A night to remember
On December 3rd, 2015, game developers, musicians, and celebrities from around the world gathered to celebrate the joy of video games at the second annual Game Awards. In addition to the dozen or so awards handed out to the best games of the year, we also got to see a handful of new trailers and world premieres. Here's a full rundown of the biggest news of the show.
Lara Croft hunts witches in new Baba Yaga DLC trailer
Rise of the Tomb Raider's first chunk of DLC, Baba Yaga: The Temple of the Witch, sees Lara tracking down a supposed witch through a freaky, mist-filled forest. And judging by this new trailer, you can add 'trippy' to that list of descriptors, given what Lara starts seeing after she's trapped with some hallucinogenic pollen. Spooky things are clearly afoot in this side story, including reanimated skeletons, visions of Lara's dead father, and buildings that lurch around on two feet.
Nathan Drake gets the crap kicked out of him in a new trailer
We got to see another, incredibly brief glimpse of Uncharted 4: A Thief's End, this time with the inclusion of a potential new villain for Nathan Drake. Nate answers the door to find a woman who appears to be looking for information. When Drake attempts to shut the door on this mysterious woman, she cold-cocks him with a mean right hook. As they're about to start fighting, the trailer cuts to a montage of gameplay footage, all of which you can watch right here.
Shaq Fu: The Legend Reborn makes its grand premiere
After some masterful trolling by Shaquille O'Neal (who convinced an entire room that there were free copies of the original '90s fighting game Shaq Fu under their seats), he revealed the first gameplay footage of the upcoming reboot, Shaq Fu: The Legend Reborn. The game looks as ridiculous as the original, with a colorful cast of characters, and over-the-top special attacks.
Telltale is making a Batman game
So this is pretty neat: Telltale, the studio behind games like The Walking Dead, Tales from the Borderlands, and The Wolf Among Us, is currently working on a Batman game, slated to hit in 2016. The trailer was incredibly vague, but the artwork features bold, chiaroscuro strokes and a brooding atmosphere, and it seems to be focusing on the nature of Bruce Wayne and how it relates to Batman's world.
Far Cry Primal lets you hunt the prehistoric wilderness with a freakin' saber-toothed tiger
We were wondering what a prehistoric Far Cry would look like, and we got our first glimpse of gameplay from the upcoming Far Cry Primal. Primal trades guns for spears and arrows, and you'll be able to track the wilderness with a variety of beasts, from wolves to massive saber-toothed tigers. The gameplay trailer offers the perfect snapshot of this Stone Age FPS before its release in February 2016.
Psychonauts 2 is officially a thing - if you crowdfund it
In a surprise announcement, Tim Schafer revealed that Psychonauts 2 is officially going to be made but only if you crowdfund it first. It's currently featured on Fig, a special site designed by the heads of several indie development studios that allow backers to actually make an investment in projects, rather than simply make a donation.
Quantum Break gets a new trailer, still arriving in April
A new trailer for Quantum Break continues to show a gorgeous looking game, where you'll be able to stop time at will. It's still slated for April 5th, 2016.
Rock Band coming to Oculus with Rock Band VR
Harmonix and Oculus are teaming up to let you rock in front of a virtual crowd in virtual reality. Not much is known about Rock Band VR, but it appears to give you a first-person view of your guitar, the band, and the people jamming to your pretend guitar playing.
Shadow Complex Remastered for free on PC right now, coming to Xbox One and PS4 in 2016
The modern Metroid-style classic Shadow Complex is coming to PC, Xbox One and PS4. If you head to Shadow Complex's website from now until the end of December, you'll be able to grab a PC copy for free, while console versions of the game will be coming early 2016.
Rocket League coming to Xbox One
Xbox gamers looking to get in on some car soccer action won't be left in the lurch any more, as Rocket League is officially headed to Xbox One in February 2016. There are even going to be a few exclusive cars based off of iconic Halo and Gears of War vehicles.
Kojima barred from attending The Game Awards by Konami, according to host
Well, this is disappointing. According to a statement by host Geoff Keighley, Konami prevented Hideo Kojima from attending The Games Awards. Kiefer Sutherland accepted the award for Best Action/Adventure game in his honor.
