The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences will honor the year’s finest achievements in video games with nominations for the 18th Annual D.I.C.E. Awards. The winners will be revealed at the Awards ceremony on February 5th at The Joint at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Las Vegas at the conclusion of the 2015 D.I.C.E. Summit. The Academy also confirmed comedian, podcaster, voice actor and cartoonist Pete Holmes will serve as host.
Fifty-six games received a D.I.C.E. nomination. Leading the charge is Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor with nine nominations, including Game of the Year. Rounding out the Game of the Year nominations are: Destiny, Dragon Age: Inquisition, and Far Cry 4 and Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft. Several games received multiple nods, including: Far Cry 4 with seven; Destiny and Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft with six; Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare and Monument Valley with five each; and inFAMOUS Second Son, The Vanishing of Ethan Carter, and Valiant Hearts: The Great War with four each.
The D.I.C.E. Awards ceremony will live stream in its entirety beginning at 7pm PT/10pm ET via Twitch at www.twitch.tv/dice. Also being honored this year as the Pioneer Award recipients are Ralph Baer, the inventor of the Magnavox Odyssey, and Al Alcorn, the creator of PONG.
2K and Turtle Rock Studios today announced DLC details for Evolve, including a Hunting Season Pass, Digital Deluxe Edition, PC Monster Race Edition, a fourth playable monster, Behemoth, and more. The Evolve Hunting Season Pass includes four new playable Hunter characters available this spring, and three exclusive Monster skins available at launch on February 10th. Fans planning to buy the Hunting Season Pass can purchase the Evolve Digital Deluxe Edition, which includes the Evolve main game plus the Hunting Season Pass at a greater savings value. The Evolve Digital Deluxe Edition is available for pre-purchase now as a digital download for Xbox One, and will be available soon as a digital download for the PlayStation 4. The Evolve PC Monster Race Edition adds even more content and savings, and is available for pre-purchase now as a digital download for PC from participating retailers.
Additionally, Evolve is now available for pre-purchase as a digital download for Xbox One. Players who pre-purchase Evolve digitally on Xbox One starting today can pre-load the game now through launch on February 10th. Also starting today, players can pre-load the Evolve Xbox One Open Beta, which begins at 12:00 PM ET on January 15th. Pre-purchasing Evolve or the Evolve Digital Deluxe Edition for Xbox One grants players an exclusive instant unlock of the third Monster and the third tier of Hunters at launch and for use during the Xbox One Open Beta.
2K and Turtle Rock Studios today also revealed the fourth playable Monster: Behemoth. Behemoth is a tank of a Monster that becomes a giant, destructive boulder and rolls through the environment for quick traversal. Behemoth will be available for purchase this spring for $14.99, or as part of the Monster Expansion Pack, which is free for those who pre-order and pre-purchase Evolve, and also includes the Savage Goliath Skin at launch.
Activision today announced that Havoc, the first DLC pack for Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare, will be available first, exclusively on Xbox Live for Xbox One and Xbox 360 beginning on January 27th, with other platforms to follow.
Havoc includes four new multiplayer maps, access to the AE4 directed energy assault rifle, the AE4 Widowmaker custom variant, plus a new Zombies cooperative mode called Exo Zombies, that features a story told through the eyes of four employees of the Atlas corporation, played by a celebrity cast consisting of John Malkovich, Bill Paxton, Rose McGowan, and Jon Bernthal. Players enter a world where a DNA bioweapon unexpectedly spawns a bloodthirsty, ravenous mutant horde infecting an entire secret Atlas research facility and sending personnel running for their lives. Following a failed evacuation, four survivors, un-trained and underprepared, must face the most vicious mutations ever unleashed.
Paradox Interactive and Colossal Order have released the first of three developer videos for Cities: Skylines, the upcoming city simulation game for PC scheduled for release in early 2015.
Sega today announced that ‘Safe Haven’, the third of five Survivor Mode add-on packs for Alien: Isolation, is now available to download. ‘Safe Haven’ introduces the Salvage Challenge, a new way to play Survivor Mode, tasking players to complete a series of ten challenges without dying.
‘Safe Haven’ also introduces a new playable character in Hughes, Sevastopol Station’s Communications Manager. Trapped in a safe room on the lower decks of the Station, his only chance of escape is to take on ten tasks provided to him through the communications terminal. Each task will require stealth and cunning, confronting a series of the station’s toughest and most resilient foes as he works to restore communications and escape his confinement.
Double Fine Productions, in collaboration with Lucasfilm, announced that Grim Fandango Remastered is available to pre-order today on PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita and PC in anticipation of its January 27th launch date. The game will be listed on PlayStation Network as a Cross-Buy title for $14.99 and sports a new PlayStation 4 dynamic theme as a pre-order bonus. PC pre-orders are also available at GOG.com where the game will be sold DRM-free for $14.99 with exclusive wallpapers for those who purchase before launch.
Rockstar Games today announced that the PC version of Grand Theft Auto V has been delayed and has a new release date of March 24th.
Ubisoft today announced that Assassin’s Creed Unity – Dead Kings DLC is now available for free for all Assassin’s Creed Unity players on Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC.
Ubisoft today announced that Escape from Durgesh Prison, a new time trial where players race against the clock and challenge other players for the top spot on the leaderboards, is now available for download on PlayStatoin 4, PlayStation 3, Xbox One, Xbox 360 and PC.
2K today announced the availability of new DLC for WWE 2K15, featuring more than 30 new moves, including many made famous by WWE Superstars Bray Wyatt, Cesaro, Jimmy Uso and Jey Uso, as well as WWE Divas Nikki Bella and Brie Bella. The DLC offering includes the following items:
New Moves Pack
Game Over Online