Report: Fly Dragons in Next Skyrim DLC?

An ingenious user has delved deep into the source code for Skyrim patch 1.8, discovering clues about the next Skyrim expansion.

Bethesda forum user Mardoxx (via Eurogamer) asserts that the next piece of DLC will be titled Dragonborn (Bethesda trademarked the name back in September) and will be set on the island of Solstheim, which lies to the North East of Skyrim. Perhaps most tantalising of all his assertions is the possibility of rising dragons. This could be a scripted event, of course – but still, it's FLYING A DRAGON!

Furthermore, Mardoxx states that main locations will include Raven Rock, Miraak Temple, Castle Karstaag and Telvanni Tower. He or she even claims to have discovered what they believe to be new HUD compass markers showing the new locations:

Clockwise from the top: Telvanni Tower, Solstheim, Raven Rock, Castle Karstaag, Standing Stones, To Skyrim, Miraak Temple.

And here's some of that source code (if that's your sort of thing) listing the new armour types said to be contained in the DLC. You'll also notice that it confirms the name of the expansion as 'Dragonborn'.

$Crafting_$DLC2ArmorBonemold BONEMOLD $Crafting_$DLC2ArmorChitin CHITIN $Crafting_$DLC2ArmorNordic NORDIC $Crafting_$DLC2ArmorStalhrim STALHRIM $Dragonborn Quests Completed Dragonborn Quests Completed $DRAGONBORN_ESMName Dragonborn $DOWNLOADABLE CONTENT_PS3 DOWNLOADABLE CONTENT

Apparently the DLC will let you cast spells on mounts, and contain new creatures and dwemer objects but "they're not that interesting", according to Mardoxx. No information has yet been released concerning future Skyrim DLC.

For all your Elder Scrolls V needs consult IGN's Skyrim Wiki.

Daniel is IGN's UK Staff Writer, and you can be part of the world's worst cult by following him on IGN and Twitter (or not).

Source : ign[dot]com

Mass Effect Trilogy DLC to Vary by Platform

Bioware has confirmed that its Mass Effect Trilogy bundle will include some DLC, but how much will depend on which platform you buy it on.

According to Eurogamer, PC gamers will be getting the best deal in terms of included DLC, while it still isn't clear exactly what PS3 players will receive.

PC copies of Mass Effect Trilogy will apparently come with Mass Effect's Bring Down the Sky and Pinnacle Station add-ons included free of charge, alongside Mass Effect 2's Cerberus Network DLC which unlocks the squadmate Zaeed as well as extra missions and weapons. The PC version will also get Mass Effect 3's online pass.

The Xbox 360 version meanwhile won't come with any of the original Mass Effect DLC, but will get both Mass Effect 2's Cerberus Network content and also the final game's online pass.

In terms of what PS3 players should expect, Bioware has apparently refused to divulge exactly what will be included on-disc but promised that more info would be coming "soon".

In addition, the game's release date has also been tweaked; it's now being released in America on November 6 for Xbox 360 and PC, while the date for the PS3 version is still "TBA". No release information for territories outside of America has been announced.

Luke Karmali is IGN's UK Editorial Assistant. You too can revel in mediocrity by following him on IGN and on Twitter.

Source : ign[dot]com

Who Kojima Wants to Play Snake in MGS Movie

Speaking at the Eurogamer Expo in London today, Hideo Kojima has shed some light on the casting process for the upcoming Metal Gear Solid movie, which is to be produced by X-Men and Spider-Man's Avi Arad.

Although many Kojima fans will know that the legendary game developer originally wanted a career in film, he is not disappointed that he will not be the one to write the script or direct the upcoming Metal Gear Solid production. "I should not be the one to make Metal Gear into a movie," he said, although he will be working alongside Arad on script and casting.

As for who should play Snake, Kojima revealed some insight into the casting process. Originally he'd wanted a big star - specifically, he mentioned Hugh Jackman - but he's since changed his mind.

"If I talk to much about this Avi might get mad at me," he said, "but after thinking about it more, it’s probably better to go for someone new, a rising star, someone who hasn't been typecast before as a particular kind of character, so that’s the route we’re going right now.

"Avi is very good at finding these people, and I think we can find someone who can make it big and have Solid Snake be their break into the movie industry."

We outlined out dream Metal Gear Solid movie cast just a few months ago, and Hugh Jackman was the favourite for Snake - it's a shame that we definitely won't be seeing him in the role. With what Kojima said in mind, who would be your pick for Snake?

Keza MacDonald is in charge of IGN's games coverage in the UK, and usually isn't a big fan of snakes. Follow her on Twitter and IGN.

Source : ign[dot]com

The Last Guardian Still in Development for PS3

Work on The Last Guardian remains ongoing, with the title still scheduled to release on PS3.

That's according to Sony Worldwide Studios chief Shuhei Yoshida, who told Eurogamer today that the reason the game hasn't been seen recently is due to myriad technical issues.

“

It turned out the technical issues are much harder to solve. So the engineering team had to go back and re-do some of the work they had done.

"The team is still working on it very hard, there are certain technical issues they've been working on," he explained. "That's the period of time when the game, looking from the outside, doesn't seem to be making much progress. But internally there is a lot of work going into creating the title."

Despite being officially announced in 2009, information about the highly anticipated title has been thin on the ground after it missed TGS 2011 and then was absent from E3 2012. Yoshida made similar remarks last month regarding technical problems, though his words today suggest the scale of the problems are much larger than was originally imagined, with the team having to re-do past work.

He said, "We had the game playable. At one point we felt that it would be produced for a certain time period. That was the time we prematurely talked about the launch window. But it turned out the technical issues are much harder to solve. So the engineering team had to go back and re-do some of the work they had done."

There's still no word on when we'll get our hands on the game, or even see it in action, but Yoshida reiterated that "The game is developed on PS3", so hopefully we'll see it before the next wave of consoles hit.

Just last week the trademark for The Last Guardian was apparently "abandoned", leading many to fear that the game was destined to become vaporware. Thankfully, today's comments suggest this isn't the case and we will see the title on PS3...eventually.

Luke Karmali is IGN's UK Editorial Assistant. You too can revel in mediocrity by following him on IGN and on Twitter.

Source : ign[dot]com

Robert Bowling Talks Human Element and Ouya

Ex-Infinity Ward creative strategist Robert Bowling has spoken to Eurogamer about his next project, Human Element.

It will be the first project developed by his new studio Robotoki, and is slated for release on next-gen consoles sometime in 2015. But over the next few years, Bowling plans to release a series of episodic prequels exclusively on Ouya.

Human Element is a first-person game set in a zombie apocalypse. The Ouya prequels, however, will be set 35 years before the next-gen title and will tell the story of how the world came to an brain-eating end.

Bowling said the console's open platform "allows us the flexibility and the freedom creatively to use it as a testbed for all these rapidly prototyped mechanic and gameplay experiences that maybe are too costly and risky to dedicate a full priority list to on another platform."

The prequels will offer a range of different experiences and a variety of gameplay mechanics. "With each episode I really want to focus the scope around either a specific mechanic or an experience that we're trying to deliver," said Bowling.

"Say episode one could be focused on the fortification aspect of survival; finding your location, finding supplies, building fortifications to secure it, building alarm systems within it so you know when it's breached... nailing what makes that fun and exciting and thrilling in a survival scenario. And then once we do that in episode one, episode two could be completely different.

"Episode two could be focused on going out in this world, dealing with that human element much more. Dealing with other survivors, dealing with the moral choices you need to make when you come across scenarios, knowing that you could always fall back to that safe haven you built in the first episode."

Have you had enough of zombies? And what do you think of the decision to use Ouya as a platform to test new ideas? Let us know in the comments below.

Daniel is IGN's UK Games Writer. You can be part of the world's worst cult by following him on IGN and Twitter.

Source : ign[dot]com