If you are one of those guys who’s rocking a Mac or a Linux, and were hoping to hop in on the VR bandwagon, well, it appears your dreams and aspirations just got dealt a hearty blow- Oculus has confirmed that it has suspended development on the Mac and Linux variants of its long awaited VR solution, in order to provide “a high quality consumer-level VR experience at launch across hardware, software, and content on Windows.”

This isn’t the end for Oculus on non Windows PCs, though. The company confirmed that it did plan on eventually resuming development for both, OSX and Linux, though it refused to commit to any sort of a timeline.

“We want to get back to development for OS X and Linux but we don’t have a timeline,” added Oculus Chief Architect Atman Binstock in an official blog post.

As for Windows owners, well, if you want to jump in on the Oculus revolution, make sure your PC is equipped to actually handle the headset.

The spiritual successor to Banjo Kazooie, being made by the ex Rare veterans at Playtonic Games, has now set another new record- Yooka-Laylee is now the highest funded Kickstarter game in the UK. In the process, it has beaten the previous record holder (obviously), which was the Frontier Games developed space sim, Elite Dangerous.

Elite: Dangerous made £1,578,316 when the Kickstarter campaign closed. In comparison, at the time of writing, Yooka-Laylee has raised £1,611,343, which roughly translates to $2.5 million, and it still has 31 days to go until the fundraising campaign ends. This means that it will be in first place by a very comfortable country mile.

Yooka-Laylee will be out in 2016 for Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Wii U, PC, and Mac. It aims to continue in the vein of classic open world collectathon platformers of the ilk that Rare used to make back in the Nintendo 64 era. Stay tuned to GamingBolt for more coverage.

But these roots do exist- they just never made it to the west, thanks to prevailing market sensibilities of the time. But all of the Persona and Shin Megami Tensei games, indeed, all games that Atlus ever made, can trace themselves back safely to this one game- the original Shin Megami Tensei, released in Japan on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, and an immediate hit that kickstarted a franchise, as well as all of its spin offs and sub franchises, none of which would achieve international notoriety until nearly two decades later.

But given the newfound popularity of Shin Megami Tensei and Persona, as well as the newfound popularity of cheaper, safer (from a financial perspective) methods of content delivery, Atlus has decided that the time was right to bring over the grand daddy of all our present day beloved Atlus RPG experiences to the west- Shin Megami Tensei was released on iOS for the first time in English, billed as an enhanced version of the GBA port of the game, which in turn was a port of the PlayStation version, which in turn derived from the Super Nintendo original. The game, therefore, has a long history, none of which we are familiar with, or matters to us. I guess when buying this game, the question will be- is this game worth more than a passing curiosity for series and RPG fans? Or does it actually hold up on its own merits and provide for a fun, playable experience, the kind we have come to experience from Atlus?

"Shin Megami Tensei on the iOS is a relic of a bygone era preserved mostly in its entirety. As such, its game design is riddled with instances of mechanics and choices that maybe made sense for a console RPG back in 1992, but simply don't apply to a modern game- especially not to a game being played on an iOS device, which, I need to point out, is a mobile device."

Objectively, the answer tends more towards the former than the latter- much like Shin Megami Tensei: Soul Hackers on the Nintendo 3DS last year, Shin Megami Tensei on the iOS is a relic of a bygone era preserved mostly in its entirety. As such, its game design is riddled with instances of mechanics and choices that maybe made sense for a console RPG back in 1992, but simply don’t apply to a modern game- especially not to a game being played on an iOS device, which, I need to point out, is a mobile device.

This must be remembered- more than even handhelds, which are enjoyed at home by their audience as much as on the move, iOS games are played by people in short bursts- often for just a few minutes. Any game, therefore, that is put on an iOS device, must make concessions to that fact. Notably, in the case of Shin Megami Tensei, the game experience is hindered by Shin Megami Tensei’s unforgiving save system, which simply does not allow the player to save the game in a dungeon. Considering the fact that the majority of the game takes place in dungeons, this poses a significant problem- you could often go for hours before you got the chance to save again, so you’re faced with the unpleasant prospect of losing all progress every time you exit the game if you haven’t yet reached the next save point.

This would actually have been an issue even if this wasn’t an iOS game- the save system in this game is broken by modern standards. The save points are simply too far spaced- again, this would probably make sense in 1992 (although even then, I wager the game would have been harder than other games on the market simply because of the save system), but today, on a mobile device, it’s brutal.

The issues with the save system aside, the game also suffers from one other, unlikely problem- touch controls. Shin Megami Tensei is a turn based first person dungeon crawler. By all accounts, this game is perfect for an iOS port- touch screen only controls work very well for turn based games, as they don’t require twitch based precise inputs from players. But somehow, the touch controls in this game are a little screwed up.

The controls are all crammed on the bottom of the screen unceremoniously- this makes playing the game on an iPhone or iPod Touch an unsatisfactory prospect. iPad is where they shine, however, with enough screen estate per ‘button’ and for the game itself, and playing the game on landscape orientation does allay the problem somewhat.

"In spite of all these issues, once the game gets going, it pulls you in."

This in itself doesn’t change that the character movement and control feels clunky- heavy feeling characters are sort of a hallmark of the Shin Megami Tensei games, but for whatever reason, here it stands out more. Maybe because touch controls lack the tactileness of physical controls, or maybe because the game actually is clunkier owing to being the first in the series, but moving the character often feels slow and lagged.

After all of this criticism, you might have determined that the game probably isn’t worth your time. Hold it right there- I didn’t say that. I was just pointing out the objective issues with the game as they are. In spite of all of these, however, I would recommend the game to JRPG or series fans, especially if they have an iPad, and can plan their sessions so they can play it for a few hours at a time. You see, in spite of all of these problems- a poor save system, bad controls, clunky character movement- once the game gets going, it pulls you in.

Shin Megami Tensei is the earliest instance of the now familiar context- demons attack Tokyo, all hell breaks loose, you must determine the fate of the world. Along the way, you will fight demons, recruit them to fight by your side, fuse them to create stronger demons, and eventually, based on how you morally align yourself, bring chaos to the world.

"All of this is wrapped up in a deep, philosophically provocative, and thematically satisfying story."

The gameplay itself is nuanced too- as mentioned above, there’s a whole lot to keep track of, and it’s best to always keep track of your bearings. A lot of these aren’t as refined or complex as they would be in, say, Shin Megami Tensei IV, especially since they represent the first instance of these appearing at all, but they are sufficiently engrossing (although the game itself, in something that again betrays its age, be completely obtuse at times with its hints and intended progression. Too many times, you will just find yourself at a complete loss as to where to go).

All said and done, would I recommend Shin Megami Tensei to the average mobile gamer? No, not even close. This is not a game meant for the regular Angry Birds/Doodle Jump/Flappy Bird/Temple Run player. But if you’re a fan of either Atlus or JRPGs, and own an iOS device (especially an iPad), then Shin Megami Tensei is heavily recommended- you might think it just a historical curiosity, but its good game design that has largely stood the test of time, in spite of a poor save system and bad touch controls marring the experience somewhat.

Now get us Shin Megami Tensei II, Atlus.

This game was reviewed on iPad and iPod Touch.

Game Overview:

In ‘The Wolf Among Us’ players take up  the role of Bigby Wolf . The game will feature similar gameplay mechanics found in Telltales’s last year’s The Walking Dead. So players who have the played those games will feel right at home with ‘The Wolf Among Us.’ The first episode titled ‘Faith’ sees Bigby acting Sheriff as he investigates the mystery behind one of his fellow Fables murder.

The Wolf Among Us is developed and published by Telltale Games for the PC, Xbox 360, PS3 and MAC.

Check out the video walkthrough of The Wolf Among Us Episode 1 ‘Faith’ below and let us know if you have any questions in the comments section below.

For video game guides, tips and wikis, check out our gaming portal here.

GamingBolt was able to get in touch with Howard Tsao, CEO of Muse Games. They are currently developing Guns of Icarus Online for the PlayStation 4. The game has already been released on the PC with the PS4 version expected to be released in 2014.

We asked Howard about their decision to go from a turret defense format to a multiplayer FPS, to which he replied:

“We wanted to take the thrilling moments of using the big mounted turret guns, which were always fleeting in games, and make it a core of the game. We wanted to create the thrill of blowing stuff up with mammoth artillery.  To complement the offensive element, we referenced time management games to create a frantic and intense repair-centered defensive component.  To make teamwork really work, we decided to place players as a crew in an enclosed space.

The crew triumphs and perishes together as a single entity.  The crew,being a single unit in combat, needs to coordinate which guns to man and what needs repairs with all hell breaking loose on deck as other ships are torn apart.  We’ve planned the the core combat mechanics and the focus on teamwork from the beginning of the game but it has taken us quite a while and numerous iterations to realize them and get the game to this point.”

With the influx of free to play games over the last few years, one can’t help but wonder how Guns of Icarus Online will compare to them that will be releasing on the PS4.

“We aim for the design of the game and the core combat experience to be inherently balanced, so there is no pay to win in Guns of Icarus Online. And while there is an in game store for cosmetics, the game is not a free to play. I think, ultimately, it’ll come down to whether or not someone, or a group of friends, is going to enjoy crewing an airship in the skies together, performing individual roles, and working together as a team in the Steampunk world that we create. In other words, I think the merit of the gameplay and artistic experience itself will be the primary point of differentiation for us.”

Stay tuned for more Guns of Icarus Online news later this week.

We got in touch with the duo of Sanatana Mishra and Tim Dawson from Witch Beam to talk about what players can expect from Assault Android Cactus. Check it out below.

Rashid Sayed: First of all, can you please introduce yourself and talk a bit about Witch Beam?

Sanatana: Hi I’m Sanatana Mishra and I’m a the designer at Witch Beam, a team of three Australians who are passionate about making games we believe in, even if they are a bit niche.

Tim: I’m Tim Dawson, I’m the artist and programmer!

Rashid Sayed: One of the features that I observed while watching the gameplay videos is that the level and the environment continuously deforms itself. Can you please tell us the mechanics behind the same and how it will affect gameplay?

Sanatana: Well each level has a central theme that runs through it, in the case of ‘Influx’ it’s a fully dynamic environment made up of 1×1 meter cubes that can transform in to any arrangement we want. It starts off fairly simple with a small enclosed environment with a few pillars and hole, but each new reconfiguration presents new challenges both in the landscape and what kind of enemies you face. For example we can drop all of the pillars away to create an open play space full of holes and unleash a ton of projectile firing enemies and turrets that create bullet-hell style gameplay as there’s nowhere you can hide.

"There will be a roster of 8 playable androids, 4 of which have to be unlocked throughout the campaign. Each one has a unique primary & secondary weapon that create their play style, and we’re considering other stat changes to separate them even further."

Rashid Sayed: The game also supports co-op up to four players. How will the experience differ compared to the single player campaign?

Sanatana: We really wanted to the weapons to keep their powerful feeling in co-op play so we actually scape up the number of enemies but keep their stats the same. To keep things co-operative we share the battery energy amongst all players but a special crown appears above the player who is carrying the team, it’s sort of a competitive co-op experience.

Rashid Sayed: How many characters will the game have? And will each of them special abilities and skills?

Sanatana: There will be a roster of 8 playable androids, 4 of which have to be unlocked throughout the campaign. Each one has a unique primary & secondary weapon that create their play style, and we’re considering other stat changes to separate them even further.

Rashid Sayed: Have you guys looked into the customization of the playable characters?

Tim: There’ll be some unlockable character variants, different hats or a change of colour scheme, but it will be limited.

Rashid Sayed: How long will the game be? Furthermore, how are you guys ensuring that the game will have high replay value?

Sanatana: It’ll probably take players a few hours for the initial campaign play through but that could change drastically depending on your skill level as it’s a challenging game. For an arcade experience I would say we’re quite big but like any good arcade game we’ve focused on replay value in all of our designs: 8 characters with drastically different play styles, a full rank system for each stage, virtual currency that you can use to unlock additional content like artwork, codex entries, and EX options like Retro Camera mode that drastically change the game.

There’s also Boss Rush & Endless mode for you to tackle once Campaign is complete, full online leaderboards for the hyper-competitive out there, and every mode is playable in full co-op with up to four players.

"The campaign will span 25 levels including 5 unique boss encounters, we’ll have some additional content in Boss Rush & Endless Modes and after launch we’re hoping to release a super intense version of the campaign in the vein of Super Meat Boy’s Dark World."

Tim: Part of the replay value is building a game that holds up to repeated scrutiny. You can blast through a level and enjoy it, but if you come back to a stage, figure out the spawn timings, know when the pickups will drop, try to chain multi-kills together, it still holds up. It just becomes a different kind of fun, like the whole level is a puzzle where everyone is shooting at you.

Rashid Sayed: The gameplay trailer puts a lot of emphasis on weapons. What kind of weapons can we expect in the game?

Sanatana: Our starting four characters are meant to give a good cross-section of the expected twin stick play styles, but the unlockable characters will be a lot more unusual with weapons like Starch’s Laser that has a variable beam width/damage based on distance to the enemy and the Rail Gun that penetrates targets. We’re still tweaking and testing a variety of weapons so nothing is set in stone yet.

Tim: I like guns that shoot black holes.

Rashid Sayed: Have you guys nailed down on the number of levels the game will have?

Sanatana: The campaign will span 25 levels including 5 unique boss encounters, we’ll have some additional content in Boss Rush & Endless Modes and after launch we’re hoping to release a super intense version of the campaign in the vein of Super Meat Boy’s Dark World.

Rashid Sayed: The game is scheduled to be released on Steam, Wii U, PS4 and PS Vita but not on the Xbox One. Can you please let us know the reason behind the same as Microsoft seems to have a change of heart toward indies?

Sanatana: Well when we looked in to the Xbox situation around E3 there was simply no way for us to release on the platform without giving up our independence, Microsoft didn’t want to deal with a small indie like us. Now we’re locked in on 6 platforms and too busy to even consider adding a 7th. If this was always their plan as they claimed I have to wonder why they didn’t mention anything about it until a few weeks ago, even to interested developers.

"We’re going to support cross-save and cross-buy so you only pay once for the game across PS4 & Vita!"

Rashid Sayed: As someone who is working on multiple platforms, what are your thoughts on the unified architecture and 8GB GDDR5 RAM of the PlayStation 4?

Sanatana: Honestly we’re still too early to be talking about the pros and cons of hardware choices, the PS4 is more than powerful enough to create the experience we want with Cactus and that’s what matters to us.

Rashid Sayed: Are you guys planning to use the touch pad controls of the DualShock 4 controller? If yes can you please share details about the same?

Sanatana: Unfortunately Cactus is a pretty demanding game in terms of thumb dexterity, so there’s not a lot of opportunity for the touch pad. We’re more focused on how we can use the light bar to display information (like matching its color to your android in co-op, or your health in single player) and the new rumble system will be great for feedback.

Rashid Sayed: Gaijin Entertainment the developers of War Thunder recently claimed that the PS4’s GPU is 40% more powerful than the Xbox One. What are your thoughts on the same? Furthermore has the PS4’s GPU eased out the number of things you can do on screen in Assault Android Cactus?

Sanatana: From a pure tech perspective it’s undeniable that the PS4 GPU will make it the most powerful console in the world and for us that means we can turn on every visual flourish we want while keeping a smooth & responsive 60fps. We’re focused on every version running at 60fps including Vita, frame rate is king.

Rashid Sayed: Do you plan to support cross saves on the PS4 and PS Vita version?

Sanatana: We’re going to support cross-save and cross-buy so you only pay once for the game across PS4 & Vita!

"We’re going to support the Nunchuk + Wiimote combination as a replacement of keyboard & mouse which should be a fun control scheme, other than that they should be identical feature wise and we’re still quite a ways off from the release so it’s not worth talking about graphics comparisons yet."

Rashid Sayed: How will the Wii U version differ compared to say the PS4 and PC versions?

Sanatana: We’re going to support the Nunchuk + Wiimote combination as a replacement of keyboard & mouse which should be a fun control scheme, other than that they should be identical feature wise and we’re still quite a ways off from the release so it’s not worth talking about graphics comparisons yet.

Tim: I’m itching to do something interesting with the screen! But it’s all up in the air at the moment.

Rashid Sayed: Is there anything else you want to say about the game to our readers?

Sanatana: You can check out a demo of Assault Android Cactus right now on Steam where it’s available for Windows, OS X, and Linux! We’ve also just launched on Early Access if you want to support us and give feedback ahead of our full release in November on PC and early 2014 on PS4/Vita/Wii U.

Well, folks. It’s official. Apple has releases an official statement confirming the rumors of a September 10th unveiling of a new product in the iPhone line. The iOS 7 announcement page on Apple’s website reflects the system’s spangled new neon look, sporting the crispest colors and apparent functionality to date.

It is very safe to assume that following the announcement of the new Apple product line, we will start to see pre-order availability open up shortly thereafter. As of now, in addition to iOS 7 for all new (and some old) products, we are expecting to get releases for the iPhone 5s and the budget priced iPhone 5c. The 5c will be manufactured with cheaper, less durable materials, but will still maintain most to all of the iPhone’s functionality.

The release conference is set to kick off at 10 AM Pacific Time in California on September 10th. Don’t miss out, or you might miss the pre-order rush.

Source: Eurogamer

Facebook has announced a new mobile gaming pilot program which will help “high-potential” small and medium sized mobile development companies get some exposure. They will do this by advertising these apps to their 800 million mobile facebook users.

According to facebook, the aim is for games of a certain genre to reach the eyes of players who have already shown an affinity for that genre.

Facebook software engineer, Victor Medeiros had this to say: “We are invested in the success of these games, and in exchange for a revenue share, we will be collaborating deeply with developers in our program by helping them attract high-quality, long-term players for their games. We’ll also be sharing analytics tools and the expertise we’ve gained from helping games grow on our platform for more than six years.”

What can be read from this is that facebook may be using it’s intimate knowledge of our gaming habits to better market to us games we may like. Is this a good thing or a bad thing?

Some of the games that have been selected from around the world for this pilot program are:

• Brainbow’s puzzle-packed adventure game, Dr. Newton: The Great Brain Adventure
• Certain Affinity’s pirate-themed strategy game, Age of Booty: Tactics
• Dragonplay’s social poker game, Live Hold’Em
• Gameloft’s medieval strategy/simulation game, Kingdoms & Lords
• Gamevil’s train management simulation Train City
• KiwiGames’ quest-based exploration game, Shipwrecked
• Outplay Entertainment’s explore-and-battle fantasy game, Monster Legacy
• Space Ape’s multiplayer combat strategy game, Samurai Siege
• WeMade Entertainment’s endless-running game WINDrunner

Source: Develop-Online

Well there are plenty of options out now and it’s easier than ever before to find older consoles, handhelds and PC hardware at great prices. Regardless of what you’re currently focused on;  old, new or you’re just working on a massive back catalog of titles until the new consoles come out  there is no need to rush into the future. With great older hardware available, or even the new and woefully under-appreciated Wii-U someone out there has whatever it is you might be looking for. We’ve got a whole industry’s history worth checking out before November.

Square Enix have announced their line up for E3 2013. Surprisingly there is no mention of of Final Fantasy Versus XIII and to be honest that quite understandable since they would not reveal their biggest game before E3 even begins.

The line up seems solid with the inclusion of Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII and Thief. Howevere I am intrigued by the inclusion of Deus Ex: The Fall. Eventhough it is just a tablet game, I am looking forward to it.

Check out the entire line up below:

Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn
Thief
Murdered Soul Suspect
Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII
Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 Remix
Deus Ex Human Revolution: Director’s Cut
Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD Remaster
Deus Ex: The Fall
Mini Ninjas

Are you looking forward to this line up? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.