Final Fantasy Tactics Designer Is Making A New RPG

Yasumi Matsuno is the original designer for the legendary game, Final Fantasy Tactics. He has put together a small but qualified team to tackle his new project, Unsung Story: Tale Of The Guardians. The game is basically looking like its going to be a Final Fantasy Tactics clone, or maybe a successor of FFT is a better way to put it. So far, everything is looking pretty awesome. He launched a Kickstarter to raise the funds, and ended up meeting the minimum goal of $600,000 to get the project started. The project hit the right media channels to go viral, and there wasn't much of a problem with meeting the goal.

The bad news is that even with the amazing idea and foundation, there is a huge possibility that this game is still going to be lacking severely in funding, which could make for a sub par game with a great idea behind it. The big goal that everyone was hoping for was $2.25 million for the game to be a huge success with all of the content and features the fans want. With the funds raised, it's looking like we are going to get a more casual game that will be mainly for Android gaming. Hopefully, the 2 million dollar difference wont make as much of an impact as we all think.

The whole team behind the game is made up of 6 people, and that is probably how the $600k will be divvied up. If there was more money involved, different aspects of the game could have been outsourced, which probably would have led to a few more features and assets which will now be on the shoulders of the 6 person team and will also probably sub-par or overlooked. Outsourced aspects of the game would have included localization, porting, and music. We all know the music is one of the biggest things for Final Fantasy games. All of these aspects would be what could make the game console worthy.

Now, we are certainly dealing with a very basic game that is clearly targeting the Android/iOS markets. There have been a few hints about side quests and add ons. The game will likely cost $30, or $20 on sale. This is probably going to hurt the game, because most smartphone gamers are used to spending no more than $10 on games, and $30 for something you can only play on your phone seems a bit absurd.

But, if they actually over-deliver on this game and give it a huge, amazing story line like every Final Fantasy game has had, then the hype may grow for this game. If buzz gets around, then people probably wouldn't have a HUGE issue paying this much for a great RPG. Everyone has high hopes for this. If you are going to announce that you are making a successor to any Final Fantasy game, you had better fully know what you are saying and understand what the fans are expecting.

This could be a huge win, or a huge fail just as easily. Only time will tell. But either way, it is very exciting news and gives us all something to look forward to.

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Will The New Steam Machine Takeout The New PS4 and Xbox One?

It seems like over the past 15 to 20 years, we have seen the top three contenders in gaming continue to make their rise. Sony's Playstion, Microsoft's Xbox, and the multitude of Nintendo's consoles. As of recently, we have seen Nintendo fall off where as Sony and Microsoft have taken the console wars head on. But then again, we also know how big PC gaming still is, and how ruthless PC gamers can be about their opinions on console vs. PC gaming. PC's are widely looked at as being more powerful than gaming consoles. Whether it be better graphics, better frame rate, better anti-aliasing, the ability to mod, etc., PC gamers are very adamant on their stance.

Console gaming is still very, very much alive, as the recent 4.2 million PS4 units sold has shown us. But now PC wants to move into the console world as well. Valve and Alienware have joined forces to see this dream lived through. Their new Steam Machine looks to make its own push on the console wars.

For those of you who may be unfamiliar with Steam and it's gigantic community, Steam is ran by the PC gaming company Valve. Steam is both an app and game store that offers a multitude of different games for your gaming pleasure. They even boast games that have been out of the loop for a while on normal console multi-player formats. Games like Team Fortress 2. The only catch is that it is PC only.

With the new Steam Machine, Valve and Alienware are now able to expand their app and game store to the living room where the other console heavy hitters reign supreme. The system itself is basically a smaller version of a normal gaming PC. It runs on the SteamOS that allows for the Steam App to run via standard console methods. Since it is looked at as a console, it is also designed to be hooked up to your TV. So should you have a brand new 4K TV and , essentially, a small gaming PC/console hybrid, you have the ultimate gaming set up.

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The controller for the Steam Machine is a bit different then what most console gamers are used to. Instead of  analog sticks and D-pads, you are met with a touch screen and two track pads. The controller is also compatible with almost all versions of Steam and Steam games. The touchscreen in the center of the controller is not to be confused with the touch pad idea that is on the current PS4 controllers. Instead, it is designed to keep players on track in terms of their game. While the touchscreen is in use, it will appear on your game as a visual overlay so you can see exactly where your finger is placed. The 16 total buttons might be a bit more than one most gamers may be used to as well.

The fact that the SteamOS was designed with streaming purposes in mind shows just what this new gaming machine could do. The OS is Linux based, and allows for Mac and Windows games to be streamed directly onto the machine, and then from the machine to your TV. All of your first person shooters, action adventures, online multi-player, and even MMO's will now be available from your living room instead of your bedroom desk. Should the application of this prove to be both easy and beneficial, Sony and Microsoft may have a whole new monster to worry about.

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Playstation 4 vs Xbox One

Both systems have been out for a while now. There has been plenty of time to do research, read reviews and also play hands on. Both companies have loyal fans that will stick by them no matter what for seemingly no reason at all, but for all of you ACTUAL gamers who want facts, here is the real breakdown of bot systems and why the Playstation wins forever. Design

With the design, we're going to look at the actual look of the system, the internal design, and the software design. In all of these fields, the PS4 takes the cake. The first thing you'll notice is the power supply. With the PS4, it is built into the box while the Xbox one still has the same big and goofy power brick that all of the Xbox's before sported as well. What makes it even worse is that even still, the Xbox manages to find a way to be bigger and chunkier than the PS4.

Another great thing about the PS4 is that the controller comes standard with a rechargeable batter, which is an optional accessory for the Xbox that you have to pay for AFTER you already spend $100 more on the system itself. The PS4 controller also has a motion controller to replace the Move, a built in speaker and also a headphone jack. For all of you people who like to show off video's of yourself "pwning n00bz", there is a share button directly on the controller so that you can post videos to your social networks instantly.

The operating system on both consoles seem fine. There isn't really a clear winner. On the PS4 you basically have an updated version of that found on the PS3. Neat, clean, easy to use. It supports multi tasking as well. The Xbox's user interface looks great and operates well, although the voice commands don't always work. It's kind of like when voice commands first came out on phone's before Apple perfected it with Siri.

Launch Titles

Well let's face it, neither system is killing it in this department at all. This is one of the reasons that a lot of people have held of on buying, me included, I don't even want one until I can play the new Final Fantasy coming in January. There really aren't even any great apps out for either system yet. Some people say that the Xbox has the edge with it's release titles, but honestly I don't think I could care even one tiny bit less about anything that has been put out on either.

A huge disappointment with both systems is that neither one of them are backward compatible. It was a pretty big deal with the PS3 and the Xbox 360, and at this point it is honestly just a huge slap in the face. To be honest, the graphic's aren't even that much better than the previous generation of the consoles. It would be nice to be able to play your "old" games still.

Features

One of the reasons that hard core gamers were hating on the new Xbox before it came out is the fact that it's not a gaming console, it's a home entertainment console. The reason it is called the "One" is because Microsoft want it to bring everything you would use together in one device. Living room entertainment like cable TV, gaming, streaming videos, listening to music, whatever, the idea is to put it all in one. That is basically the complete opposite of the Playstation approach, although the PS4 still does most of those things.

The PS Vita remote play is said to work VERY well. I haven't tried it because I do not own a Vita or have any interest in hand held gaming, as I am not a 12 year old playing Pokemon on the way to school in my mom's car, but it's there if you're interested. The optional camera you can get for the PS4 is pretty neat, offering facial recognition and sign in. The Xbox features seem a little bit more futuristic and neat, it just seems like they need to work on the software a little bit.

One big turn off about the PS4 is that it doesn't read files from USB drives or play 3D blu ray movies. The PS3 did both of these things. Why wouldn't the new system? I can only shake my head at this one.

Value

The first thing that you will notice is that the PS4 is $100 cheaper than the Xbox One. The Xbox one does come with a camera though, and the PS4 doesn't. But for $59.99 you can buy the camera for the PS4 which still puts it at about $40 less. The Xbox One can't really do anything unless you pay for the Xbox Live Gold membership for $60 per year, while the PS4 can still run apps like netflix without any membership. Neither system can be used for online gaming for free though, which is a shame. The Playstation Plus account required for online gaming will run you $50 per year. With the Playstation you also get a month long trial and a $10 store credit for purchasing games.

With system updates and new releases coming out, the war isn't over yet. There is still plenty of time to improve each one. But as it stands right now, I think the PS4 wins overall.

PS4 Launch Only Days Away!

It is finally that time ladies and gentlemen. The moment we have all been waiting for since the rumors began to circulate. The home gaming console/entertainment system that will now own your social life for the next 2 years. The long awaited, brand new, sexy PlayStation 4. The launch of a new, or "next gen" console is literally better than Christmas for some gamers, yours truly being one of them. Although I am a Sony fan myself, the Microsoft lovers have something to look forward too as well with the upcoming launch of the new Xbox One. But as is customary for every next gen console launch, a new console war will ensue and it looks to be something of a tech bloodbath this time around. Lets take a look at what the PS4 will be offering us.

Lets start with the new DualShock 4 controller. This new controller keeps things a bit familiar for PS3 fan boys by remaining wireless, lightweight, and as the name would suggest, "shocking". But here is where the difference comes in; the share button. The new controller actually has the ability to record game play, then share it to the PS4 online community or straight to Facebook and other social media sites. It is one of the best and most impressive features that Sony and the PlayStation 4 are utilizing to keep the gaming market fresh and ever expanding. Having an integrated touch pad along with the previous model's SixAxis feature is going to make this bad boy something to look at no matter what type of gamer you are.

What about the actual console though? Well the overall exterior has done away with the curved look and gone for a more hard cut, but still sleek, and slanted shape. But the exterior is really just the icing on the cake. Lets look at the guts. We are talking an x86-64 AMD "Jaguar" single chip processor clocked in at around 1.6 Ghz with 8 cores. This already sounds like a monster and the AMD Radeon next-gen graphics engine sitting in the GPU department is only going to make you more confused on if you are playing a game or playing a movie. The stock 500 gigabyte hard drive will be removable as was the hard drive on the PS3, but 500 gigs is a really nice starting point. As later, more slim models come out, it would be expected that the stock storage will increase with each version.

So here is the verdict (as if you couldn't tell already). This system, I feel, is going to mark a very big milestone in gaming history, mainly due to the huge push for community sharing with its gaming. This is something that Xbox fans may not be getting if you happened to watch the E3 press conferences. Nevertheless, this beautifully elegant and incredible machine is a MUST buy for any hardcore gamer, or even someone new to gaming. Sony has put in countless hours into making this machine something to talk about for while now, and with the $399 starting price tag, it would seem almost ludicrous to not put this under the tree this year. This starting price is also actually $100 cheaper than the new Xbox One. But to wrap this up, I will put this as contritely as I can. Buy. This. System.

Be Proud to be a Gamer! - PlayStation's Epic Commercial

This commercial makes me proud to be a gamer.

2013 League of Legends All Star Skill Challenge (1v1, 2v2) Results

Here is a comprehensive list of the Magma Chamber skill challenges for the 2013 League of Legends All Stars along with links to the VODs. I Hope this helps for anyone who wanted to see the matches.

*Note the VODs of the first games in the series have no commentary

2013 ALL STAR SKILL CHALLENGE (1v1, 2v2) RESULTS

TOP LANE

OGN vs NA:
Shy on Kennen vs Dyrus on Soraka
Shy vs Dyrus - No Commentary :(
Winner: Shy

LPL vs EU:
PDD on Annie vs sOAZ on Nunu
PDD vs sOAZ
Winner: sOAZ

*Semi-Finals*
OGN vs GPL:
Shy on Varus vs Stanley on Twitch
Shy vs Stanley
Winner: Shy

*FINALS*
OGN vs EU:
Shy on Varus vs sOAZ on Darius
Shy vs sOAZ
**Winner: sOAZ**

---

MID LANE

NA vs EU:
Scarra on Lulu vs Alex Ich on Quinn
Scarra vs Alex Ich - No Commentary :(
Winner: Alex Ich

OGN vs GPL:
Ambition on Quinn vs Toyz on Jarvan IV
Ambition vs Toyz
Winner: Toyz

*Semi-Finals*
LPL vs EU:
Misaya on Orianna vs Alex Ich on Tristana
Misaya vs Alex Ich
Winner: Misaya

*FINALS*
LPL vs GPL:
Misaya on Caitlyn vs Toyz on Caitlyn
Misaya vs Toyz
**Winner: Toyz**

---

JUNGLE
----------
GPL vs LPL:
HarLeLuYaR on Twisted Fate vs Troll on Lee Sin
HarLeLuYaR vs Troll - No Commentary :(
Winner: Troll

NA vs OGN:
SaintVicious on Heimerdinger vs InSec on Twitch
SaintVicious vs InSec
Winner: InSec

*Semi-Finals*
LPL vs EU:
Troll on Caitlyn vs Diamond on Caitlyn
Troll vs Diamond
Winner: Diamond

*FINALS*
EU vs OGN:
Diamond on Lee Sin vs InSec on Lee Sin
Diamond vs InSec
**Winner: InSec**

---

BOT LANE

LPL vs EU:
XiaoXiao & WeiXiao on Annie & Kennen vs EDward & YellowPete on Blitzcrank & Kennen
XiaoXiao & WeiXiao vs EDward & YellowPete - No Commentary :(
Winner: XiaoXiao & WeiXiao

NA vs GPL:
DoubleLift & Xpecial on Varus & Thresh vs MiSTakE & Chawy on Lulu & Sivir
DoubleLift & Xpecial vs MiSTakE & Chawy
Winner: DoubleLift & Xpecial

*Semi-Finals*
LPL vs OGN:
XiaoXiao & WeiXiao on Lulu & Kennen vs Madlife & PraY on Ezreal & Kennen
XiaoXiao & WeiXiao vs Madlife & PraY
Winner: Madlife & PraY

*FINALS*
NA vs OGN:
DoubleLift & Xpecial on Twitch & Annie vs Madlife & PraY on Twitch & Jarvan IV
DoubleLift & Xpecial vs Madlife & PraY
*Winner: Madlife & PraY*

Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag Announced

I've been a fan of the Assassin's Creed franchise ever since I saw the first trailer of Altair running atop the roofs of Jerusalem. Well, we've come a long way since then, what with dual hidden blades and tree running and whatnot. With five games in the series (not counting handheld games) it's obvious that the Assassin's Creed games are a hit, which makes the fact that the next installment in the game has officially been revealed!

The developers of the Assassin's Creed games have long stated that Assassin's Creed 3, the most recent game in the series, would be the end of Desmond's journey. What they didn't say was that it would be the end of the Assassin's Creed story. The newest installment just announced goes by the name Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag.

Black Flag puts players in control of a brand new assassin, one that is as unique as all the others in the series. You play as Edward Kenway, a blood thirsty pirate who terrorizes the seas of the Caribbean, a pirate so fierce that the great Blackbeard himself speaks of the man with admiration and a hint of fear in his voice. Speaking of Blackbeard, he appears to be a character (at least a minor one) in this game, though detail of his involvement have yet to be announced. He could be a comrade to Kenway or could work as an informant. He could also take on the role of a Da Vinci  type character (giving Kenway weapons and upgrades) or a Davenport type character, supplying Kenway with a mentor.

Speaking of Kenway, that name should sound familiar as it was the last name of Assassin's Creed 3 main character Connor's father, Haytham Kenway. It is speculated that Edward Kenway is the grandfather of Connor, which would put the timeline of Assassin's Creed IV before the events of Assassin's Creed 3.

If you love dual wielding then this game will be perfect for you, that is if the CGI trailer that was released is indicative of the gameplay. The trailer, which is featured below, shows Kenway dual wielding flintlocks and cutlasses in a beautiful ballet of carnage. The trailer also appears to reveal things like special take downs (like jumping off a ledge while holding an enemy by the shoulders and smashing his face into the spot where you were just standing) and possibly even destructible scenery that you can use to take down enemies.

Naval combat, which was introduced in the last game, will make a bigger and more profound showing in this game. I mean, you are playing as a pirate so ship-to-ship combat is essential. Players will be able to engage enemy ships and board them in an attempt to kill the captain, plunder the booty and leave the remains to Davy Jones' locker! In addition to that, the naval aspect will also allow you to recruit a crew and, most likely, upgrade them much in the same way you did your Assassins in previous games.

There is no solid information on the game other than what the trailer revealed, but nonetheless this game looks to be awesome and just as action packed as the last game. Combat appears to be more visceral and Kenway seems like he is going to make for one heck of a character. It will be interesting to see how they tie in the story from previous games and what the story will be like. Will we be strapping into the Animus again? And if so, whose past life will we be diving into if Desmond's story has supposedly come to an end?

I guess all those questions will be answered when Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag is release on October 29th, 2013 on the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC, Wii U and the newly announced PlayStation 4.

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