Jen Oneal, who assumed joint duties of the top position at Blizzard in August, will step down from the company at the end of the year, she wrote in a statement today. In the meantime, she’ll transition to a new but unspecified role at Activision Blizzard. Her co-lead, Mike Ybarra, will take over the rest of her…
Blizzard Entertainment says both titles need more time
The DLC campaign continues where the main story left off and comes with plenty of bells and whistles.
The post SAO Alicization Lycoris DLC Expansion Now Available appeared first on Siliconera.
There's a mystery afoot, and we need the assistance of our best detectives: The Game Informer community!
Snorlax is known to slumber wherever it wants, usually blocking the paths up-and-coming trainers need to cross to continue their journey. Coaxing a Snorlax to wake up and get out of the way isn't easy and usually requires the melody of a special flute to do the heavy lifting. This situation looks quite a bit different than your usual sleepover, though. It may be dangerous, innocuous, or even nefarious, but that's up to you, dear reader!
We'd love to hear what you think is happening in the image above involving the passed-out Snorlax on the train tracks with Yamper and Machamp surrounding the behemoth. Give us your best story in the comments!
You can work with the above picture to build your description of what in tarnation is happening. Below you can see three more angles at the scene, giving more context but begs even more questions like:
Does Machamp think he can stop a speeding train with just a sign?
Is Snorlax the real Santa?
If not, whose gifts are those?
Did Yamper pull a Snidely Whiplash and tie Snorlax to the tracks?
Why has Machamp imprinted its massive mitts on the slumbering giant?
Click image thumbnails to view larger version
Activision Blizzard announced during an investor call today that Overwatch 2 and Diablo 4 won’t be arriving as soon as originally planned, but didn’t provide a new timeframe for when the two big sequels will eventually come out.
When the CMOS battery in your PlayStation 5 eventually dies, you will still be able to play it, according to a new report.
Based on a new video from Hikikomori Media, a PS5 with an expired or missing CMOS battery will not invalidate the launch of any PS4 and PS5 games on the console. The CMOS battery is used to power a PlayStation's internal clock, and so when a game is started on it, the internal clock verifies the date and time on a remote server to make sure you're able to play them.
Previously, when the CMOS battery either died or was removed, the PlayStation console would ask you to manually put in the date and time, and then will try to sync them online. However, if the PlayStation Network wasn't functioning properly, then your console won't connect to it, rendering any games unplayable. This applied to all digital games, as well as PS4 physical games and some PS5 ones. But now, fortunately, this is no longer an issue.
Hypothetically, the problem meant if PlayStation Network ever shut down permanently in the future, then you wouldn't be able to play any game if the CMOS battery died. Sony sent an update back in September that corrected this issue on PS4.
During today’s financial conference call for investors and analysts, Activision Blizzard executives announced delays for Diablo IV and Overwatch 2.
While the writing was pretty much on the wall, today we hear the official word that both games have been delayed, while no information has been mentioned on how long the delay will be for either game. The wording of the announcement definitely appears to indicate that they will both launch after 2022.
We hear that Activision has worked with new leaders at Blizzard and within the franchises themselves, including developers in key creative roles, and it has become apparent that the games planned for 2022 will benefit from more development time to reach their full potential.
While the development teams have made “great strides” toward the completion of the games, Activision believes that giving them extra time to complete production and continue growing their creative resources to support them after launch, will ensure that they will “delight and engage their communities for many years in the future.”
On the other hand, Diablo Immortal remains on track to release in the first half of 2022.
Activision also mentioned that the delays will push out the financial gains expected for next year, but the publisher is confident that this is the right decision for developers, players, and the long-term success of the franchises.
Overwatch 2 and Diablo 4 are being delayed, Activision Blizzard revealed amid today's earnings report.
Activision Blizzard announced the delay in a slide titled "Update on Our Pipeline," saying that while it still plans to "deliver a substantial amount of content" next year, it is now "planning for a later launch for Overwatch 2 and Diablo 4 than originally envisaged."
Update: In an SEC filing Activision Blizzard confirmed that it was anticipating a financial uplift from the release of Overwatch 2 and Diablo 4 in 2022, but that is no longer the case after the delay. While Overwatch 2 and Diablo 4 never received an official release window, it appears the company was targeting 2022, but now both titles are expected in 2023 or beyond.
"These are two of the most eagerly anticipated titles in the industry, and our teams have made great strides toward completion in recent quarters," Activision Blizzard said. "But we believe giving the teams some extra time to complete production and continue growing their creative resources to support the titles after launch will ensure that these releases delight and engage their communities for many years in the future."
Activision Blizzard has delayed the releases of both Overwatch 2 and Diablo 4, two of Blizzard's most anticipated releases. As announced in its latest quarterly earnings, the company said that both will launch later "than originally envisioned."
"These are two of the most eagerly anticipated titles in the industry, and our teams have made great strides towards completion in recent quarters," the statement said. "But we believe giving the teams some extra time to complete production and continue growing their creative resources to support the titles after launch will ensure that these releases delight and engage their communities for many years into the future."
The statement also noted that this will also delay an anticipated "financial uplift" for the company next year. "But we are confident that this is the right course of action for our people, our players, and the long-term success of our franchises." No new release dates were announced, but given that Activision Blizzard anticipates that it won't get a financial bump from them next year, they may not come until 2023--perhaps not until April 2023 due to the beginning of the financial year.
In another part of the investor presentation, Activision Blizzard noted that the Overwatch League will still play an early build of Overwatch 2 starting next spring.
Kingdoms of Amalur, Knockout City, First Class Trouble, and three PS VR bonuses [Update: We’re actually getting six games for...
The post PlayStation Plus has six games for November, and it’s time to claim them appeared first on Destructoid.
Do you find yourself constantly punching real-world children while playing Resident Evil 4 for the millionth time on your Oculus virtual reality headset? Well, Facebook—or, excuse me, Meta—has got you covered with Space Sense, a new feature heading to Oculus Quest and Quest 2 devices with the platform’s latest…
Paid XP boosts will be removed from Marvel’s Avengers today following backlash from the player community, less than a month after they were first introduced.
Before the launch of Marvel’s Avengers, Square Enix and Crystal Dynamics released a blog post in August of 2020 that stated: “content purchasable with real money in Marvel’s Avengers will be aesthetic-only additions.” Then, around the start of last month, paid XP boosts had been quietly introduced to the Avengers marketplace, and, as expected, players were not happy, as first reported by Video Games Chronicle.
Click here to watch embedded mediaRiders Republic is all about speed, style, and extreme stunts. The vast majority of the vehicles and sports in the game encourage you to take risks and go big. But Riders Republic also contains a few secrets, including one that is distinctly not extreme: A "rideable" exercise bike that doesn't actually do anything.
In the Cascade Canyon section of the Grand Tetons, you can find a relic--the game's secret collectibles--that's marked with a Christmas tree and a bunch of presents. Approach the spot and you can get the relic's secret vehicle, the Training Bike.
The Training Bike in Riders Republic doesn't move an inch.It's not exaggerating to call this useless: With a skill rating of 1, it has by far the worst stats of any vehicle in the game. There's also the matter of it not actually doing anything. You can't move the Training Bike; your character will just pedal away enthusiastically. You might call it an exercise in futility.
Today Activision announced its financial results for the third quarter of the calendar year 2021, related to the period between July 1 and September 30.
According to the press release, said results are defined as “strong” and better than than the company’s prior expectations.
You can see a summary below.
The press release comes with the traditional comment by Activision Blizzard chief executive officer Bobby Kotick, who mentions the expectation of continued success during the current quarter (which will end in December).
“I’m pleased to report strong third quarter results ahead of our prior outlook. We are excited about this week’s Call of Duty launch and expect continued success in the fourth quarter. I want to thank our employees for their continued commitment to each other, the company, and our players. We look forward to sharing progress updates on our workplace initiatives, alongside our business performance.”
Earlier today, Wired Productions and Limited Run Games revealed they would be teaming up to bring fans of the BAFTA Games nominated title, The Falconeer, to vinyl. According to the official press release, the premium Double Vinyl is limited to 1,000 pressings, with 500 in ‘Azure Blue’ available exclusively from the Wired store for the UK and European markets, and 500 in ‘Sea Green’ unique to Limited Run Games for the North American market.
The Limited-Edition Double Vinyl also features two exclusive tracks by Benedict Nichols: Atun’s Folly (bonus track) and
The Door to Nowhere (bonus track) (feat. Tegen Hitchens). Check out the official details for this unique release down below:
Representing a celebration of the music, art and the game’s maverick solo developer, Tomas Sala, The Falconeer Double Vinyl is an eclectic cathedral of a soundtrack, which invokes the dual nature of The Falconeer; the transcendental waters versus the frenetic and high-energy of aerial combat. Featuring handpicked tracks from both Tomas Sala and distinguished composer Benedict Nichols, avid listeners will be transported to the beautiful yet often turbulent Great Ursee on a monumental journey featuring razor-edge synthesizers and organs, the sounds of Mongolian throat-singing, Balkan choirs, bagpipes, and cimbalom with performances by Tegen Hitchens, Mikee Goodman, and Carolina Styles.
“The music of The Falconeer is an epic masterwork by Benedict Nichols and is such a huge part of the experience within the game” said Tomas Sala, Solo Developer, “Beautiful and frenetic, I can’t wait for people to listen to the soundtrack on Vinyl”.
Extreme sports have always been my jam. Whether it was playing video games like SSX Trickey, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater, and Skate or the brief period I lived in Park City snowboarding the day away, I can never say no to the adrenaline rush that comes alongside experiencing these crazy activities. So when I saw the chaos that was Ubisoft’s Riders Republic, I knew I had to give it a go.
Not too long after the tutorial section of Riders Republic, which only takes an hour if you aren’t exploring, the game opens its chaotic floodgates. Instead of hiding all of its extreme sports behind hours of progression, everything from skis to bikes to wingsuits are unlocked pretty quickly. This is accomplished by going from one event to another, unlocking new gear, equipment, sports, and activities as a result.
There is plenty of event variety for each sport as well. For example: where one bike riding event focuses on winning first place, another event emphasises pulling off the best tricks. This event variation is the same for all the other sports, with some fantastic activities that include strapping rockets to your skis or glider to make for a fun, fast-paced experience.
Riders Republic offers a massive open world to explore on bike, snowboard, skis, and rocket wings. These core tools are also what you rely on to complete the various trick and race events throughout the game.
However, they aren't the only sports that Riders Republic contains. In addition to the normal vehicles, you can also acquire a number of special tools and toys by finding the hidden relics scattered throughout the map. These secret rewards range from legitimately helpful to downright useless, but all of them are worth a try.
Finding all of the relics can be a bit difficult, however, as they show up on the map with only a question-mark icon. This means that they're indistinguishable from the much more numerous landmark locations until you discover them. We've put together this guide to help you go directly to the locations of the relics, letting you skip all those landmarks.
The Pokemon Go follow-up is closing its doors in January Harry Potter: Wizards Unite is gradually shutting down over the coming months. Niantic...
The post Niantic’s Harry Potter: Wizards Unite is shutting down appeared first on Destructoid.
We're getting closer to the end of the SMT V demon videos, and the latest two show how Shiki-Ouji and Sudama could help a Nahobino out.
The post See How Shiki-Ouji and Sudama Can Help in SMT V appeared first on Siliconera.
Just two years after it launched, Niantic is already giving up on its Harry Potter: Wizards Unite augmented reality experiment. What was supposed to be Pokémon Go for the popular fantasy series will instead become just a memory when the game goes offline forever on January 31, 2022.
Call of Duty: Vanguard is just days from release, and this year's game will launch with a full campaign, multiplayer, and a brand-new Zombies experience. While Sledgehammer Games developed the campaign and multiplayer, Treyarch took helm of Vanguard's Zombies mode, and we've now got some new insight into what to expect.
On October 14, Zombies received a worldwide reveal with a trailer that showcases a shift to more demonic themes with Vanguard. Zombies mode is confirmed to launch with the map Der Anfang, which serves as a narrative prequel to Black Ops Cold War's Dark Aether storyline. Along with the trailer, Treyarch released a blog post to introduce some characters and discuss new game mechanics coming to Vanguard Zombies. It's uncertain how this map will be received by the Zombies community, as Der Anfang is not a standard round-based map, and instead is designed as a new objective-based mode similar to Black Ops Cold War's Outbreak.
GameSpot got the opportunity to sit down with Treyarch lead writer Craig Houston, senior writer Tony Bedard, associate director of design Gavin Locke, and creative specialist Miles Leslie to discuss Vanguard's Zombies mode, and what lies ahead for post-launch content.
GameSpot: Zombies recently had a big reveal, and we got our first look at what's a very demonic-looking experience with Der Anfang. What inspired the shift to the occult for Vanguard?
Following several months of limited testing in select European territories, Netflix is rolling out its fledging video games service to all subscribers around the world (as long as they have an Android device), starting today, 2nd November.
Netflix announced it was "in the early stages" of expanding into games back in July, explaining it would initially focus on titles for mobile devices. Two such games - Stranger Things: 1984 and Stranger Things 3 - were added to its entertainment library in August as part of an early Poland-exclusive test, and three more - Shooting Hoops, Teeter (Up), and Card Blast - were introduced during a wider test in September.
Today NIS America released another trailer of the western localization of The Cruel King and the Great Hero.
The trailer focuses on the gameplay of this little lovely adventure known in Japan as “Warui Oosama to Rippana Yuusha.”
It was released in Japan a few months ago, while it’ll come west in early 2022 for PS4 and Nintendo Switch. We still don’t have a precise release date.
You can check out the trailer below.
If you’d like to see more of The Cruel King and The Great Hero , you can check out the original announcement for Japan the one for the west, a gallery of screenshots revealing the characters, and another trailer focusing on its adorable music.
Localizations also headed westward Today is a day, and that means that it’s time for another old-school shmup to announce...
The post Frantic Xbox 360 shmup Eschatos is headed to PS4 and Switch appeared first on Destructoid.
Masahiro Sakurai is back in Famitsu with his final column, in which he pontificates about Super Smash Bros. Ultimate as the series’ potential finale. It actually sounds like Ultimate might not be the end, though Sakurai isn’t certain about a sequel just yet.
Actor Dominic Monaghan has serious range. He starred in Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings series as the good-hearted, humble Hobbit Merry, one of the Fellowship's nine members. His next role is the sadistic Nazi officer Jannick Richter in Sledgehammer's Call of Duty: Vanguard, which releases this Friday, November 5. In an interview with GameSpot, Monaghan told us about how preparing for a character like Merry and Richter actually aren't all that different.
As an actor, Monaghan said his job is to find the justification for his character's behavior, and then bring that to life. In the case of Merry from The Lord of the Rings, viewers might find it easier to relate to a simple, country-loving Hobbit than, say, a war criminal. But there is a truth at the heart of each character that Monaghan taps into.
"Obviously Merry's motivation to do things might be a little easier to understand. He's trying to help out his friends. He's trying to stay alive. And fight for the good guys. And I'm sure the character I play in Call of Duty, he probably thinks he's fighting for the good guys," Monaghan said.
Monaghan said he couldn't give away too many specifics about his Vanguard character to avoid spoilers, but he said Richter is "paranoid" and fearful about how the war is going. The only glimpse of Richter we've seen so far came in a campaign trailer where he is torturing someone. This appears to be the pivotal scene that jumped off the page for Monaghan when he first got a hold of his script.
The 10-episode limited series premieres on HBO Max on Dec. 16
While the Dead or Alive franchise appears to be dormant on consoles, the free-to-play PC game Dead or Alive Xtreme: Venus Vacation continues to grow its roster.
A brand new girl has been released today on the Japanese version of the game. Her name is Koharu and she is a student in training to become a ryokan manager.
She is eighteen years old, 151 cm tall, and her blood type is A. She loves cleaning, classical Japanese literature, and table tennis, on top of Tsubaki-mochi (rice cakes with camelia leaves) and fruit-flavored milk.
Her favorite color is bright yellow, and her birthday is on December 22.
She’s voiced by Maria Naganawa, whom you may know for her roles as Laffey in Azur Lane, Lydie in Atelier Lydie & Suelle: The Alchemists and the Mysterious Paintings, and Kanna in Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid.
You can check out her trailer below.
As usual, you should not expect to get her immediately (or even in the near future) unless you’re willing to pay. Her gacha is exclusive to paid V-stones. Even if you are willing to open the wallet, the game’s abysmal percentages won’t help your quest. The usual 1.1% SSR chance is diluted down to 0.78% by a bunch of useless old SSR outfits thrown in the mix to make things unnecessarily difficult.
The publisher behind the Dishonored, Fallout, and The Elder Scrolls tabletop games is planning to release a Skyrim board game in 2022. Skyrim - The Adventure Game will include several story campaigns, including a prequel to the events of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim.
Gary Bowser, a 51-year-old Canadian hacker (and not to be confused with Nintendo of America president Doug Bowser, or... you know, Mario's nemesis), has pleaded guilty to multiple charges of hacking against Nintendo. He must now pay $4.5 million and faces up to 10 years in jail, Eurogamer reports.
Bowser initially denied allegations that he worked with hacking group Team-Xecuter, which designed and sold console modchips that allowed users to play pirated games, otherwise known as "ROMs."
The notoriously litigious Nintendo had chased after Team-Xecuter for several years. Last October, the United States government joined with Nintendo to launch a criminal prosecution of three members of the hacking group. Team-Xecuter maintained that their products were not specifically designed for piracy, and supported the "right to repair" and homebrew gaming communities.
This wasn't enough to save Bowser, who was arrested in the Dominican Republic in 2020 and deported to the United States. Bowser also operated under the name "GaryOPA," operating and writing for a site called MaxConsole, which frequently covered Team-Xecuter software. The U.S. government indicated that his relationship with Team-Xecuter ran deeper than being a mere writer, alleging he advertised and trafficked illegal hacking software.
Niantic and WB Games have announced that Harry Potter: Wizards Unite will be shutting down on January 31, 2022.
In a blog post, Niantic announced that starting on December 6, 2021, Harry Potter: Wizards Unite will be removed from the App Store, Google Play, and Galaxy Store before support ends completely the following January.
“When we launched Harry Potter: Wizards Unite, our vision was to allow players to experience the wizarding world right in their real-world surroundings as they stepped outside and explored their neighborhoods,” the developers said in a blog post.
As Niantic sunsets Harry Potter: Wizards Unite, there will be some final gameplay tweaks added including increased rewards, reduced brew times, and more XP. Niantic also revealed some final events for Wizards Unite taking place in the final three months of operation.
Like Pokemon Go, Wizard Unite required players to interact with the real world through their smartphones. Players could encounter magical creatures to fight, choose a Hogwarts house and wand, and craft potions, or partake in other activities.
But while Pokemon Go has been a worldwide hit, Wizards Unite doesn’t appear to have hit the same heights. According to numbers provided by Sensor Tower, Harry Potter: Wizard Unite generated close to $40 million from player spending. By comparison, Pokemon Go has accumulated nearly $5.5 billion over its lifespan and generated almost $1.1 billion this year alone.
Siliconera spoke with Sugi about Tales of Luminaria about its development, characters, and how its launch and updates will be simultaneous.
The post Interview: Sugi Discusses Tales of Luminaria Characters and Development appeared first on Siliconera.
Both purchasable Hero’s Catalysts and Fragment Extractors will leave the shop today Crystal Dynamics has announced it will be removing...
The post Marvel’s Avengers is removing its paid consumables appeared first on Destructoid.
The official Marvel’s Avengers Twitter account has just announced that paid XP boosts will be removed from the game by the end of the day. This means that Hero’s Catalysts and Fragment Extractors will no longer be available for purchase. However, those who already own both will still be able to use them as normal. They can also still be earned as rewards through regular play.
This statement comes after many fans and players had more than a few harsh words about the addition of these pay-to-win features. It’s true that the game doesn’t have any PvP modes, but players felt that the option to purchase experience was an unnecessary one all the same.
Here’s the official statement from the Twitter page:
Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2 launched on October 25, 2016, so it just celebrated its fifth birthday. That’s pretty much past the age of retirement for most games, but this one just refuses to step out of the spotlight.
Today Bandai Namco announced that the Legendary Pack 2 DLC will be released this week, on November 5, bringing new content and playable characters (Jiren, Caulifla, Kale, and Gogeta from Dragon Ball Super).
To celebrate the announcement, we get a new trailer with an extensive overview of the new content introduced by the DLC.
Funnily, the Steam page of the game still mentions that it would receive “post-launch support for one year.”
You can watch it below.
