Ubisoft did an Ask Me Anything on Reddit earlier this week. Not surprisingly, Assassin’s Creed was a hot topic. Would you like a few highlights of the conversation? Regarding the likelihood of ACIII’s Connor returning, lead writer Darby McDevitt says “not very.” Despite following in Altair and Ezio’s footsteps, he didn’t resonate as much with fans. Black Flag’s protagonist, Edward Kenway, was not mentioned. McDevitt also broke a few hearts, saying “I doubt we would do a modern day AC. There are just too many mechanics we would have to develop… vehicles, plausible modern cities, a huge array of ranged weapons, etc.” He did add that “Watchdogs will scratch the itch for a modern AC. Just wait!”
This is normally the kind of thing I’d jump on with a scathing editorial, but the simple fact that it was even said makes me think I don’t understand it well enough to comment. Microsoft’s XBox Live Lead Program Manager, John Bruno, spoke this week at GDC about the XBox One’s cloud servers. “Once in a while, rather frequently actually, the host OS will require an update, meaning the physical machine is going to get rebooted, whether your code is running or not. That’s a problematic thing for a game, and is oftentimes in the middle of a multiplayer session. We’ve worked very hard to overcome that, but that’s not to say it’s going to be a reality in every case.” The cloud server rebooting mid-gameplay? This seems like it would be a serious issue for an online-only game like Titanfall, a title many consider to be a system seller for the console. Which Bruno addressed by not addressing, “I can’t answer that. I don’t know what the guys over at Titanfall have built into their game.” I’m sure there is more to the situation than has been said, but this reminds me of E3 all over again. I believe the XB1 will be a good system, but Microsoft’s publicity department needs a serious overhaul to streamline a positive message about it.
If you’ve been eagerly anticipating that $500k in Grand Theft Auto Online, better log in as it started being deposited earlier this week. I thought I was awaiting the “stimulus” package, but now that it’s there I’m finding that I don’t actually care. Sure, I have a house with a 10-car garage, but there’s still nothing fun to do. This one’s getting traded in for credit towards my PS4 while the trading is still worth a few bucks.
How long have you been on XBox Live? How big is your Gamerscore? If you think the answer to those two questions should earn you all of the extra content for the XB1-exclusive free-to-play Killer Instinct then you’ve probably already checked your email. The exact “variety of factors” required for the offer aren’t known but some longtime subscribers have been getting an email from Microsoft advising them of the reward. More instructions will follow on November 22nd when the console and game launch.
Aaaah LinkedIn. If you’re good for only one thing it’s silly employees and their accidental leaks of sensitive game information on a CV. The culprit this time is Avalanche studio head Christofer Sundberg. He think s he’s being vague when he says their “first licensed game, developed based on a well-known movie franchise… is scheduled for release in April 2014.” We all know that Avalanche is working on a Mad Max game set for 2014. Consider this planned for April. The same CV mentions an “unannounced sandbox action game” being published by Square Enix. This one is a “new installment in a very well-known game series.” It’s scheduled for June 2015 on next-gen consoles. This one is a little more vague, but the safe bet is that he’s referring to Just Cause 3.
Beyond gaming, the PlayStation 4 will have 11 entertainment apps available at launch. More will likely be coming in time, but here are the apps you’ll have in the TV & Video section of your PS4’s home screen on November 15:
- Amazon Instant Video – you know how this works
- Crackle – free, Sony Pictures Television, The Prisoner is its only decent content
- Crunchyroll – Anime, anime, and more anime
- EPIX – on-demand movies, requires a paid subscription through your TV provider
- Hulu Plus – you know how this works too
- Music Unlimited – Sony’s own streaming music subscription service
- NBA Game Time – requires a paid subscription through your TV provider, out of market games and more
- Netflix – your unborn children know how this works
- NHL GameCenter LIVE – like the NBA thing but for Minnesotans, requires subscription
- Redbox Instant by Verizon – on-demand streaming from the new kid on the Netflix block
- Video Unlimited – Sony’s own video on demand service
- VUDU – subscription-free paid rentals
- YuppTV – 150+ Indian TV channels live and on demand
XBox One also has a fair list of apps coming day one. Some are the same, some are a little different. Here’s the US list:
- Amazon Instant Video
- Crackle
- CWTV
- ESPN
- Fox Now
- FX Now
- Hulu Plus
- Machinima
- MUZU TV
- Netflix
- Redbox Instant by Verizon
- Target Ticket
- TED
- The NFL on XBox One
- Twitch
- Univision Deportes
- Verizon FiOS TV
- VUDU
- (HBO Go is already promised, but “coming soon”)
Potential Microsoft CEO would “consider selling healthy businesses such as the XBox Game console”
I try to keep VGQH full of news rather than rumor, but sometimes they’re so big I just have to include it. Microsoft recently acquired Nokia to the tune of $7.2 billion. This has led to a few rumors about Nokia’s Stephen Elop being considered to replace Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer. According to a recent Bloomberg report, Elop would be interested in making critical changes if he gets that job. One change could be “ending Microsoft’s costly effort to take on Google with is Bing search engine.” Interesting, but not surprising. Cutting costs on an unsuccessful project is a natural move for a new CEO. What else? He “would also consider selling healthy businesses such as the XBox Game console if he determined they weren’t critical to the company’s strategy.” Industry analysts have already indicated the XBox division may be losing more money than we think, something $2 billion per year. That number may be masked because the entire division is quite profitable, mostly due to Android royalties. Again, this is rumor based on what analysts say a guy might do if he gets the job. Still, it’s something to think about. Who would buy it? Disney?
I think most people buying a day one XBox One expected this, but Microsoft’s senior director of product management, Albert Penello, has confirmed what you can do with your console prior to downloading the day one update, “nothing.” That’s out of context, but barely. He further explains, “A lot of the apps come with the day one update because they wouldn’t have even been done. You’re gonna need to take this update. It’s not gonna be really an optional thing.” It has been well-known since Microsoft dropped the “always online” requirement that you would need to be “initially online” at bare minimum. For what it’s worth, Sony’s console will also have an important day one update. For the PS4 it won’t be completely useless without the update, just mostly useless.