A crowd erupts in rapturous applause and hectic cheers as a goal is scored at London’s Copper Box Arena. The energy is electric, with no sign of easing up, seamlessly channeled into a spontaneous performance of DJ Otzi’s Hey Baby emerging from thundering hands and rumbling feet – the victorious player’s name and team subbed in for key lyrics. Even as the game continues, Mexican waves and synchronized clapping takes hold of both domestic and international attendees. Once the match is won post-game interviews are short and hesitant – forced to a stop in the wake of colossal cheers, chants, and the occasional boo.
Each goal is a shockwave, each victory a lightning storm. This isn’t a Premier League football game, nor a local kickabout celebrated by impassioned diehards. This isn’t even football, really. This is Rocket League, and the source of this football-style crowd work can only come from one place: Section 104.
But before we dive into what Section 104 does, we need to start with who they are. When diving into the history of Rocket League’s rowdiest fans, there are two people you have to start with: Alex Knight and Emile Cole. Two halves of the SubParButinHD Rocket League YouTube / Twitch channel who have gone on to land official roles in the Rocket League Championship Series as both casters and analysts.
]]>Another month, another sweet selection of new games coming to Xbox Game Pass. This time around, fans of the Yakuza series are due for a massive airdrop of titles that cover early events in the series, while lesser known games like PowerWash Simulator and Last Call BBS offer a fresh experience for subscribers.
For those not already on board, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate runs you $14.99 / £10.99 a month and supplies access to a collection of titles that rotate in and out of the Game Pass lineup.
Available right now on Xbox Game Pass for all platforms are Yakuza 0, Yakuza Kiwami and Yakuza Kiwami 2 - all excellent JRPGs that put you in the shoes of Japanese Yakuza in an action packed adventure across the criminal underworld. Having left the service following an initial run, it's great to see the games back on Game Pass. If you’re a PC player, you can also pick up Last Call BBS - a nifty puzzle game that’s up for grabs right now for those who like a good head scratcher.
]]>Remember Call of Duty: Black Ops, the military First Person Shooter released from the clattering cages over at Raven Software and Treyarch all the way back in 2010. For some, it stays a fan-favourite for those with a taste for a touch of retro Call of Duty action, general nostalgia, or the heyday of trick shots with a variety of sniper rifles and of course the trusty grenade launcher.
Memories of this golden age of spinning shots and mouse-trap-esque grenade routes across the many maps present in the 7th generation title have recently reemerged thanks to a singular tweet from Faze Blaze shining the spotlight on a particular remarkable grenade launcher kill. This video, tragically uncredited, struck a chord with the community, reining in over 114K likes at the time of writing.
Replies to this viral sensation are filled with other examples of exemplary trickshots and stylish grenade bounces, but none compared to the original clip which features multiple bounces off map terrain and player-placed cameras in key locations. There’s a chasm of difference between clip farming in custom lobbies and the ballistic gymnastics seen above.
]]>It's been a good week for Monster Hunter. After the staggering success of Monster Hunter Rise on both PC and Switch, the ground was likely primed for the game's expansion, Sunbreak, to do good numbers. But, even for a series that enjoys as much popularity as Monster Hunter, the attach rate of the DLC is super high.
"Capcom released a demo version prior to launch, garnering praise and attention for the title, which resulted in shipments of over 2 million units globally," Capcom revealed in a post on its Japanese site.
The press release also notes that Monster Hunter Rise, overall, has now shipped 10 million units. "Further, March 2021 release Rise has also surpassed 10 million units shipped globally, which was achieved through a variety of measures including ongoing free updates and the launch of a PC version, as well as with the release of a set that includes Sunbreak."
]]>After initially releasing in Japan a literal decade ago, Phantasy Star Online 2 is finally making its way to PS4 in the west.
Phantasy Star Online 2 first released on PC in Japan exactly a year ago today (July 4), but didn't see any kind of western release until 2020. And while its first home console release in Japan was for the PS4 in 2016, when it did release worldwide it came to Xbox One first. Now, a decade on, the game is finally coming to PS4 this summer, on August 31.
The announcement came from Sega last week (July 1), which is specifically bringing the updated version of the game, Phantasy Star Online 2 New Genesis, to PS4. New Genesis initially released in 2021, and is essentially a brand new game, complete with English subtitles and voice acting.
]]>Mods can go well beyond putting the Teletubbies in Left 4 Dead. They can rewrite the makeup of entire games, change how they start, or create entirely new games unto themselves. Gargantuan in design, these large-scale projects can lend new life to older games or completely revisit how we play them, and this year’s Elden Ring is getting one such mod.
Called Elden Ring: The Convergence, it will completely rewrite the playbook on FromSoftware’s most recent title. A team of seven modders have started working to add new classes, weapons, armour, spells and bosses to the open world game, all whilst remixing how players approach the game from the very beginning. It’s a mammoth project, and one that follows in the footsteps of the small team's previous project, Dark Souls 3: The Convergence.
“We began it just as a simple mod with intentions to revamp the spellcasting system in Dark Souls 3,” creative director Paul “CouchJockey” Gooch told me. “But after some time, we realised that we could really make the Dark Souls game we all had always wanted to play.”
]]>There's a new Cuphead speedrun category in town (sort of), this one requiring you to run the game while hiking up a mountain.
Cuphead is a notoriously hard game, the difficulty kind of being the whole point of it. But, if you manage to learn the patterns across the entire game, it's pretty manageable, with the main speedrunning category having a world record of just over 28 minutes. And honestly, that sounds just a bit too easy, which led speedrunner EazySpeezy completing a run while climbing up a mountain.
The setup for the run was honestly pretty simple: EazySpeezy and his crew duct taped a laptop to a backpack, which a friend then wore while EazySpeezy played the game. It is probably not the most ideal of speedrunning conditions, but that isn't exactly the point of the run.
]]>The modding team behind Silent Hill 2 Enhanced Edition have finally managed to fix a game crashing bug that's been around for 20 years.
Konami has quite famously never given Silent Hill the treatment it might deserve when it comes to ports of the game. There's those infamous 'HD editions' on more modern consoles, but even on PC games like Silent Hill 2 suffered from a number of issues. One particular glitch would frequently cause the game to crash, but thanks to a team of modders, it's a thing of the past.
Silent Hill 2: Enhanced Edition is an ongoing project that seeks to make the game run better on modern hardware, including bringing in widescreen aspect ratios and improving visuals and audio. Which sounds a lot better than remaking the game if you ask us.
]]>A recent Final Fantasy 14 Letter from the Producer has given us some details on the long awaited Island Sanctuary mode, and more, coming in the next big update.
The next big patch for everyone's favourite MMO, patch 6.2, is set to launch late August, and will bring in a bunch of new content. Including the highly-anticipated Island Sanctuary, which will give every player their own personal island to relax on.
"Players will be able to build their own personal island sanctuary in this relaxing solo content," reads a press release. "Gather materials, build facilities, care for creatures, and more, without the need for previous crafting or gathering experience."
]]>Just how safe are your Pokemon trading cards? Well, Dicebreaker put a Mint PSA Charizard through its paces for one video to see just how indestructible the card might be. This includes simply dropping it, shooting it with various armaments, and even trying to roast it; what's the final straw for this card, or will it pass these extreme tests?
The specifics of the card are as follows: it's a PSA Mint 9 holographic Charizard GX Pokemon card from the 2019 Hidden Fates set. This means the card is worth approximately £20 GBP, unlike Logan Paul's Charizard card from the original base set, which is currently worth over £400,000 GBP approximately. Although, Paul argues it's worth a lot more.
The card at hand arrived in a protective case, and is encased in a second protective case for a little added survivability. The team tested the card (and cases) by putting them through seven different trials, and you can watch exactly how it all went down via the YouTube embed below.
]]>Things have been quiet on the Modern Warfare 2 front since we got that extended single-player gameplay. It seems all the big news is being made in leaks, rather than official releases from Infinity Ward.
Just recently, the starting date for the game's beta appeared online. The developer has been uncharacteristicly quiet about Modern Warfare 2's multiplayer so far. We don't know, for instance, if or when it will be properly revealed, and how many pre-launch tests will take place.
As it's often the case in the games industry, the longer players have to wait for official details, the more leaks and rumours will arrive to fill the void. A since-deleted Twitter account posted a number of images purportedly from Modern Warfare 2, and a couple from Call of Duty 2024. The source is reportedly an in-development build of Warzone Mobile.
]]>There’s a nasty wall glitch in Fortune’s Keep, the latest map added to Call of Duty: Warzone Pacific as as part of the season 4 update released last month. First discovered at the tail end of June, this bug allows players to hide out of sight from other players within one of the small buildings on the map’s outskirts and shoot outward at unsuspecting enemies.
While thankfully limited to a specific corner of the island, it nonetheless turned an otherwise regular spot into a treacherous location for anyone not in the know. While we won’t explain how to wiggle inside the walls here, it’s tragically easy to do, and requires not even five minutes of googling to discover.
This is by no means the first major glitch that has popped up in Warzone. Only recently, bugs that allowed players to unlock a variety of weapon camos have been widely used, making it difficult to determine which players have earned certain skins legitimately in genuine matches.
]]>You've almost certainly heard of Mary DeMarle – even if you don't know the name directly. DeMarle, with credits in the Myst, Homeworld, Deus Ex, and Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy series, has been head of narrative and writing at Eidos Montreal since 2011. She lead the way with the modern Deus Ex titles (that's Mankind Divided and Human Revolution) before building a crack team of writers to work on the latter Marvel tie-in.
DeMarle knows story. Inside out. Just look at the critical reception to Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy – pretty much every outlet you care to mention went off about the writing (even if the gameplay came with some caveats). You don't need me to tell you how highly regarded the Deus Ex games are, either – Human Revolution, in particular, is notorious amongst narrative games fans for its player-driven plot, ludicrously good characterisation, and freedom of choice when it comes to how things play out.
It was music to my ears, then, to hear DeMarle is joining BioWare. Via Resetera, we learned that DeMarle has joined BioWare as a Senior Narrative Director. Now, we know that the studio is working on both Dragon Age: Dreadwolf and a new Mass Effect. So which could DeMarle's attentions be focused on?
]]>You may already be familiar with a co-op mod for Skyrim, known as Skyrim Together. The mod has been a long work in progress, experiencing various setbacks before essentially starting all over again in 2019. Now, the modders have revealed that Skyrim Together Reborn is ready, but a beta won't be rolling out...
Instead, a full release of the co-op Skyrim mod is scheduled for release on Friday, 8 July, at 5PM BST / 11AM CT / 9AM PT.
Team Together's latest video, embedded above, shows off quest sync between multiple players. While the host of the party will be the one interacting with NPCs and listening to their woes, the quest itself and all progression made will sync across the party. Additionally, if you feel that way inclined, PvP will also be possible in the mod with a simple switch of settings.
]]>Last month 343 Industries confirmed that a playtest would take place for Halo Infinite's campaign co-op, and now a date is set in stone.
Those that are lucky enough to take part in the playtest will be able to drop in with their friends starting the week of July 11, as announced in a Halo Waypoint blog post.
In the blog post, lead software engineer Isaac Bender and lead world designer John Mulkey sat down to talk about the features in the co-op mode. One of the big things is that every player will retain their progress whether in solo or co-op play.
]]>Some people occasionally have too much money to spend, as a Nintendo fan bought around £30k on Nintendo stock to ask if the company might make an F-Zero sequel.
There are plenty of series that Nintendo have just kind of left in the dust. Kid Icarus is one such series, not having had a new title since 2012. Despite its cult status and re-releases of the first two games, the Earthbound/ Mother series hasn't seen much love either. And over in the world of racing games, only Mario Kart has managed to hang on, with F-Zero's last release being in 2004.
Enter the hero we didn't expect: Momiji, who bought 100 shares at 56,430 a yen a share back in February. Momiji rose to prominence this week when they asked Nintendo at a recent shareholders meeting if a new F-Zero is at all possible.
]]>Bethesda has offered jobs to two developers that have been working on the incredibly impressive looking Fallout London mod.
Earlier this week (June 30), the Fallout London Twitter account had some news to share regarding the Fallout 4 mod. Specifically, that one of the developers working on the mod, Ryan Johnson, was leaving the team to go work at Bethesda as an associate level designer.
Johnson had served as the lead technical advisor on the mod, where he gave advice (as the name suggests) to the team's level designers. The announcement noted that the Fallout London team had known about the move for a while, so Johnson has apparently prepared some design documentation to help the rest of the team progress without any problems.
]]>Skate 4 definitely isn't ready yet, but EA has now put out a trailer showing in-development gameplay, as well as inviting people to sign up to playtest the game.
EA would very much like you to know that it is definitely, absolutely, for sure "still working on it," it being Skate 4, which they showed a bit of in a recent trailer. The trailer opens with a tongue-in-cheek warning that the gameplay being shown off is "pre-pre-pre-alpha" and when you take a look yourself, you can see what they mean by that.
Whether pre-pre-pre-alpha is the technical term or not, mostly the game world of Skate 4 is made up of low poly blocks, grind rails, and ramps, though some sections do manage to look like the real world. In a refreshingly honest opener, the trailer does show some pretty goofy glitches, really reminding you that the game won't be ready for a while.
]]>Stray has taken over The Day Before as the most wishlisted game on Steam, following on from controversy involving the latter using unpaid volunteers.
Early last month, BlueTwelve Studio announced that there was finally a release date for the highly anticipated cyberpunk cat game. And as reported by PCGamesN, highly anticipated really isn't an understatement, as Stray recently hit the most wishlisted spot on Steam.
Stray wasn't particularly far behind anyway, only sitting in second place prior to this week, but now it's essentially the most popular upcoming PC title. We can't exactly blame anyone either, as in a recent hands-off preview, Stray looks like it's shaping up to be something pretty special.
]]>Despite recent rumours suggesting a new Sly Cooper is on the way, original developer Sucker Punch Productions has confirmed this isn't the case.
Whenever there's a supposed leak or rumour going around, it's always best to take it with that famous pinch of salt. One of the more recent rumours has been that a new Sly Cooper game is in the works. Well, Sucker Punch itself is here to put that to bed, alongside any speculation of a new Infamous game, as it has put out a blog post confirming no such projects are in development.
"As our games continue to grow in scale and complexity, they require the full attention of our studio," wrote Sucker Punch in the blog post. "With our focus on our current project, we have no plans to revisit inFAMOUS or Sly Cooper right now, and no other studio is currently working on projects related to those franchises either."
]]>Ubisoft is shutting down a number of online services for some of its older games, including titles like Assassin's Creed 2.
Nothing lasts forever, especially in the world of video games. The latest case of video games losing their online services was announced by Ubisoft earlier this week, with a number of older titles losing their multiplayer. Worse still, PC versions of some games will also no longer let you download DLC for them.
Explaining in the announcement post, Ubisoft wrote "Closing the online services for some older games allows us to focus our resources on delivering great experiences for players who are playing newer or more popular titles." The titles listed will lose multiplayer from September 1, later this year.
]]>Sony has revealed a new line of hardware called Inzone that's targeting the world of PC gaming.
Late last month, Sony revealed a trio of new headsets and a couple of new monitors, which certainly makes it seem like the company is ready to get serious about PC gaming again. The new lineup of tech, called Inzone, seeks to deliver "features that will immerse gamers into the action with total focus," according to a press release.
First is the Inzone M9, a gaming monitor with HDR, 4K resolution, and "Full Array Local Dimming," which is just fancy talk that means you can change the brightness on specific sections of the screen. Which in turn helps you get better detail from your images. The monitor also has a 144Hz refresh rate, an IPS screen to get those rich colours, and "1ms Gray to Gray response time for quicker reactions."
]]>Sonic’s transition to 3D has always been tricky. That 2D to 3D lane change has continued to dog the hedgehog’s releases even into the modern generations (isn't that right, Sonic Forces?) whereas former rival Mario kept soaring beyond galaxies, getting more comfortable with each release.
For Sonic, these transitional woes were the case even at the beginning; while Super Mario 64 arrived fully formed and revolutionised 3D gaming, the Blue Blur had false starts. The cancellation of Sonic Xtreme on Sega Saturn, and what was basically a 3D tech demo inside the compilation release Sonic Jam weren't exactly helpful in getting Sonic and pals off the 3D starting block at speed. It wasn’t until 1998’s Sonic Adventure on the Dreamcast that Sega’s beloved mascot would finally speed into 3D proper, ushering Sonic – and fans – into a new exciting dimension.
Sonic Adventure was by no means a perfect game; the original Japanese release was rushed out in order to hit shops just two days before Christmas, after all. But when I’ve come back to replay the game in recent years, even on its original hardware, it still holds up as the gold standard for all 3D Sonic games – and one which future entries have just never managed to match.
]]>Either way, now that we've had official confirmation from Sony about what to expect from July (which is typically one of the quieter periods of the gaming year), we've been mulling it over and we've come to a conclusion – this really is a fairly good month for the subscription service. Especially as the PS Plus Essentials package acts as something of an advert for PS Premium and the other tiers, at this point.
To recap, the games you'll be able to download from July 5 are: Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time (PS4, PS5), The Dark Pictures: Man of Medan (PS4), and Arcadegeddon for (PS4, PS5). You have until July 4 to grab June's line-up of games.
Crash Bandicoot wowed many critics when it launched in October 2020, and left only a few feeling slightly disappointed with the marsupials resurrection on modern platforms. The game represents the best 'get' of the PS Plus line-up this month, despite what I think, though, and you should certainly give it a spin (no pun intended) if you have any love at all for Crash and pals.
]]>It's been a great year for Atlus: per its most recent financial statement (for the period ending March 31), we learned that the sales of games released from April 1, 2021 to March 31, 2022 were above and beyond what the developer was expecting.
So, with the Western releases of Shin Megami Tensei 3: Nocturne HD Remaster, the international release of Shin Megami Tensei V, and the worldwide remastered release of Persona 4 Arena Ultimax, the company has been raking it in. It's the best year the company has had since joining Sega, and has finally been able to contribute to the parent company's profits (in previous years, Atlus has reported overall losses).
The long and short of it all? Atlus wants to carry on as it hsa been for the last few years, making games players want to play, and bringing legacy titles back to modern formats (via PersonaCentral).
]]>Someone please save me from writing something here every week. Is there a not an AI capable of doing this, albeit without my amazing sense of humour? We’ve got games that let you explore procedurally generated worlds! Someone procedurally generate some words for me! On that happy note, the VG247 The Best Games Ever Podcast returns, with episode 6. This week I was concerned that we’d be unable to put ourselves in the shoes of the average plebeian, what with us being superstar games journo types, but my fear was unwarranted. That’s right, it’s time for the Best Game Someone Not In The Know Would Think You’d Made Up.
“What is VG247’s Best Games Ever Podcast?” you ask. I’m not sure I want to tell you. Why don’t you take a chance on it and find out for yourself? Each episode of the Best Games Ever Podcast is only about 30 minutes, so what have you got to lose? It’s bound to be better than an episode of Eastenders (that’s a terrible London-set soap opera for our US readers).
Hopefully you can find room in your podcast-listening schedule for it. Wouldn’t it be great to be there at the start of something great? To be able to tell your friends and family that you were there when Jim, Tom, and co were unknowns and not the millionaires they become? Also, you’ll hopefully have some fun for half an hour.
]]>More content for The Sims 4 is always welcomed by fans, and the latest expansion pack, High School Years, is no exception. High School Years will be taking us and our sims back to school as of July 28, and teenage sims will finally be in receipt of a real education!
The High School Years expansion pack follows the Werewolves Game Pack released in June, but is the first expansion pack to be added to The Sims 4 in nearly a year. The last expansion players could purchase is Cottage Living, which released back in July 2021.
Needless to say, there's plenty to be excited about with this expansion, with players now being able to send their teenage sims off to Copperdale High to live out the real high school experience.
]]>Epic Games Store have announced that three full games will be going free this week via their store. The titles include Hood: Outlaws and Legends, Geneforge 1: Mutagen, and Iratus: Lord of the Dead. So, if you had plans this weekend, you may want to consider cancelling them so that you can pick these three titles up. If they're your thing, that is!
The three games can be purchased and installed from the Epic Games Store or via the EGS desktop app, and they will then be yours to keep forever. The only condition is that you pick up the games before 4PM BST on July 7, as that is when the games will return to their full price again.
The first of the free games is Hood: Outlaws and Legends, which is a multiplayer heist game. Set in a medieval environment, it's your job (and your friends, too) to outplay enemies in PvP and PvE heist situations. Compete together or against each other for loot, and become a legend while you're at it.
]]>Outriders is the kind of game that has you ripping off your headset and swearing at the screen, saltier than a bag of pretzels, only to stoically sit back down, dry your tears and wade back into the fray about 10 seconds later.
It feels so perfectly pitched to tingle the anxious part of your lizard brain that secretes angry dopamine that you’re constantly dancing on the knife edge of temple-bursting rage and unblinking exhilaration.
Sometimes it's incredibly aggravating, sometimes you can’t believe where the time’s gone because you’re so engrossed.
]]>A new Witcher game is coming! But it’ll take a while even if the switch to Unreal Engine 5 is the right move for CDPR. Meanwhile, we’re all thinking of replaying the modern classic that is The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt – if you disagree with this statement, just bear with me (and know that you’re wrong).
After two installments that were quite focused on the monster hunting and human drama, The Witcher 3’s massive scope allowed for a wider range of, among other things, zany side quests and obscure homages. While the first game was designed to be a detective story, the threequel largely plays – and reads – like the most competent but tired professional in the world has been thrown into the biggest goose chase ever.
Even after finding Cirilla and gaining a clear sense of the world-ending threat which looms near, the two (excellent) expansion packs have Geralt bumbling his way through confusing situations and the exact kind of messes he tries his damn best to avoid. In a way, I think we all love Geralt because he’s a badass warrior who’s virtually unable to escape the worst – and stupidest – of society despite trying his hardest to act like a lone wolf all the time. And The Witcher 3 nailed that feeling.
]]>As game development tasks go, it doesn’t feel unreasonable to say that one of the simplest tasks a major publisher could undertake is to remaster and re-release classic 2D games from the 16-bit era. And yet, somehow, with Sonic Origins, Sega swung and… well, it’s not quite a miss. But it ain’t the home run it should be, either.
You'd be right to point out that no game development task is easy, of course. It's all difficult. But in the case of Sonic Origins, Sega had been dealt a pretty strong hand to begin with; a perfect starting point for this collection. Great, high quality, modern engine versions of Sonic 1, 2, and CD already existed on mobile - and the versions in Origins have their roots there. They also had Headcannon, part of the crew behind the barnstorming Sonic Mania and familiar with the engine that powered those mobile ports, to ply for help. The die felt cast: this collection was set to be brilliant. It's part-way there, I guess - but also quite far from it. Close, but no cigar.
In golf, I’d generally rather miss the ball entirely, lose a stroke, and move on from my current position than glance the ball and send it careering off into the woods and undergrowth. But Sonic Origins is the latter; Sega swings, connects with an anniversary celebration that’s brilliant on paper… but the shot has careered off in an ugly, unsavory direction. It’s not down to luck, either - it’s down to execution.
]]>We love an arcade machine here on VG247. Associate editor Alex Donaldson built an extension to his house just so he could fit in more of them (well, that’s what I think it was for – he may have a different story). Arcade Paradise, then, an upcoming arcade management and nostalgic trip through ‘90s gaming, jumped onto our radar.
If you find yourself daydreaming about the days of Mean Machines magazine, those knock-off Street Fighter 2 cabs, or the time when a go on After Burner cost 10p, you might want to look at the video below.
We’ve all seen favourite arcades close in recent years, but who hasn’t wanted to run one despite the clear financial pressures? You’d fill it with all the best games, make it a cool place to be, and generally have a blast at the same time. Developer Nosebleed Interactive and publisher Wired Productions have joined forces to give us that opportunity – except, these aren’t empty shells of arcade machines that only AI visitors can play. In Arcade Paradise there are 35 unique custom-made retro arcade games to enjoy.
]]>If, like me, you can't get enough of the unlikley collaboration of publisher Square Enix and developer Team Ninja, you're probably counting down the days until the new Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin downloadable content.
Named “Trials of the Dragon King”, we learned today that the game will embrace chaos and launch on July 20 – but for long-term Final Fantasy fiends, there's a fun little twist in the DLC. Trials of the Dragon King includes new jobs, weapons, accessories, and a new category of equipment, as well as new areas, stories, and challenges to boot. But there's one thing that stands out.
If you've played the base game – maybe one of the best 3/5 games I've ever played – you'll know that the title is something of an origin story for the big bad of FFI.
]]>The original STALKER instalment, Shadow of Chernobyl, first released all the way back in 2007. While we await the series' fourth instalment from GSC Game World, one particular fan and modder has taken it upon themselves to remaster the original game.
First reported by DSOG, modder Andrey0007 has been chipping away at this fan remaster of STALKER: Shadow of Chernobyl, and has revealed some screenshots of their work.
Andrey0007's overhaul mod for the game is said to replace all the textures with 4K versions. While some of this will be done using AI upscaling techniques, the modder will also be creating some entirely new textures in some instances.
]]>It's pretty clear that Sony Santa Monica is in the final stages of development on God of War Ragnarok. Everyone can sense it's close, just not how close. Well, according to studio creative director Cory Barlog, the game will be released this year.
Over the past several months, we've heard reports that Ragnarok has been delayed to 2023, and counter-reports saying that it has not, and will in fact be out this November. There's certainly, however, evidence to suggest an imminent release, such as the recent Korean Board rating.
Barlog recently returned to Twitter, and has unsurprsingly been bombarded with questions about when we'll be seeing the game next, whether or not it has been pushed back, and some good ol' unhinged internet abuse.
]]>House Flipper has been added to Xbox Game Pass and Cloud Gaming, and it comes as a unexpected yet welcomed surprise.
This indie simulation title oversees players take on the role of a handyman and decorator with every home renovation skill imaginable. However, before you're able to buy a property of your own, you must earn yourself money and a reputation by taking on jobs from nearby residents in need of help.
You could be tasked with a paint job, or a bathroom installation, or may even be asked to furnish an entire property. For such a quaint game with a specific goal, there's plenty to do. You can even clean windows if you feel that way inclined, or are tasked to do so!
]]>Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope blends tactical gameplay with Super Mario and Raving Rabbids-themed mayhem, and it clearly aims to build on its predecessor, Kingdom Battle. I’ve always been a fan of Mario, but Rabbids on the other hand, have always left me a little frustrated. Yet, Sparks of Hope seems to be the quirky strategy title that might change things.
When I jumped into Kingdom Battle for the first time, I’m not sure what I was expecting, but it certainly wasn’t for Rabbids dressed as Peach to be fighting alongside Mario and applying turn-based tactics during their reclamation of Mushroom Kingdom.
Recently, I was given a small glimpse as to what fans can expect from Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope. Ultimately, it promises to deliver more of the same puzzling tactics and nonsense story, albeit with even more chaos added to the mix.
]]>Monster Hunter Rise Sunbreak is better than Rise in just about every way. But you’d expect that from an expansion, right? Thing is, Sunbreak doesn’t just give you more of Rise – not that more Rise would be a bad thing. Sunbreak builds on just about everything that made Rise great, whilst weaving in some essential new ideas that proves Monster Hunter has the scope, scale, and vision to keep on growing.
First up, let’s talk about the headline new feature: Followers. Followers and Follower Quests provide single-player only missions that see you heading into battle accompanied by NPCs from the world of Rise. Whether it’s the new hoity-toity bunch of royal apologists from the Elgado Outpost in Sunbreak, or your cosy little family from back in the base game’s Kamura Village, the aides that come to help you out on hunts add a whole new dimension to the game.
They’re introduced in a simple enough way; you churn through the Master Rank quests in Sunbreak as you would any other Monster Hunter setup, getting to fight bigger and more dangerous prey as you level up. Then, with one urgent quest, the definitely-not-a-dominatrix royal vanguard, Fiorayne, decides to accompany you – there’s a very dangerous monster out there, and some feckless newcomer surely can’t deal with it alone.
]]>There are many, many spectacular moments in Elden Ring boss fights - and really much of FromSoftware's recent work. But the Starscourge Radahn boss fight in particular stands out due to its sheer scale, unusual setup, and that one move that signals the beginning of the fight's second phase.
We're talking, of course, about the meteor landing, where Radahn launches himself into the air and comes hurtling back around in the form of a meteor to cause a massive area of effect explosion.
But how does it actually work? More specifically, what allows Radahn to effectively track the player and land near them? The answer is apparently fairly simple.
]]>Skull and Bones is the elusive pirate title from Ubisoft that has been in the works for a while now, although, it hasn't been the steadiest of rides. That being said, a leak from the Xbox Store, if valid, suggests that the game may be available to play as soon as November.
The game, which follows you and up to five others sailing across the Indian Ocean, was first revealed in 2017. Since then, it's had a TV series' despite not being out yet, and has been delayed multiple times.
More recently, however, Ubisoft confirmed what games the company will be releasing before the end of the fiscal year, which ends on March 31, 2023. Amongst the three titles name, which includes upcoming Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope, Skull and Bones was named.
]]>I stopped playing Dead by Daylight just under a year ago. The grind was beyond belief whenever a new character came out, and these new characters appear constantly. Behaviour Interactive seems to have finally taken this into account, to an extent, in the latest overhaul to the game’s progression system.
Behaviour Interactive is no stranger to these overhauls, and has previously spent huge amounts of time determining whether Skill Based Match Making or a Match Making Rating is the better match-making system for the game. More recently, the team changed how ranks in the game work after having fully integrated SBMM: ranks became obsolete, and grades came in instead. I'm still not entirely sure how they work.
The main issue prevalent with Dead by Daylight right now is arguably how long it takes to level characters and collect all perks for them. After a single character reaches level 40, their signature perks are then unlocked in the bloodwebs (a perk tree, so to speak) of other characters. Players are somehow expected to do this for the 31 survivors and 28 killers in the game, with survivors and killers both having over 200 perks to unlock. 400 hours later and I managed to max out the level of most of my survivor characters, but this doesn't include prestiging them or acquiring every perk for them.
]]>After a long wait, fans finally now know when they can play upcoming Dragon Quest series spin-off Dragon Quest Treasures - and the wait isn’t far off at all. Fans will be playing the spin-off this December.
Dragon Quest Treasures was first announced a little over a year ago as part of last year’s Dragon Quest 35th anniversary celebrations - but like all of those announcements, it was predominantly aimed at Japan, and only really lightly acknowledged by Square Enix’s Western branches. Now, the game is getting full promotion in the West ahead of a December 9th release, just a handful of months away.
The new spin-off features Erik and Mia, siblings who'll be familiar to players of Dragon Quest 11: Echoes of an Elusive Age. The pair live on a cool-looking Viking Longship, and end up getting taken to a mysterious land - which is where they embark on a new adventure that's a gigantic treasure hunt, as you'd expect from the name of the game.
]]>Portal: Companion Collection showed up again on today's Nintendo Direct, except this wasn't just a new trailer - the game is out right now! The collection includes both Portal games, having been announced back in February.
Just like the original news came out of nowhere, today's shadow-drop was also a major surprise. You'll begin to see it available for purchase on the Nintendo eShop worldwide just as the Direct wraps up, priced $20.
Portal games are Valve classics, and widely considered among the best puzzle games ever made. The games take place in an Aperture Science facility where the goal is to solve increasingly complex puzzles that defy spatial physics in order to escape. Of course, all of them involve using portals.
]]>Joker’s no longer just about spin-offs and Smash on the Switch, as Nintendo fans will soon finally get their wish - Persona 5 Royal is coming to Switch this October.
As on Xbox, Switch versions of Persona 3 Portable (PSP) and Persona 4 Golden (Vita/PC) will later follow down the line, too. This move completes what appears to be a plan by Atlus to open up the Persona series to a far wider audience. Previously a PlayStation-only affair for many years, the company gingerly dipped a toe with a PC version of Persona 4 Golden, and now has versions of the three modern formula Persona games in the pipes for PC, Xbox, and Switch.
Persona 5 is the first release, and will be landing on October 21st, the same day it hits Xbox. On Switch these will of course be full-price releases, but the Xbox and PC versions are going into Game Pass, if that makes a difference to you.
]]>Return to Monkey Island has more news to share, less than two months after its surprise announcement. The game was confirmed for Nintendo Switch today as part of a Nintendo Direct. The sequel to the iconic adventure series launches exclusively on Switch, alongside PC.
Return to Monkey Island was announced on April Fools' Day by creator Ron Gilbert. The game has been in development for two years at Gilbert's Terrible Toybox studio. The story takes place following the events of Monkey Island 2.
Gilbert is bringing back much of the original creative crew, including composers Michael Land, Clint Bajakian, and Peter McConnel. Guybrush Threepwood's original voice actor, Dominic Armato, is also on board. Reutrn to Monkey Island is looking like a, well, return to that original style in every way, only with modern visuals.
]]>Revealed via todays Nintendo Direct mini, Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope has a release date. The tactical title will arrive on Nintendo Switch as of October 20, 2022.
This particular Mario + Rabbids game will act as a sequel to 2017 title, Mario + Rabbids Kingdom of Hope. The predecessor follows Mario and friends, as well as some friendly Rabbids, as they attempt to save Mushroom Kingdom from a belligerent group of Rabbids that have fallen victim to a powerful mind-control device they stumbled across.
Sparks of Hope, on the other hand, gets incredibly intergalactic. When a dark, mysterious entity known as Cursa tries to claim the energy of titular Sparks (creatures formed by fusing Lumas and Rabbids together), the universe is thrown into disrepair. As per usual, it is up to Mario and his friends to travel various worlds and thus, save the galaxy from Cursa.
]]>As part of today's third-party-focused Nintendo Direct, Square Enix announced that Nier Automata is in development for the Switch. This won't be a cloud-based version as we've been seeing recently, and will instead run natively on the console.
The End of Yorha Edition arrives on Switch October 6, and includes all previously released content, as well as some Switch-exclusive costumes.
Nier Automata's release on Switch has always been something fans of the series wanted, though Square Enix always appeared to move slowly when it comes to the series. Game director Yoko Taro was previously asked about the possibility of seeing the game on Switch, telling fans to instead ask Square Enix.
]]>The Nintendo Direct mini Partner Showcase is set to air today, June 28, at 2pm BST. You can watch it right here via the YouTube embed below.
Nintendo has announced that the Direct will be roughly 25 minutes long and has given us the focus of the showcase. This Nintendo Direct mini is highlighting third-party games coming to the Switch. If you are crossing your fingers for news on Breath of the Wild 2, you can uncross them. You should set your expectations before watching or you may come out the other end rather disappointed.
The Nintendo Direct will be going live on June 28 at 6AM PDT / 9AM EST / 2PM BST / 3PM CEST. One recently dated third-party game coming to Switch is No Man's Sky, which looks remarkably good in the trailer below.
]]>It appears to be all hands on deck (literally) for Valve right now as the company announced just yesterday (June 27) that they'll be amping up production of the Steam Deck.
Ultimately, Valve has plans to ship more than double the amount of Steam Decks in Q3 than they did in Q2. So, if you're awaiting your reservation email, it might not take too much longer. Q3 reservation emails are set to arrive as early as June 30.
Announce via the Steam Deck Twitter account, Valve shared "Some great news on the production front. We just sent the last batch of Q2 emails, and we’ll start sending Q3 reservation emails on the 30th."
]]>It’s a chaotic moment in the world of fighting games right now. These games, typically at their best when played next to some other tryhard at a weekly tournament at some bar with cheap pints, or at a packed, sweltering hotel conference room filled with PS4s and a few CRTVs buzzing away desperate for death, were ripped away from those environments. The Fighting games genre was hit hard by the pandemic, and only now as DNF Duel releases is the scene returning to something approaching business as usual.
An adaptation of the hugely popular MMO action RPG Dungeon Fighter Online, Arc System Works is back at it again bringing a popular IP to a shiny 2D stage. The difference this time around is that it’s working in collaboration with Eighting - the developer behind Marvel vs Capcom 3 - which will perk the ears of those who like intense, madcap fighters.
DNF Duel is launching in an ideal release window, between the big hitters of 2021 and the oncoming giants expected next year like Street Fighter 6 and Project L. It’s coming at a time when the core players are dying to grab some games and flex their skills with friends and the wider world.
]]>A new Nintendo Direct mini has been announced today, and is set to be a roughly 25 minute long presentation focusing on third party games and developers creating projects on Nintendo platforms. While no first party Nintendo games like Bayonetta 3 or Breath of the Wild 2 will be shown, it will be showing off some of the 3rd party content coming to Nintendo platforms in the coming months.
The Nintendo Direct will be going live on June 28 at 6AM PDT / 9AM EST / 2PM GMT / 3PM CEST. You can watch it live on Nintendo’s official Youtube channel.
We’ve yet to have any concrete information on what to expect from this Nintendo Direct aside from what we’ve been given - the focus being on non-Nintendo games coming to the Nintendo Switch. This does mean that those waiting for Bayonetta 3 news will have to wait a little bit longer sadly - same goes for Breath of the Wild 2 news.
]]>Riot Games will soon start monitoring voice chat in Valorant, as part of an attempt to curb toxicity in the popular competitive FPS. This will be achieved through recording voice comms in online matches of Valorant, which will then be evaluated if a report indicating some form of toxic behaviour comes through.
This was first hinted at in an official blog post on the subject of toxicity back in February, inside a section dedicated to future steps that were in the works. Fast forward to today and we’re nearly the first stage of beta implementation later this year. On July 13, a background launch for the voice evaluation system will be deployed in North America.
In its first implementation, the system will not initially be used for banning according to official statements on the system. Instead, this will be used to “train our language models and get the tech in a good enough place for a beta launch later this year”. This is seemingly to get ahead of issues such as false positives before actual punishments start to be dished out.
]]>Sony has confirmed the PlayStation Plus leak from earlier in the week, officially announcing the next batch of free games coming to subscribers at the Essential tier, i.e., the most basic.
All three games in the original leak are indeed arriving next week. That's Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time for PS4 and PS5, The Dark Pictures: Man of Medan for PS4, and Arcadegeddon for PS4 and PS5.
The original story follows below.
]]>If you've been keeping up with Elden Ring's various updates over the last several months, the game's minor evolutions should be familiar to you. FromSoftware has quietly changed the game's maps (several times), and made a number of other tweaks that rarely get mentioned in patch notes.
And, it turns out, one of the game's most recongisable areas was being updated right up until the last minute.
Leyndell, the Royal Capital is a vast, complex legacy dungeon, which players arrive at fairly late into the game. In Elden Ring's 1.0 version - the one that shipped on disc - Leyndell is a little different from the one players have been visiting since the days of release.
]]>Have you ever been playing on your PC and wondered what it would be like to actually walk around the fantastical worlds of Night City in Cyberpunk or Los Santos in GTA V for yourself? To leave the WASD keys or PS4 pad behind and explore with your own two feet? With the STEPL Mobile app, that dream might not be too far away.
Posted on r/games recently by the solo developer behind STEPL, you can see a mysterious pair of legs move up and down in place and cause characters in Cyberpunk 2077, GTA V, and Horizon: Forbidden West to start wandering around! With a controller in one hand handling the right analogue stick, and a phone in your pocket, it looks as though the app lets you step in the shoes of your favourite characters (granted it’s not something like a racing game, of course).
Jumping into the video description of Youtube, it looks as though STEPL is intended as a workout tool: “STEPL is a good workout motivator if you play sitting for many hours instead of walking or forcing yourself to work out - It lets you get fit while gaming. Stick your phone in your pocket, and when you take steps in place your character will also take steps forward.” This is reflected on the official website too, which champions goals such as saving time for users, helping with exercise motivation, and helping people to live longer.
]]>Bungie is suing the person behind several bogus Destiny 2 DMCA takedowns.
March 2022 saw Bungie and various YouTubers hit with a DMCA takedown. At the time, it wasn’t clear who was issuing the takedowns, but Bungie eventually found out who the malefactor was, and has filed a lawsuit.
According to the filing, the offender's name is Nicholas Minor who goes by Lord Nazo on YouTube. Apparently, Minor was issued a takedown notice by Bungie on YouTube, went off the rails, and eventually started targeting Bungie and prominent Destiny YouTubers.
]]>It sounds as though EA is ready to show off Skate 4, according to a report.
Sources speaking with Try Hard's Tom Henderson have said EA is ready to give the world a look at the next entry in the series.
The game is reportedly just called Skate and is further along in development than previously thought when leaked footage surfaced back in April. Apparently, the leaked footage showed a game very early in development, and quite a few months old at that.
]]>Stardew Valley will receive a new update but don't expect it to have lots of new content.
This is according to developer Eric “ConcernedApe” Barone, stating the focus of the next update will be mods, but there will be a little something for everyone else.
"It's mostly a modding-focused update - makes modders lives easier," said Barone. "There will be some new content, but it won't be huge."
]]>It's the weekend. What are you going to do with it?
Surely you plan on playing some games like we are, but there may be other things on your plate. If so, hurry and finish up so you can relax and kill some time with your console or PC.
Here's what we're getting into this weekend:
]]>Ubisoft is ready to show off how its pirate game Skull and Bones is coming along, and it will do so in early July.
That's according to sources speaking with Try Hard's Tom Henderson, stating that a livestream full of trailers, gameplay, developer commentary, and a release date will drop the week of July 4 (thanks, resetera).
The stream will also reportedly confirm platforms, which if a game rating out of Brazil is corrent, Skull and Bones will be released for PC, PS5, Stadia, and Xbox Series X/S.
]]>The weekly reset is coming to Marvel's Avengers next week on June 28, and with it will come "a certain goddess of thunder."
That's right: the 2.5 Update will bring Thor's love interest, Jane Foster, to the game. And that's all we know for the moment. To find out more, you will have to tune into the next War Table Deep Dive on June 27.
If you are unfamiliar with Jane, at one time she was deemed worthy enough to wield Mjolnir when Thor was unable to. During this period, she took on the mantle of Mighty Thor and joined the Avengers.
]]>FromSoftware's next game is already in the final stages of development according to the studio boss Hidetaka Miyazaki.
Speaking in an interview with the Japanese outlet 4Gamer, not only is FromSoftware finishing up development on an unannounced title, but there are multiple games in the works. How many there are wasn’t shared.
It's possible the game FromSoftware is finishing up could be the next entry in the Armored Core series, especially if a January leak is accurate.
]]>Fire Emblem may well have been one of the first, and most famous, tactical RPGs, despite the fact there would be over a decade between the series Japanese and international releases. However, for those of us in the West who fancied overhead wargaming in a fantasy setting, you could do worse than check out the just as good (and slightly more overlooked) Shining Force.
Debuting on the Mega Drive/Genesis, the series was created by first-party studio Sonic! Software Planning (who is often credited as Team Sonic – not at all confusing for Sonic Team), a company which later split from Sega and rebranded as Camelot. Yep, that's right; the same studio behind the Golden Sun series.
Back when my knowledge of role-playing games was extremely limited and I was only playing because of the draw I felt to elves, centaur knights, and other fantasy tropes, Shining Force was essentially my introduction to the RPG genre – and to the idea of games being much longer form than the quick arcade thrills of Sonic or Streets of Rage that I was used to. Safe to say, though, after renting it from a local video store, it quickly left an impression on me.
]]>Actor Chris Pratt is trying to reassure Mario fans that his voiceover in the upcoming Super Mario Bros. film won't be terrible.
In an interview, The Jurassic World and Guardians of the Galaxy actor told Variety Mario’s voice has been updated for the film and is "unlike anything you’ve heard in the Mario world before."
"I worked really closely with the directors and trying out a few things and landed on something that I’m really proud of and can’t wait for people to see and hear,” said Pratt. “It’s an animated voiceover narrative. It’s not a live-action movie. I’m not gonna be wearing a plumber suit running all over. I’m providing a voice for an animated character."
]]>Earlier this week Sony launched the new PlayStationPlus tiers - including PlayStation Essential, PlayStation Extra, and PlayStation Premium. More expensive options provide players with an expanded library of free games, however, the games present across each tier has left some confused.
According to the official announcement in March of this year, this PlayStation Plus update offers various different titles for download depending on what version of the subscription version you get. For PS Extra owners, “a catalogue of up to 400* of the most enjoyable PS4 and PS5 games – including blockbuster hits from our PlayStation Studios catalogue and third-party partners.” If you go all the way for PS Premium, “A catalogue of beloved classic games available in both streaming and download options from the original PlayStation, PS2 and PSP generations”.
This difference has left some looking over what games are available scratching their head. For example, the PS4 remake of Medievil is one of the game’s present in the Extra catalogue, while the Mafia remake is featured in the Premium selection - where PlayStation “classics” were meant to be.
]]>The team behind Showtime - a popular fan zine based on Persona 5 have released a statement announcing that a now-former member of the team has allegedly syphoned $27,625 CAD (roughly $21,303 USD) project funds into personal purchases. These purchases, according to one project member on Twitter, were for Genshin Impact.
Showtime is a fan Zine (basically a smaller, independent form of magazine) that started back in 2020 and sold 1,517 copies of the product over Etsy to global fans of the popular Atlus RPG. It has since become a project that 28 illustrators, five merch artists, and six writers all contributed to. The member of staff - Ree - who seems to have taken the money was the founder of the zine, and had previous experience with other similar projects.
While the remaining members of the team have sought legal counsel on the matter, it appears that there’s little hope to regain lost funds due to a variety of reasons. According to the official statement released via the SHOWTIME twitter account, “We immediately sought legal counsel and received the last correspondence from an attorney just last night, June 22, and are unfortunately unable to take legal action against her to recoup the funds; like all zines, the moderators do not hold formal contracts with Ree, and all money was processed directly through Ree’s Etsy and bank accounts”.
]]>Hello again readers. I won’t lie. As I attempt to write some general blurb about this podcast for the fifth time and not make it the dullest thing imaginable, I’m struggling. But hey, ho, the VG247 The Best Games Ever Podcast returns, with episode 5. This week I worried we’d end up talking about how Steve from over the road lent a copy of Advance Wars on the GBA, but instead we soon became a blip on the radar of the local constabulary. That’s right, it’s time for the Best game you got for an odd reason. Not the best title, I admit, but stick with it.
“What is VG247’s Best Games Ever Podcast?” you ask, presumably because you read the words I’d written and not because you really wanted to ask. It's really quite simple, so listen up and please don’t ask again: Each week three of us must present our choice for the best game ever that fits the title of the show (this week it must be a game that we reckon is great but came into our possession through odd means). Then our host/judge, Jim Trinca, will use his complete lack of objectivity to declare a winner and annoy at least one of us – most likely me.
Each episode of the Best Games Ever Podcast skirts around the 30-minute mark. We’ve got a small number of things to talk about, and we don’t go on random tangents about the latest video game news (unless it’s somehow relevant to the games and stories being discussed). We feel 30 minutes is the perfect length. If we were doing this live and asked you to pay for a ticket, of course we’d make it longer, but we’d likely take the easy option and deviously put multiple Best Games into one show. Smart.
]]>Elden Ring really is the gift that keeps on giving. Even if you look past the content already in the game, our evolving interpretations of it, and the different discoveries players continue to make this many months after launch, there's an untapped goldmine of cut features and content that we've been slowly uncovering.
One such feature that seems to have gone through a few iterations during development is riders and mounting. Across the game's world, you'll come across enemies riding horses as well as other creatures. The player can himself do that with Torrent, of course, and the system that governs all of those interactions is the same.
Souls modder Zullie the Witch, who digs deeper into FromSoft's games than anyone else, has uncovered some interesting quirks about the feature. According to their findings, the way the mechanic works is actually fairly simple.
]]>Sonic Origins hasn't been receieved too warmly at launch. As well as delisting classic games ahead of the Origins launch, Sega also caught critisism from fans for carving up the compilation title into pieces via DLC.
Further to that, we're starting to see players figure out some wild glitches and bugs in the title. Just last night, a Twitch streamer discovered that you can effectively skip all of the '& Knuckles' portion of Sonic 3 & Knuckles by restarting and heading to Hidden Palace. Eep.
But how did the game launch in this condition – after all, we've seen plenty of Sonic re-releases in our time, and they've all turned out pretty good. A thread of tweets from Headcannon (Sonic Origins dev) founder Simon ‘Stealth’ Thomley gives us a little bit of insight.
]]>The Steam Summer Sale has kicked off, and promises to save you a bit of coin.
As usual, along with the sale, you will be able to acquire trading cards and craft badges for fun.
There's also some sort of mystery going on with a self-described time-traveling trickster named Clorthax. The character is selling "ten games from the far future" but for some reason can't divulge the names of the games or "their exact location on Steam."
]]>Asobo Studio has announced an October release for A Plague Tale: Requiem, and the studio also released an extended gameplay trailer.
The sequel to the critically acclaimed A Plague Tale: Innocence follows Amicia and her brother Hugo on a new quest, as they try to survive an uncaring world as a terrifying curse hunts them down.
Set six months after the first game, with Hugo's curse seemingly under control, the siblings head south seeking both to start a new life and find a cure for Hugo's affliction.
]]>The original Overwatch's days seem to be numbered as a standalone product as it will integrate with Overwatch 2.
Speaking in a recent AMA on Reddit, game director Aaron Keller confirmed what Blizzard stated previously when it said the Overwatch and Overwatch 2 clients will merge to avoid fragmenting the player base.
"When Overwatch 2 launches on October 4, it will be a replacement for the current Live Service," said Keller.
]]>Out of nowhere, former head of Sonic Team Yuji Naka has confirmed that Michael Jackson did in fact have a hand in the creation of the Sonic 3 soundtrack - following years of SEGA officially denying his involvement. Since Michael Jackson’s involvement was never formally confirmed, Yugi Naka has basically confirmed one of the biggest rumours surrounding the franchise.
This casual confirmation came via Yuji Naka’s own twitter account, where he expressed shock at the change in soundtrack in the classic Sega platformer. This, as you can imagine, has left plenty of gaming trivia heads, speculators, or just plain old fans of the fastest hedgehog in gaming stunned.
The reason all of this is popping up now is thanks to the recent release of Sonic Origins. This compilation of classic Sonic titles features many retro titles belonging to the series - including Sonic 3. However, Sega previously confirmed that the version of Sonic 3 present in this collection would not have its original music.
]]>Hello Games will bring No Man's Sky to Switch in October.
The Nintendo Switch version of No Man’s Sky will be published digitally by Bandai Namco through Nintendo’s eshop and physically through all retailers. A physical PlayStation 5 version will also be made available on the same day.
Since its release in 2016, the game has received six years’ worth of major content drops totaling 20 to date. Day one players on Switch can expect all previously released content along with continuous updates in the future.
]]>During a developer presentation on June 21, Xbox software engineer Morgan Brown took to the stage to share some plans surrounding Xbox Game Streaming. During the presentation, Brown shared that keyboard and mouse support will be added to Xbox Cloud Gaming in future. When the feature will be implemented is yet to be announced.
The developer presentation primarily focused on how Xbox can help developers with optimising graphics, and reducing latency when streaming their games via Xbox Cloud Gaming. However, Morgan Brown did take the time to note that KBM support will arrive on the cloud, and that developers should be working to implement the controls in their games.
While Xbox consoles have supported keyboard and mouse for a while now, we are still yet to see the same support added to Xbox Cloud Gaming. The cloud service allows subscribers to play an abundance of Xbox games via PC, laptops, and even mobile devices, as long as they have a stable internet connection and they're able to plug in an Xbox controller.
]]>Creative Assembly is going back to the world of shooters. After the relative success of Alien: Isolation, the Total War studio has revealed it's working on a new multiplayer shooter called Hyenas.
We've known that this project has been in development since 2018, and Creative Assembly has occasionally teased it. But now, the game has been officially announced.
Hyenas is a three-player heist game where you compete against four other squads to steal pop culture memorabilia. If this sounds like an unusual setup, it probably helps to know that all the billionaires have left Earth for Mars.
]]>We all know, by now, that Sony is revamping its PlayStation Plus subscription service by adding new tiers that'll let you have more access to games (both new and old) if you pay for the most expensive level of membership. Today, it's the final push of the launch phase, as Sony completes its final rollout in Europe, the Middle East, India, South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand.
The rebirth of Playstation Plus, in essence, merges the aging PlayStation Now streaming with PlayStation Plus' cloud gaming capabilities, resulting in a service that is comparable – though not the same as – Xbox Game Pass. The three new tiers are: Essential, Extra, and Premium, which are priced from $9.99 to $17.99 a month.
To celebrate the launch of the tiers in all regions, Sony has pushed out a new advert featuring a peculiar man named Mr. Malcolm, for some reason. Malcolm – accompanied by a large number of PlayStation icons from the past and present – is a vessel for all things PlayStation, showing off (assumedly) what Sony wants you to feel like you'll be enjoying from this new PS Plus experience.
]]>Following the recent crypto-mining crash, it appears that many Chinese crypto-miners have taken to livestreams to dismantle their rigs and sell off their graphics cards.
It has been no secret that both AMD and NVIDIA graphics cards have been purchased en masse for mining cryptocurrency. However, in light of the ongoing decline of both Bitcoin and Ethereum, it appears that the days of crypto-mining may very well be over.
First reported by WCCFTech, various photos from livestreams and of online auctions have been shared to Chinese forums, with Baidu being one example.
]]>The 2022 Pokemon Go Fest finale event will go some way to addressing player disappointment over bad shiny luck during the first Global Go Fest weekend, Niantic has said.
Trainers around the world expressed their frustration at what they felt was a too low encounter rate for shiny Pokemon over the 2-day special event - which cost $15 to access - with many players reporting much better hauls at previous festivals and community days.
2022’s Global Go Fest was also plagued by a bug that made Pokemon attracted to Incense appear on the map when they had already despawned, further exacerbating the problems for shiny-hunting players.
]]>Why do I live in the UK? A cluster of lands glued together by wobbly agreements, littered with people trying to shun attractive Europeans, and led by a law-breaker who still refuses to use a comb. Worst of all (at least, for the summer), this is a hype wasteland for Splatoon 3.
Western civilisation, by extension, feels like the forgotten afterparty for Splatoon fans. Sure, 10 million copies of Splatoon 2 have been sold worldwide and there’s plenty of people to match with online, but it’s clear Nintendo has uncharacteristically pumped out two sequels in seven years to feed its insatiable Japanese audience.
According to Famitsu, Splatoon 2 is the fifth best-selling Switch game in Japan ahead of Super Mario Odyssey and The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild. No wonder they’re prioritised for the killer holographic Splatoon concerts.
]]>Yager has officially kicked off Season One of The Cycle: Frontier, the studio's free-to-play extraction royale shooter. The new season arrived earlier today, following two-and-a-half hours of maintenance.
The downtime was necessary to deploy patch 1.2.0, the game's latest. But that's not all; as promised, the game's first battle pass has also arrived.
As with most other live service games, The Cycle: Frontier's Fortuna Pass is made up of free and premium tiers. You earn progress by simply playing the game. If you'd like to unlock some special character and weapon skins, you can purchase the pass for 950 Aurum (~$10).
]]>To celebrate Episode 5 of Valorant kicking off in under 24 hours, Valorant have revealed that their Comic Crossover event will begin at 2PM PT on June 22. The event is not only to celebrate the launch of the new underwater map, PEARL, but to also recognise the expansion of Valorant's storytelling.
The Comic Crossover event will feature a free and exclusive event pass that has seven levels for players to attain. The event will last for three weeks from its launch on June 22, so you've plenty of time to unlock the freebies on offer.
That being said, this exclusive pass contains two titles, three player cards, and two sets of Radianite Points that you can earn by playing games. If I also say so myself, these player cards have to be some of the best yet(see below), and I think a lot of players are going to be fans.
]]>The Ultra Beasts Buzzswole, Xurkitree and Pheromosa are making their first Pokemon Go appearances at Pokemon Go Fest 2022 events in Seattle, Sapporo and Berlin, Niantic has announced.
After the recent release of the giant Rock and Poison type jellyfish, Nihilego, the three new Ultra Beasts will be available to attending trainers who complete their exclusive Special Research quests.
If you're not able to attend though, Niantic has said all players will be able to add the Ultra Beasts to their collection soon, saying "they will appear globally later in the Season of GO".
]]>Are you (or your kids) hungry for a space adventure like you’ve never experienced before? If so, Minecraft may be the best place to find your next intergalactic journey with the new Lightyear DLC that’s just been added to the Minecraft Marketplace.
Tied in with the Lightyear film that’s currently in cinemas, this content pack allows you to step into Buzz’s shoes as they journey across the stars. This is available for most owners of Minecraft: Bedrock edition, although those on the Nintendo Switch will have to wait until later this year to take to the stars.
In terms of what you can expect, the DLC features an origin story for the astronaut, as you must explore an alien planet following a crash landing. Containing five different missions that’ll take you through a variety of biomes, you’ll be fending off a range of enemies, bosses and treacherous flying segments as you search for a way to complete your objective.
]]>We're only about a year out from Final Fantasy 16 releasing – but the full game is actually playable from back to front, right now.
In an interview with PlayStation Blog, Square Enix veteran and Final Fantasy 16 producer Naoki Yoshida reiterated that the game is pretty much done – there's just some tweaks, fixes and fine-tuning that needs to happen before it can be unleashed upon the world at large.
"Right now, the game is fully playable from start to finish, but we have a lot of voiceover in several languages that still need to be recorded," he told the blog. "Final Fantasy 16 is a very action-oriented game, so we’re also doing a lot of playtesting to fine-tune the difficulty levels, as well as putting the final touches on the cutscenes, and going through a full-scale debugging process. A year is a short time in game development, so we’re all straining at the bit to get it over the line."
]]>Square Enix's next big Final Fantasy game is finally coming, and by the crystals it's been a while. Final Fantasy 16 was announced back in September 2020 for PlayStation 5, and developer and publisher Square Enix has been keeping its mouth shut about the game for fear of giving too much away, or setting unrealistic expectations.
Now, though, the game has a 'Summer 2023' release window, which was confirmed during a June State of Play event, via the flashy new Dominance trailer. As of the announcement, we're starting to see more information about the game eke out – along with some fascinating insights into exactly what the final product will look like.
One of the most interesting bytes of info about the game comes from a recent IGN interview, in which producer Naoki Yoshida notes that the game will not be open world – though it will take inspiration from recent open world titles.
]]>If you’re like us, the idea of Bloodborne 2 has us dreaming of what a hypothetical sequel to the excellent gothic action RPG would look like. What dark corners of the world would we explore? What horrors would await us there? It’s enough to make a person sick. Enter a recently released Unreal Engine 5 montage - which aims to further explore the premise.
Uploaded to Youtube by Enfant Terrible, this video compiles a range of Unreal Engine 5 projects from a range of talented creators, all of which lean into that dark tone that helps make Bloodborne the beloved game it is today.
In it, we see rain-slicked streets, lavishly decorated mansions, ravaged and unkempt pathways and lofty spires reaching skyward. While occasionally the video is a touch jarring as different artists’ works splice into each other, the video does make a good case for setting a potential Bloodborne 2 in the engine. Some of the projects highlighted really do feel as though you could drop a hunter with a saw in hand right onto it.
]]>Yesterday, Fall Guys did something that many of us had been wanting them to do for a while now. Mediatonic's clumsy title went free to play, arrived on Xbox and Nintendo Switch, and introduced cross-platform play. This is a big move for the title, which appears to have a copious amount of adoring fans who have been waiting for this day.
Sadly, the launch wasn't without its problems. It took me about forty minutes of sitting in an eternal loading screen before realising something was up, and sure enough, Fall Guys had taken to Twitter to share that server issues were ongoing.
The problem didn't stop there, however, and not long after public matchmaking was unavailable, custom lobbies were temporarily disabled too. Updates from Fall Guys were met with a lot of disdain, with people complaining that the team clearly hadn't prepared enough and that they'd messed up their launch.
]]>If you are playing Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic 2: The Sith Lords on Switch, you should be aware of a game-breaking bug that will stop you from finishing the game.
News of the bug was brought to everyone's attention by Twitter user Daniel Moore, who contacted Aspyr Media regarding the issue [thanks, IGN].
According to Aspyr, it is currently investigating workarounds for the issue but there isn't an ETA at present. An upcoming patch will address the issue, said the company.
]]>Tiny Tina's Wonderlands will arrive on Steam Thursday, June 23.
Alongside the main game, all DLC will be made available, and this includes the latest content release, Molten Mirrors.
For a limited time, Steam users will be able to pick up the game for a special launch price, and receive the Golden Hero Armor Pack until July 7.
]]>I, Breton sorcerer Vidal von Astral, watch over my partner – an Argonian assassin going by 'Lizzy' – as she sneaks downstairs into the wine cellar of a bustling tavern. I say 'sneak,' but really the archaic-yet-endearing Morrowind animation system and digitigrade structure of her lizardy legs means that she's slowly bounding like a Saturday morning cartoon character who's trying to telegraph to the viewer that they're up to something devious. The guards seem confused, watching her go down and around the corner and yet not committing to following her – perhaps there's more deceit to this comical Argonian stealth than meets the non-NPC eye.
Then, one of the guards makes a move, and starts to stride in that unmistakably Morrowind way down the stairs; I give my partner the signal to wrap up her raid on the Cyrodillic Wine and get out of there. She escapes but – kleptomaniac that she is – can't resist nosing in a sack on her way out, which the guard duly walks in on. We're forced to flee, immediately becoming fugitives in the crossroads town of Pelagiad. It's the first twist in our freewheeling co-op adventure in Morrowind, and it feels great to do these traditional Bethesda RPG shenanigans together.
The classic 2002 RPG Morrowind was, like every mainline Elder Scrolls entry, never designed for multiplayer, but thanks to the wonders of OpenMW – an open-source recreation of the Morrowind engine – and TES3MP, a project that adds servers and networking features to OpenMW, you can now enjoy it as a near-seamless co-op game. Rudimentary though it is in places, it still showcases how fully integrated co-op could be a star feature in The Elder Scrolls 6 (whenever that may come), and one of the most important evolutions in the series' history.
]]>Now through Thursday, June 23, Outriders is free to play on Steam.
Players on Steam can experience the full game including cross-play with other platforms during this time. Any progress made will be waiting should you decide to purchase the game.
Additionally, if you played the Outriders demo previously, you will be able to continue your progress from where you left off.
]]>Microsoft has announced the next round of games coming to Xbox Game Pass and PC Game Pass in June.
Landing today are Shadowrun Trilogy for cloud and console and Total War: Three Kingdoms for PC.
The Shadowrun Trilogy includes three tactical RPG titles that take place in a dystopian cyberpunk future where magic has re-awakened and has brought creatures of high fantasy back to life. Initially created as a tabletop RPG over 30 years ago, the trilogy is a cult classic.
]]>If you exclude Bloodborne and Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, Elden Ring is unquestionably FromSoftware's fastest Souls game in the traditional sense. It's basically a faster version of Dark Souls 3, even if it may not carry the same franchise name.
But what if you could bring some of those faster traits of Bloodborne and Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice into Elden Ring to ramp up the pace of combat even more?
More specifically, turn the standard roll into the quickstep/dodge both games enjoy. This is exactly what modder Nmsl2018 offers with their Replace light roll animation with Sekiro step and medium roll with Bloodborne step (yes, that's the full name).
]]>It already feels like an age since the Summer Game Fest peeled back the curtain on a sleek selection of upcoming game releases to get the pistons on everyone’s hype engines pumping again. Of the reveals, Nightingale certainly stood out thanks to its promise of bringing the survival genre to a more fantastical setting. But an interesting aesthetic can only get you so far – what exactly will set Nightingale apart from other titans in the scene right now?
To find out we talked with Aaryn Flynn, CEO of Inflexion Games and former Bioware general manager, to get to the bottom of what makes Nightingale special. We touch on unique features not found in other survival titles, the range of PvE encounters in the game, and how the studio plans to drag players away from their competitors.
VG247: You’re taking the survival genre to a more fantastical place than many of your peers. What unique selling point does that provide aside from a neat aesthetic?
]]>First reported by Eurogamer, a group of Silent Hill fans have taken it upon themselves to remake the entire game in Unreal Engine 5. So far, it appears that the team is off to a very promising start.
Not so long ago, details of a Silent Hill 2 remake were leaked and rumours surrounding the title became rampant. When not-E3 rolled around, however, many a Silent Hill fan were left disappointed to see that the game wasn't mentioned, myself included. Rumours could just be rumours, or this could be something we'll see in the distant future, only time will tell.
In the meantime, a group of fans known as Codeless Games are currently trying to remake the entirety of the original 1999 Silent Hill game in Unreal Engine 5. Most recently, the group gave us a look at what they've been working on and asked for feedback from fellow Silent Hill fans and enthusiasts.
]]>It makes sense that Sucker Punch would want to make a series out of Ghost of Tsushima, a game that has sold over 8 million copies to date. So when job ads crop up, hiring for an unannounced open world stealth game, our minds automatically turn to Ghost of Tsushima 2.
Per two new jobs ads on the Sucker Punch website – one asking for a Technical Combat Designer and one asking for a a Senior Combat Designer – we may have some preliminary details about what the studio is looking to achieve with its next title (thanks, Tech4Gamers).
The job ads both state a desire for staffers experienced with melee combat and stealth, as well as experience working in open world scenarios. Given that the previous game from the studio featured all those elements, it's not a stretch to think that this could, feasibly, be Ghost of Tsushima 2.
]]>Rebirth Island is back in Call of Duty: Warzone Pacific in the run up to the Season 4: Mercenaries of Fortune update. While the map had previously been removed from active playlists in preparation for the new Season 4 map Fortune’s Keep, continuous and passionate community feedback has led to Rebirth returning for a short time.
As it stands currently, Rebirth Resurgence playlists for all squad sizes have replaced Caldera Resurgence playlists, which had players dive into a faster-paced version of the game’s larger map. This means that anyone who wants to get a few more games of Rebirth Island in before it’s temporarily removed on June 22 have an opportunity to do so.
This announcement came via a post on the official Raven Software Twitter account (embedded below), which in turn was met with numerous accounts of positivity from those who’d previously been against the removal of Rebirth Island. One user, popular Warzone streamer and content creator JGOD, noted the speed of the change, stating it was the: “Fastest playlist adjustment I think we have ever seen.”
]]>Since the moment of the Epic Games Store's inception, Epic Games has had a particular stance about user reviews, and game-specific forums. Those are some of the most used, and often useful features on Steam, so it didn't quite make sense for Epic to decide not to implement them in its store.
The company always said that the EGS won't feature forums because they only bring toxicity and aren't popular amongst developers. It also won't include user reviews because of their potential for review bombing.
This week, years after the Epic Games Store first launched, two new features arrived that aim to replicate a version of user reviews and tags.
]]>Fall Guys is going free to play today across PlayStation, Xbox, Steam and Nintendo Switch. This family friendly battle royale platformer, which is excellent by the way, will be downloadable free of charge with cross play and cross-platform progression, meaning beans both hardened and fresh will be able to dive back into the games with zero barriers to entry.
If you’re wondering what time Fall Guys will be free, the exact Fall Guys release time for the update is: 5AM West Coast USA (PDT) / 8AM East Coast USA (EDT) / 1PM UK (BST) / 2PM Europe (CET).
If you’ve previously bought into the world of vast pink oceans of sludge, padded obstacles, and vicious family friendly fun then you’re not walking away empty handed. Those who’ve paid for Fall Guys will be receiving several free cosmetics including a nickname, a nameplate, the Regal costume, the Veggie Dog costume, and the Feisty Dwarf costume. You also get a free premium battle pass for the initial post-F2P season!
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