Pro Cycling Manager 2013 and Tour de France 2013 – 100th Edition unveiled

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With the 100th edition of the Tour de France, an exceptional season awaits all cycling fans!
We are pleased today to unveil the 4 first screenshots of Pro Cycling Manager 2013 and Tour de France 2013 – 100th Edition, showcasing the richness and variety of scenic locations that will be seen in these 2 remarkable games. From Corsica to the Champs-Elysées, exceptional races will be featured this year in these cycling games developed by Cyanide Studio.

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While Pro Cycling Manager 2013 will be sure to please all fans of simulation with its many new features and improvements, Tour de France 2013 – 100th Edition will offer players on PS3 and Xbox 360 consoles a fully renewed and overhauled gameplay and an improved graphics engine, in response to players’ expectations and requests.

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Cyanide Studio plan to unveil much a lot more information on both games in the months to come. In the meantime, take a look at some of the screenshots and project yourself in July, at the heart of this legendary summer race which will go down as a milestone in the history of the Tour de France!

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Visit the official website for more information.

Nokia Music app for Windows 8 and Windows RT released

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Nokia Music for Windows 8 is a complete playback and discovery experience for your computer and a Windows 8 and Windows RT app has just been released.

Features

  • Mixes: Hundreds of hand-crafted playlists across every genre you’re interested in. From Pop to Dub, Blues legends, Ragga, Indietronica, and loads more – we’ve got the lot
  • Offline Mixes: Download hours’ worth of your favourite mixes to listen when you’re not connected to the internet
  • MP3 Playback: Listen and queue your own music. Put them in your Music library and we’ll pick them up. Get Mix recommendations and artist information
  • Artist Mix: Tell us up to three of your favourite artists and we’ll make you a mix featuring those and other similar artists
  • Artist Page: includes artist biography, artist mix, featured in mixes, tweets, gigs, similar artists and image gallery where you can set your device lock screen
  • Supports Nokia Music+, an enhanced music service which includes higher quality audio, unlimited track skips, unlimited offline mixes, full time-synced lyrics (where available). Includes free trial.
  • Lyrics: Shows time-synced lyrics for many of your favourite songs (Full lyrics available only for NM+ trial)
  • Play To: send what you’re listening to directly to many smart TVs or DLNA-enabled devices
  • Snap View: A native Windows 8 feature. It allows you to view one app in a mini view whilst accessing another app at the same time
  • Use the Search charm to find Mixes that contain your favourite Artists

You can download the app now from the Windows Store.

Review: Monster High Skultimate Roller Maze for the Nintendo 3DS

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Lace up your skates and play with your fave ghouls in Monster High Skultimate Roller Maze the Video Game, and here is our review.

Pick your own clawsome team as you race through the scary-challenging course filled with terrifying traps and killer obstacles. Unlock 12 different Monster High characters and 6 tracks–including Monster High Stadium, Gloom Beach, Skull Shore and more–by winning races.

There are four different modes to select from, including a circuit mode where the team with the most points at the end wins and a timed mode where it’s you against the clock! There is a relay mode and also a quick race if you just want to jump in a play.

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You can pick from 12 characters, including Clawdeen, Robecca Steam and Abbey Bominable. Each of the characters has their own special power that they can using during a race once they have collected power ups and their power meter is full. These special powers include Electric Kisses and Bat Calls and have a different outcome in the game.

The complete list of characters and their special powers are detailed below so that you can check if your favourite character is included:

Character Type Special Powers What does the move do?
Frankie Stein Light Electric Kiss Zaps all the other players causing them to fall over
Clawdeen Medium Beast Mode Do a wolf cry and go really fast
Draculaura Light Bat Call Bats pick you up and make you go faster and knock other people out of the way.
Lagoona Blue Light Tidal Wave Summons a wave that makes you go faster and knocked people out of the way
Rochelle Goyle Strong Rockstar Speed boost
Robecca Steam Medium Steamed Does a swirling sweeping kick knocking down everyone around her
Operetta Strong Perfect Pitch Send out a high pitched note that knocks all players in front down
Clawd Wold Strong Full Moon Speed boost
Abbey Bominable Medium Cold Shoulder
Sends out a snowflake that freezes any players immediately in-front
Gil Webber Light River Rage Skates backwards and knocks down anyone immediately behind
Deuce Gorgon Strong Stone Gaze Throws a red star that tracks the person in front and knocks them down
Heath Burns Medium Prometheus Throws a red star that tracks the person in front and knocks them down

 

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The tracks give you the chance to really get into the game and use your special powers and gives a lot of replayability. The tracks are quite long and there are secret routes to find so it should keep you interested.

Your characters become tired during the race and you can easily switch between them when the energy bars are low. This also gives you the opportunity to try out different special moves, which can be quite fun. Just make sure you collect the coins scattered around the track as they will help with your power meter!

You can collect lots of power ups in the game, and these come in the shape of coffins left around the tracks – just race into them and they are yours.

The controls work well and it doesn’t take very long for you to really get into the game and find yourself leaning into turns and moving about as though you were in the game itself.

And there are even varying difficulty levels to choose from if you find it too hard, or not challenging enough.

I am personally not a huge fan of 3D games, but I was pleasantly surprised how well Monster High Skultimate Roller Maze worked in 3D mode. And if you don’t like it you can also switch it back to 2D mode.

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If you are a fan of Monster High, or more likely you have a child who is a fan of Monster High, then this game should keep them occupied and quiet for hours and its actually rather fun. This game is aimed at children so if you are not a child you may not enjoy it quite as much – or maybe you will? Little Orbit have done a good job on the game and Monster High fans should be very pleased.

Monster High Skultimate Roller Maze for the Nintendo 3DS is available now and costs £24.99.

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Xbox LIVE Arcade Play to Earn Campaign

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This April, Microsoft have launched an exclusive feature for Xbox LIVE Rewards members, offering incentives to gamers for doing what they do best: playing games. Starting this week and lasting the entire month, all the action is in arcade games with their exclusive Play To Earn offers. Your passion for playing arcade games can pay off in a big way.

There are three ways to earn, but only the most devoted arcade fans have what it takes to black out all three arcade ‘Punchcards’. Those who do will be guaranteed a spot in upcoming VIP exclusives. By simply playing your favourite arcade games and adding to your game collection, you can earn awesome rewards. Have you got what it takes? Here are the three ways you can earn rewards all month long.

· Punchcard One: Play 20 hours of any combination of arcade games and you will receive a free avatar item

· Punchcard Two: Purchase any four arcade games for 400 Microsoft Points or more from Xbox LIVE and you’ll receive a one month Xbox LIVE Gold membership

· Punchcard Three: Spend 3200 Microsoft Points on arcade games and you’ll receive 800 Microsoft Points in return

It’s easy and fun, you can earn for playing and or buying ANY arcade game from Xbox LIVE on Xbox 360. So, play the games you already know and love like Minecraft, Terraria, LIMBO, Trials Evolution and more and discover new games to try and buy from Xbox LIVE.  The following games will be launching on Xbox LIVE Arcade throughout April and will be part of Play To Earn.

· BattleBlock Theatre

· Double Dragon II

· Motocross Madness

· Sacred Citadel

· God Mode

· Monaco

Please visit the My Punchcard site to find out more and become an Xbox LIVE Rewards member!

EE exclusive UK launch partner for the HTC First Facebook phone

EE, the UK’s most advanced digital communications company, has partnered with HTC and Facebook to be the exclusive UK launch partner for the HTC First, the first superfast 4GEE smartphone to feature the new integrated Facebook experience, Home.

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The HTC First, featuring Home by Facebook, allows customers to receive friends’ updates directly on to their home screen. Customers will also be able to share photos, interact with friends and chat instantaneously, all through the most immersive mobile Facebook experience, which will be enhanced by EE’s superfast 4G network.

The HTC First will be available exclusively in the UK on EE 4GEE plans, providing customers with download speeds approximately five times faster than 3G – so they enjoy an optimised Facebook experience. Customers will be able to take out the handset with a 4GEE phone plan this summer, via the EE online shop, EE telesales and EE retail stores.

Home is designed around a customer’s friends and when combined with 4GEE it puts them at the centre of their phone:

· Cover Feed: A constant stream of photos and updates from friends that are always available at a glance. Swipe through to see more and interact with friends by liking, commenting, and sharing right from the Cover Feed

· Notifications: Thanks to Home’s deep integration with Android, notifications from apps appear alongside updates from friends right on the home screen

· Chat Heads: Keep chatting with Facebook contacts even when using other apps. Reply right from chat heads, or move them around if you’re not ready to respond, and send SMS and Facebook messages from the same place

· App Launcher: Set favourite apps and access them directly through Home

In addition to superfast speeds and EE services, HTC First customers with a 4GEE phone plan will also benefit from:

· EE Film – the only service in the UK which combines 2 for 1 cinema ticketing, listings, trailers and digital film downloads in one place

· A discount of £5 per month on EE superfast Fibre Broadband – so they can get blistering speeds at home and on the move

· Fast track customer service by dialing ‘33’ from their handset

· Clone Phone Lite – giving people free storage to back up the content that matters most

App Update: Google+ for iOS Gets Updated to Version 4.3.1

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Google have just updated it’s Google+ app for iOS devices.

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What’s New in Version 4.3.1

– Bugfixes and performance improvements

Go get it now from the Apple App Store.

App Update: Sky+ for iOS Updated to Version 4.3.6

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The Sky+ App for iOS has been updated to version 4.3.6.

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The latest Sky+ App ensures you never miss the latest and greatest TV.

For a start, there’s a full Seven Day TV Listing Guide that presents all your favourite channels.

And for shows that are simply unmissable, we’ve now introduced Series Link for mobile. This ever-so-useful function lets you record entire seasons of favourite shows to your Sky+ box.

And all with just a few finger taps.

In the app’s Showcase section you’ll find the top TV picks of the week – whether it’s a movie premiere, a big match or a new must-see drama.

Now & Next shows you what’s on and what’s coming up. And beneath individual Programme Details you’ll find Other Airings (which tells you when else a favourite programme is on air) plus alternative programmes you may like.

The Sky+ App also lets you group channel Favourites together to create your very own personal TV guide. Recording couldn’t be easier – you just tap on the Record button alongside your chosen programme and the request will go straight to your Sky+ box. What’s more, the app allows you to record from anywhere in the world.

What’s New in Version 4.3.6

– Fixes a bug where some customers are seeing incorrect airing times in Planner items

Download now from the Apple App Store

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Watch the new Thief trailer

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Garrett, THE Master Thief is back with this announcement trailer for Eidos-Montreal’s next title: THIEF, in development for PC, PlayStation 4 and other next-generation consoles.

There is a rising tide of fear in The City. Hatred saturates every stone and whilst the rich prosper, the less fortunate face misery and repression. Ravaged with sickness and famine, they wait for something to change.

Here is the trailer:

Into this shadowy world steps Garrett the Master Thief in a first-person adventure featuring intelligent design that allows players to take full control, with freedom to choose how they approach and overcome each challenge and forge their own path through the game.

Learn more from the Official Website.

What do you think of the game so far? Let us know by leaving a comment below.

Call of Duty : Black Ops 2 Uprising DLC coming April 16th on Xbox 360

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Call of Duty fans are set to receive another premium offering of Downloadable Content (DLC) with Call of Duty: Black Ops II Uprising on 16th April.  The game’s second, epic DLC pack of the year from award-winning studio Treyarch and Activision Publishing will be available first, exclusively on Xbox LIVE for the Xbox 360 beginning on 16th April, with other platforms to follow.  Call of Duty: Black Ops II Uprising will include four new exotic multiplayer maps, plus an exciting new Zombies experience called “Mob of the Dead” that takes players to Alcatraz with four of the actors behind some of Hollywood’s most iconic mobsters, including Ray Liotta, Chazz Palminteri, Joe Pantoliano, and Michael Madsen.

“With Uprising, the team has really outdone itself again,” said Mark Lamia, Treyarch’s Studio Head.  “In addition to creating four amazing new multiplayer maps, the studio has been hard at work on the Zombies front to surpass what we accomplished with  ‘Call of the Dead.’  What they’ve done this time around is nothing Zombies fans have seen before – and if you don’t believe me, just wait until you get into Purgatory.”

Following tradition of the original Call of Duty: Black Ops fan-favourite Zombies mode “Call of the Dead,” Call of Duty: Black Ops II Uprising’s wildly creative new “Mob of the Dead” Zombies experience finds the four prohibition-era mobsters, Billy Handsome (Liotta), Al “The Weasel” Arlington (Pantoliano), Salvatore “Sal” DeLuca (Palmentiri), and Michael “Finn” O’Leary (Madsen) serving time in Alcatraz Prison, only to discover that being behind bars is the least of their problems.  With plans to break out of Alcatraz foiled by the rise of the undead, the quartet of inmates will have to lean on their mob-derived skills with firearms, blunt instruments and improvised weaponry as they battle the zombies infesting and overrunning the island.  In order to survive, players must work their way through the steel cells and aging concrete buildings while fighting off a multitude of zombified prisoners and guards trapped on the island with them.  Additionally, if a player becomes an unfortunate victim, “Mob of the Dead’s” new feature known as “Purgatory” sends players into the afterlife.  This new twist on Zombies gameplay is ripe with its own set of objectives and offers fans a truly new and unique experience.

Uprising also delivers another four new, exotic and diverse multiplayer maps set around the globe for fans to jump into.  “Magma” is a modern Japanese village with volcanic eruptions carving multiple paths throughout the town.  “Encore” takes place in the aftermath of a deserted London music festival and leaves numerous opportunities for run-and-gun, close quarters combat. “Vertigo” is a futuristic high rise in India housing a high-tech lab featuring dizzying vistas and multi-tiered pathways.  Finally, “Studio” is a contemporary remake of “Firing Range,” a fan-favourite multiplayer map from the original Call of Duty®: Black Ops.  “Studio” is a Hollywood movie back lot with a variety of cinematic themes that range from Sci-Fi to the Old West.

Call of Duty: Black Ops II Uprising will be available first, exclusively on Xbox LIVE for 1200 Microsoft Points on 16th April.  The Uprising DLC Map Pack is also included in the Call of Duty: Black Ops II DLC Season Pass, where fans can purchase all four epic DLC Map Packs planned for the year, and also receive the Nuketown Zombies bonus map, and an exclusive in-game calling card as part of the discounted bundle offered at 4000 Microsoft Points – a discount of 800 Microsoft Points off the individual purchase of all four DLC Map Packs.

LEGO Marvel Super Heroes screenshots

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We just told you about LEGO Marvel Super Heroes, and we have some cool screenshots to share.

LEGO Marvel Super Heroes features an original story crossing the entire Marvel Universe. Players take control of Iron Man, Spider-Man, the Hulk, Captain America, Wolverine, Dead Pool, Black Widow and many more Marvel characters as they unite to stop Loki and a host of other Marvel villains from assembling a super-weapon capable of destroying the world. Players will chase down Cosmic Bricks as they travel across an open-world LEGO Manhattan and visit key locations from the Marvel Universe, such as Stark Tower, Asteroid M, a Hydra base and the X-Mansion.

Here are some other screenshots to whet your appetite:

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We recently got to see the first level of the game, and we will be talking more about that shortly.

The game will be out in the Autumn on Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii U, Nintendo 3DS, Nintendo DS, PlayStation Vita and PC from Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment and developed by TT Games.

LEGO Marvel Super Heroes announced and game details

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LEGO Marvel Super Heroes features an original story crossing the entire Marvel Universe. Players take control of Iron Man, Spider-Man, the Hulk, Captain America, Wolverine, Dead Pool, Black Widow and many more Marvel characters as they unite to stop Loki and a host of other Marvel villains from assembling a super-weapon capable of destroying the world. Players will chase down Cosmic Bricks as they travel across an open-world LEGO Manhattan and visit key locations from the Marvel Universe, such as Stark Tower, Asteroid M, a Hydra base and the X-Mansion.

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The features include:

  • Smash, swing and fly in the first LEGO videogame featuring more than 100 of your favourite Super Heroes and Super Villains from the Marvel Universe.
  • Help save Earth as your favourite Marvel character with your super-cool strengths and abilities:
    • Iron Man flies, hovers, shoots missiles and unleashes a powerful ubibeam directly from his chest.
    • Spider-Man shoots webs, uses his spider-senses to spot objects invisible to others, crawls up walls and of course web-slings.
    • Captain America throws his mighty shield at objects and enemies, embeds it into a wall to create a platform, and protects himself from damage.
    • Hulk smashes!
  • Perform new and powerful moves as “BIG-fig” characters like Hulk and Abomination. Leave a path of destruction as you smash through LEGO walls and throw cars using hyper strength.
  • Discover LEGO Manhattan like never before, and travel to iconic locations from the Marvel Universe.
  • Create unique Super Heroes with customisable characters.
  • Enjoy an exciting original story, filled with classic LEGO videogame adventure and humour.

We recently got to see the first level of the game, and we will be talking more about that shortly.

The game will be out in the Autumn on Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii U, Nintendo 3DS, Nintendo DS, PlayStation Vita and PC from Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment and developed by TT Games.

Facebook Home Software Announced for Android Phones

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Facebook has announced details of a new family of apps for Android phones.

Focused around the home page of Android devices, the Home software is described as a “wrapper” for the operating system.

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Notifications, messages and photos will appear on the phone’s main screen rather than on Facebook’s downloadable app.

Mark Zuckerberg explained that the Home app will provide “a new category of experiences” based around the homescreen.

It will be available to download from April 12, and will first launch on HTC First through AT&T America.

Initially, it will be made available for the Samsung Galaxy S3 and HT One X, with the HTC One and S4 models to follow later.

Zuckerberg dismissed recent rumours that Facebook was going to release its own smartphone, saying:  “We’re not building a phone and we’re not building an operating system, but we’re building much more than an app.”

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Home will allow users to view  automatic updates on the homescreen and lockscreen. Likes can be achieved by double-taps, while a new service called Chat Heads combines SMS and Facebook messaging.

The messaging service is described as “a way you can talk to your friends no matter what application you’re in” and “the most fun and delightful messaging  experience yet”.

“We spend our lives sharing and connecting,” said Zuckerberg. “What would it feel like if our phones were designed around people,  not apps?”

Facebook Home will be available via the Play Store, but will not yet launch on tablets.
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Netflix updates its app for Windows Phone to version 3.0.0.1

Today saw Netflix update it’s Windows Phone app again.

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There isn’t anything release notes wise or updates shown, but the update provides high-resolution support for Windows Phone 8 users whose devices feature 720p screens.

Download now from the Windows Marketplace

Have you tried it yet? Let us know.

TOMB RAIDER Scaling the Ziggurat video

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To create the latest video for Tomb Raider, the development team at Crystal Dynamics gathered to discuss their favourite climbing sequences: after much debate, one of the areas from late in the game beat the rest.

This video showcases Lara Croft scaling the Ziggurat, an ancient temple built upon an icy mountainside, which she must traverse in the latter stages of the game in order to reach her final destination. Lara must draw upon all of the climbing skills she’s learned throughout the game in order to conquer this challenge. A foreword from Noah Hughes, Creative Director at Crystal Dynamics, explains why they chose this sequence.

And here is the video:

Other Tomb Raider articles you should check out:

Watch the Tomb Raider opening two minute cinematic Check out our interview with lead writer Rhianna Pratchett Check out our interview with art director Brian Horton Check out our preview of the first 3 hours of Tomb Raider single player Check out our preview of Tomb Raider multiplayer Check out our Exclusive interview with Darrell Gallagher from Cyrstal Dynamics Check out our Exclusive interview with Meagan Marie from Crystal Dynamics