Games News: Press Start: cross platform gaming on Xbox One and PC a possibility, Zelda inspires Wii U sales boost, and more

Xbox One gamers may well be able to compete with or against PC owners. Photograph: NICK ADAMS/REUTERS

A selection of links, hand-picked by the Guardian games writers.

Microsoft Hints At Cross-Platform Opportunities Between Xbox One And PC | Forbes

Phil Spencer has been chatting with AusGamers about the possibility of cross platform gaming between PC and Xbox One:

"This connected ecosystem across all the different devices is definitely where I think the future of gaming is going," he went on. "You don't have to do it as a developer, but you have the capability and I think a system like Xbox Live across all those screens where you know who someone is and who their friends are, what their Achievements are and their progression is really critical to that."

Can't see it working with first-person shooters (unless perhaps in a co-op capacity), but strategy games certainly...

Nintendo green lights cross-play with other consoles

Ooh and it seems Microsoft isn't alone in this whole cross-platform thing:

According to Knytt Underground developer Ripstone, Nintendo has given permission for cross-platform play between the Wii U and other consoles.

The news comes via a feature published on Eurogamer about the state of indie gaming; in it, Ripstone creative director and co-founder Phil Gaskell said Nintendo was quick to agree to its request to implement cross-play.

"We're launching Pure Chess and Knytt Underground later this year, and on Pure Chess we asked whether we could do cross-platform multiplayer, expecting it to be the typical closed console platform I've been used to working with for 20 years," he said.

"Within a couple of days they said, 'yep, no problem. You can have other console players playing against Wii U players. You can have smartphone players play against them. No problem.'"

Wii U UK sales spike 685% on Zelda launch | MCV

Could things be looking up for the Wii U, thanks to Link and co?

Wii U UK sales rose by more than 685 per cent last week, Nintendo has told MCV.

The sudden improvement in sales follows the debut of The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker HD, which debuted at No.4 in the Chart-Track All-Formats Charts lastweek.

All this machine ever really needed was great games and some good marketing. Finally, could both be happening?

Rapper Daz Dillinger - Grand Theft Auto V Stole My Beats, Now Recall the Game!! | TMZ.com

Uh-oh, Rockstar has received an unwelcome note from rapper Daz Dilinger:

In the letter to Take-Two Interactive Software and Rockstar Games, Daz and his attorney say "C-Walk" and "Nothin' But the Cavi Hit" are used in the record-setting game, even though Daz turned down the company's "offensively low offer of $4,271.00 for both songs."

Now, the ex-member of the legendary Dogg Pound is demanding they make him a better offer or -- and this is a biggie -- recall and destroy ALL unsold copies of the game.

Rockstar has been given 14 days to reply. This could be expensive.

Amnesia dev reveals new horror game 'Soma' for PC, PS4 | CVG UK

Good news for fans of truly unsettling horror:

Frictional Games, the developer behind horror title Amnesia: The Dark Decent, has revealed its new project, 'Soma'.

Billed as a first-person sci-fi horror, the game is headed to PC and PS4 in 2015, and the first footage has been released via a new trailer and screenshots.

"For the last three years, we have been working on a game called SOMA," said creative director Thomas Grip. "All that time, this project has remained a secret - it's a great relief to finally be able to talk about it. This game is by far the most ambitious and thrilling project we have ever undertaken."

And Grip explains, Soma "is a sci-fi horror game played from a first person perspective. You are not a space marine though; you're a normal, very exposed person trapped in a nightmarish world.

"SOMA is a game about exploration, survival and immersing you inside an interactive narrative."

Here's that trailer:

Gah, it's horrible!

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Source: Theguardian. comReadmore: Games News: Press Start: cross platform gaming on Xbox One and PC a possibility, Zelda inspires Wii U sales boost, and more