Entertainium Extra is our weekly news round-up highlighting some of the bigger, interesting, or weird stories from the past seven days.
Sony partners with Extra Life charity drive to offer prizes to fundraisers
As if raising money for children’s hospitals wasn’t incentive enough already, the organizers behind the Extra Life charity drive have teamed up with Sony to offer a selection of prizes to participants who meet certain funding goals. Contribute as little as $10 and you get a free 30-day membership to PlayStation Plus, $25, $50, and $75 respectively offering games such as Wipeout HD or LittleBigPlanet.
The charity, for those not in the know, raises money for Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals around the United States and Canada. Fundraisers partake by hosting a 24-hour gaming marathon and streaming it online. Since its inception in 2008, the event has consistently brought thousands together to raise millions of dollars for children’s hospitals. This year’s marathon is set to take place on November 2. You can register for the event here.
Not On Steam sale discounts over 60 indie games
The folks over at Flippfly, makers of the excellent Race the Sun, have organized a massive sale for games not available through Steam. Everything is discounted for either 25-50% off, all coming under $10. It began with only 35 games but has steadily grown over time, now hosting over 60. The sale runs through this coming Tuesday, so get in on it while you can.
Deus Ex Universe announced, to take the series down the transmedia route
Given how great Deus Ex: Human Revolution was, it’s no surprise Square Enix is continuing forward with the series. This week, Eidos Montreal announced Deus Ex: Universe, the next step for the franchise, and quite an ambitious one, too.
Studio head David Anfossi had this to say about the new venture:
“The concept behind Deus Ex: Universe is to create an ongoing, expanding and connected game world built across a generation of core games. It’s a commitment on our part to deliver meaningful content that expands the franchise on a regular basis and to deliver a deep conspiracy that will span several connected Deus Ex games, creating a more immersive and richer experience than ever before. Deus Ex: Universe will include PC and console games, but also additional Deus Ex games and experiences available in other media such as tablets, smartphones, books, graphic novels, etc.
“I’m pleased to confirm that we are already into production of the starting point for Deus Ex: Universe with a new game for PC and next-generation consoles.”
The idea of transmedia is an intriguing one. But as Rock, Paper, Shotgun points out, it’s a difficult one to deliver on given how much of a mess the end result often is. Not to mention how expensive it is to buy all the associated bits and pieces of media so that you can see the full story. Hopefully they can avoid the usual pitfalls and make this work. Either way, at least we’re getting a new Deus Ex game. Exciting!
