dice
Losing My Religion: Video Games, Loot Boxes, and R.E.M. in More than 3000 Words
R.E.M. sang about it. I feel it I promise that I don’t want to keep talking about loot boxes in games. But those fucking loot boxes keep showing up in my games and fucking shit up! Recently, I began to download the free trial for Destiny 2. I had been on the fence with the game, mainly because I absolutely suck at FPS games. I tried the original game back in the day, using my son’s account on my X...[Read More]
Loot Boxes Investigated as Possible Gambling
With the Christmas season almost upon us, karma has decided to give gamers a possible early present. The Belgium Gaming Commission began an investigation last week centered on the idea that loot boxes in video games are a form of gambling. Though they didn’t conclusively state that they feel they are gambling, they do feel that loot boxes and gambling share common elements. Belgian site VTM News (...[Read More]
Star Wars Battlefront Removes a Feature – and Gamers Rejoice!
Usually, when a developer or publisher removes a feature in a game, player outrage is soon to follow. When EA and DICE removed one particular feature from Star Wars Battlefront, however, players rejoiced. A recent patch for the game, coinciding with the new Death Star expansion, lists a bevy of changes. Tucked well within the “General” section of the patch’s notes is one seemingly-innocuous ...[Read More]
Battlefield 1 Beta Ends Thursday
EA has announced that the open beta for Battlefield 1 will end on Thursday, September 8th. There was no mention of the exact time the beta would end on the 8th. In addition, EA tweeted about a change they are making to the beta’s Conquest mode. Specifically, the update disables the round timer for the game’s Conquest mode. The change has not been announced for the other beta mode, Rush. Today'...[Read More]
Battlefield 1 Beta Hampered by DDoS Attack on EA Servers
EA’s beta test of Battlefield 1 started off with a ton of frustration. Instead of testing the servers against the demands of thousands of players, they were instead crippled by a Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack. PoodleCorp, a group that likes to take down online games when they’re not hacking YouTube accounts, tweeted that it wanted to take EA down. Sure enough, prospective testers hav...[Read More]
Battlefield 1 Open Beta Starts August 31, No End Date Specified
DICE and EA have already mentioned that Battlefield 1 will begin its open beta on August 31st. One thing that has been missing, however, has been an end date for the beta. Turns out, it wasn’t an oversight, as the official Battlefield Twitter account noted: @cameronmac21420 The Open Beta begins August 31st, but we don't have the end date just yet. Stay tuned for more Beta info soon. — Ba...[Read More]
Battlefield 4 and Hardline Getting New UI
Battlefield 4 was a bug-riddled mess when it was released three years ago. DICE, however, has never stopped fixing and fine-tuning the game. Soon, it and its successors are getting an all-new user interface that will make it easier to set up squads. The new user interface will be rolled out to Battlefield 4, Battlefield Hardline, and Battlefield 1. It will allow players to create squads before a g...[Read More]
E3 Impressions: Battlefield 1
This game made me remember a time when I loved FPSes. That time was 2002, and I was heavily into Battlefield 1942. In my many arguments with Grumpy Joe about modern FPSes, I always go back to this game, how I used to enjoy playing it, and how none of the FPSes today have the same feel as it. I could never accurately explain it, but something about today’s games felt weak compared to that one. Watc...[Read More]
Is Battlefield 1 Trailer Historically Accurate?
The fervor surrounding the recently released Battlefield 1 trailer has hit all corners of the internet, including here at Digital Crack. One new voice, YouTube channel, The Great War, takes a different look at the trailer for DICE’s upcoming FPS, examining it from a historical perspective and seeing if its visuals hold up historically. War buffs like me eat this stuff up, but even those with a cur...[Read More]