Bioshock Infinite DLC announced

Perhaps rivalling only the rapturous applause that greeted Bioshock Infinite’s (review) release is the news that the game will be made larger and even more appealing through three pieces of downloadable content. And, try contain your excitement  - one of them will take Booker and Elizabeth to Rapture before its demise.

Before we get ahead of ourselves though, the first piece of DLC, available now, is entitled Clash in the Clouds, and will see players engage in a series of battles across a variety of arenas. These include the likes of Raven’s Dome, The Ops Zeal, Emporia Arcade, Duke and Dimwit theatre against a series of colourfully named foes.

For example, you can test your metal (pun intended) against the Motorized Patriot, turn up the heat on The Fireman or do your utmost to permanently silence The Siren. Take a look at the video below to see if you will be shelling out $5 (R50) this weekend.   

As exciting as nails-to-the-wall combat may be, the even more tantalizing offering is yet to come with the next two pieces of DLC. Titled Burial at Sea, this will be split into two parts, and will see Booker seeking sanctuary in the doomed underwater city of Rapture (note to self: never use Booker DeWitt as your travel agent).

Now, the last time we saw the ill fated underwater city, it was a bit of a mess; almost as bad as a hotel room after a wayward celebrity’s night of heavy partying. Thus, it will be particularly intriguing to see the city in its heyday, before everyone went completely psychotic and tried to pay creepy homage to Norman Bates and Freddy Kruger.

According to Irrational Games, the gameplay in this DLC will meld together the best parts of Bioshock and Bioshock Infinite – meaning plasmids, vigors, sky lines and Big Daddies will all have their place. Hit the trailer below for an enticing glimpse of what’s to come, and to learn why the DLC has been so named.

Wolfenstein: The New Order delayed into the new year

Unforeseen delays have become a part and parcel of the game industry, and the latest title to run into this familiar roadblock is Wolfenstein: The New Order. The predominant reason for the delay is that the first person shooter, which was previously slated for release later this year, apparently needed more polish.

In a comment to Polygon, Pete Hines, Bethesda Softwork’s vice president of PR and marketing. explained that the publisher would only expect the highest of standards from the next entry in the Wolfenstein franchise.

He elaborated that The New Order was not trying to be a shooter alone, but also a game that features driving sequences, story elements, and stealth sections, and stressed that Bethesda was not willing to release the game before all components were ready to go and at the highest standard.

Continuing the fact that the Wolfenstein name has a certain pedigree to uphold, particularly amongst old school gamers, it appears as though nothing but absolute excellence will do for Bethesda. A good reason to delay? Most definitely. Hopefully, when we do see the game in 2014, it will be stronger for the move.

We also can’t help wonder whether the disappointment that was Aliens: Colonial Marines (review) may have made other publishers a bit more cautious of rushing a game out the door by a specific timeframe, especially since it usually results in a title that bombs.

That is not, generally, the kind of horror development teams and publishers normally aim to induce in players. In the meantime, you can console yourself with the release trailer below.

New inFamous Second Son dev diary smokes our expectations

Admittedly, we were big fans of both inFamous 1 and inFamous 2 (review), and thus the previous game’s ending was a ‘sucker punch’ of note. Without giving anything away, we couldn’t help wondering whether we would get to play around with its brand of super powers again, and if so, how exactly that would work.

Thankfully, developer Sucker Punch answered our concerns earlier this year with the announcement of inFamous: Second Son, which scored a spot on our top 5 games of E3 and sees a new protagonist using his powers to wreak gleeful havoc in an open world.

Shockingly, Delsin Rowe’s first power isn’t electricity, but rather the ability to manipulate smoke, and he is able to both drain it, project it and even turn into it. If, like us, you cannot wait for Second Son to show up on the PS4 next year, then do yourself a favour and watch the video below, if only to see the impromptu, voice generated sound effects by the developers.

Catalans joins EA’s FIFA 14 official partner team roster

After recently securing a licensing agreement with 19 of Brazil’s top soccer clubs, EA has scored a three year partnership on the virtual transfer market with F.C. Barcelona this week. This deal makes EA the exclusive and official video game partner for the famous Spanish club.

EA has already captured head scans of 17 of the club’s stars including Gerard Piqué, Cesc Fàbregas, Dani Alves, and Andrés Iniesta (Messi is already the game’s cover star) in 3D, meaning all of these players will boast authentic virtual counterparts in the upcoming FIFA 14. In addition, Camp Nou, Barcelona’s home pitch, will also be a featured stadium in the game as well.

FIFA 14 will be locally available in stores on 27 September for Windows PC, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, along with many mobile- and portable gaming formats. The game will also dribble its way onto the Xbox One and PlayStation 4, following these next-generation consoles’ respective launches later this year.

Killing boredom in the portable gaming zone

Our favourite handheld gaming system - the PlayStation Vita - has not really received a lot of love from game developers of late, highlighted by the fact that large titles for the PS Vita are about as common a sight as chicken teeth.

Shooting its way to the top of our must buy PS Vita games for the near future is Killzone: Mercenary, which lands on Sony’s portable console on 6 September. Within this hotly anticipated FPS title, players will engage in many deadly firefights as a member of the Mercenary faction.

Gamers will take on paid contracts and make their way through nine massive single player missions, with the title also sporting some of the best visuals ever seen on the PS Vita (won best PS Vita title at E3 2013), since it employs the same graphics engine as the PS3 Killzone games.

For a glimpse at some of the multiplayer action that this title has loaded in its gameplay clip check out the multiplayer beta video posted below.

Bury the opposition alive as The Undertaker

During November WWE 2K14 will aim to pin gaming rivals for a three count in the quest for player’s wallets, as it gets launched locally on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.

2K Games has now revealed that there will be a special “Phenom Edition” of WWE 2K14 which packs quite a few exclusive features. These includes a signed collectible art card of The Undertaker, a DVD of WWE Undertaker – The Streak documentary that celebrates The Deadman’s legendary 21-0 winning streak at Wrestlemania, plus an Undertaker-themed controller skin.

In addition, players will count The Undertaker’s alter ego - American Badass - as a playable character in their superstar roster. Hopefully after obtaining this special edition of WWE 2K14 all your gaming need will be able to ‘Rest in Peace’, at least for the month of November.

Contributions by Hanleigh Daniels