Wii U

The rumors are true: Ubisoft's next Assassin's Creed game is called Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag. The publisher confirmed the title and offered a first official look at title art on its Facebook page, promising a more complete reveal on Monday, March 4, 2013, at 12pm ET.

The art jives with leaked materials that were shared by Kotaku earlier this week. One poster offered a look at an Assassin-hooded fellow fighting with what appear to be pirates (a Jolly Roger flag is clearly visible in the background). The reverse side of the poster shows what appears to be a map of the game's world. In related news, All Games Beta shared a trio of box art images that suggest the game is headed to PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and Wii U; the PS3 version apparently includes 60 minutes of exclusive content as well.

We've reached the end of all things (for Mass Effect 3). BioWare and Electronic Arts announced the final DLC blast for the 2012 RPG in a press release, with the multiplayer-focused Reckoning set to arrive on February 26, 2013 and the campaign-focused Citadel to follow one week later, on March 5.

Reckoning is yet another free Galaxy At War add-on, bringing an assortment of unspecified "new firepower and character kits" into the co-op survival mode. BioWare will offer a peek at the content on February 25 via its Twitch channel at 9:30am PT. Citadel is a $14.99 / 1,200 MS Points add-on that returns Shepard and his crew to the Citadel for one last hurrah.

There's been a flurry of unconfirmed news about Ubisoft's E3 2012 charmer Watch Dogs in recent days, including some indication that the game is coming in fall 2013 and news of a possible Wii U release. First came the release window, via marketing materials that were leaked to Kotaku. They even make reference to my own Watch Dogs preview for G4 from E3 last year.

The promo materials suggest that the game is heading to "all home consoles," a rather vague description when you remember that Ubi previously confirmed plans to release Watch Dogs on PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and PC. In related news, newly discovered product listings at GameStop, Amazon, and Best Buy suggest that a Wii U version of the game is coming as well (via All Games Beta).

Ubisoft confirms none of this, though a statement released to Kotaku offers more than your usual "no comment," as you can see right here: "Ubisoft is pleased with the response for Watch Dogs from media and fans. The game is an original IP that has been created from the ground up at Ubisoft Montreal with inspiration from many titles and ideas the studio has worked on throughout the years."

Today sees the release of The Tyranny of King Washington: The Infamy, the first of three episodes in a solo play-focused DLC campaign for Assassin's Creed 3. Ubisoft's alternate history story -- because, you know, that stuff with Connor Kenway is TOTALLY true -- posits that George Washington establishes himself as a monarch in the post-Revolutionary War America.

Two more episodes -- The Betrayal and The Redemption -- will follow on March 19 and April 23, 2013, respectively. They'll be available individually for $9.99 / 800 MS Points or as part of the $29.99 / 2,400 MS Point Season Pass. Get a peek at the first DLC episode in the launch trailer up top.

Capcom has a new gameplay trailer for the upcoming console/PC version of Resident Evil: Revelations. Hunk is the star of this little montage (via All Games Beta), which focuses primarily on gun-pointing and horrific creature-snuffing. That's Resident Evil for you.

From the look of things, Resident Evil: Revelations gets a big visual bump in the move from Nintendo's 3DS to PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii U, and Windows platforms. That should be great news to fans still smarting from the misstep that was 2012's Resident Evil 6. The console/PC version of Resident Evil: Revelations arrives on May 23, 2013.

Nintendo is calling 2013 the Year of Luigi, with a number of games lined up that star or feature the green-clad Mario brother. Company boss Satoru Iwata revealed the facts in this morning's installment of Nintendo Direct, speaking a bit on Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon before turning to a lineup of previously unannounced games.

On the 3DS side, two titles are pegged for summer 2013: Mario Golf: World Tour and Mario & Luigi: Dream Team. The former is the work of Mario Golf developer Camelot and it seems to be pretty much what you'd expect. Luigi is joined in the game by Mario, Wario, Waluigi, Bowser, Donkey Kong, and likely others. In one course seen during the demonstration, pint-sized golfers compete in a garden that features a giant Goomba.

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The roster of superpowered contenders in NetherRealm's upcoming DC Comics fighting game, Injustice: Gods Among Us, now officially includes Aquaman. Try to contain your laughter. The fish-talking Namor wannabe is hard to take seriously, largely because he talks to fish and wears a ridiculous costume.

The Aquaman reveal trailer above offers a look at how the king of Atlantis factors into Injustice's story. He doesn't seem happy to be dealing with Shazam and the Flash, a disagreement that presumably leads to the surfacing of his undersea army of giant hermit crabs. You also get a first peek at Aquaman kicking tail in the game's fighting environments. 

Injustice: Gods Among Us comes to PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and Wii U on April 16, 2013.

Some new information has come out about the platform-specific features in the upcoming Wii U version of Resident Evil: Revelations, a console port of the Nintendo 3DS release that is also headed to PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. A 10-page feature in the latest issue of Official Nintendo Magazine (via Nintendo Insider) helps to set player expectations appropriately, which is to say: don't expect much beyond a direct port with some visual enhancements.

The Wii U version offers some hardware-exclusive updates thanks to the unique qualities of the tablet-like GamePad. The big one is support for off-TV play, which means that users can stream the content over to their GamePad screen via their local network. The Wii U release also offers touchscreen-based inventory access and map controls as well as support for the Wii U Pro Controller.

Producer Tsukasa Takenaka also says a bit about how graphics have been improved for the new platforms. "All of the lighting effects and filters have been rebuilt from the ground up, which improves the general quality of the environments. If you’ve played the 3DS version, the difference should be apparent in the first 10 minutes of the game." Resident Evil: Revelations expands to a whole new set of platforms on May 21, 2013.

Sega and Gearbox Software release Aliens: Colonial Marines on February 12, 2013, but it seems that there will be plenty more Xenomorph action to come in 2013 based on a DLC Season Pass product listing (via CVG). GameStop and Green Man Gaming both have product listings for a Season Pass priced $26.99 (discounted from $29.99), though Sega hasn't yet confirmed anything relating to post-release plans.

The identically worded listings promise four downloadable content pack releases to be released between March and "summer 2013," with Season Pass owners enjoying a 33 percent discount off the total cost of the four individual packs together. The listings also hint at what to expect, with "campaign content, additional multiplayer maps, new modes, character customization, and more."

The latest trailer for Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment and Netherrealm Studios' DC Comics fighter, Injustice: Gods Among Us, is all about the story (via All Games Beta). Or, perhaps, stories. It looks like there's quite a bit going on in this two-minute clip, titled "The Line."

There's some cool stuff happening here even if you're not versed in your DC lore. The trailer is light on gameplay and heavy on cinematics, but you can get from it a sense of the conflict that drives these various heroes and villains to trade punches in various environments.

Fans of DC lore will no doubt see things here that my untrained eyes aren't catching; let us know what stands out to you in the comments!

BioWare seems to be hinting that fans have more Mass Effect 3 DLC to look forward to. Executive producer Casey Hudson and producer Michael Gamble took to Twitter yesterday (via Joystiq) to post a pair of new images clearly marked with the game's logo and some appropriately cryptic comments that reveal nothing but suggest much (second image posted after the jump).

The last Mass Effect 3 DLC, Omega, was released in late-November 2012. Not long after the story DLC's release, a BioWare forum post from designer Jos Hendriks (via Eurogamer) confirmed that "it's all hands on deck" for the Omega follow-up, with the full writing team of eight collaborating on something. Presumably a larger something than previous Mass Effect 3 DLC releases have offered.

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Virtual Console game saves on your Wii won't be able to transfer over to Wii U Virtual Console ports of the same game, Nintendo confirms (via Kotaku). Company boss Satoru Iwata revealed the first details of the Wii U's Virtual Console plans during the latest Nintendo Direct video stream, and he made a point of mentioning even that the Wii U releases have been developed separately, due to the unique capabilities of the new console.

Games purchased and downloaded onto your Wii can still be played on Wii U by transferring that data over to the new console. Such content can only be accessed from the Wii U's Wii Menu, which is basically a separate OS for the older console built accessible right from the Wii U's main menu.

Once the Virtual Console launches on Wii U in spring 2013, you'll also have the option of re-buying previously purchased NES and SNES games at a reduced price ($1 and $1.50, respectively).Old saves won't carry over, but Wii U VC titles will be accessible from the console's main menu and also offer new features like restore points and second screen play.

Ubisoft now has a confirmed release date for the first part of Assassin's Creed 3's alternate universe story DLC, The Tyranny of King Washington: February 19, 2013. The full title for episode one (out of three) is actually The Tyranny of King Washington: The Infamy. The DLC is confirmed for release on PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and PC.

The episode opens with Connor Kenway awakening from an upsetting dream only to discover that the United States of America has embraced monarchy rule and crowned a king in George Washington. Connor immediately sets out to bring down the king and his rule, bringing freedom to the young nation. The press release notes that all AC3 DLC will be available for Wii U, but there's no mention of a release date yet for that platform.

Episode one will cost $9.99 / 800 MS Points a la carte, though all three episodes are also included in the Assassin's Creed 3 Season Pass ($29.99 / 2,400 MS Points).

I've got two words for you, Aliens fans: power loaders. The latest trailer for Gearbox Software's Aliens: Colonial Marines at last offers official confirmation that power loaders will be a thing that players can take control of. We had previously seen them pop up in game footage under the command of NPCs and it seemed only natural that they'd be usable, but Gearbox had yet to confirm it.

Well consider it confirmed. Just take a peek at the last few seconds of the trailer for your proof. It looks like they come packing a built-in motion tracker that is always visible in your HUD. Neat-o. Beware though: there's a bit of NSFW language here. Aliens: Colonial Marines hits stores on February 13, 2013.

Injustice: Gods Among Us’ latest cinematic trailer “Versus” peels back the curtain on the game’s story and sheds a little light on the circumstances that made these legendary DC characters confront one another in battle. Batman is brooding (per uzsh) and Superman seems to be taking a lot of responsiblity for... something. Injustice: Gods Among Us is out on April 16th 2013.

Check out “Versus" below:

Which 2 DC characters are you most excited about seeing facing off? Me, I can’t wait for The Flash vs Wonder Woman. Its got all the makings of a fantastic wardrobe malfunction.