There's always been something unique in Paper Mario's wafer thin worlds: a sense of place and personality, an ability to linger and explore, a chance to stop and befriend. In its cardboard castles and papercraft dioramas, Paper Mario's mix of adventuring and role-playing has always managed to showcase Mario's surroundings as more than just background scenery, spotlight sidekicks or rivals and make them more than just one-dimensional, and be that rarest of things for video games - frequently very funny. Within its creases and corrugated backdrops, Paper Mario has consistently shaped the Mushroom Kingdom and its inhabitants into something more textured and weighty than its materials might ever suggest. Happily, you'll find much of the same heart, humour and character once again in The Origami King.

But Paper Mario has also experienced a tug of war between its adventuring and role-playing mechanics, with recent entries opting to fold away their RPG gameplay and keep it tucked out of sight. For many, this tussle goes beyond simple genre preference - it is central to Paper Mario's premise, and to its ability to present Mario's worlds and characters in a way only this series, which comes around rarely, is able to provide. As more of The Origami King emerged during its remarkably short route to reveal and then release, Paper Mario fans (and particularly those of hallowed GameCube entry The Thousand-Year Door) desperately tried to pigeonhole this latest incarnation as one thing or another - adventure or RPG? - to determine the kind of experience it might offer. In reality, it is an odd jumble of both. The Origami King does offer a few welcome concessions to its RPG roots, but it also shies away from growing these further over the course of the game, struggling to ever emerge truly distinct.

What do Red Koopa Troopas think about as they’re shuffling back and forth all day on top of platforms? Where do Shy Guys go on their days off? Paper Mario is the only series brave enough to answer these burning questions about the inner lives of Mario characters, and it answers them with humor, style, and more truly…

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The 12-issue series debuts this fall

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Today the organizers of Gamescom sent a press release to announce the theme of the event (which this year will be exclusively online) and a list of participating publishers.

First of all, we get to take a look at the companies that partnered with Gamescom to bring content to the event.

Those include big names like Xbox, Sega, Bethesda, Electronic Arts, Ubisoft, Bandai Namco, and many more.

Here’s the full list.

The official Twitter account of super-violent anime franchise Corpse Party is showing signs of life, after having laid dormant since the fall of 2018.

On July 13 a new tweet appeared, featured the gaping mouth of a ghostly being along with the simple-but-sinister statement "I'm back..." The next day, the account was repurposed by a happy high-school student named Miku, who had apparently decided to join Twitter after boredom set in online. I'd get out now while the getting's good, Miku.

For those of you fortunate enough to have no experience of the brand, Corpse Party is a multimedia anime/horror franchise which debuted in 1996 and has since spawned numerous video games, visual novels, manga, and anime works. The narrative generally entails groups of high-school friends who fall afoul of some otherworldly antagonist - most notably the vengeful ghost "Sachiko." Hideous, violent death tends to befall our hapless heroes.

While the reactivation of the Corpse Party Twitter is no promise of anything, the fact that the new posts already seem to be setting the scene for a new story would suggest that an announcement is incoming. Stay tuned for further news. Oh, and be sure to check under the bed before you go to sleep tonight...

Corpse Party Twitter revives itself teasing new news to come [DualShockers]

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Sony has reportedly increased PlayStation 5 production output in order to meet the demand for home entertainment during the global pandemic.

The post Sony Reportedly Boosting PlayStation 5 Production Output to Meet Pandemic Demand appeared first on Siliconera.

Konami have announced that this year’s new Pro Evolution Soccer game will only be “a streamlined offering in the form of a ‘season update’.” The reason for the less substantial annual refresh this year, Konami say, is that the game they plan to launch next year on the next generation of consoles is fancy enough that they’re focusing efforts on that. For now, they have a tiny teaser trailer showing their next-gen Lionel Messi.

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Kadokawa Games has released new screenshots of its upcoming Metal Max Xeno Remake titled Metal Max Xeno Reborn.

The images showcase Po-M, or Post-Human Modified Class M, an android who will get an expanded role in the remake.

In the original game, she offered intel to the player at the base, but in the remake, she will be able to travel with the party.

Not only she can level up and learn useful skills, but by improving your friendship with her, the interactions with her will change. At some point, she will offer to come with you and you can add her to the party as a playable character.

The battle dog Pochi can also level-up and learn new skills, and will join up as a fourth member (the party normally has a limit of three). You can also help him earn skill points by feeding him at the base.

He has a variety of equipment starting with the basic “Pochigun” on top of accessories and armor.

You can check out the screenshots below, which also portray the rest of the cast.

"What can [one] do against such reckless hate?" is probably what the Heroes of the Storm developers were thinking after they unleashed the "weather anomaly" mechanic into the game several weeks ago.

Although the hero Mei has been a bonafide success, the weather mechanic was polarizing, to put it lightly. The gist is that nearly every map, in nearly every mode (even competitive gametypes), contained a weather gimmick. Some maps snowed and granted players shields. Another allowed players to periodically gain stealth when sitting in bushes. Another struck players with lightning that granted movement speed and extra damage.

In theory, it sounds like a fun little brawl-like mode: but it wasn't restricted to just brawl. Instead, everyone had to play it, which led to some odd balance and timing issues. Although a lot of that could be circumvented or adapted to (like any big MOBA patch or change), the kicker was that many players suffered a reduced framerate because of the weather effects. It seems as if that was the final nail in the coffin, as Blizzard has announced that it is rolling back the event altogether.

Taking to the forums, community manager Cydra relayed a message from the developers. "Not adding enough fun factor" was a reason given for the change, as well as unacceptable" FPS issues. Going forward, the team says, it will "finish the year with one more anomaly," then provide regular gameplay updates as usual, but chill a bit on the anomaly concept, eschewing a "set cadence."

The game is adorable, but there isn’t much to do

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QuakeCon is an entire quarter-century old this year, and no pandemic will stop Id Software and Bethesda from celebrating it. While the in-person event was cancelled back in March due to Covid-19, QuakeCon will now be joining the raft of gaming events being taken online. Aptly named QuakeCon At Home, it’s set to feature esports tournaments, charity initiatives, and loads of “round-the-clock” live streams. It all kicks off on August 7th with “Bethesda’s QuakeCon Digital Welcome Global Super Stream” – what an absolute mouthful, I hope the stream is as flamboyant as it sounds.

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Today Cyberpunk 2077 developer CD Projekt Red had something special to share with the fans via social media.

The reveal showcases art portraying Metal Gear Solid and Death Stranding Creator Hideo Kojima in Cyberpunk 2077 garb and riding the game’s iconic bike.

Kojima-san himself followed up by posting a larger version of the image. 

At the moment CD Projekt RED has not confirmed whether this is simply a homage to the popular developer or he actually has a cameo in the game.

We reached out to the studio to ask for clarification, and we’ll let you know if we hear anything back.

Incidentally, the real-world picture was shot at the game’s booth at Tokyo Game Show 2019.

Like it or not, everything is a roguelike now. Dark Souls? Yep. Monster Train? Definitely. The precariously loaded cheese and pickle sandwich I’m about to eat for lunch? May as well be. Dota 2 is joining their ranks with its summer event, which is free and live right now. Aghanim’s Labyrinth is a “four-player, cooperative roguelike” where you team up to defeat various nasties lurking about in an old wizard’s shady astral maze. It immediately makes me think of raids, like wot you get in MMOs.

Could be a lark?

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Sony is making a concerted effort to boost production of its upcoming PlayStation 5 hardware, reportedly aiming to double the number of units produced by the end of 2020.

As reported by business news outlet Bloomberg, Sony initially planned to create five million PS5 consoles by March 2021, but is now aiming for an optimistic 9-10 million units by the same date. It is believed that the industry giant raised the bar for itself after the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic caused home gaming to surge throughout the spring and summer of 2020.

Of course, logistical problems caused by the global health crisis mean that even if Sony achieves its mammoth production goals, the company will still face a huge challenge in delivering stock to high street stores worldwide. This is especially true during the typically-hectic holiday period, which already strains global distribution lines at the best of times.

While the plan to double hardware production is yet to be confirmed by Sony itself, several Asian news outlets - such as the Nikkei Asian Review - have received similar reports from their own inside sources.

PlayStation 5 is expected to launch Holiday 2020.

Sony boosting output of PlayStation 5 to meet surge in demand [Bloomberg / Eurogamer]

PlayStation 5 production has been dramatically scaled up, according to multiple reports.

Both Bloomberg and Nikkei Asian Review have detailed a boost in output this year to between 9m and 10m units, up from an expected 6m back in March (thanks, GI.biz).

Sony's decision reportedly reflects a surge in projected demand for the console, as well as a re-opening of China's manufacturing process following the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

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Koei Tecmo and its studio Gust are about to launch their Fairy Tail JRPG for PS4, Switch, and PC. Yet, with the next-generation approaching, some are asking whether the game could also come to PS5.

To know more, we asked producer Keisuke Kikuichi whether he’s interested in releasing the game for PS5.

Interestingly, Kikuchi-san appears to be interested in a next-gen version, if there is enough demand for it.

“Personally, I am very interested in next generation consoles, so if we receive a lot of requests, I’d definitely like to make that happen.”

We also asked Kikuchi-san whether the developer plans to stick to cross-generation releases for a while before leaving the PS4 behind.

Kikuchi-san mentioned that the studio is still considering which games will be playable on next-gen consoles but be believes development plans will have to be changed to include PS5 versions.

“While we are still considering which titles will be playable on next generation consoles, I think we will have to change our development plans moving forward so that they include the PS5 as well.”

Incidentally, Gust is also known, among others, for the Atelier series.

Of course, you’ll be able to read the full interview soon.

We're all set to visit the new zones in World of Warcraft's Shadowlands expansion "this fall," but before then, Blizzard is keying things up with another novel: the physical edition was released yesterday.

This one is appropriately titled "Shadows Rising," and deals with the Horde versus Alliance drama from Battle for Azeroth as they set aside their differences to battle Sylvanas. The most interesting beat here is just how the Horde is dealing with Sylvanas' betrayal, with its various factions semi-splintered. Meanwhile, Sylvanas' forces are off to try and kill a God. You can find an excerpt here and see if you're interested!

Not all WoW novels are created equal (and a few are even controversial), but several of them provide pretty interesting backstories on the world at large. It's a potentially long wait until the next expansion hits, so I may pick this up to tide me over.

Shadows Rising [Battle.net]

Dom is now in Gears 5.

The much-loved original Delta Squad member arrives in Gears 5 as part of the new Operation 4 update, dubbed Brothers in Arms.

Dom's arrival means you can now assemble Delta Squad from the first Gears of War game: Damon Baird, Augustus Cole, Marcus Fenix, and Dominic Santiago.

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There are Warhammer games aplenty in the latest Humble Bundle, which features the likes of Vermintide, Dawn of War and Blood Bowl 2 on PC for just £10.50.

It's a significant haul if you're missing skirmishes across a physical tabletop and want to recreate something similar digitally. A few of these are also excellent RTS games in their own right, so they may appeal even if you aren't into Games Workshop's long-running money sink.

The Humble Warhammer Bundle includes 11 games in total. It's very heavy on the Warhammer 40k stuff, but you can find a couple of other gems from offshoots to the series as well. It's the usual tiered affair, so here's how the bundle is split:

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UPDATE: Eurogamer understands that filming itself has not yet started, despite Tom Holland's "day one" post. A Sony representative said preparations were still underway and the team is "hoping to start soon".

ORIGINAL STORY: It's been something of a rollercoaster journey for the Uncharted film ever since we first heard of it back in 2009. After losing six directors ahead of Sony's planned release date of December 2020 (which was then delayed again due to COVID-19), things weren't looking great for the project, and at one point it looked like filming would start without a director. But in March a seventh director appeared in the form of Ruben Fleischer (Zombieland, Venom): and we now know filming has finally begun.

The news comes from Tom Holland, who shared an image of his chair emblazoned with "Nate" on his Instagram page. Holland is playing a young version of Nathan Drake in the film, and recently shared an image showing the results of his training for the role. Apparently he's been attempting to keep pace with co-star Mark Wahlberg, who's now playing older sidekick Sully after originally being set to play Nathan.

Live footage of #RedDeadOnline players preparing for an update to the game.

Konami has called off its expected plan to launch a full version of PES 2021, to focus on a full next-gen version due next year.

A "season update" to PES 2020 will be sold instead, Konami explained, for "an affordable anniversary price".

While Konami is skimping on this year's release, the developer is hard at work on a version designed for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X that will move the game's engine over to Unreal.

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Several years and seven directors later, it appears that shooting has actually, really, finally begun on Sony's big-screen adaptation of Naughty Dog's popular adventure series Uncharted.

Originally conceived way back in 2009, pre-production woes have plagued the Uncharted movie at every turn. Clashing schedules, casting issues, a revolving door of directors, and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic have all hindered the process to get the Nathan Drake's story up on the silver screen, but the Instagram account of star Tom Holland suggests that the players are on set and that cameras are now rolling.

The Spider-Man star posted a simple image of his "set seat," emblazoned with the word "Nate." The 24-year-old actor has been cast as the death-defying adventurer, in a story that will tell of Drake's formative years, learning the art of tomb raiding under the watchful eye of mentor Sully (Mark Wahlberg). Also set to star are Tati Gabrielle as Elena Fisher, Sophia Ali as Chloe Fazer, and superstar Antonio Banderas in an unannounced role, expected to be the film's antagonist. Zombieland: Double Tap producer Ruben Fleischer is cemented in the director's chair, probably literally at this point.

Uncharted is now tentatively scheduled for release in July 2021.

Nintendo Switch exclusive Paper Mario: The Origami King is already playable on PC via emulator, days before the game's official launch.

Footage of the upcoming adventure role-player running on PC has been posted by several YouTube accounts, which are now uploading whole chunks of the unreleased game (thanks Resetera).

Hacked copies of Nintendo Switch games regularly appear on PC emulators, but the leak of a game yet to officially go on sale is a relatively new headache for Nintendo. The quality of Switch emulation is also improving - in the first video below, the game appears to be running with no technical issues.

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[Update: Pre-orders are now live in the US at Best Buy! You can find both of them at the link here.]

Do you remember when amiibo were the biggest toys on the planet? That was a weird year. While they may not be as prominent as they once were, Nintendo is still churning them out. Earlier this year, it dropped the Dark Samus and Richter amiibo into stores. On October 2, two more Smash Bros. Ultimate fighters will join the amiibo lineup with the release of the Joker and Hero figures.

Another week, another Smash Ultimate event.

This time around the crew is a bit more intriguing though, as the event centers around "Ace Pilots." It'll be held from Friday through Sunday, with the stipulation that "only pilots" are able to participate, focusing on levels with vehicles. Fox, Samus, Olimar and Captain Falcon (with their rides) are all on display in the key art.

So Metroid Prime 4 is in production and there are rumors that a new Pikmin game is coming to Switch. Where does that leave F-Zero and Star Fox? High and dry. Star Fox's Wii U experiment was considered a failure by many (I mostly enjoyed it), and F-Zero has been dormant for a long, long while.

What are the odds of the three unannounced IPs getting a game eventually? Pretty decent, I think. Nintendo is known to drag out their old properties from time and time and completely reinvent them: now that misguided attempt to not give people what they want might fail, but it could happen before the series goes back on ice again!

Smash Bros. JP [Twitter]

Often, when foreigners bring Japan to life, they don’t quite hit the mark. Sometimes, their vision of the country is eye-rollingly egregious. But sometimes, they portray it in a way that even the Japanese praise. According to the early reviews in Japan, Ghost of Tsushima is an example of the latter.

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The next Hearthstone expansion will take players to the wizard school of Scholomance Academy, Blizzard announced last night. The 135-card expansion will introduce 40 cards that can be used by two classes, reflecting the school’s multidisciplinary curriculum, including 10 representing the dual-class disciplines’ Legendary professors. The new Spellburst keyword is coming too, and a new Studies card type. Also, the school has just a load of wizard students getting up to shenanigans, into japes, and over their heads. Come meet some of the dolts and hear their school song in this cinematic trailer.

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Are you hyped for Avengers yet?! Well if that overly long gameplay clip of Thor fighting generic robots didn't do it for you...I got nothin'.

So far, Avengers is poised to be this generation's The Bouncer. For those of you who aren't old enough, The Bouncer was a much-hyped brawler for the PS2 (also from Square Enix, who was Squaresoft at the time!) that ended up being one of the most maligned games on the platform. Low key though, The Bouncer slaps with a multi-tap in four-player versus: some of those fighting styles ruled.

So anyway, back to a less exciting topic of gaming history: 2020's Avengers game. It's coming out on September 4, and if you really want to give it the old hands-on try, you'll get a chance on August 7 through a PlayStation pre-order beta. On August 14 PC and Xbox One will join the PS4: the latter of which will provide open access at that point. On August 21, all platforms will be open. So an August 21 beta? For a game coming out less than two weeks from that date? Godspeed!

In other Avengers news, a new "War Table" stream will air on July 29 at 10AM PT before all this beta stuff happens. Hopefully it'll be a bit more lively.

Marvel's Avengers Beta Dates [IGN]

Attention, strategy fans, there’s a new Humble Bundle afoot that’s packed to the brim with classic Warhammer games, including all three Dawn Of Wars, the excellent Battlefleet Gothic: Armada and Vermintide: End Times. Running from now until July 28th, there are 11 Warhammer games here up for grabs for very agreeable sum of just £10.50 / $13, which for us in the UK is less than a pound per game. A very strategic deal, if I do say so myself. Here’s how it works.

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Fans of Capcom's Dragon's Dogma will be stoked to hear that the anime adaptation of the fantasy adventure franchise is almost good to go, and will arrive on streaming platform Netflix this fall.

Originally announced back in March of this year, Dragon's Dogma is produced by CG studio Sublimation and will tell the tale of young Ethan who, along with his pawn Hannah, embarks on a dangerous quest to reclaim his heart from a fearsome dragon. Featuring hand-drawn textures and cel-shaded animation, Dragon's Dogma hopes to capture all of the excitement and drama of the beloved video game series.

You can check out some early stills in the gallery below. No doubt the community is hoping that, should the new show be a success, it will finally convince Capcom to put their weight behind a brand new Dragon's Dogma sequel, something for which the fanbase has been pressing for a long, long time.

Dragon's Dogma will arrive on Netflix September 17.

Netflix' Dragon's Dogma anime reveals September debut [AnimeNewsNetwork]