PlayStation 4 indie devs are already using Project Morpheus
Becoming an independent PlayStation 4 developer is easy, Sony’s Adam Boyes tells us: “You just have to sign up.” The PlayStation VP of publisher and developer relations was explaining what the company has done to woo indie devs. Half the job was just making developer programs more accessible. “Before GDC last year we didn’t even have a website where you could go and find out about it, but now we have a very well thought out process.” Boyes says that anyone who qualifies as an independent developer can get a free (loaner) developer kit, too — a similar deal applies to Project Morpheus, too.
“It’s a very similar process,” he told us. “if we’re working with you closely, then the [VR] dev kits are going to come through a loan program.” Even so, PlayStation has to dole out the headsets carefully. There just aren’t that many to go around. “The only real concern is supply,” he explained. “We have to do what makes sense, as far as when we send it to different developers.”
Short supply hasn’t stopped Project Morpheus from getting attention in the indie world. “A lot of them are trying it out and seeing how it works. Getting to know how it runs,” Boyes told us. When asked about the fruits of their labors, he backpedaled, reminding us that Morpheus is just “sort of a tech project” that PlayStation is working on. It’s not a product yet. Lest you forget, Morpheus is still in the prototype phase, and the only release window for a final version is, “not this year.” We expect Sony will stay reserved when it comes to Morpheus claims for some time, until the hardware is in better shape.
Still, Boyes is focused on giving independent developers the tools they need to build new and interesting gaming experiences — VR or otherwise. “Being able to facilitate those great ideas that are kind of… crazy and nuts, that’s what gamers want, right?” Boyes said. “We need to be agile, and allow them to get on the platform so those crazy ideas can come bear.”
Boyes demonstrated that agility in the announcement last evening of another gaggle of indie games headed to PlayStation platforms, many embodying those “crazy ideas” he spoke of during our interview. Joystiq‘s got a rundown of all those titles, including indie hits like Nidhogg and Escape Goat 2, right here.
Filed under: Gaming, Peripherals, Wearables, Software, HD, Sony
Sky Go and Now TV both coming to British PS4s this summer
Quietly mentioned inside Sky’s financial report for this quarter, the broadcaster has revealed that two of its streaming services will arrive on the PlayStation 4 in just a few months. Details are scant (it just says what we’ve written above), but both Sky Go (for existing Sky subscribers) and the more free-and-loose Now TV will both debut on the Sony console. They’ll have a fight on their hands: they’ll be up against the likes of Netflix and Amazon Instant Video. Sky also announced that it’s renewed its movie deal with Paramount, giving it exclusive broadcast rights to the likes of Anchorman 2 and Noah. So, not even a mention of the Xbox One — but at least that console’s doing its own thing.
Update: Sky has issued a fuller press release which also mentions that Sky Go will find its way to PS3 owners (who’ve so far only had access to Now TV on their consoles).
Filed under: Gaming, Internet, Software, HD, Sony
Source: Sky
The PS4’s first big update is almost here, check out what’s inside
Curious to know everything that’s in the PlayStation 4′s 1.70 update launching on Wednesday? You won’t have to download it yourself to find out — Sony has spilled the beans ahead of time. Some of these updates we’ve heard about before, such as the SHAREfactory video editor, 720p HD Twitch streams (that are archivable) and automatic pre-order downloads. However, we now know that there’s quite a few subtler improvements in store. You can control the default length for shared gameplay videos before saving them to a USB drive, and a toggle to dim the DualShock 4′s lightbar is included in this update. Remote Link pairing with the PlayStation Vita is now automatic, and those who hate credit cards can shop with PayPal on the PlayStation Store. All told, this is a lot more than a simple tune-up, and you’ll likely want it as soon as it hits the servers — the updated companion app for iOS is already available.
Source: PlayStation Blog
Better late than never, Driveclub reaches the PlayStation 4 on October 7th
Evolution Studios may have missed its chance to make Driveclub a PlayStation 4 launch title (and a technology showcase) by quite a wide margin, but it at last has some firm release dates. The socially-savvy racing game should reach North America on October 7th, while Europeans will get it a day later. As Sony previously explained, the nearly year-long delay comes after Evolution went “back to the drawing board” to rework large parts of the game, taking on a new project leader in the process. Patience may prove to be a virtue in that case, although we don’t envy Driveclub‘s odds of success when it’s launching on a very, very busy day. The title now has to vie for attention with potential blockbusters like Alien: Isolation, Dragon Age: Inquisition and Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor — there’s no certainty that gamers will have the cash to spare.
Via: Joystiq
Source: PlayStation Blog
‘Towerfall,’ OUYA’s most popular game, only sold 7,000 copies
If you’re looking for a metric for the OUYA’s (lack of) success, then the developer behind one of the platform’s best selling games can help you out. Towerfall creator Matt Thorson has revealed that despite being the number-one title on the Android platform, the game has sold a measly 7,000 copies. In a conversation with Eurogamer, the developer said that the title was a smash hit on PS4, with PC sales coming in a close second, but added that “being the best game on OUYA isn’t a huge deal, but it is nice” — ouch. In response, OUYA’s CEO Julie Uhrman has said that her company “helped put Towerfall and Matt on the map,” adding that the company is “finding the next great developers and making them household names.” That said, we suspect that since PS4 and PC sales account for nearly 80 percent of Thorson’s $500,000 in revenue, we imagine the next great developer might just choose to bypass OUYA entirely.
Filed under: Gaming
Via: GamesIndustry
Source: Eurogamer
Here’s what it’s like to play Destiny, Bungie’s first game since Halo
Bungie has been shy about revealing the nuts-and-bolts gameplay of Destiny, its first game since it stopped working on the Halo series. Today, though, the company has thrown open the kimono. In addition to offering its own gameplay video, it gave Joystiq and other outlets a chance to try the title for themselves. Not surprisingly, the online RPG-influenced first-person shooter plays quite a bit like the company’s best-known work; if you’ve spent years blasting Covenant forces in Halo, you’ll adapt well to the new title. The biggest additions outside of the social component are “focuses,” or superpower-like abilities that give each character class a major advantage in battle.
We’re not seeing quite everything just yet. The hands-on time didn’t give much opportunity to see the broader online experience, such as the public player spaces and large-scale missions. However, the studio says that we’ll see more at E3 in June — you’ll likely have your fill by the time Destiny is available on September 9th. If the early hands-on time isn’t enough to tide you over, though, you can also check out Joystiq‘s interview with Bungie exec Pete Parsons and get a tour of the developer’s artwork-laden Bellevue offices.
Filed under: Gaming
Source: Bungie, Joystiq (1), (2), (3)
Watch this six-way trailer for Evolve, the latest shooter from the makers of Left 4 Dead
With each successive round of gaming consoles, developers get a little more inventive with the available technology — the same goes for how they tease their audience ahead of a game’s launch, too. Turtle Rock Studios (the team behind Left 4 Dead) recently released an interactive trailer for its upcoming co-op shooter, Evolve. The clip follows a session of four players as they stalk and then battle the gigantic, player-controlled creature that’s out to end them. The rub of it is that with a single mouse-click you can swap between the perspectives of each combatant on-the-fly, and watch how the game unfolds from their respective points of view. Want jump from bipedal-monstrosity to soldier and back again just before the former attacks the latter? Go for it.
This flies in the face of how hype trailers are typically assembled, and almost makes a game out of watching the video itself. The trade-off, though, is that the footage is horribly compressed and falls victim to YouTube’s frame-rate limit. If you want a better idea of how the game will look when it releases this fall, Gamersyde is hosting a 1080p at 60fps version of the video for download. The downside of that is you lose the interactivity: it’s a meticulously edited super-cut with play-by-play and color commentary from the dev team and E-sports announcer Aaron Chambers. For now, however, it’s the best way to experience the game — short of actually playing it yourself, of course.
Filed under: Gaming, Home Entertainment, HD
Source: Gamersyde, Evolve (YouTube)
These guys created the PlayStation 4 and here’s how they did it (video)
Earlier this month we were in the audience to see two gaming legends talk at length about the history of PlayStation, but if you want to watch PlayStation’s head of Worldwide Studios and the PS4′s lead designer have a lengthy chat for yourself, a video of the conversation is now available. Over the course of roughly 90 minutes, Shuhei Yoshida and Mark Cerney cover everything from the former getting banned from Nintendo’s Miiverse (twice), how the PS Move controller signaled a new era of design teamwork at Sony and what it was like working under SCEA’s legendarily hard-nosed chief, Ken Kutaragi. This type of insight typically isn’t seen much outside of the annual Game Developer’s Conference, so fire up the Chromecast, pour a frosty beverage and enjoy.
Filed under: Gaming, Home Entertainment, HD, Sony
Via: Shuhei Yoshida
Hulu Plus adds phone and tablet remote control to PS3, PS4 and Xbox One apps
If you’ve been enjoying the second screen-style remote control experience on Hulu Plus for the Chromecast, the streaming video site just announced similar support is coming to other devices. First up are the Hulu Plus apps for PS3, PS4 and Xbox One, and other devices are expected to add support soon. Similar to the second screen control Netflix and YouTube have offered — Hulu is not using the DIAL protocol those two built yet, but an in-house solution, we’re told it will add DIAL support in the future — you’ll need apps on both devices, logged into the same account. Then just punch the cast button, and you can throw video from mobile to TV screen, control playback or browse for something new to watch without interrupting the action onscreen. Also like Netflix it has lock screen controls, so you don’t have to unlock your phone or tablet just to press pause. It should be active in the apps already, so all you need to do now is find something to watch.
Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD, Mobile
Source: Hulu Blog
Xbox One and PlayStation 4 support added to Unreal Engine 4 in latest update
Moving a game from one platform to another — from iOS to PC, from Xbox One to PlayStation 4 — isn’t as easy as it seems. Just change a few button prompts and you’re all set, right? Not so much. There’s a lot to consider: how do you control the game (mouse/keyboard/gamepad/touch/etc.)? does it sync up with online leaderboards? does it have the proper logos/attribution? Epic Games’ Unreal Engine 4 aims to circumvent as much of that as possible, and today it’s enabling two more platforms: Xbox One and PlayStation 4. In terms of Xbox One peripheral support, that includes Kinect, and in terms of PlayStation 4 peripheral support, that includes the Project Morpheus virtual reality headset.
The update brings UE4 to version 4.1, and is part of the same $19/mo. monthly subscription fee that customers are already paying. The engine itself is actually being certified directly by both Sony and Microsoft right now, which should help with game certification down the line; Sony’s PS4 is already ready-to-go and Microsoft’s Xbox One is in the works (though game makers can submit UE4-made games for publishing on either console before the process is complete for the engine itself).
With today’s update, the folks at Epic are actually running out of platforms to support: it already supports PC, last-gen consoles, current-gen consoles, SteamOS, Linux, and the Oculus Rift. They’re still working on Windows Phone 8 and, though there’s no “concrete roadmap,” a full version of the UE4 editor is in the works for Linux. The game industry’s most prolific engine is quickly becoming the game industry’s most widely available as well.
AIVAnet 