Bioshock Infinite Siege of Colombia Unboxing

Bioshock Infinite is arguably the game of the year, or at least in contention. Here at Random Havok we love ourselves some Bioshock. When I heard Plaid Hat Games was working on a board game tie in I couldn't resist the urge to preorder it! This was about 4 months ago. A week ago the games were finally shipped to the early adopters, and I thought it would be a perfect time for an unboxing!

Season Passes: The Good, The Bad, The Missed Opportunities

Originally reserved for episodic releases like Telltale's The Walking Dead, the season pass was a way for gamers to buy in to unreleased content at a slight discount. From Bioshock Infinite to The Last of Us it now seems like every game that comes out has some sort of season pass. Even the HD port of Resident Evil: Revelations had one. There's no question that the only reason we're seeing these lump sum DLC packs more and more lately is that they make as much or more money than the DLC does individually. Some games just don't need one though, so today I'm going to separate the games that have one into three groups, the good, the bad, and the unnecessary.

Xbox One to Include Headset and Sticker

Microsoft released an Xbox One Unboxing video today, revealing that the console will include a headset. Like all the other cool cats, the Xbox One will also include a sticker.

According to Xbox Wire, this new headset will have 3x the sampling rate of the current Xbox 360 headset. Like the current headset, the new headset can be worn on either ear and features a bendable microphone.

Aside from the sleek new appearance, one major difference between this new generation's headset is the lack of the typical 2.5mm headphone jack. Instead, the headset connects to the Xbox One controller through a unique port. Microsoft will be releasing an adapter to make current generation headsets compatible with the Xbox One controller port.

Check Out This Splinter Cell Blacklist Spies vs Mercs Gameplay

IGN's new series Gameplay Tuesdays  pits the IGN team against the developers of the game they're playing. Their first episode featured Splinter Cell Blacklist, and it's actually quite entertaining. The much loved multiplayer mode Spies vs. Mercs is making its return, and this episode shows you a full hour of gameplay.

For those unfamiliar with the gametype, one team plays as spies who control much like the protagonist Sam Fisher, while the other team plays in first person as mercenaries. Each team has unique gear and powerups like cloaking and EMP's to keep the game balanced and fun.

We're really excited for Splinter Cell Blacklist, and you can definitely expect a review around its release.

PlayStation 4 Will Not Require PlayStation Plus To Share Video

Yesterday news broke that the Xbox One would require a subscription to Xbox LIVE for the use of it Game DVR functionality. Naturally, as things usually go on the Internet, people were pretty upset about it and many tweeted at Sony's Shuhei Yoshida (@Yosp) asking if the PlayStation 4 would require subscription to PS+ use its similar service.

Yoshida responded to almost everyone with a resounding "no".

Does this development sway your decision at all? Let us know in the comments.

Nintendo Direct

This morning we got a Nintendo Direct to update us on games that have previously been announced for this year. This means no real surprises but there were some good little tid bits in there. Here are the highlights of the 30 minute Direct!

PSN Hot List - 8.6.2013

Every Tuesday the PSN updates at an unspecified time that always seems to catch us by surprise. While we can't solve that problem for you, or the fact that the new store just plain doesn't work, we can weed through all the junk and fill you in on what you need to spend your hard earned PSN cash on. This is the PSN Hot List.

Happy Birthday To One of My Favorite Games

Mark Rabo from the Sound Shapes team put up an emotional little post on the PlayStation Blog today to commemorate Sound Shapes' first birthday.

Dragon's Crown Review

It’s been a long time coming, but I’m extremely happy to say that Dragon’s Crown is finally here. I’m even happier to say that it was well worth the wait. Originally planned as a Dreamcast game, Dragon’s Crown has come a very long way over its abnormally long journey. Sporting some of the prettiest hand-drawn graphics I’ve ever seen and a virtually identical experience on both the PlayStation 3 and the PlayStation Vita, the game gives you a whole lot to love. Is it worth the $50 dollar price tag, though? Read on to find out.

Battery Backed Memories: Skull & Crossbones

I love arcades; though they’re certainly not what they used to be. There’s no more money to be made in creating new gaming experiences for arcade goers. The latest console generation made sure of that. When technology like the Kinect is cheap and compact enough to exist in everyone’s living room, there’s just no way to compete. Arcades these days are in the business of nostalgia. When we put money in a machine like Time Crisis, we’re paying to remember how it felt to experience the scale of that adventure for the first time. It was something we just couldn’t experience at home. When I was a kid, most video games were something that I couldn’t experience at home.

QuakeCon: Nvidia Shield Impressions

This past weekend, I had the opportunity to explore the show floor of QuakeCon. Aside from the maze of PCs, tournaments and game previews, I managed to get my hands on the Nvidia Shield and take it for a spin.

Velocity Ultra Review

News that one of the only PlayStation Minis worth buying, Velocity, was making the jump to HD for the PlayStation Vita broke in January of this year. I felt two emotions at that time: "Holy crap that's AWESOME!", and, "How are they going to make it feel new?" I was happy about the port being announced mainly because the entire time that I played the original Mini I felt like it belonged on the PlayStation Vita. The only reason I was just a tiny bit doubtful of the game was because I didn't really know if adding HD visuals, trophies, and leaderboards to a game that was already so great would be enough to make it worth the purchase. I'm happy to say that I was wrong.

Community Assists When Indie Developer MiniMega Discovers That Their Game Has Been Cloned

It's an unfortunate reality that a risk of being an independent mobile game developer is the chance of having your game copied and re-released by someone else. We've seen small studios with great games go through a ton of trouble to secure their own intellectual property. Vlambeer, for example, has been burnt twice already; once with Ridiculous Fishing, and again more recently with Luftrausers. Often devs look to the community to call out the cloners and help take back their games.

More like Pii U

Let's be honest, the Wii U has done less than stellar. It’s a console stuck between last gen and next gen, and has quickly become the joke of the gaming community. If you keep up with gaming news then you know Nintendo often finds itself in this situation. They start off slow but eventually pick up momentum and start selling like hot cakes!

PixelJunk Monsters: Ultimate HD Is Coming To PC

Tikiman's jumping to a whole new island. Double Eleven Ltd.'s CEO, Lee Hutchinson confirmed today on Twitter (tweet shown below) that the game would be coming to Steam with some new features in tow.

monsters steam trailer will update soon.. we've added 2.5x the ahievements, local coop and some other really cool tweeks :-)
— lee hutchinson (@leehutch1212) August 1, 2013

 It's on sale for 15% off its retail price of $19.99 at $16.99 until it launches on August 26th. We recently reviewed the PlayStation Vita version and confirmed that it's just as easy to fall in love with as it was on the PlayStation 3 and PSP.

You can pre-order the game here.