It's not a Nintendo Switch exclusive.

The post Monster Hunter Stories 2 Coming to PC appeared first on Siliconera.

With Nintendo still pledging to stop selling "Mario 35th anniversary celebration" games like Super Mario 3D All-Stars at the end of March, our attention is elsewhere in the Mushroom Kingdom this month, but it wouldn't be MAR10 Day – March 10 – without several discounts on "Mario games" for Switch.

If you're in the mood for a Mario romp – or want to show your support for Luigi instead – the following Nintendo Switch titles are discounted until March 13 at 11:59 pm Pacific on the Nintendo eShop:

• Super Mario Party ($38.99)
• Super Mario Maker 2 ($38.99)
• Mario Tennis Aces ($38.99)
• Luigi's Mansion 3 ($38.99)
  

35 percent off during a 35th anniversary? You lucked out on this one, Nintendo.

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The Monster Hunter Rise Demo will be coming back to the Nintendo Switch, with a new Advanced difficulty quest.

The post Monster Hunter Rise Demo Will Return With New Magnamalo Quest appeared first on Siliconera.

Today Square Enix released a new trailer of the upcoming anime series dedicated to The World Ends With You.

The trailer focuses on the cast of characters that we’ll meet in the game and take another look at the renewed visuals.

We also get a taste of the ending theme titled “Carpe Diem” and performed by ASCA. It’s composed by Takeharu Ishimoto, who composed the soundtrack of the original game.

On top of that, popular artist Ilya Kuvshinov will work on the ending cutscene. You may know him for the character design of Ghost in the Shell: SAC_2045 and you can see a sample of his work below.

You can check it out below, alongside the previous trailer.

The World Ends With You The Animation will air in Japan on April 9, 2021.

Nintendo Switch titles remain the most popular physical purchases in the UK's gaming market, a trend that has seen the Japanese industry giant dominate the UK Charts for the first quarter of 2021. Leading the charge is the indelible Super Mario Bros. series, which has seen steady and persistent sales across its range of re-released Switch titles.

This past week saw Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury retain the number one spot for a fourth week running, making it a month on top for the Wii-U remaster. Social sim Animal Crossing: New Horizons sits at number three, having held a Top Ten position for almost an entire year. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and Super Mario 3D All-Stars sit at number four and six respectively, while the Switch edition of Minecraft and exercise 'em up Ring Fit Adventure fill out the back end of the Top Ten.

Popular survival game Rust is coming to consoles this spring. The game has long been one of the most played games on Steam since it first launched in Early Access in 2013 (and hit 1.0 in 2018) and now PlayStation 4 and Xbox One players will finally have a chance to see what the fuss is all about.

Before Rust officially launches, a closed beta is currently taking place and will last for the next few weeks. If you’re a console player who always wondered what exactly Rust is, it tasks players with surviving an unforgiving world inhabited by other players where rules are more or less non-existent. While you still need to combat thirst, hunger, and weather by crafting tools, weapons, and shelters, the game’s core appeal comes from encountering other players (up to 100) and the emergent stories that come out of these interactions. 

They can range from something as cool as working alongside strangers to share resources, build elaborate shelters, or even form your own society. Other times, well, I think former Game Informer editor Javy Gwaltney put it best in his 2018 review of the game: 

Hikaru Utada has sung all the themes for the Rebuild of Evangelion film series. She returns for Evangelion: 3.0+1.0 Thrice Upon a Time, which hits theaters today in Japan.

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Microsoft’s $7.5 billion purchase of Zenimax Media, parent company of Fallout, The Elder Scrolls, and Doom maker Bethesda, has cleared another set of hurdles, winning approval to proceed from both the European Commission and US Securities and Exchange Commissions.

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Also revealed: Deluxe Edition for Monster Hunter Stories 2, pre-order bonus and amiibos pic.twitter.com/rfPKipewaO

The Chameleos arrives in April 2021 alongside a free title update.

The post Monster Hunter Rise Free Title Updates Will Include Chameleos appeared first on Siliconera.

The art of negative space in game design

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Crystal Dynamics has issued a further statement on its upcoming Marvel's Avengers XP changes that will soon increase the game's later levelling grind. The developer also admitted its initial explanation was "not comprehensive enough" and had "caused confusion".

The XP changes were originally detailed last week in a blog post on the Marvel's Avengers website, along with a warning that any player who wanted to avoid the lengthier grind had until 18th March (the day these changes hit) to level up characters first.

"While it's tempting to read the increased grind as a cynical attempt at keeping players embroiled in the Avengers' live service game for longer," our reporter Matt Wales summarised last week, "Crystal Dynamics insists the goal is to fix pacing issues with the existing levelling system, arguing the speed the game currently awards skill points 'may be confusing and overwhelming' to newer players."

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A monstrous amount of information just releaesd.

The post Monster Hunter Stories 2 Release Date Falls in July appeared first on Siliconera.

The park doors open to the public on March 18

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Today Capcom released a new trailer and details of Monster Hunter Rise, which is getting very close to its release.

On top of the trailer, we also get a review of the features including the rampage and we learn that a new demo will be released on Nintendo Switch on March 11.

The game itself will also be update after release with a free patch coming in late April. It will include Chamelos and more new monsters.

Another update will come at a later date with even more monsters.

You can check out the trailer and presentatuion below.

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With the spare parts completely exhausted, Nintendo has to stop accepting repairs of the original 3DS earlier than planned.

The post Nintendo 3DS Repair Spare Parts Ran Out Quickly In Japan appeared first on Siliconera.

There's a new Monster Hunter Rise Rampage trailer, and it shows what it will be like to defend Kamura Village from hordes of monsters.

The post Monster Hunter Rise Trailer Focuses on the Rampage appeared first on Siliconera.

V1 Interactive, the studio behind last year's squad-commanding strategy shooter Disintegration, is shutting down this month. The FPS-meets-RTS game about robots with transplanted human brains didn't review all that well, and five months after it was released, the multiplayer modes went offline.

"We want to thank all the talented people at V1, both past and present, who helped make the last five years wonderful," V1 tweeted. "And a heartfelt thanks to the amazing community that supported us."

In another tweet, V1 Interactive president Marcus Lehto said that "our priority has been to the wellbeing of our employees. We've been transparent with them about the state of things for months and are making this decision now so they still have ample time to search for new jobs while being supported by our studio." Other than V1, Lehto is best-known for his hand in creating the Halo series.

As grim as the post-launch outlook seemed for Disintegration, I had hoped the studio's publishing deal with Private Division (a label under Take-Two Interactive) would've insulated V1 to a greater extent.

It's always a shame to see a smaller- or mid-sized studio working on a new IP go out so soon.

Monster Hunter fans have a date with a newly-hatched baby Rathalos on July 9, when Capcom launches Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin for the Nintendo Switch and Steam.

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Genshin Impact is one of the most successful mobile games on the market right now, thanks in no small part to MiHoYo supporting it with consistent updates and events. Update 1.4 has been officially unveiled, and players will be able to take part in a new Mondstadt-themed event in a few weeks.

And of course, like with every update that’s been released thus far, players will also get the chance to roll for more characters on the event banners with an increased drop rate. With the event taking us back to Mondstadt, it’s no surprise that Venti, who was the first timed exclusive 5-star character in the game, would be making a return.

I don’t have Venti myself, but from all reports, he’s great to have in almost any team composition. He’s great. But there’s a second banner coming with this update, and that’s where players will be able to pull for a brand new 4-star character named Rosaria.

Today, during the official Monster Hunter digital event, Capcom announced the release date of Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin.

The game will launch worldwide on July 9 for Nintendo Switch; A PC version via Steam has also been announced.

We also get a rather epic trailer in which we meet more of the characters that populate the game and learn of the Digital Deluxe Edition, which will include the game, bonus outfits, and more goodies.

You can even link your save data with Monster Hunter Rise to get a layered armor, while the pre-order bonus is another outfit for Ena.

Three dedicated amiibo were also presented. They will be available as the same time as the game.

If you want to see more, you can check out the announcement trailer. You can also read an official description from Capcom below.

We're only a matter of weeks away from the release of Monster Hunter Rise, the timed Switch exclusive that looks set to be one of the year's biggest titles, but let's not forget that it's going to be followed in quick succession by Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin - and the RPG spin-off now has a final release date, with it hitting worldwide on July 9th.

The original Monster Hunter Stories came out back in 2017, attempting to fuse the traditional RPG gameplay/monster catching of Pokémon with the world of Monster Hunter with some success.

Capcom also used the occasion to announce a new demo for Monster Hunter Rise, which prolongs the lifespan of the original demo while adding a new, tough-as-nails quest which has players taking on Rise's signature beastie Magnamalos. It'll be available on the eShop from March 11th.

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God of War: Fallen God follows Kratos after conquering Zeus and thwarting Athena. Believing himself to be finally free of his bondage, he sets sail for the desert in an attempt to distance himself from his home and his shame only to find his rage and guilt follow close behind. Kratos rages against the one foe that has proven to be unconquerable—himself. But a war against oneself is unwinnable, and only invites madness.

Fallen God reunites the creative team behind the previous God of War comic, writer Chris Roberson and artist Tony Parker. They'll also be joined by colorist Dan Jackson, letterer John Roshell and cover artist Dave Rapoza. Look for the first issue to release on Wednesday, March 10, 2021.

These adorable Pokemon terrariums from Re-MENT are a match for any season and weather!

The post Re-Ment Pokemon Terrariums Will Focus on the Four Seasons appeared first on Siliconera.

Microsoft is now one step closer to completing its acquisition of ZeniMax Media, having sought and received approval from both the European Commission and the U.S. Securities & Exchanges Commission (SEC) both of whom offered no opposition to the multi-billion dollar deal from taking place.

By law, Microsoft was obliged to seek approval from the statutory bodies on the basis of Antitrust - essentially global laws that are in place in order to supervise and prevent the formation of monopolies within a given industry. This is a common legal procedure in transactions of this nature, and was also sought by Tencent during the conglomerate's acquisition of mobile giant King in 2016.

Having received approval from both the EU Commission and the SEC, Microsoft is now expected to press forward with the $7.5 billion transaction, which is expected to see completion in late-2021. The deal gives Microsoft ownership of ZeniMax Media and its subsidiary studios and licenses, including those of video game publisher Bethesda Softworks.

Bethesda and Microsoft have previously assured video game fans that the new deal does not automatically designate all future Bethesda releases as Xbox/PC exclusives, suggesting that title exclusivity will be designated on a "case-by-case" basis. Bethesda's next release, Deathloop, will retain its initial PlayStation exclusivity despite the Microsoft purchase.

Next up in Music Week we're bringing you this lovely piece from 2011, all about the various leitmotifs that pull together a true gaming great.

London, October 2011. Thousands are crowded into the Hammersmith Apollo, one of the city's most famous theatrical venues, to hear a concert of music commemorating the 25th anniversary of The Legend of Zelda. It's an emotional night. Host Zelda Williams recalls how much the series she was named after meant to her growing up, and her voice audibly cracks at the memory. As Koji Kondo plays a delicate piano solo of Grandma's Theme from The Wind Waker, grown men can be seen dabbing their eyes. Kondo rises from his seat and the audience stands, too, applauding wildly, a number of them clad in the familiar green tunic, tights and pointed hat of their hero.

How did this simple fairytale fantasy inspire such passion, such devotion?

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The online concert will play over 20 tracks from the Shin Megami Tensei series.

The post Shin Megami Tensei 2021 Online Concert Will Include Dante Battle appeared first on Siliconera.

It's crazy to think that Super Nintendo World "isn't open yet," because there are hundreds upon hundreds of videos of people crowding into the park and doing vlogs of every single facet of it; but alas, it's not "officially open." That allegedly changes on March 18.

If you recall, the latest delay snatched away the prior launch date of February 4, due to a state of emergency that was declared in the Osaka prefecture. That delay was in mid-January, but here we are, mere days away from the new March 18 target, and Nintendo is giving the all-clear.

Things could change, but as of now, even the official Nintendo account is banking on March 18, beyond the purview of the Universal of Japan PR machine. Universal mind, elaborates on the opening, stating that there will be "strengthened" health measures to account for the decision.

If you can't go just check out this full park map and look up anything you're interested on YouTube. Again, there are hundreds of videos combing over every single part of the park in full HD, even full ride walkthroughs. We also have a hands-on look at the new Power-Up Bands!

Nintendo [Twitter]