Elite Dangerous: Odyssey, the new on-foot-focussed expansion for developer Frontier's long-running space sim, will be opening its doors to the paying public on 29th March, when its playable alpha gets underway for Commanders on PC.

Players wishing to take part in the alpha will need to have pre-ordered Elite Dangerous: Odyssey's Deluxe Alpha edition, priced at £39.99 - which is £10 more than the standard edition if you're wondering how much you'll be paying for the privilege (and an OST).

To accompany the news, Frontier has released a new trailer showing off gameplay from the alpha build of Odyssey. Here, three players team up to complete an on-foot raid of a military outpost in order to disable its power and hinder the opposing faction.

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An easy iOS controller for playing games on my couch without hogging the TV

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In his latest episode of “Mr. Sakurai Presents”, Smash Bros. Ultimate director Masahiro Sakurai revealed that he often keeps figures of upcoming fighters locked away in a drawer at work while developing them. Not just Amiibo either, but the good stuff.

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Nintendo has released a new video featuring Masahiro Sakurai breaking down how Pyra and Mythra, the latest additions to Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, will play.

Streamed through the official Nintendo YouTube account on Mar. 4, the video offers a detailed explanation of the Xenoblade Chronicles 2 characters’ origins, their move sets and the new stage that will be released alongside them on

The video starts with a look at the new stage. The first is the Cloud Sea of Alrest. It takes place on the back of a titanic being known as Azurda, or Gramps to characters from Xenoblade Chronicles 2, and is set high up in the clouds.

It stretches all the way out onto Gramps’ head, and while there’s usually plenty of room to maneuver, the stage can shrink when Gramps looks back to see the fight for himself.

As players fight, they’ll also be able to spot other titans in the distance, with each one boasting different terrain on their backs. Likewise, different characters from Xenoblade Chronicles 2 will appear on the battlefield, cheering the player on from the sidelines.

From there, the video moves into a breakdown of Pyra and Mythra’s specific strengths. Whereas Pyra can weather hits more easily and deal more damage, Mythra is faster and more agile, able to quickly and jump higher.

These differences are further highlighted in their movesets. Pyra has several moves which can deal tons of damage in one blow, with her side smash in particular able to send groups of enemies flying with ease.

Mythra, meanwhile, has a Foresight dodge, which reduces damage taken from a hit and can be used repeatedly in quick succession. Not only that, but it slows down opponents who are unfortunate enough to fall for it, leaving them open to a counter attack.

Developers say the game is just too big, too pricey for stores — here’s how to get it

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On March 18, Marvel’s Avengers will receive some much-needed new content when Hawkeye joins the roster. But that’s not all. In that same update, the game’s XP system will receive a major overhaul, developer Crystal Dynamics announced today.

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Genshin Impact's mobile edition is an absolute juggernaut, as Sensor Tower is reporting that the game brought in around $874 million from its microtransactions since launch at the end of September 2020.

Genshin Impact is a success globally, as it ranks third in terms of revenue on iOS and Google Play, only trailing Tencent's Honor of Kings and PUBG Mobile, both of which have made over $1 billion from microtransactions over the past five months.

Genshin Impact's $874 million outpaces the amount of money that Pokemon Go and Roblox made on mobile over the past five months, but those games are considerably older.

Genshin Impact is, however, the highest-grossing mobile RPG worldwide. It brings in around $175 million each month from microtransactions.

These results do not capture the full extent of Genshin Impact's success, as the game is also available on PS4 and PC. Also bear in mind that all of these numbers are estimates that come from SensorTower and not directly from the developer.

In terms of geography, Genshin Impact makes the most money in China, where it's generated $253 million so far. Japan is the second-biggest market for the game ($237 million), while the US ranks third with $162 million so far. iOS is the bigger platform for Genshin Impact, with revenue on Apple's store coming to $521 million compared to $352 million on Android.

The publisher showcase New Game+ Expo is back for 2021, and the all-day stream starts very soon. The event begins at 8 AM PT / 11 AM ET, and then continues through the afternoon with individual studio showcases.

The NGPX site promises new and upcoming releases, spanning diverse genres from action to puzzle-solving. You can check out the stream and a full schedule of the day's events below.

This year's stream will include games from Aksys Games, Koei Tecmo, Idea Factory, Natsume, Inti Creates, Gung Ho, Playism, NIS America, and Arc System Works. Many of these developers were on-board with last year's NGPX as well, so this appears to be becoming an annual tradition with this coalition of devs.

Pyra and Mythra, the latest characters to join Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, will become available in-game tomorrow here in the UK.

You can swap between the Xenoblade Chronicles 2 duo at any point during battle, as detailed this afternoon in a deep dive on their mechanics presented by Smash Bros. boss Masahiro Sakurai.

In short, Pyra's focus is power while Mythra favours speed. Pick the right fighter for the job!

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Limited Run Games has another test for us – a test to see who can stay on-budget this month.

If you skipped the digital Nintendo Switch versions of No More Heroes and No More Heroes 2 back in October 2020, or it's been long enough that you'd be okay with spending more on this series, Limited Run would like a word this month. Pre-orders are opening on March 12 at 10:00 am Eastern for physical Switch copies of both games, and there are fancy collector's editions, too. Pre-orders close on April 11.

The basic no-frills physical Switch copies of No More Heroes and No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle are $35 each – you'll have to buy them separately – and they come with a booklet inside.

The real reason we're here, though, is the collector's editions. These are $70 each (or $140 together with a Santa Destroy flag), which is a lot, but they look fantastic. And they line up just so on a shelf.

Construction has resumed following a COVID-19-related delay

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Fall Guys Season 4 is expected to kick off soon, bringing with it a series of new costumes. Developer Mediatonic has now teased the new outfits, posting silhouettes of them on social media and calling on fans to sound off with what the outfits might be.

None of them are very easily identifiable, as least not to me, but the internet has its guesses. For now, they'll remain a mystery, but Mediatonic will reveal all four of them on Friday, March 5, through the game's Discord, Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter accounts.

Before this, Mediatonic challenged its fans to complete a 2400-piece jigsaw puzzle to find a new clue about Season 4--and, of course, the community completed it in short order. The teaser revealed a flying saucer-themed outfit and other otherworldly costumes.

Square Enix released a lot of new screenshots and artwork of the upcoming action-platformer Balan Wonderworld alongside new trailers.

Today’s assets focus on three different chapters of the game, 10,11, and 12.

Chapter 10 is titled “The Artist with Painter’s Block” and it’s about Lucy Wong, a famous artist who becomes unable to find satisfaction in her own artwork.

Chapter 11 is titled “The Firefighter with Heroic Aspirations” and tells the tale of Eis Glover, who has become a firefighter in hopes of becoming a hero, but shrinks back when he faces a fire scene for the first time.

Chapter 12 is titled The Man Seen by No One, following Bruce Stone, a man who wants to make the town look nice by picking up rubbish. Yet, people keep throwing it away without a care.

You can check out all the assets below.

This is the game’s second delay, but at least it’s only a few months

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Earlier this week, Blizzard confirmed that there will be at least two chances for players to get their hands on Diablo II: Resurrected with alpha tests but now the company is warning players of fakes trying to capitalize on the excitement. 

Adam Fletcher, Blizzard's community development lead, took to Twitter to warn that the company is already being made aware of a few different fake alpha invites floating around following the reveal. "Just a heads-up to everyone interested in Diablo II: Resurrected and the tech alpha," begins his warning. "Don't fall for scams. I've seen numerous places state they are running contests or giving away access. That isn't true." 

Here is a great example:https://t.co/Czl4vixAPc

Sakurai explained the Pyra and Mythra SSBU reveal trailer might have felt different because Monolith handled it instead of him.

The post Sakurai Didn’t Write the Pyra and Mythra SSBU Reveal Trailer appeared first on Siliconera.

One of the last challenges you'll complete in Fortnite for Week 5, Season 14 tasks you to visit different restaurant kitchens. You have to visit two of them to complete this challenge, but it comes at the end of a sequence before you're actually able to count any progress you've made. Here's how to do it.

First off, prior to trying this challenge, ensure you've done the other three steps. You'll need to collect cookbooks, harvest eight fruits or vegetables--which can be done quickly at the Orchard northeast of the Coliseum--and then collect 150 gold bars. For collecting the 150 gold bars, just complete a bounty, as the one we completed rewarded us with 200.

Restaurant Kitchen Locations

Once that's done, you have a few different options for visiting kitchens, including:

• Sticks, at Craggy Cliffs
• Butter Barn, southeast of the Zero Point
• Pizza Pit, northeast of Collassal Coliseum
• Durrr Burger, southeast of Holly Hedges

As you can see from the way they're arranged on the map, the two locations in the northern section of the map--Pizza Pit and Sticks--are the closest together. Land near one of them, walk into the kitchen, and then head for the other one, doing the same when you get there. Once you have completed that, the challenge is done.

Motorsport Games has acquired racing simulation tech developer Studio397 for an undisclosed fee. ...

There’s a lot of content headed to Hitman 3 in March, and a new trailer provides a roadmap for what players can expect in the coming weeks.

Streamed through the official PlayStation YouTube channel on Mar. 4, the trailer breaks down each new batch of content planned for release in March. There are six events and missions in total, and while some will be available for play at any point after they’re downloaded, others will only be around for a limited time.

The first is the Lesley Celebration, an Escalation mission set in a night club. Using their knowledge of the area, players will need to take down specific targets without alerting the revelers, using everything at their disposal to succeed.

After that is The Stowaway Elusive Target mission. Set on Hitman 3’s Isle of Sgail location, it tasks players with taking down a target who is taking part in a secretive, high-society party. as with past Elusive Targets though, failure won’t be an option. If players can’t successfully take them down on the first try, they won’t be able to retry the mission.

It’ll be available starting on Mar. 19, and can be taken on until Mar. 29.

Then, there’s the Satu Mare Delirium Deluxe Escalation mission. Available Mar. 30 for those with the deluxe edition of Hitman 3, it’ll offer up a mission inspired by Agent 47’s first escape. Those who complete it will unlock a bevy of goodies, including the Straitjacket outfit, Taunton Dart Gun and Straitjacket Belt for use at their leisure.

It all wraps up with the Berlin Egg Hunt event. Available from Mar. 30 through Apr. 12, the event will allow players to collect eggs scattered throughout the map and then use poison contained within them to take down some special targets; which, in the spirit of Easter, will be shown via a rascally white rabbit.

New Mii Fighter costumes include different Monster Hunter suits of armor and a Felyne.

The post Monster Hunter Mii Fighter DLC to Appear in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate appeared first on Siliconera.

Last night, I finished the true ending of A Realm Reborn and made it, at long last, to Heavensward. This means yes, I saw the event that was basically FF14’s equivalent of the Red Wedding (refresh your memory here), Instead of discussing my feelings regarding what the absolute flying fuck I just witnessed, I—like…

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When Skylanders and Disney Infinity were flying off of store shelves, Bit Fry Game Studios almost made a toys-to-life sports title. I was shown a prototype of a Wayne Gretzky figure that would be used for the game by Ben Freidlin, Bit Fry's founder and CEO. The hope was to create a game that blended athletes from all major professional sports, whether it was hockey or baseball, to compete in all sports whether they knew how to in real life or not. As development of this title ramped up, the entire toys-to-life category collapsed, and Bit Fry wisely pivoted to adapt its vision to a standard video game format.

The result of that change was the wildly successful Apple Arcade game Ultimate Rivals: The Rink, an arcade-style hockey game that has assembled over 70 recognizable athletes. That entire roster (along with even more stars), are replacing their ice skates for sneakers in the forthcoming game Ultimate Rivals: The Court.

Sony Pictures and XR Games have announced a new virtual reality game based on the Zombieland movies. Called Zombieland VR: Headshot Fever, the upcoming VR game will launch for Oculus Quest, Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, and Windows Mixed Reality headsets in Spring 2021. The game will be released later for PlayStation VR.

"With this VR game, we're bringing the zombie apocalypse right to you in a totally new way while preserving the humor and wit of the hit movie franchise," Sony Pictures Entertainment SVP Jake Zim said. "Now Zombieland fans can feel what it's like to stare down an onslaught of Zombie hordes and make split-second gameplay decisions in order to blast their way to survival."

XR Games founder and CEO Bobby Thandi added, "The Zombieland world is a no-nonsense kind of place, and to this end, we've made one of the purest shooting games for VR. We handcrafted the content, upping replayability and incorporating mechanics from racing games such as time splits so you know exactly how well you're doing."

Zombieland VR: Headshot Fever prioritizes speed, tasking you to shoot down waves of the undead as quickly as possible. Your score is dependent on how fast you clear a stage, which you can improve by performing special actions. Shooting a zombie in the head twice will temporarily slow down time to score extra hits on other zombies, for example.

A new Super Smash Bros. Ultimate showcase has game director Masahiro Sakurai front and center once more to break down what Pyra and Mythra bring to the roster ahead of their official arrival in the fighting game. The latest episode of Mr. Sakurai Presents breaks down more about the fighting style of the newest additions as well as a first look at what the adorable Kirby Copy looks like when swallowed whole. 

You can see the entire showcase in all of its Xenoblade x Super Smash Bros. glory in the video below: 

Among the reveals is our first look at the Cloud Seas of Alrest stage. The game director reveals that the stage itself is set on the back of Azurda (also called Gramps) and it's during the opening scenes that players will learn that this is Rex's home. Players will be able to see other Titans appear at random in the background as the stage floats among the clouds. Also confirmed is that each Titan will have its own geography, making each one special and unique to the play experience. 

The above showcase also shows off Kirby's adorable copy of the character while revealing that Kirby's abilities will differ depending on if he inhales Pyra or her alternate form with Mythra. 

Elgato is releasing a new smart light simply called the Light Strip. The thin strip contains 108 tiny LED lights and can be mounted to your TV or monitor. The Light Strip isn't available to purchase just yet, but it will cost $60. Elgato is also introducing Wave Panels, specially designed foam pieces that bolster the acoustics in a room.

Elgato's new Light Strip will have Stream Deck integration, allowing you to control the lights along with your other accessories. It will also work well with Key Light, Elgato's lighting accessory that's specifically designed for streamers. You can tinker with the lights via Wi-Fi using the Light Strip app on mobile or desktop. With the Stream Deck mobile app for iOS, you can even ask Siri to adjust the lights for you.

The new challenges for Fortnite Season 5, Week 14 are now live, and a few of them are food-themed. Though not particularly difficult, they are a little bit tedious and can be annoying to complete if you don't know what you're looking for. One such challenge tasks you to collect cookbooks from Pleasant Park and Craggy Cliffs. We'll show you how to complete this challenge in just a few minutes.

The name of the challenge is a bit dishonest, as you don't actually have to go to both locations. We've circled them on the map, but we strongly recommend going to Craggy Cliffs, as you'll be returning to this location at least one other time this week for a different Fortnite challenge.

Cookbook Locations

Head around the buildings in Craggy Cliffs, especially the homes, and examine the floors. All of the cookbooks we found were on floors rather than tables or counters.

The pair will arrive alongside a new stage, music, and spirts.

The post Mythra and Pyra Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Release Date Is Today appeared first on Siliconera.

Mr. Sakurai Presents “Pyra/Mythra”. #SmashBrosUltimate https://t.co/GAP469SIvI

MOBA-inspired spin-off Pokemon Unite looks set to have some form of extra monetization when it launches, as leaked footage of the game's Canadian beta has confirmed a battle pass system. Videos surfaced online of the game once its beta on Android went live and while a number of them have been taken down, Twitter account Centro Pokemon Leaks managed to grab a few screenshots.

Like most battle passes, Pokemon Unite's take on the gameplay mechanic rewards persistent leveling up with various cosmetic rewards. You can purchase the battle pass with an in-game currency that is acquired with very real-world money and will likely need to grab a new one once the current season of activity wraps up inside the game.

Leaked footage of Garchomp, Cinderace, and Greninja doing battle also surfaced during the beta, although Nintendo has been quick to strike down any of this content online as it violates the NDA that beta testers are required to sign before trying the game out.

The Honkai Impact 3rd 3rd Anniversary event is here and adds a Herrscher of the Void battlesuit and free Supply Cards and Crystals.

The post Honkai Impact 3rd 3rd Anniversary Includes Herrscher of the Void appeared first on Siliconera.

One of gaming's most recent success stories is that of open-world crafting adventure Valheim. Despite existing within an undeniably overcrowded market, Iron Gate Studios' viking themed sandbox title has won over a huge conglomerate of fans, all of whom have journeyed to Valheim to carve out a home and habitat for themselves, borne against the backdrop of Nordic lore.

The Swedish developer has announced that over five million players have logged into the title since it released on Steam Early Access a mere month ago. This community, enough to fill many a longboat, have reportedly been active in Valheim for a combined 15,000 years, have watched over 35 million hours of in-game footage on Twitch, and have solidified the title as the 39th "Best Reviewed" game in Steam history.

Little thermometers you can buy and hang anywhere are fairly cheap, but there’s no need to get one if you own an Amazon Echo. That is, if you own one of two kinds of Echos: a fourth-generation Echo or a second-generation Echo Plus. Both of these have temperature sensors built into the smart speakers; you just have to…

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