Unity Engine Dispute Cripples Multiple Games [Update]

A dispute between Unity and the developer of the middleware SpatialOS is impacting developers. Studios have had to pull their games due to the conflict, and SpatialOS developer Improbable has strong words for Unity’s approach.

In a blog post, Improbable explained that a change in Unity’s terms of service puts SpatialOS games in breach of the license terms. In fact, it suggests that Unity clarified directly to the company that the change in the TOS was specifically to disallow services like theirs to work in the Unity engine. It says Unity also revoked the license due to another breach in an unspecified manner. Other engines remain unaffected.

[Update: Improbable has now published another blog post in which it accepts some of the blame alongside Unity but suggests the problems are deeper and could have involved any company. It proposes that the games industry “might need to consider making some changes which hugely increase the rate of innovation and the collective success we could all experience.” It doesn’t outline any specific solutions, instead seemingly seeking to initiate a dialogue on the subject.]

Going forward, Improbable says it is attempting to negotiate with Unity, and is offering development support to those who use the SpatialOS tech in the meantime, including opening an emergency fund. It’s also looking into moving to a different engine as a last resort.

“This is an action by Unity that has immediately done harm to projects across the industry, including those of extremely vulnerable or small scale developers and damaged major projects in development over many years,” the company said. “Games that have been funded based on the promise of SpatialOS to deliver next-generation multiplayer are now endangered due to their choice of game engine. Live games are now in legal limbo.

“All customers who entered into a relationship with us and Unity previously did so on the good faith understanding that the terms they signed up to, sometimes years ago, would allow them to be successful and not carry additional charges.”

Indie developers like Spilt Milk and Vitor de Magalhaes have made announcements on Twitter of their projects going on hiatus, pending a resolution to the conflict.

Get Aftercharge Free with IGN Prime

IGN Prime has partnered with Chainsawesome Games to bring you Aftercharge!

IGN Prime members, grab your copy of the electrifying 3 Vs 3 first person shooter, Aftercharge for Steam/PC and get ready for some high-octane battles.

Game Features:

  • Unique blend of fresh mechanics: An invisible team fighting an invincible team, reviving allies instantly with no limit and zero cooldown on abilities are only a few mechanics that make Aftercharge a shooter you’ve never played before.
  • Bite-size competitive matches: The teams are small, the maps are small, the rounds are short, the action is always within sight and it never stops.
  • Continue reading…

Marvel’s New Vision And Scarlet Witch TV Show Finds A Writer – GameSpot Universe News Update

You need a javascript enabled browser to watch videos.

Please use a html5 video capable browser to watch videos.

This video has an invalid file format.

Sorry, but you can’t access this content!

Please enter your date of birth to view this video

By clicking ‘enter’, you agree to GameSpot’s
Terms of Use and Privacy Policy

Video Games Have a Dead Football Player Problem

I don’t quite remember when I realized I was playing football with dead people. Tecmo Super Bowl has been a part of my life about as long as I could remember. It exists at the perfect junction of accessibility, depth, realism, and fun. Its legacy is so well regarded that decades after launch, unlicensed cartridge versions with updated NFL player and team rosters are still released annually. But it wasn’t until last year that I first connected the death of NFL linebacker Junior Seau with the classic video football game.

Seau’s remarkable career made his death by suicide at age 43 national news. He’s one of a number of players from the Tecmo Bowl and Tecmo Super Bowl rosters who have died since the games’ NES-era releases. Others include Terry Long, Mike Webster, and Andre Waters.

Continue reading…

Get This Free PC Game While Supplies Last

Everyone likes free stuff. Right now, just for signing up for the Humble Bundle newsletter, you can get a free copy of the game A Story About My Uncle, which normally sells for $15. (You can still get it even if you’re already signed up–just click the button). Make sure to grab your copy soon, because this freebie is only available while supplies last between now and January 12.

A Story About My Uncle is a story-driven first-person platformer. The narrative is delivered as a bedtime story by a father to his daughter. As for the gameplay, you spend most of your time running and jumping over pits between floating islands, using a grappling beam for assistance. There’s no combat, so all of the challenge comes from executing your landings and properly aiming your grapple beam.

No Caption ProvidedGallery image 1Gallery image 2Gallery image 3Gallery image 4Gallery image 5

On GameSpot’s sister site Metacritic, A Story About My Uncle currently has a rating of 73 out of 100, which places it in the “mixed or average” category. That’s not bad, but even so, you don’t have anything to lose if you’re looking for a new game to play.

This isn’t the only PC game you can get without spending money at the moment. Also available free for a limited time via Steam is a Bomberman-like arena combat game called Blast Zone Tournament. Over on the Epic Games Store, you can grab What Remains of Edith Finch for free. And finally, if you’re an Amazon / Twitch Prime member, you have 11 free PC games waiting for you between now and the end of January.

Resident Evil 2 1-Shot Demo Challenge

Sorry! Your browser is not one that we can support in chat any longer. Its either too old or your IT guy really did a job on it and its ‘too safe’ for us. We thought a lot about this and its just too darn hard to support your browser while we support newer browsers that play so much better with others on the internet. We really hope you can upgrade. If Mel the IT guy riding high on his little power trip sez no then we got nothin for ya man.

You can still watch the live stream so at least you have that going for you. Which is nice…

We strongly suggest
Chrome
We’re totally cool with
Safari (no private browsing)
We deal with
Firefox
Oh and there’s
Internet Explorer (10 and newer)

Free The Art & Making of Aquaman Book Giveaway

We’re giving away The Art & Making of Aquaman books to three (3) lucky fans. Entering into our Instagram giveaway below is easy — just like and follow for a chance to win!

The Art & Making of Aquaman Book Giveaway

Official Sweepstakes Rules

NO PURCHASE OR WIRELESS DEVICE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. A PURCHASE WILL NOT INCREASE YOUR CHANCES OF WINNING. OPEN TO LEGAL RESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES, WHO ARE AT LEAST 18 YEARS OLD OR AGE OF MAJORITY, WHICHEVER IS OLDER IN YOUR STATE OF RESIDENCE, AT DATE OF ENTRY INTO SWEEPSTAKES. VOID IN ALL U.S. TERRITORIES AND POSSESSIONS AND WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW. IF YOU ARE ACCESSING THIS SWEEPSTAKES VIA YOUR WIRELESS DEVICE, DATA RATES MAY APPLY.

Administrator & Sponsor: GameSpot, a Division of CBS Interactive, Inc. (“CBSI”), 235 Second Street, San Francisco, California 94105.

Prize Provider: Insight Editions, 800 A Street, San Rafael, CA 94901

Sweepstakes Entities: CBSI & Insight Editions

THIS SWEEPSTAKES IS NOT SPONSORED, ENDORSED OR ADMINISTERED BY INSTAGRAM.

1. Acceptance of Rules. By entering “The Art & Making of Aquaman Book Giveaway” (the “Sweepstakes”) operated on the CBSI social web site accessible at the domain “instagram.com/GameSpot” (the “CBSI Service”), you hereby accept and agree to these official rules (the “Official Rules”) of this Sweepstakes and the decisions of the Administrator in connection with this Sweepstakes, whose decisions are final.

No purchase, entry fee or use of wireless device is necessary to enter or win. If you are a wireless service subscriber and have a smartphone, tablet or other wireless device that allows you access to the Internet, you may also enter the Sweepstakes via any of those devices during the Promotion Period (as defined below). If you chose to access this Sweepstakes via any of those wireless devices, you may be charged message and/or data rates according to the Terms and Conditions of your Service Agreement with your wireless carrier. Participants should contact their wireless carrier for information on rate plans and charges, if any, related to your participation in this Sweepstakes.

2. Eligibility. This Sweepstakes is offered and open to persons who are: (a) Registered Users (as defined below); (b) legal residents of the United States; and (c) at least 18 years old or age of majority, whichever is older in their state of residence, at the date of entry in this Sweepstakes. For purposes of these Official Rules, “Registered User(s)” means a person who has successfully completed the registration form, obtained a user identification, an associated password on the social website Instagram. There is no fee associated with becoming an Instagram Registered User. Employees, directors, and the immediate family members of the Sweepstakes Entities and their parents, affiliated and subsidiary companies, advertising and promotion agencies and legal and financial advisors are not eligible to participate in this Sweepstakes. For purpose of the foregoing, “immediate family” means parents, spouses, children, siblings or any members of the same households of such employees and directors. This Sweepstakes is void in all U.S. territories and possessions and where prohibited by law.

3. Entering the Sweepstakes: To enter the Sweepstakes, if not already, become a Registered User (as specified above), and enter, during the Promotion Period (as defined below), via any one (1) of, or all three (3) of the ways set forth herein:

1. Follow @GameSpot + @insighteditions

2. Like the post related to the Sweepstakes

3. Tag your friends in separate comments on the CBSI Service. Participants may receive a maximum of five (5) entries to the Sweepstakes via this entry method; one (1) per each unique friend tagged.

Limit of seven (7) entries per person during the Promotion Period.

4. Promotion Period. The Sweepstakes begins on January 10, 2019 at 12:00 p.m. Pacific Time (“PT”) and ends at 11:59 p.m. PT on January 15, 2019 (the “Promotion Period”).

5. Prizes. The Sweepstakes will award three (3) prizes (the “Prizes”). Each Prize consists of one (1) “The Art & Making of Aquaman” Book. Each Prize has an approximate retail value (“ARV”) of Forty-Five Dollars (US$45.00). Total ARV of all Prizes to be awarded in this Sweepstakes is One Hundred Thirty-Five Dollars (US$135.00).

6. Prize Restrictions. No assignment, transfer, conversion to cash or cash redemption or substitution of a Prize is permitted, except Administrator reserves the right to substitute a Prize with a prize of comparable or greater value, should a Prize or part of a Prize become unavailable. Prize is solely for personal use and may not be used in conjunction with any other promotion. All Prize details are at the sole discretion of the Sweepstakes Entities.

7. Odds/Drawings/Winner Notification. Odds of winning a Prize depends on the number of eligible entries received during the Promotion Period. On or about January 16, 2019, the Prize drawings will be conducted at random by Administrator, whose decisions are final and binding in all respects. The potential Prize winners (the “Winners”) will be notified by Administrator, via a message to their Instagram Service account. Potential Winners will be asked to provide their personal information, such as their name, physical address, date of birth and phone number in order to confirm eligibility and compliance with these Official Rules. Administrator will select up to two (2) alternate Winners per Prize. If no contact has been made with the alternates after a reasonable effort has been made during three (3) business days from the first notification attempt to the last alternate, such Prize will not be awarded.

8. Prize Taxes. All federal, state, local and other tax liabilities arising from this Sweepstakes, including, without limitation, winning a Prize, will be the sole responsibility of each Winner.

9. Affidavit of Eligibility/Liability Release and Publicity Release. Winners may be required to complete, execute and return an Affidavit of Eligibility/Liability Release, and where lawful, a Publicity Release (collectively, the “Release Forms”), as well as a W-9 tax form within five (5) days of notification of winning. Failure to return Release Forms timely, or if a Prize notification or a Prize is returned as non-deliverable, or if a Winner is found not to be eligible or not in compliance with these Official Rules, may result in disqualification with an alternate Winner selected in accordance with these Official Rules.

10. Publicity Release Terms. Except where prohibited by law, a Winner’s acceptance of a Prize constitutes permission for the Sweepstakes Entities to use Winner’s name, photograph, likeness, statements, biographical information, voice, and address (city and state) worldwide and in all forms of media, in perpetuity, without further compensation.

11. Improper Conduct. Administrator, in its sole discretion, may disqualify any entrant from participation in or use of any or all portions of this Sweepstakes, and refuse to award a Prize, if a Winner engage(s) in any conduct Administrator deems to be improper, unfair or otherwise adverse to the operation of the Sweepstakes or detrimental to other entrants of the Sweepstakes. Such improper conduct includes, without limitation, falsifying personal information required during entrant registration or Prize claim, violating any term or condition stated herein, accumulating entries through methods such as automated computer scripts or any other programming techniques, allowing others to use entrant’s personal information for the purpose of accumulating entries, or intentionally trying to defraud, reverse engineer, disassemble or otherwise tamper with the computer programs in connection with this Sweepstakes. Winners agree that Administrator may void a Prize or any part of a Prize that a Winner may have won and/or require the return of a Prize or any part of a Prize that a Winner may have won as a result of such improper conduct. Winners further acknowledge that any forfeiture of a Prize and/or return of a Prize shall in no way prevent Administrator from pursuing other avenues of recourse, such as criminal or civil proceedings in connection with such conduct. WARNING: ANY ATTEMPT TO DELIBERATELY DAMAGE OR UNDERMINE THE LEGITIMATE OPERATION OF THIS SWEEPSTAKES MAY BE A VIOLATION OF CRIMINAL AND CIVIL LAWS, AND SHOULD SUCH AN ATTEMPT BE MADE, EACH OF THE SWEEPSTAKES ENTITIES RESERVES THE RIGHT TO SEEK DAMAGES OR OTHER REMEDIES FROM ANY SUCH PERSON(S) RESPONSIBLE FOR SUCH ATTEMPT TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW.

12. Integrity of Sweepstakes. If, for any reason, the Sweepstakes is not capable of running as planned by reason of infection by computer virus, worms, bugs, tampering, unauthorized intervention, fraud, technical failures, or any other causes which Administrator, in its sole opinion believes could corrupt or affect the administration, security, fairness, integrity or proper conduct of this Sweepstakes, Administrator reserves the right at its sole discretion to cancel, terminate, modify or suspend this Sweepstakes and select the Winners from entries received prior to the action taken or in such other manner as Administrator may deem fair and appropriate.

13. Lost or Corrupted Entries. The Sweepstakes Entities and their parents, affiliated and subsidiary companies and advertising and promotion agencies, assume no liability and are not responsible for, and you hereby forever waive any rights to any claim in connection with, lost, late, incomplete, corrupted, stolen, misdirected, illegible or postage-due entries or mail, if applicable; or for any computer, telephone, cable, network, satellite, electronic or Internet hardware or software malfunctions, unauthorized human intervention, or the incorrect or inaccurate capture of entry or other information, or the failure to capture any such information. The Sweepstakes Entities and their parents, affiliated and subsidiary companies and advertising and promotion agencies, are not responsible for any incorrect or inaccurate information, whether caused by registration information submitted by end users or tampering, hacking or by any of the equipment or programming associated with or utilized in this Sweepstakes, and assumes no responsibility for any error, omission, interruption, deletion, defect, delay in operation or transmission, communications line failure, theft or destruction or unauthorized access to the Sweepstakes.

14. Damaged Property. The Sweepstakes Entities and their parents, affiliated and subsidiary companies and advertising and promotion agencies, assume no liability and are not responsible for, and you hereby forever waive any rights to any claim in connection with, injury or damage to any entrants or to any other person’s computer or property related to or resulting from participating in this Sweepstakes or downloading materials from this Sweepstakes.

15. Sweepstakes Errors. The Sweepstakes Entities and their parents, affiliated and subsidiary companies and advertising and promotion agencies, assume no liability and are not responsible for, and you hereby forever waive any rights to any claim in connection with errors and/or ambiguity: (a) in the Sweepstakes; (b) in any related advertising or promotions of this Sweepstakes; and/or (c) in these Official Rules. In the event of any ambiguity(s) or error(s) in these Official Rules, Administrator reserves the right to modify these Official Rules for clarification purposes or to correct any such ambiguity(s) or error(s) without materially affecting the terms and conditions of the Sweepstakes.

16. Prizes and Winners. The Sweepstakes Entities and their parents, affiliated and subsidiary companies and advertising and promotion agencies, assume no liability and are not responsible for, and you/entrant hereby forever waive any rights to any claim in connection with, the selection and announcement of the Winners, the distribution of the Prizes, the acceptance/possession and/or use/misuse of any part of a Prize and/or any injury or damage to any entrant’s or third person’s property related to or resulting from any part of a Prize or any part of this Sweepstakes.

17. Release and Indemnity. Each entrant in this Sweepstakes, including, without limitation, the Winners, hereby releases and agrees to hold harmless the Sweepstakes Entities and their parents, affiliates, subsidiaries, advertising and promotion agencies and their respective directors, officers, employees, representatives and agents from any and all liability for any injuries, loss or damage of any kind to person, including death, and property, arising in whole or in part, directly or indirectly, from acceptance, possession, use or misuse of a Prize, participation in this Sweepstakes and participation in any activity related to this Sweepstakes.

18. Limitation of Liability. IN NO EVENT WILL THE SWEEPSTAKES ENTITIES, THEIR PARENTS, AFFILIATES, SUBSIDIARIES AND RELATED COMPANIES, THEIR ADVERTISING OR PROMOTION AGENCIES OR THEIR RESPECTIVE OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, EMPLOYEES, REPRESENTATIVES AND AGENTS, BE RESPONSIBLE OR LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES OR LOSSES OF ANY KIND, INCLUDING DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF YOUR ACCESS TO AND USE OF THE SWEEPSTAKES OR THE DOWNLOADING FROM AND/OR PRINTING MATERIAL DOWNLOADED FROM THE SWEEPSTAKES. SOME JURISDICTIONS MAY NOT ALLOW THE LIMITATIONS OR EXCLUSION OF LIABILITY FOR INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES OR EXCLUSION OF IMPLIED WARRANTIES, SO SOME OF THE ABOVE LIMITATIONS OR EXCLUSIONS MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU. CHECK YOUR LOCAL LAWS FOR ANY RESTRICTIONS OR LIMITATIONS REGARDING THESE LIMITATIONS OR EXCLUSIONS.

19. Disclaimer of Warranties. THE SWEEPSTAKES AND PRIZES ARE PROVIDED “AS IS” WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR NON-INFRINGEMENT.

20. Identity Disputes. In the event of a dispute as to the identity of the winner based on an email address, the winning entry will be declared made by the Authorized Account Holder of the email address and/or wireless phone number submitted at time of registration into Instagram and/or entry into the Sweepstakes. For purposes of these Official Rules, “Authorized Account Holder” is defined as the natural person who is assigned to an email address by an Internet access provider, online service provider or other organization (e.g., business, educational, institution, etc.) that is responsible for assigning email addresses for the domain associated with the submitted email address.

21. Binding Arbitration. The parties waive all rights to trial in any action or proceeding instituted in connection with these Official Rules and/or this Sweepstakes. Any controversy or claim, arising out of, or relating to, these Official Rules and/or this Sweepstakes shall be settled by binding arbitration in accordance with the commercial arbitration rules of the American Arbitration Association. Any such controversy or claim shall be arbitrated on an individual basis and shall not be consolidated in any arbitration with any claim or controversy of any other party. The arbitration shall be conducted in the State of New York, in the City of New York and judgment on the arbitration award may be entered into any court having jurisdiction thereof.

22. Governing Law and Jurisdiction. This promotion is governed by U.S. law and is subject to all applicable federal, state and local laws and regulations. Void where prohibited by law. All issues and questions concerning the construction, validity, interpretation and enforceability of these Official Rules, or the rights and obligations of entrant and Administrator in connection with this Sweepstakes, shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the laws of the State of New York, U.S.A., without giving effect to the conflict of laws rules thereof, and any matters or proceedings which are not subject to arbitration, as set forth in Section 21 of these Official Rules and/or for entering any judgment on an arbitration award, shall take place in the State of New York, in the City of New York.

23. Winner’s List/Official Rules. For the name of the Winners, send a self-addressed stamped envelope for receipt by January 31, 2019 to “Winner List, The Art & Making of Aquaman Book Giveaway” 1401 W. Cypress Creek Road, Suite 200, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33309. For Official Rules, send a self-addressed stamped envelope to the above address marked “Official Rules: The Art & Making of Aquaman Book Giveaway” for receipt by January 31, 2019. Residents of VT may omit postage on the self-addressed envelope. The name of the Winners may be posted, and the Official Rules will be posted on the CBSI Service (i.e. GameSpot.com).

Check Out These Weird Products From CES 2019

CES is the annual showcase of the latest high-tech wizardry and consumer products that are coming to revolutionize your life. But it’s also a showcase of some truly bizarre gadgets ranging from the hyper-specific to the just plain strange.

GameSpot sister site CNET has rounded up these oddities with some truly remarkable finds. Maybe you could use the Orii, a bone conduction ring that broadcasts sounds through your finger and into your ear. Or you could get some exercise with a Verde treadmill, which generates power for your home to trim down your energy bills. Or you can heat your food with the GoSun solar cooker, a sunlight-powered oven.

Some seem a bit impractical or unnecessary. The Monit smart diaper sensor can tell you if your baby’s diaper is dirty, which isn’t that handy considering if it is, you’d have to take it off and change it anyway. And it’s difficult to envision a proper use for the Hyundai Elevate, a concept car with legs that can climb over barriers up to five feet, outside of an Inspector Gadget cartoon. You can see those strange ideas, along with several more, at the CNET gallery, or check out the full scope of CNET CES coverage for much more tech news.

CES also has a lot to do with video games, of course, from new processors and TVs to VR headsets and more. Check out our full GameSpot coverage of CES 2019.

New Dragon Age Game Might Have Multiplayer, Job Listing Suggests

BioWare Edmonton has announced new job postings for an upcoming Dragon Age game, and one of the roles hints the game will include multiplayer. The job is for a franchise technical director, and it’s possibly to work on the Dragon Age title first teased during 2018’s The Game Awards.

According to the job posting, first noticed and reported on by Gear Nuke, BioWare is looking for someone to be “the most senior engineering lead on the game team and a key member of the Dragon Age franchise leadership.” The franchise technical director will “build and mentor the engineering team, build and execute the game technology plan, and define and direct the development process.” They also need to have “experience developing multiplayer games.”

Dragon Age Inquisition, the third and most recent game in the fantasy role-playing game franchise, is the only title in the series to have multiplayer. In Inquisition, the multiplayer mode has you and up to three others making your way through one of three dungeons that are each filled with increasingly difficult computer-controlled enemies. As you and your team progress, you unlock more powerful weapons and abilities. This progress does not tie back to the main campaign though. Perhaps BioWare is planning to further develop this mode for the next Dragon Age game. However, the developer could just as easily be creating a brand-new mode as well.

BioWare hasn’t released much information on the new Dragon Age, but the studio has been teasing another entry to the beloved franchise in the past few months. Executive producer Mark Darrah has confirmed the new game has been in the works for “quite a while” and that it is being made by “core” Dragon Age veterans who also worked on Jade Empire and Baldur’s Gate. BioWare boss Casey Hudson has also teased more Mass Effect is on the way too.

Catherine Is Now Available on PC

Catherine, the unique action-adventure/puzzle game from Atlus, is available now on PC for the first time ever, potentially signaling for more Atlus titles to follow.

SEGA made the announcement today. Officially dubbed Catherine Classic, the game comes with enhancements like the option for 4K resolution, an unlocked framerate, customizable keyboard and mouse controls and optional Japanese Voice Over.

The game is now available to purchase through Steam for $20 USD. It appears the game will come with digital deluxe extras for a limited time, including a digital original soundtrack sampler, desktop and mobile wallpapers, and avatars.

Continue reading…