Making Assassin's Creed III: The Complete Collection

Assassin's Creed III is one of the most anticipated games of the year, and for good reason. It takes the series to an exciting new setting and revamps the core gameplay we all know and love. But how did it get to this point? What was the thinking behind the American Revolution setting? Behind the forest free running? Behind naval combat? The videos below are a must-see for any fans of the series and came about as a result of unprecedented access to the core development team at Ubisoft Montreal. Want to know about Assassin's Creed III? Then look no further.

Part One: Origins

In part one, the team takes us back to the very beginning of the project in January 2010, when a small group broke off at the start of the development of AC: Brotherhood to work on ACIII. The basic plan was to take the series somewhere truly fresh, and to make the gameplay and presentation a significant step forward. One of the coolest elements of this video is seeing the original target gameplay footage the team developed to show how the game would look and feel.

Part Two: Refining the Assassin

The second part focuses entirely on Connor, starting with a look into his background and who he is as a character - noble, fighting for justice and with a strong ideology. The team then discuss how that core character flows through into everything he does, from how he moves to how he fights.

Part Three: Into the Wild

One of the most refreshing aspects of Assassin's Creed III is definitely the fact that its frontier setting takes in both cities and the wilderness. Exploring the latter; hunting from the treetops, scaling mountains and dealing with the wildlife is a huge part of ACIII, and in this video we get an incredible insight into this aspect of the game and bringing it to life.

Part Four: The Revolution

The final part of our series delves into the meeting of real history with fiction, and how the team has anchored its story in as authentic a version of colonial America as possible, while also pursuing a compelling narrative and great gameplay. This video also goes into detail on creating the amazing naval battles.

Source : ign[dot]com

Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 -- Everything We Know About Zombies

After months of speculating, the veil has finally been lifted on Call of Duty: Black Ops 2's Zombie gameplay. While we still haven't gotten a chance to try it, a recent visit to Treyarch resulted in a glut of information about the evolution of the mode, and what fans can expect on November 13th. What started as something simple and silly, a treat for those who beat Call of Duty: World at War, is being developed into the biggest, most fully-featured Zombies game yet.

See the new zombies trailer right here.

The biggest change to Call of Duty: Black Ops 2's Zombie gameplay comes in the form of its campaign mode. Titled Tranzit, this tosses you and up to three of your friends into the biggest world the team at Treyarch has ever created for Zombies. Your goal in Tranzit is simple: kill all the undead that you come across and leave a trail of bodies in your wake. You and your team jump between a number of locales along the way, doing what appears to be defensive stands and clearing them out before moving on to the next place. However, getting from place to place isn't a simple loading screen, but instead requires you to get there by foot or by bus. It's unclear whether or not you'll be able to steer the bus, but the first trailer makes it pretty clear you'll be defending yourself and perhaps even building barricades in order to survive the journey between survival spots.

You'll also have plenty to look out for while you're battling in the zombie-infested wasteland, as Tranzit now includes "buildables," something Treyarch describes as elements you can put together to do things like open up new parts of the world or make weapons. As for how the campaign ends? That's anyone's guess. Treyarch is playing whatever story it's inserting into Tranzit close to its chest, which fits with its strategy of letting the fans parse together the narrative through message boards and other online communities.

If Tranzit doesn't sound like your thing, if you're the type of person that just wants to hop in with friends and defend a single position, you'll be pleased to hear that Survival mode is returning with Black Ops 2. Playable either solo or with three friends, Survival offers the classic survival experience wherein you build defenses and hold out. The nitty-gritty details haven't been discussed, but the environments you play in are apparently custom-made takes on locations from the Tranzit campaign.

Cooperative play isn't for everyone, and while Black Ops 2 will feature a competitive multiplayer mode as well, Treyarch's also developing a new take on competitive play for Zombies called Grief. Internally the team at Treyarch likes to refer to Grief as "4z4," because unlike traditional competitive games both sides have to deal with a third party that wants their brains -- the Zombies. In Grief, your only goal is to have your team outlive the other, but, unlike every other Call of Duty mode you've ever played, you can't shoot other players. Instead you have to "grief" them and get the zombies to do the work for you. Treyarch's being disappointingly mum in regards to how "griefing" actually works, so for now we're left to speculate about how we'll be attempting to kill our friends come November.

If there's a rule or any other part of Zombies' three modes that you don't like, Treyarch wants you to tweak them and create your own using the Custom games feature -- a first for Zombies. You can live out your hardcore zombie fantasy and make it so only headshots kill, turn off magic items and set your starting round.

 

Previously, the Zombie portion of Treyarch's Call of Duty games felt like a distraction, a way to break up the multi-hour sessions with the competitive multiplayer. Black Ops 2 aims to change it into something on par with the multiplayer and campaign. This isn't just a mode, it's a series of modes buried within a game, a testament to Treyarch's dedication to the fans. Without their input and devotion, Zombies wouldn't exist as it does today.

Source : ign[dot]com

Bad Piggies Gameplay Details Revealed

Rovio has revealed the first gameplay details for Bad Piggies, the new Angry Birds spinoff coming next week. In Bad Piggies, you’ll be playing as the pigs, and the slingshot mechanic of Angry Birds doesn’t return. Instead, players will use a grid-based building system to create vehicles for the pigs, which can then be moved around the environment. Vehicles range from flying machines to cars, and players will follow the same scoring mechanic as Angry Birds, aiming to earn the highest score to get three stars in each level.

Players will drag and drop vehicle parts in a “blueprint” mode as they create their ride in a mechanic that seems reminiscent of Rare’s Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts.

"As far as the gameplay goes, Bad Piggies and Angry Birds are complete opposites," Rovio executive vice president of games Petri Järvilehto told Yahoo Games. "Angry Birds smash things up, Bad Piggies build stuff. The pigs are all about making plans and building things, even -- and especially -- when they don't work!"

As announced last month, Bad Piggies will be released on September 27th for iOS and Android, with Windows Phone and PC versions to follow. Keep an eye on Bad Piggies’ official site for more details, and check back to IGN later this month for our impressions and review.

Andrew Goldfarb is IGN’s associate news editor. Keep up with pictures of the latest food he’s been eating by following him on Twitter or IGN.

Source : ign[dot]com

Assassin's Creed 3 Achievements Leak

The achievement list for Assassin's Creed III has surfaced online, offering insight into both the story and gameplay features of the title.

The full list, which was uncovered by Exophase, reveals information about both the game's past and present day storylines, as well as various sidequests and features.

As you can probably guess, spoilers are about to follow.

First up, there are five achievements that detail Desmond's journey through Assassin's Creed III. Apparently we'll be exploring a present day stadium and skyscraper before facing Abstergo and learning Desmond's ultimate fate.

The new Homestead feature of the game, which will allow you to decorate your manor using the inventions of a certain Benjamin Franklin, also gets its own section of achievements. Apparently we'll be able to invite artisans and other "optional characters" to come and live with us, possibly to unlock discounts on services and other bonuses.

If that's not enough decorating and upgrading for you though, never fear; your ship, the Aquila, can also be decked out to make seafaring sidequests that little bit easier.

Most exciting, though, is the fact that for the first time additional missions will be unlocked following the credits rolling. The full list of achievements is below:

• Rude Awakening - Re-Enter the Animus - (10 Points)
• [SECRET] Daddy Dearest - Complete Present - Stadium - (20 Points)
• [SECRET] Criss Cross - Complete Present - Skyscraper - (20 Points)
• [SECRET] The End is Nigh - Complete Present - Abstergo - (20 Points)
• No Good Deed Goes Unpunished - Open the Temple Door and learn Desmond's fate - (20 Points)
• Mystery Guest - Complete Sequence 1 & 2 - (20 Points)
• How D'ya Like Them Apples - Complete Sequence 3 - (20 Points)
• Heroes are Born - Complete Sequence 4 - (20 Points)
• The Day the Templars Cried - Complete Sequence 5 - (20 Points)
• Tea is for Englishmen - Complete Sequence 6 - (20 Points)
• The Whites of Their Eyes - Complete Sequence 7 - (20 Points)
• Caged Wolf - Complete Sequence 8 - (20 Points)
• Two if by Sea - Complete Sequence 9 - (20 Points)
• Grim Expectations - Complete Sequence 10 - (20 Points)
• Difficult End - Complete Sequence 11 - (20 Points)
• The Sum of Truth - Complete Sequence 12 (50 Points)
• Perfectionist - Complete 100% of all main mission constraints - (50 Points)
• An Extraordinary Man - Complete the Encyclopedia of the Common Man - (10 Points)
• Patent Not Pending - Craft one of Franklin's inventions to decorate your Manor - (10 Points)
• House Party - Recruit any of the Artisans and see them settled on the Homestead - (10 Points)
• A Complete Set - See all the optional characters settled at the Homestead - (20 Points)
• Original Gamer - Win a game of Fanorona, Morris and Bowls on the Homestead - (20 Points)
• Bring Down the House - Explore Fort Wolcott - (20 Points)
• Kidd Gloves - Uncover the mystery of Oak Island - (30 Points)
• All Washed Up - Complete all Naval Missions aboard the Aquila - (40 Points)
• Entrepreneur, not Pirate! - Complete all 12 Privateer Contracts - (20 Points)
• Tumblehome - Upgrade the Aquila - (10 Points)
• By Invitation Only - Be invited to join a Club - (20 Points)
• In Good Standing - Complete all challenges for any of the Clubs - (30 Points)
• Man of the People - Liberate all districts in Boston OR New York - (20 Points)
• Monopoly Man - Send a convoy to Boston, New York and the Frontier - (10 Points)
• [SECRET] Head in the Cloud - Find all pivots and sync the Animus to the Cloud - (20 Points)
• Blowing in the Wind - Retrieve every page for one of Ben Franklin's Almanacs - (20 Points)
• Completionist - Complete ALL progress tracker grid entries - (50 Points)
• Multitasking - Complete 50% of the Progress Tracker entries - (20 Points)
• Spit Roast - Perform a double assassination using a musket - (20 Points)
• Circus Act - Kill 15 guards with a single cannon shot - (10 Points)
• Predator - Hang 5 enemies by using rope darts - (10 Points)
• Prince of Thieves - Loot a convoy without killing any of its guards - (10 Points)
• Whit's fur ye'll no go by ye! - Block a firing line 5 times by using a human shield - (10 Points)
• Jager Bomb - After becoming fully Notorious, kill 10 Jagers before losing your notoriety - (20 Points)
• Magna cum Laude - Have a Trainee reach the Assassin Rank - (20 Points)
• Coureur des Bois - Exchange undamaged pelts at all different general stores - (10 Points)
• Eye Witness - Witness a predator killing an enemy - (10 Points)
• Fin - Complete each of the epilogue missions unlocked after the credits roll - (30 Points)
• Abstergo Entertainment - Reach level 20 in the multiplayer mode - (10 Points)
• Hunter/Killer - Reach sequence 10 in a map on Wolfpack multiplayer mode - (20 Points)
• Winning Team - Be on the winning team at the end of a multiplayer game session - (20 Points)
• Personalized - Customize your multiplayer Profile and Character - (10 Points)
• The Truth Will Out - Unlock a hacked version of one of the Abstergo videos in the story quest - (20 Points)

Assassin's Creed III is due out on Xbox 360 and PS3 on October 30 in America and October 31 in Europe. The PC version is due out November 20 in America and November 23 in Europe, while the Wii U version currently doesn't have a release date.

Luke Karmali is IGN's UK Editorial Assistant. You too can revel in mediocrity by following him on IGN and on Twitter.

Source : ign[dot]com

PAX: Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes Demo Impressions

Today at PAX, Metal Gear creator Hideo Kojima unveiled the first gameplay of Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes, which he called a "prologue" to Metal Gear Solid 5.

The Fox Engine driven "current gen" gameplay demo first shown last week in Tokyo offers a first look at who is presumably Big Boss and new vehicle gameplay, but more importantly we now know what the next Metal Gear Solid game will look like running. Here it is if you haven't watched it already.

First and foremost, the demo shows off the muscle of Fox Engine, looking as next-gen as anything could (Kojima again reiterated that this was not a tech demo, but a true gameplay demo for current-gen systems). The non-gameplay but "in-engine" pre-roll introduces an unidentified man making his way through a high-security base, possibly a camp of the Les Enfant Terrible. The internet is already speculating that this man is Volgin. We want to throw another guess out there - could this instead be The Fury, who burned to "death" in Metal Gear Solid 3?

Volgin or The Fury? Someone else?

Regardless, we're next shown a child in a cage - Paz - who appears to have headphones plugged into her chest (she unplugs them, replugging them into an old walkman). She's betrayed the man somehow. He tells the girl to give his regards to her "Boss" (yes, capital B in sub-titles) as he leaves.

The scarred man pulls away in a jeep convoy, a helicopter buzzing overhead, both of which foreshadow the use of vehicles in Ground Zeroes.

Next up: Snake or Big Boss? He's credited and addressed as Snake in the demo, but it makes more sense based on the "prologue" timeline, that and his eye-patch is on his right eye.

Yes, it's been too long.

Being called Snake works for Big Boss as well considering that Snake is Big Boss' codename. It could be either, as they both appear to be eluded to in the below on-screen quote, "From 'FOX', two phantoms were born." We're going to go out on a limb and call him Big Boss.

Big Boss or Snake?

We see the stealth mechanics in play here for the first time, crouching through the base, avoiding spotlights and taking out a guard with a silenced pistol. We also see Big Boss grab a jeep, and quickly reverse himself out of sight. It's during this section that we see a high-tech tracking device, called a 1Droid in the upper left corner (in beta version 1.02, no less). One crazy theory we have is this could possibly imply either Vita second-screen options, or even crazier, Wii U possibilities. Or maybe iPad? Smart glass? Or it's just a fancy Metal Gear Google map. I know, we're nuts.

That's right: Droid, not Apple.

Grand Theft Solid.

The demo closes with Big Boss catching a lift on a chopper, which Kojima said would serve as a means to travel between missions, and even different countries in the game. The vehicles featured customize-able music, with "Flight of the Valkyries" providing a dramatic backdrop for the demo. Kojima noted that the volume of the music will effect if you're discovered.

Flares are your friend.

So what do you think? Will we be playing as Big Boss? Snake? If so, which ones? And who's the scarred man at the beginning? And why does Pax listen to her body with headphones? So many questions! Right or wrong, tell us what you think in the comments below and let's figure this out.

Casey Lynch is Editor-in-Chief of IGN.com. Hear about his love for PAX , metal, and Dark Souls on IGN and Twitter.

Source : ign[dot]com

PAX: Fifteen Minutes of Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes Gameplay

We just saw the first gameplay footage of Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes at the PAX 2012 Metal Gear panel.

We are uploading the video. Tune back here in about 30 minutes and we'll have the video piping hot and ready to chew on.

Developing...

Casey Lynch is Editor-in-Chief of IGN.com. Hear about his love for PAX , metal, and Dark Souls on IGN and Twitter.

Source : ign[dot]com

Madden NFL 13 Review

Madden NFL 13 is an excellent football game. You could point to the gameplay improvements, the new physics engine or even the adlibbing commentators as to why the game works so well, but the truth behind the success comes down to the sum of the parts. Madden NFL 13 looks, feels and sounds like what we all watch on Sunday, and I can't stop playing it.

From the moment you hit start, Madden NFL 13 is a different beast. Rather than get dropped into mountains of disconnected menus, you're put directed to one hub screen that shows you how many players are online at that moment, gives you one-click access to your communities, and leaves your careers at your fingertips. There are different modes to Madden, but they all stem from the same place; Madden's identity crisis is over. The pop music and rappers are gone and in their place is an instrumental score driving home that this is the NFL and it's time to play football.

“

Madden NFL 13 does something the Madden franchise hasn't done in years: it makes me want to keep playing.

Luckily, playing football in Madden NFL is a blast. Every time I put down the controller, I want to pick it back up and head out on the field. Madden NFL 13 is challenging this year with receiver icons that change depending on if the player is looking for the ball and defenses that aren't afraid to call me on my lack of a running game -- but I'm all about the struggle. I'm fighting for each and every yard I gain or keep from an opponent, and I'm relishing actually having to think on the field.

See, EA tweaked a whole bunch of gameplay mechanics in Madden NFL 13. If you want to be the jaded gamer and say "It looks just like last year," go ahead, but know that you're wrong. Yes, the graphics look as good as last year -- actually they're a bit better when you include the new TV graphics and the lush shade of a good Sunday afternoon game -- but there's plenty of under the hood enhancements that evolve the gameplay we all know.

There are 25 new pass trajectories so you can put the ball out in front or just above the receiver. Defensive backs have to see the ball to make a play on it so there are no more psychic swats. You can abort play action after the snap. At a glance, Madden NFL 13 might just look like Madden, but in your hands, it feels polished.

Now, a big part of that feeling is the much-touted Infinity Engine. Basically, this adds physics to Madden for the first time. Whereas a corner and a wideout would bump into each other in the air and then come down in the same spot they leapt from last year, Madden NFL 13 allows for helicopter hits and tumbles out of bounds. Contact matters and changes plays.

It sounds exciting -- and spearing a receiver out of the air so that the trainers come out to check on him definitely is -- but I wasn't impressed at first. In fact, the place I saw the physics the most were when plays were blown dead and linemen stumbled over one another or receivers' legs got tangled with defenders. Expect jankiness to stand out, but don’t let it stop you from playing. The benefit of the Infinity Engine isn't the big plays; it's the fact that the small plays don't all look the same.

In past Maddens, there were only so many tackle animations and ways a player could go down. After a while, it was easy to feel like you had seen it all. The Infinity Engine makes every hit a little bit different. Angles, weight and more matter. Watching a halfback break free of a shoddy tackle or a wideout come down just in bounds before stumbling over really amplifies how the game looks and feels. Sure, there are still wonky tackles and handoff animations, but the good outweighs the bad by a long shot -- especially if EA continues to refine the formula and deliver animations that aren't canned.

Source : ign[dot]com