecosystem. Camera zooms out to a "Google Earth-style" perspective when switching characters and then drops into wherever the chosen character is. Even when the player is not controlling them, each character will still go about their own business across Los Santos. As any of the protagonists, the player can engage in activities such as yoga, triathlons, Jet Skiing, base-jumping, tennis, golf, scuba diving or go to the gym. Each character will have unique hobbies, which can be completed with the protagonists' friends, but the dating system from GTA IV does not return. San Andreas' RPG-like player customization is also absent, but the player can customize the clothing of each character. Characters can "flick off" people and people react differently depending on the area.

The mobile phone introduced in GTA IV returns, but a lot of its features have been altered. The mobile phone is mainly used for activities and can also be used to access the in-game internet. There will be a "vibrant and fun" economy system, but the player won't be able to buy property as in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City. Shooting has evolved "a long way" in terms of feel and mechanics, and the melee combat is better than in previous GTA titles.

GTA V will feature more vehicles than in any GTA to date, including BMXs, mountain bikes, road bikes, dirt bikes, huge variety of cars and trucks, helicopters, planes, ATVs and Jet Skis. Fighter jets also return. A scene in the second trailer shows a fighter jet firing two missiles at a helicopter, destroying it almost immediately. The cars will feel less "boatlike" than in GTA IV, they will "hold on better to the ground" and "it feels more like a racing game"

Multiplayer

According to IGN, the multiplayer modes may feature "crews" similar to Max Payne 3. The new Social Club functionality will connect play across multiple titles, starting with Max Payne 3 and GTA V. By playing both games' multiplayer, crews that the player set up in one will be carried over to the other. GTA V will let players form private crews with friends, or join public crews. Players can be a member of up to five at the same time, and completing tasks as a crew will gain experience points for the player.

Hitman Absolution : Review

Hitman: Absolution is a stealth game developed by IO Interactive and published by Square Enix. It is the fifth entry in the Hitman game series, and will run on IO Interactive's proprietary Glacier 2 game engine. The developers have confirmed that Absolution will be easier to play and more accessible, but will retain hardcore aspects. The game is currently slated for a worldwide release on November 20, 2012.

Gameplay

The game will take place in the United States, and will feature an online option. In addition, the game will feature "instinct mode" which will allow 47 to predict enemy patrol routes, much like the "sonar vision" that was featured in Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Conviction, "Eagle Vision" in Assassins Creed: Revelations and "detective mode" in Batman: Arkham Asylum. Hitman is known for allowing players to create their own narratives within the sandbox levels; for Hitman: Absolution, developer IO Interactive has enlisted Hollywood talent like Vivica Fox, Powers Boothe and Shannyn Sossamon to help tell Agent 47's latest story.

Plot

The first in-depth trailer for the game shows Agent 47 storming a safehouse, and confronting Diana while she is showering. 47 is "betrayed by those he once trusted and now hunted by the police, he suddenly finds himself at the center of a dark conspiracy and must embark on a personal journey through a corrupt and twisted world, in his search for the truth". At least one portion of the game will be set in Chicago, and the game will take place in the United States. Hitman: Absolution is set at the end of the timeline. Confirmed plot details include series protagonist Agent 47 assassinating his former International Contract Agency handler, Diana Burnwood, early in the game. One of the main antagonists is Blake Dexter, a new character to the series. The character will be voiced by Keith Carradine.

Call of Duty: Black Ops II Review

Call of Duty: Black Ops II is a first-person shooter video game, developed by Treyarch and published by Activision. It was released on November 13, 2012 for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and Microsoft Windows and on November 18, 2012 in North America, November 30, 2012 in Europe, and December 20, 2012 in Japan for Wii U. Black Ops II is the ninth game in the Call of Duty franchise of video games and a sequel to the 2010 game Call of Duty: Black Ops.

Black Ops II is the first game in the Call of Duty franchise to feature future warfare technology and the first to present branching storylines driven by player choice. It also offers a 3D display option. A corresponding game, Call of Duty: Black Ops: Declassified, will be released simultaneously on the PlayStation Vita.

Characters and setting

The single-player campaign features two connected storylines, with one set in the 1970s through 1980s and the other in 2025. The protagonist ofBlack Ops, Alex Mason returns as the protagonist in the Cold War section, and chronicles rise to infamy of the game's primary antagonist, Raul Menendez, a Nicaraguan narco-terrorist and the leader of "Cordis Die", a populist movement celebrated as the champions of victims ofeconomic inequality.

The 2025 section of the game features Alex Mason's son David as the protagonist during a new Cold War between China and the United States. In this era, war is defined by robotics, cyberwarfare, unmanned vehicles, and other futuristic technology.

Plot

In the year 2025, a Special Forces unit led by David Mason arrive at "The Vault", a secret location that is home to the aged Frank Woods, who they believe has information on the whereabouts of Raul Menendez. Woods admits that Menendez had visited him, and gives Mason a locket that Menendez had left behind.

In 1986, Alex Mason has retired from active duty and is living in Alaska with the seven year-old David. Their already-strained relationship is put to the test when Mason is approached by Jason Hudson, seeking to recruit him for a mission in Angola. Woods' unit has been taken captive while aiding rebels in the country's civil war, and their actions have been disavowed by the CIA. Hudson enlists Mason for a covert mission to rescue Woods and any survivors from his unit, with the help of the Jonas Savimbi, the leader of the Angolan forces. They discover Menendez is responsible for Woods' captivity and attempt to confront him, only for Menendez to give away their position to incoming enemy forces, allowing him to flee.

In light of the events in Angola, Mason and Hudson begin tracking Menendez, who has set himself up as one of the primary arms suppliers for conflicts in Africa and Latin America. Locating him in Afghanistan, the CIA authorises a strike against him. At this point, the story begins to explore Menendez's motivations and his vendetta against the West. After he and his sister were accidentally burned in the fire-bombing of a warehouse as part of an insurance scam, the Menendez family turned to drug trafficking and built up power and influence throughout Nicaragua. Their actions did not go unnoticed, and the CIA sanctioned the assassination of his father. Now knowing that Menendez considers the conflict to be personal and that he will not back down, the CIA lean on Panamanian president Manuel Noriega to support a raid on Menendez's home in Panama. Menendez suffers further tragedy when Woods inadvertently kills his sister during the raid.

Gameplay

Strike Force missions

Black Ops II will be the first Call of Duty video game to feature branching storylines, in which the player's choice affects both the current mission and in turn, the overall course of the story. Known as "Strike Force missions", these branching storylines will appear during the 2025 storyline and will feature permanent death. The success or failure of these missions can have ramifications for the wider campaign storyline. Choosing one of the missions locks out the others unless the player begins a fresh campaign.

Strike Force missions allow the player to control a number of different war assets, such as unmanned aerial vehicles, jet fighters and robots. If the player dies in a Strike Force mission, the campaign continues recording that loss, as opposed to letting the player load a previously saved checkpoint. The player's progress in the Strike Force missions may go on to change even the plans of the story's antagonist, Raul Menendez. By the end of the game, the player may have changed the results of the new Cold War, and the player will be shown what could have gone differently.

Zombies

Treyarch has confirmed that the Zombies mode will return for Black Ops II with its own campaign. Its predecessors were Call of Duty: World at War and Call of Duty: Black Ops. This is the third time for the Zombies mode to appear in a Call of Duty game, and the first time to have its own campaign along with the main story. Treyarch has also confirmed that Zombies will implement the multiplayer engine, allowing for a deeper community experience along with new game modes. It has also been confirmed that the Zombies mode will support 8 player co-op, unlike Call of Duty: World at War and Call of Duty: Black Ops, which only supported 4 player online co-op. Treyarch announced in August 2012 that Nuketown would be remade as a zombie map for those buying Hardened or Care Package Edition of Black Ops 2. On September 26, 2012, the Zombies reveal trailer was released as well as three new game modes confirmed: Tranzit is a game mode that is a combination of multiple maps in one game and the way to travel around it is to ride on a bus, Survival is the original mode from Call of Duty: World at War and Call of Duty: Black Ops where you survive as long as possible, and finally the mode Grief which is 4 players vs 4 players vs zombies. Although a Zombies campaign is confirmed it is still unknown if Campaign is the Tranzit mode or if Campaign and Tranzit are completely different modes.

Minimum System Requirements
Requirements Microsoft Windows Operating system Windows Vista (Service Pack 2) or Windows 7; (Windows XP not supported) CPU Intel Core2 Duo E8200 2.66 GHz or AMD Phenom X3 8750 2.4 GHz Memory 2GB for 32-bit OS or 4GB for 64-bit OS Hard drive space 16GB Graphics hardware Nvidia GeForce 8800GT 512 MB or ATI Radeon HD 3870 512 MB