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I like many people like getting good deals, especially on games, and most of the games in my library come from Game Bundles. Game Bundles are an awesome way to get some awesome games for very cheap. So I’m going to point out some Bundles that caught my attention which are currently going on in order to pass on some awesome deals to you.
Indie Royale: Mystery Bundle
One of the more interesting Bundles I’ve come across this week is the Indie Royale Mystery Bundle. This Bundle runs to around October 14th. What makes this bundle unique is that each day a game is revealed, 10 in total. Also each day the price of the bundle, which started at $0.99 (£0.61) is increased by $0.30 (£0.19), but no matter what day you buy it you will still get all the games in the bundle. So the sooner you buy it the better the deal, even though you won’t know all the games, but that’s part of the fun of it.
As of writing this article 3 games have been revealed. The 1st is The Sun at Night, a game about where you play as a dog trying to help bring down the Soviets who have taken control of the world though newly discovered energy sources. The 2nd game is Hero of the Kingdom, which is a RPG that has you exploring, questing, fighting, and gathering supplies. And the 3rd game revealed so far is Huntsman: The Orphanage, which is a 1st Person Horror and Exploration game.
I personally can’t wait to see what else is revealed.
This Bundle runs through to the end of October. The Evolution Bundle consists of 6 games, which are currently on Early Access, for $3.40 (£2.16). This Bundle has a nice variety of game types, including a platformer, a fighting game, a strategy game, a RPG, and a couple of rouge-likes.
The 1st game in the bundle is Colossal Kaiju Combat: Kaijuland Battles, a fighting game in which you play as a Kaiju and fight other Kaiju. The 2nd game is Freaking Meatbags, a real-time strategy game that combines base building, tower defense, work management, and some shooter-like action. You can read my full First Look of the game here. The 3rd game is Fancy Skulls, a challenging first person shooter with procedural generation, permadeath and a distinct art style. 4th is the game Steam Bandits: Outpost, a RPG inspired by games like Final Fantasy and Chrono Trigger where you can explore dungeons and strange new lands, while combating a variety of foes with your party. The 5th game is Infinite Space III: Sea of Stars, a starship roguelike which is a sandbox adventure game of interstellar exploration and combat. And the last game in the Bundle is Dreaming Sarah, a surreal adventure platformer game with puzzle elements, where you play as a girl named Sarah who is in a coma and trying to wake up.
If you are interested in this Bundle you can pick it up here
Coming up in October, Xbox Live Gold members can look forward to three new free games on Xbox One and Xbox 360. Chariot, the newest ID@Xbox game from Canadian developers Frima, will debut on Xbox One as a free download, replacing September Xbox One Games with Gold title Super Time Force (if you haven’t already downloaded it, now would be a good time).
On Xbox 360, starting Wednesday, October 1st, Battlefield: Bad Company 2 (normally US $19.99) will be free for Xbox Live Gold members through October 15th.
Then on October 16th, Xbox Live Gold Members can download Darksiders II (normally US $49.99) for free through October 31st.
*Titles are available as free downloads for qualifying Xbox Live Gold members in all markets where Xbox Live is available. Some regions may offer different titles depending on market availability.
Thanks to a deal between BBC Worldwide, Microsoft and Mojang, from some time later this month players of the Xbox 360 version of Minecraft will be able to play using the appearances of some of their favourite Doctor Who characters.
The first pack will include the Twelfth Doctor, plus five more Doctor skins as well as some of their on-screen companions, and a number of the Doctor’s most well-known enemies including the ever popular Daleks. It will be priced at $2.99/£1.99/€2.85/$2.95AUS.
There will be more packs to follow, including many of the most recognisable characters from Doctor Who’s impressive 50 year past. Each skin pack will have six Doctors at least as well as a number of other things and will be released on a regular schedule as the episodes of Series 8 are broadcast.
Rikesh Desai, Digital Entertainment and Games Director at BBC Worldwide UK says “We’re constantly looking for new and innovative ways to bring Doctor Who content to our loyal fans. Working collaboratively with Microsoft, we’ve created an exciting new product which will allow Doctor Who fans to create their own brand new adventures in the heart of the iconic world of Minecraft.”
According to a number of sources, including Youtube personalities such as TotalBiscuit and Jim Sterling of Escapist fame, videos for the newly released Shadow of Mordor game are being systematically removed or having their monetisation options blocked. The fault, once again lies, with DMCA copyright claims. Big surprise…
Now game releases like this often have a wave of DMCA claimed videos in the first few weeks as the automatic process is over-vigilant and it’s often soon sorted out to the satisfaction of all (i.e. most companies realise that the videos are great promotion and release the claims). What makes this one so different is that we’re hearing that for some reason or other, videos made by people who entered into a promotional deal with the game’s development company, Warner Brothers Interactive Entertainment (WB Games), have not had their videos affected in any way.
There had already previously been a bit of a kerfuffle over the fact that only those Youtubers who would accept the deal would get review copies, and not every reviewer who wanted to play and review the game for their work. If the part about the content creators with deals not being hit by this is true then the waters have just gotten a bit murkier.
It is assumed that the claims are being made on the assumption that WB Games have registered the game’s cutscenes with the Content ID system, and the system is just working as intended (as it always is). The problem is that cutscenes are part of the gameplay in such a genre as Shadow of Mordor belongs to, so cutting them out can lead to a jump between points which doesn’t look terribly professional from a video-making standpoint.
As of time of writing though, WB Games has yet to make a comment about the situation so all speculation and rumor for the moment. Updates will follow when or if the information comes to light.
Halloween seems to be a holiday the team at Game Freak – rather like myself – really admires lately, given how many Ghosts and spooky happenings were slipped into Pokémon X and Y in reference to the game’s October worldwide launch – and now, Nintendo have unveiled a series of ghoulish gifts to make Halloween 2014 truly a treat.
Shiny Mega Gengar
The first of these was spoilered last month when it was revealed to be following the Diancie giveaway, but is worth a reminder anyway. Between October 15 and November 5, 2014 at participating GAME, GameStop and other stores, you’ll be able to pick up a special code card. Enter your code with the “GET WITH CODE” option in Mystery Gift and you’ll unlock a shiny Gengar to send to your Pokémon X or Pokémon Y game… but it gets better!
This Gengar arrives holding a Gengarite, the Mega Stone that allows it to become Mega Gengar during battle, bringing with it the usual Mega Pokémon stat boosts. With the Shadow Tag ability – preventing opponents from fleeing or switching while Mega Gengar remains in play – replacing the Gengar’s normal ability in Mega Form, Nintendo state this terror is “as ready for a fight as it is for a fright” – though while Nintendo also make a big deal of Shiny Mega Gengar’s new white colouration, even being the hardened Gengar fan I am, I find this very much something I could just as easily take or leave.
Super Size Pumpkaboo
If that wasn’t enough for you, how about a SECOND free Pokémon? That’s right! In another nod to Halloween, Pokémon X and Y also introduced two Kalos Pokémon based around pumpkins – Pumpkaboo and its evolution, Gourgeist. Like real pumpkins, the two Pokémon have a unique gimmick in X and Y in that they they can be caught in four different sizes, from Small to Super-size. Each size varies in rarity with the Super-Size version being the most difficult to catch – but now, for the month of October, you don’t even have to catch it to get one!
Throughout the whole month of October – that’s the 1st to the 31st – simply check Mystery Gift to collect a free Super Size Pumpkaboo to download to your copy of Pokémon X or Y. Unlike the Gengar, no code is needed – just choose the “Get via Internet” option to find the gift. The Pumpkaboo – which can be either male or female, selected randomly – will also come equipped with a Rocky Helmet, allowing it to cause recoil damage to any Pokémon that dares to attack it up close – and just to fit the Halloween theme a little more, Trick-or-Treat and Scary Face are just two of the moves it’ll know out of the box. All Pumpkaboo evolve via trade, so don’t forget to share your new pumpkin Pokémon with a friend (as long as you can trust them to give it back!) and that super-sized Pumpkaboo will become an even more super-sized Gourgeist!
As well as being a great Halloween gift, the super-size Pumpkaboo giveaway is also a clever advertisement. By having one, players are one step closer to participating in the next big treat:
Halloween Tournament!
As a special Halloween treat, the Pokémon Company is running a special online Tournament this month specifically for Ghost-type Pokémon. Between 16-24th October, players will be able to register theier Battle Box to compete in a global Trick-or-Treat Friendly, as long as their Battle Box contains Ghost-type Pokémon only. However, one of these Pokémon MUST be a Super Size Gourgeist to qualify – hence the giveaway above. Sneaky! Additionally, the Pokémon MUST have come from Pokémon X and Y – ones imported from Black/White or their sequels do not count – and Rotom or Giratina are also banned. Entries are limited to the first 50,000 participants, so make sure to register fast you want to get involved!
The tournament will take place from 9:00 a.m. Japan time on October 24 until 8:59 a.m. Japan time on October 27, with final rankings posted on the 31st and will use a Single Battle format. Complete at least one battle during the tournament and you’ll be entitled to a gift of 5 Rare Candies! Pokémon will be set to level 50 for this competition. Each battle will have a maximum length of 30 minutes. Players will have 60 seconds per turn, and 90 seconds to select which Pokémon they would like to use. They may battle 10 times a day; and “Juniors” – those born before 2000, which will be entered into a seperate division to other players – will not be able to battle from 11:00 p.m. until 6:00 a.m. Japan Time.
Other Stuff
Finally, to promote the launch of the next Pokémon X & Y Trading Card Game expansion, Phantom Forces, the official site is offering a page of Spooky Stuff to download – such as backgrounds for your computer desktop, and pumpkin-carving templates to add some Pokémon fun to your Halloween party.
