Sideshow Collectables is offering prop replicas of the COG Snub Pistol from Gears of War 3 and the M8 Avenger Assault Rifle from Mass Effect 3, both manufactured by TriForce. The only thing more staggering than the quality and detail, however, is the prices: $399.99 and $649.99, respectively. I could go into my usual tirade about how one could buy a real firearm for the money instead, but these were clearly intended for a different market. It’s also worth mentioning that both replicas are limited to a 500-piece run, so if you’re interested you better pre-order soon.
The model weapons that can be built with legos never cease to impress me. This time, it’s the SRS99 Anti-Matériel rifle as seen in Halo: Reach, built by one Nick Jensen. It features a removable magazine, sliding bolt, and functioning trigger, however it doesn’t fire any projectiles. This doesn’t detract from the awesomeness of the model, however as it’s still extremely impressive as is.
Stuck on what to be for Halloween this year? How about America’s #1 alien ass-kicker, Duke Nukem? If that doesn’t strike your fancy, then there’s also ‘Gunzerker’ Salvador and a Psycho from the upcoming Borderlands 2, courtesy of Gearbox Software, who’s offering them just in time for the holiday.
I like stop motion. I like LEGO. I like Gears of War. This video by YouTuber ‘Kooberz’ combines all three into a very entertaining 2 minutes of minifigures being violent. I wonder if Traveler’s Tales, Epic Games, and Microsoft would be willing to make this the next game in the ‘LEGO’ series.
There’s a new Battlefield 3 trailer out. It’s…majestic. Honestly, it’s going to be hard to decide between BF3 and MW3. It may just be best to love them both. Lot of pretty cool scenes in this. Our Riverine and VBSS friends are going to like what they see around the 49-50 second mark! SA-weet!
Look at about 37.5 seconds in. Is it just us, or does it look like you can give the grunts on the ground a shave with those rotors? Nice!
This simulator, which is be featured in an upcoming episode of The Gadget Show, uses a pre-release copy of Battlefield 3 in conjunction with various technologies to create one of the most immersive gaming experiences that currently exists. The technologies used include the world’s first, portable omni-directional treadmill (designed by Swedish company MSE Weibull), an Xbox Kinect camera hack, a wireless gun system, and ambient LED lighting, all encased within a 360 degree dome with five high definition projectors. The system even simulates enemy gunfire, courtesy of 12 paintball markers that pelt the player as they take in-game damage. Too bad at the present moment it’s only available across the pond.
Made from French Twill cotton, the Couch Commando Drawstring Pants feature six large pockets, including two oversized gusseted cargos, a flat-felled inseam, clever stitching detail, and drawstring ankle cinches. Available colors include Black, Olive Drab, Desert Khaki, and the limited edition ‘Digital Camo’ which consists of a digital pattern mashed up with classic 8-bit imagery from games such as Pac-Man and Galiga. These are the perfect pants for everyone who defends the world from the Nazi commie robot zombie plague with nothing but a six pack of root beer, a comfortable recliner, and a game controller at their side.
This is the latest trailer for the officially licensed Blackwater video game. Features include ‘Blackwater real combat tactics’, officially-licensed weapons, and more that 25 different Kincect moves. I know the game’s main selling point is it’s Kinect compatible, but I really hope there’s a controller option; I’d like to spare myself the indignity of pulling the pin from an imaginary grenade with my teeth. Blackwater drops November 1st, 2011.
Syndicate is an upcoming FPS being developed by Starbreeze Studios, who also worked on ‘The Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena’ and ‘The Darkness’. It’s a reboot of an early 90’s real time strategy game of the same name, but its current iteration looks more like Deux Ex than Starcraft, which in my opinion is in no way a bad thing. I’d have to see more as the game gets closer to launch, but this trailer alone has me pretty excited already. Syndicate drops February 21st, 2012.
http://www.ea.com/syndicate
Take a look at this demo gameplay from the upcoming Aliens: Colonial Marines. It’s chock full of rampaging Xenomorphs, badass Space Marines and M41A Pulse Rifle-y goodness. The more footage of this game I see, the more I’m convinced Gearbox is doing the Aliens property right. The magic starts around 1:50.
This is one of the more impressive LEGO projects I’ve seen on the internet: a working Lancer assault rifle from Gears of War. It’s life-sized and shares almost all the features of it’s fictional counterpart, including a removable box magazine, semi and full auto firing modes, a safety mechanism, and a functioning chainsaw(!). It’s ammo supply? Rubber bands, naturally.
Gears of War 3 came out on Tuesday, and it’s a blast. A lot of the enjoyment has to do with the ridiculous weaponry, like chainsaw bayonets, guns that shoot living grenades and orbital laser cannons, and insane enemies, like the Locust Drones, Corpsers and the Lambent. Obviously, when you’re dealing with such fantastical elements there’s a (rather large) degree of implausibility, if not outright impossibility, you just have to accept, right? It seems that’s only partially true. According to this Gamepro article at least a few of those elements are somewhat plausible according to several PhDs. So, the chances of there being independently evolved Homo Sapien-esque organisms on another planet is greater than finding an underground Godzilla and raising him as a pet? Bummer.
This music video for ‘Spitfire’ by Porter Robinson features two opposing teams slinging paintballs at each other, slow motion sequences throughout, a referee with a dog named “la p00ch”, and visual effects that make it look like a multiplayer video game. Most impressively, it was shot in just one take.
For the second year in a row, Jeep and Activision have partnered up to bring the masses a limited edition Jeep Wrangler Rubicon based on the Call of Duty series. Available in two and four door models, the MW3 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon comes in Black or Bright Silver Metallic and features MW3 graphics, 32-inch BFGoodrich mud-terrain tires, spare tire cover with a unique special elite logo and a large assortment of Mopar® accessories including: a Performance Parts Kit (Warn® Winch, 2-inch Lift Kit, and Classic 5-hole wheels in Black), a power-dome hood, front and rear bumpers, rock rails and a satin black fuel filler door. It’s cool and all, but honestly, does anyone actually buy these things?
It’ll be available this Fall from Jeep, most likely in November along with MW3 itself.
The Warrior Zone, which opened August 26th in Fort Riley, Kansas, is a 25,000 sq. ft., $10 million multi-purpose facility entertainment facility developed for use with the base’s personnel. It features 68 computers for gaming and general use, dozens of game consoles hooked up to 55-inch flat screen televisions, pool and poker tables, a 75-seat snack bar, full bar, theater and large conference room. A covered patio is also available outside with grills and a large fire pit. It looks like a great place to kick back and relax, and it also seems to be a great success; they’ve already extended the hours on Fridays and Saturdays to 0100.
Call of Duty XP started yesterday, and the event began with this reveal trailer for MW3. While I’ve been disillusioned by CoD games because of the multiplayer reveal trailers before (Black Ops before, you know, it actually came out looked amazing), this one impressed me quite a bit. A small* amount of graphical polish coupled with a somewhat reworked perks and killstreak system are what interested me the most, although seeing the MultiCam clad Delta members and explosive action was a nice bonus. Also, the XM25.
Trailer not doing it for you? Footage from the MW3 beta currently running at XP is showing up on YouTube, if you’re interested in a more ‘personal’ look at how the gameplay is.
*It’s still running on a modified version of the outdated id Tech 3 engine, IW 5.0. Really, the lighting and audio are the most substantial boosts the engine received this year.
Finally, an ‘Aliens’ game that seems to do the property justice: a 4-man squad of Space Marines must survive an overwhelming force of Xenomorphs armed only with their wits and some iconic weaponry (including my personal favorite, the M41A1 Pulse Rifle). This game can’t come out soon enough.
Echelon Software’s Black Powder Red Earth V1, which I wrote a review for back in late June, is now available for purchase. Authored by Jon Chang and Kane Smith and illustrated by Josh Taylor, Black Powder Red Earth V1 takes place in near future Basran, a post-Iraq state. It follows the actions of a PMC against, primarily, Iranian-backed groups and agents.
I love how Activision feels it appropriate to release a video on ziplines at the Call of Duty XP event, considering the majority won’t be attending in the first place. At least they got Jen Taylor (best known for her role as Cortana in the Halo franchise) to voice the safety procedures. The history of ziplines in the CoD series is a nice touch.
Call of Duty XP is an event taking place September 2nd & 3rd in Los Angeles, California. Besides the MW3 multiplayer reveal, there will also be a $1 Million CoD tournament and other live events.
Equal parts funny and violent, this trailer for the upcoming ‘Rezurection’ DLC Pack for CoD: Black Ops shows the work the researchers at the zombie labs undertake to understand and better combat the moon zombie menace. ‘Rezurection’ includes the 4 original World At War zombies maps in addition to ‘Moon’, as well as the zombies soundtrack and a premium zombies dashboard theme. As a nice bonus, if you already have the original maps through the hardened/prestige edition of Black Ops, you get this content pack for free. Score!
‘Rezurection’ drops August 28th on Xbox Live for 1200 Microsoft points ($15)
Gears of War calls it Horde, Halo calls it Firefight, and Treyarch developed CoD games gave it a unique twist by introducing zombies, but whatever you call it ‘Survival Mode’ is a staple of the modern gaming experience, especially in the FPS market. Now, an Infinity Ward developed CoD title is getting the treatment, and they’ve put own unique features to try and make it their own. For starters, you earn cash for kills that can be put towards new weapons, ammunition, perks and airdrops/assists. AI-controlled Delta Squad, anyone? Along with this, later rounds introduce suicide soldiers and dogs, who explode the C4 strapped to their person if they get too close to the player or are killed, and the Juggernauts, characters featured in MW2’s Spec-Ops mode who wore EOD suits, toted LMGs and took a lot of punishment before they finally died.
Besides showing off the features of the new mode, several new weapons and attachments were also revealed, including the red dot sight used in CoD4 along with the MW2 variant (maybe they’ll be selectable based on preference, like the rds/holo/reflex in games past?), another long range scope attachment (or that could just be the Remington RSASS; went by a bit too fast to tell) and several new weapons: if you pause around 0:38-0:40 you’ll notice the USAS 10 (a South Korean made automatic shotgun with a detachable box magazine, featured in Bad Company 2), M16A4 and M60E4 are included in the game. In addition, the Remington ACR is chambered in this game for 6.8 mm Remington SPC instead of 5.56, at least that’s what the in-game name ‘ACR 6.8’ seems to imply.
Coinciding with the release of the 2012 Hot Shots Calendar are these iPhone skins, made by Diablo Skinz. The central theme of the calendar is gaming, as you can see with the above image (protip: Lookit the CoD: Black Ops cover and compare). You can pre-order the calendar itself right now, and the skins will be available on the Hot Shots site September 1st.
The Battlefield series is finally getting on the customizable weapons bandwagon so prevalent in modern FPS’s (I’d say CoD 4 – onward has a huge part in this) with Battlefield 3. While it’s true that Bad Company 2 did introduce weapons optics and improved handling specializations, the selection was extremely limited when compared to similar games. Now, DICE has introduced a full range of attachments for your weaponry including optics, grips, and barrels, much like in the Medal of Honor reboot’s multiplayer, which they also designed. With this addition, Battlefield 3 is making even greater strides towards FPS of the Year, although as always there is some stiff competition to contend with.
Dimensional Optics, a company that specializes in the development of active and passive 3D eyeware, now offers several of their line of 3ACTIVE™ 3D glasses in two styles of camouflage patterns: Desert and Jungle. Aside from the camouflage design, like all Dimensional Optics 3ACTIVE™ 3D glasses the glasses are lightweight with flexible temples for increased comfort, come with a storage case and cleaning cloth and feature rechargeable batteries. Factor in the relatively low price compared to other active 3D glasses and you have a great choice in 3D eyeware for gamers and military members alike.
