Konami has officially announced the release date for Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain as September 1, 2015 for Xbox One, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4. The PC edition will follow on September 15.

Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain follows Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes, and sees Venom Snake seeking revenge for the events of the previous game. The game will also have competitive multiplayer, dubbed Metal Gear Online, which will launch on day one.

The Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain collector’s edition comes with lots of physical and digital bonuses. Physical bonuses include:

• Half-scale Replica of Snake's Bionic Arm
• Collectible SteelBook
• Behind-the-Scenes Documentary and Trailers Blu-Ray Disc
• A Map
• Exclusive Packaging

 Digital bonuses are:

• Weapon and Shield Pack (Windurger S333 Comba Special Weapon, Adam-ska Special Weapon, Maschinen aktische Pistole 5 Weiss Special Weapon, Rasp Short-Barreled Shotgun Gold Special Weapon, and a Personal Ballistic Shield in Olive Drab, Silver, White, and Gold)
• Cardboard Box (Rocky Terrain, All-Purpose Dryland, and Wetland)
• Snake Costume (Fatigues in Black Ocelot, Gray Urban, Blue Urban, and All-Purpose Dryland)
• "Venom Snake" Emblem
• Metal Gear Online XP Boost
• MGO Items (Metal Gear Rex Helmet, Golden AM MRS-4, and Golden WU S.PISTOL)

They Day One Edition of the game includes the follow:

• A Map
• Adam-Ska Special Weapon
• Personal Ballistic Shield (Silver)
• Cardboard Box (Wetland)
• Fatigues (Blue Urban Snake Costume)
• Metal Gear Online XP Boost

The Steam edition of the game will include the digital content at launch.

Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain launches September 1.

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Square Enix on Tuesday announced that its next Active Time Report will be held on Thursday, June 4.

Final Fantasy 15's Cindy

During the program, Final Fantasy XV director Hajime Tabata will provide "development updates" for the game. He will be joined in the video briefing by global marketing manager Akio Ofuji. The video event will be broadcast on YouTube and Twitch, featuring subtitles.

The show starts at 6 AM PDT / 9 AM EDT. GameSpot will have all the news from the Active Time Report as it's announced.

June 4 falls in the "early June" window that Square Enix plans to release Episode Duscae 2.0, the updated version of Final Fantasy XV's original demo. It is expected to include a variety of changes and improvements.

During the most recent Active Time Report, held in April, Tabata and Ofuji addressed a long list of complaints about the Final Fantasy XV demo, including concerns that the game's Cindy character was "too sexy."

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After taking 2014 off, the core Need for Speed series is making a comeback this year with a brand new title from Ghost Games in Sweden. While Electronic Arts has yet to officially announce this game, we now know a little more about it, at least regarding how far along in development it is.

During a recent earnings call, EA CEO Andrew Wilson confirmed that the game will launch this year, and teased that it is "already looking spectacular." Unfortunately, he didn't say anything more about the game.

2014 was the first year without a new, core Need for Speed title release in over a decade. In May 2014, EA confirmed that it would not launch new entry in the franchise until 2015 so that the project could have an "extended development window."

Ghost Games GM Marcus Nilsson said in May 2014: "We are already deep in development on our next game and want to make this promise to you: we will listen to you. We're going to give you the game you've been asking for. It will be the game you deserve, but to do that will take us some time," he said.

Nilsson further boasted about the game at the time, describing it as "highly innovative" and an "experience built on a foundation we know you'll greatly look forward to."

In addition to the new title from Ghost Games, EA plans to release Need for Speed: No Limits, a free-to-play racing game for mobiles, later this year.

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Ubisoft's upcoming open-world role-playing game, Tom Clancy's The Division, is getting some additional development help from the team behind Assassin's Creed and Splinter Cell multiplayer, the publisher announced today.

Joining existing teams Massive Entertainment in Sweden, Red Storm in the U.S. and Ubisoft Reflections in the U.K. is Ubisoft Annency, the French studio that has lead development on recent Assassin's Creed multiplayer games.

"The team in Annecy is delighted to be collaborating with Massive, Red Storm and Reflections on Tom Clancy's The Division," said Rebecka Coutaz, studio manager at Ubisoft Annency. "We are bringing our previous experience in multiplayer online games and this project is allowing us to build our technical knowledge in other areas and become experts on this incredible brand. The collaboration with the other studios is going very smoothly, and we're working together to ensure we meet and exceed the high expectations players have for this new title."

A post on Ubisoft's official blog says the Annency team's role is being kept secret for now, though it's not unreasonable to assume that it will contribute to The Division's multiplayer, given Coutaz's comments. Multiple teams contributing to one title is commonplace at Ubisoft; last year's Assassin's Creed Unity featured the work of 10 Ubisoft teams.

Tom Clancy's The Division was announced at E3 2013. The open-world shooter is set in New York City in the midst of a viral pandemic that has led to the collapse of the U.S. government.

Last we heard, The Division was coming sometime in 2015 to PlayStation 4, Windows PC and Xbox One.

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A user on NeoGAF that goes by the name of kampfheld, happens to be a verified developer on the Cloudgine engine, which is the tech that will be powering the  cloud based features of the upcoming Crackdown reboot for Xbox One. Today, he revealed a couple pieces of new information regarding Crackdown for Xbox One.

Kampfheld cleared up a common misconception today as he confirmed that Cloudgine is only developing the tech for Crackdown, and future games that use the power of the cloud. The studio developing the actual game will be named in the not too far off future.

The developer also noted that there’s a lot of doubt regarding what can be done with the so called “power of the cloud” and he’s well aware of the challenges Cloudgine is facing, but in his response on NeoGAF, the developers behind Cloudgine seem very confident in what they’re developing.

On another note, the latest installment is known to be heavily supported with the cloud(TM). Yayaya … That stupid cloud talk again  I know you can not hear it anymore. What I want to say though is: your local gaming mashine does not have enough calculation power to run our game engine. I think we always communicated it that way and there is no reason not to be honest here. If you want to deliver something that has never been done before in that kind of scale, then you can not make compromises. We totally know that there are huge risks involved. But this is the route we will take. We are super confident here and can’t wait to get out of the dark.

Personally, I can totally understand that there are huge doubts. I’m not an idiot. Too many games did things wrong or communicated something wrong. People want to see what cloud computing can be used to in gaming. So give a chance at least on showing this. I think that would be fair.

It’s up to us to deliver on your bolded sentence. Again – personally – I want to see you playing this game really thinking “holy SHIT why doesn’t my mashine burn already?”. We want to achieve this. And we’re working super hard to get to that point.

Based on Crackdown’s use of the tech that Cloudgine is building, many gamers seem to be wondering if the game will be an online only experience, similar to Destiny or The Division. According to Kampfheld, there will be a single player mode for the game and it will not be a multiplayer only title. Good.

The developer teased that a small tech demo may be coming soon to show off more of Cloudgine’s capabilities, but he couldn’t promise anything. Having said that, the developer said to expect more information this year regarding Cloudgine and Crackdown on Xbox One.

It’ll be very interesting to see how Cloudgine develops and if there will be a large number of people eating crow later this year. If Cloudgine can achieve what they’re working towards, I don’t think gaming will ever be the same.

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The groundbreaking, hyper-powered world of "Crackdown" is back in stunning fashion with an all-new "Crackdown" experience for Xbox One. Developed by original creator Dave Jones, "Crackdown" on Xbox One will deliver unrivaled verticality, cooperative mayhem and destruction. Whether you're playing the Campaign with friends or enjoying an entirely new competitive "Crackdown" experience powered by Xbox Live, you'll never look at an open-world game the same way again.

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The next great adventure from critically-acclaimed developer Platinum Games and renowned Game Director Hideki Kamiya, Scaleboundtransports you to a distant, hostile world. You'll come face to face with fearsome creatures, including a formidable dragon—and the bond you forge with this awesome predator will prove crucial to the survival of both worlds.

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The guide to Lord of the Rings: War in the North contains a detailed and richly illustrated description of how to complete both the main plot playthrough and all side quests. The game is of linear type, which means that players should not miss any quest if they follow the guide. We also suggest reading several game hints, which will surely make it easier to travel across the north of Middle-earth (there are also tips relating to achievements - except for those that can be found in the descriptions of all the chapters).

In the text, all names (NPCs, playable characters, places and items) are made bold. The objectives of main quests are marked in brown. Side quests and activities connected with them are marked in green, circumstances in which you can or you will unlock an achievement - in orange and all secrets - in blue.

The Lord of the Rings: War in the North

PC • PS3 • X360

RPG

The Lord of the Rings: War in the North Video Game

• genre: action RPG
• developer: Snowblind Studios
• publisher: Warner Bros Interactive Entertainment
• platform: PC, XBOX360, PS3
• rated: PEGI: Age 18+ / ESRB: Mature

My preciousss...

"With his far reaching rich hand Sauron might have done great evil in the North. Yet all that has been averted because a handful of heroes stood in his path.” – Gandalf the White

The Lord of the Rings: War in the North is a co-op Action RPG that immerses you and your friends in a brutal new chapter in the War of the Ring. Snowblind Studios is in the unique position of drawing inspiration from both the literary and film rights to world of Middle-earth, allowing players to bloody their axes on a wide range of deadly enemies and traverse both established and never-before-seen locations. The result is a journey that is both epic and intimate, familiar yet unexpected.

ACTION MEETS RPG
Intense, visceral, and satisfying combat. Rich, layered, and impactful character progression. In War in the North, you get both. Find and equip the best loot, upgrade your hero using a wide range of skills and items, and feel the intense satisfaction of rushing into real-time battles with friends by your side. Fight through the brutal realities of the war on all fronts that were brought to life in the lore. Immerse yourself and make your own mark on Middle-earth.

CO-OP AT ITS CORE
Build your own fellowship of three heroes to confront the growing army in the North. The survival of your group and all of Middle-earth depends upon your uniquely skilled heroes working together. You must fight together or you will die alone, and these high stakes make the experience of playing together both socially engaging and incredibly satisfying. The first time you rescue a friend who has been grabbed by a troll and is desperately yelling for help, you will understand what we mean. 

AN UNTOLD STORY
While much attention and focus has been placed on the journey of the One Ring, the assault on Middle-earth hits all corners of the map. War in the North turns our attention towards an integral part of the storyline that is grounded in details within the books and various appendices. This is not someone else’s fight. This is your own effort to forage a way through the dark, dangerous, and unknown landscape, defending all that is yours. This is your war.

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Guardian Roster

Agandaûr	Arathorn	Barrow-Wight Lord	Beregond
Bert	Bilbo	Elrond	Éowyn
Felgrom	Frodo	Galadriel	Gandalf
Glóin	Gollum	Gothmog	Great Goblin
Haldir	Hildifons	Kili	Legolas
Lugbol	Mozgog	Nori	Ori
Radagast	Runsig	Saruman	Sauron
Snaga	Thorin	Thrain	Uglúk
Unglob	Witch King	Wulfrun	Coming soon...

About

Guardians of Middle-Earth is a MOBA, or Multiplayer Online Battle Arena, fantasy video game under development by Monolith Productions and published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. The game is set in Middle-earth, and will feature several tie-ins to the original film trilogy. The game released on December 4 2012 for the PlayStation Network and December 5 on Xbox LIVE Arcade.

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