Today is a big day for fans of cafe management sims and competitive online multiplayer games. Two free-to-play titles are launching on the Nintendo Switch eShop today and they are Pokemon Cafe Mix from Genius Sonority and Ninjala from GungHo Entertainment.

Pokemon Cafe Mix was announced last week during a very surprising live-streamed presentation from The Pokemon Company, alongside Pokemon Smile and New Pokemon Snap.

Well, Pokemon Cafe Mix is now available for everyone to download and features adorable Pokemon that work alongside you in a charming cafe. You can complete puzzles with your Pokemon recruits to prepare tasty drinks and dishes for the cafe patrons. The more puzzles you complete, the more you can upgrade the cafe with new areas.

 The other free game that’s available for download later today (starting at 7 PM PT), is Ninjala, a really enjoyable and visually appealing eight-player arena battler. From the outside, it may seem similar to Splatoon due to the art style but the combat is way different.

Palais de Reine is an ambitious otome game and kingdom domination simulation that occasionally gets bogged down by details.

The post Review: Ambition Can Be Dangerous in Palais de Reine appeared first on Siliconera.

Today, Square Enix assembled the team and showed off some more in-depth gameplay from the upcoming Marvel’s Avengers. During a half-hour event called the “War Table,” viewers were treated to a deeper look at the combat system, the mission structure, and the villain (a big brain named M.O.D.O.K.). This, of course, is…

Read more...

During a panel at Game Lab Live, Cyberpunk creator Mike Pondsmith talked about Cyberpunk 2077 and his vision about games.

Pondsmith talked about his first meeting with CD Projekt Red, mentioning that his idea of studios from Eastern Europe was “essentially four guys and a goat working in a steamy hot place in a basement somewhere,” which incidentally is similar to how he himself started out, even if he did not have a goat.

Ultimately he went to meet them because he had never been to Poland, so it could have been interesting.

When he actually visited CD Project Red he realized that the studio was “insanely good” and had a “really sophisticated operation.”

The studio was in the middle of working on The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt and Pondsmith was sold from the moment in which he was shown the weather system of the game.

It also turned out that the folks at CD Projekt were Cyberpunk fans.

At that time, Pondsmith had been working on video games for a while, so he wasn’t going in with the usual mindset of someone simply owning an IP, but actually thinking about the game design from an experienced point of view.

Yet, he noticed that the developers at CD Project were good, they cared, they had their own engine and spent time working on making that engine capable of doing everything they wanted. On top of that, they were fans, so he did not have to go through what he had done with other developers over the years, who wanted to license Cyberpunk without understanding it.

When he returned from Poland, he decided to give CD Project the license because they could do it and they cared. They could do a game that he would do.

In this GDC 2018 talk Valve's John McDonald discusses how the company has utilized deep learning machine learning techniques to combat cheating in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. ...

Ashraf Ismail is taking a leave of absence, Ubisoft says

Continue reading…

The open world survival horror comedy game Deadly Premonition turns five this month. We celebrate by reprinting an exhaustive Game Developer magazine postmortem of this cult classic. ...

The highlights from today’s Avengers War Table stream

Continue reading…

Dressing entirely in black, moving silently in the shadows, infiltrating castles and assassinating feudal lords? Please, says Ninjala, it’s all so 15th Century. The modern ninja has stepped out of the shadows, content to wear bunny ears and hip-hop-ninja fusion fashion while loudly smashing rivals with a hammer made of drums. Oh, and they also chew a special kind of gum that unlocks the latent ninja abilities buried in their DNA, but that’s beside the point.

Actually, no, that’s entirely the point.

Crystal Dynamics have rallied the reinforcements, mustered the muscle, oh and I suppose assembled the Avengers for a bunch of gameplay and trailers for Marvel’s Avengers. They dig in to superhero-hating corporation AIM, big baddie M.O.D.O.K., and co-op play in the first of their War Table video presentations.

(more…)

Ninjala, the free-to-play melee action game from Let It Die developer GungHo Online, is out now exclusively on Nintendo Switch. You can find it on the Eshop, but servers will only go live later today.

Ninjala is a primarily multiplayer-focused action game, with a style that should make Splatoon players feel welcome. It features two modes: 4v4 PvP matches and a free-for-all eight player battle royale. You'll unlock new gear and weapons as in-game seasons progress, as well as Shinobi cards that reward you with passive buffs. You also won't require Nintendo Online to play with other players.

Along with multiplayer, Ninjala will feature an evolving single-player campaign. The story is told through comic book panels, and accompanied by an anime series online that will flesh out some of its characters more over time. The campaign will also feature various types of campaign missions, included stealth-focused ones and large boss fights. Additional story missions will also be part of seasonal content, and added to over time.

The PlayStation 4 got off to an early lead this generation, and a steady stream of exceptional first-party exclusives, complemented by robust third-party support, has kept it that way. Whether you just picked up a PS4 or have owned one since launch, we’re rounding up the best experiences you don’t want to miss in this continually updated feature.

Please note that while the list below contains 10 entries, we aren’t actually ranking them. If a game has made it this far (and managed to stay here), it’s a must-play, period. As such, we’ll be listing entries in reverse chronological order. Also, you’ll find a rundown of previous entries at the bottom of the list. While those titles have gotten bumped over time, they are still all great games in their own right and worth exploring if you’re already caught up on the latest hits.

Here are Game Informer’s picks for the top 10 games on the PlayStation 4.

During today's War Table presentation, Crystal Dynamics released three new trailers for its upcoming Marvel's Avengers. While we already delivered a super in-depth preview of the game today, sometimes you want to see the action for yourself.

The trailers focus on three different parts of the upcoming game: story, single-player gameplay, and cooperative action. Check out the three new trailers below.

Find every Artifact, Trading Card, Coin, Journal Entry, Workbench, Safe and combination.

Continue reading…

Ashraf Ismail, game director of Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag, Assassin's Creed Origins and creative director of the upcoming Assassin's Creed Valhalla, has stepped down from his position at Ubisoft following allegations about his personal life.

Ismail took to Twitter to announce he was leaving Valhalla "to properly deal with the personal issues in my life".

"The lives of my family and my own are shattered," Ismail said. "I am deeply sorry to everyone hurt in this.

Read more

Sony and HackerOne now have an open PlayStation Bug Bounty Program with some $100-$50,000 bounties.

The post PlayStation Bug Bounty Program Will Have Some $50,000 Bounties appeared first on Siliconera.

We'll have a new reason to boot up Overcooked 2 in July. Sun's Out Buns Out, the latest in a string of free seasonal level packs, is coming to PC on July 5 and consoles soon after, according to IGN.

Cold drinks, corn on the cob, hot dogs, fireworks, a parade, and dispensers – there's a lot to love. The trailer for Sun's Out Buns Out shows five chaotic summer-themed levels and a pair of pooches.

I'm less thrilled about that one level with another dreaded joystick-controlled platform (I always struggle to keep the kitchen combo going in stages with pitfalls), but at the same time, I'd rather not breeze all the way through. I mean, it's been a minute. I want to savor Overcooked 2 while I still can.

These free updates aren't typically Overcooked's best material, but this theme is jolly, and I'm into it.

Overcooked 2: Sun's Out Buns Out DLC Revealed - IGN Expo [IGN]

Pre-order Eight Final Fantasy VII Polygon Figurines | $64 | Amazon

Read more...

During a panel at Game Lab Live, Xbox division head Phil Spencer talked about the Xbox Series X, Game Pass, Project xCloud, Competition, and his reaction to the PS5 reveal.

Spencer started by mentioning that the policy of putting the player at the center led to some really good decisions for the next generation of consoles.

Spencer had a “long review” yesterday on the progress made on the Xbox Series X hardware and it’s “going really well.” He feels good about the supply chain, and the silicon work has really come together in a good way.

He’s also been impressed by the innovative ways the software teams have used tech to test their games using Project xCloud. They can deploy builds on the system and then the whole team can play the new build almost instantly.

That being said, there are things that need to be done with physical presence like mocap or symphonic recording, and that is having an impact on development due to the pandemic.

Spencer than explaining that first-party content is really important for Microsoft’s overall strategy. It was really encouraging to see the support to growing first-party studios by Microsoft’s board.

He feels “really good” about the lineup of creator-led studios that Microsoft has under Matt Booty’s leadership. He is seeing the output from those teams, including some things that have been announced and many that have not been announced yet.

“We know it’s important. We know that it’s something that our fans want, but I will also say we’re going to create our first-party around the things that we feel we need to do in order to stand-up for Xbox.

Note: This story has been updated to include additional context.

Assassin's Creed Valhalla creative director Ashraf Ismail is stepping down from his role with the game to deal with "personal issues."

I am stepping down from my beloved project to properly deal with the personal issues in my life. The lives of my family and my own are shattered. I am deeply sorry to everyone hurt in this.

— Ashraf Ismail (@AshrafAIsmail) June 24, 2020

In response to the situation, Ubisoft has provided a statement that reads: "Ashraf Ismail is stepping down from the project to take a leave of absence. The development team is committed to delivering a great game in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla."

The announcement comes on the heels of information that came to light this weekend, regarding an alleged sexual relationship between Ismail and a woman who didn't know he was married.

The revelation surfaces as Ubisoft is already dealing with another separate controversy surrounding the sexual conduct of its employees.

There’s a mixed response, however

Continue reading…

Sony has introduced the PlayStation Bug Bounty program, which will give hackers who uncover bugs and vulnerabilities cash rewards. According to the announcement, critical vulnerabilities for the PS4 start at $50,000.

The announcement also indicates that the company's bounty program has existed in some form for a while now, but it was only available to private researchers. By bringing the project public, Sony says that it hopes to enhance the security on its consoles. More details about the program can be found on its HackerOne page.

Critical security vulnerabilities have been an issue for both Sony and Microsoft in the past. The most notorious example remains the 2011 PlayStation Network outage, where hackers obtained the data of around 77 million users. During that incident, Sony was criticized by journalists and even government officials for waiting a week before informing players that their personal information was in jeopardy. Sony Europe was fined £250,000 for the breach by the UK Information Commissioner's Office in 2013.

Stop me if you’ve heard this one before: Most video games are too long. This common sentiment gets batted around every few months when a new blockbuster launches with dozens of hours of “content.” Shawn Layden, former chairman of Sony Interactive Entertainment Worldwide Studios, seems to agree.

Read more...

Square Enix and Crystal Dynamics presented the first of its “War Table” steams today, a series designed to offer an extensive look at their upcoming multiplayer action-RPG Marvel’s Avengers. New story and gameplay trailers gave us our most comprehensive look at the game yet, while supporting developer commentary provided a detailed overview of the game’s mechanics and systems.

First, a new story trailer offered context as to the backstory of the game, which is an all-original story set within the universe. Essentially, long after the Avengers have disbanded following the A-Day mishap, a new faction called AIM has taken over protecting the world from those infected with Terrigen mist; “inhumans,” who their leader George Tarlten refers to them, all posses superpowers having inhaled the most, and AIM perceives them as dangerous to humanity.

Of course, AIM’s intentions are more nefarious than they are letting on. It turns out they are running experiments on inhumans, and it’s main protagonist Kamala Khan is one who’s on a mission to reunite the Avengers and take them down.

As you’ll also discover, MODOK will play the game’s main antagonist, a giant headed baddie who hasn’t featured in a mainstream Avengers story for some time — though as explained today by the Crystal Dynamics team, his lore within the franchise dates back 50 years.

It appears Tarleton will slowly morph into MODOK throughout the story having himself ironically inhaled the Terrigen must and become inhumans he so despises.

As you’ll see below,

The game seems to be called Project Ambrosia

Continue reading…

Formatting this gigantic list of what’s coming to and leaving HBO Max, HBO Go and regular old on-your-TV HBO this month gave me the occasion to note a strange synchronicity between the new arrivals and planned departures on the streaming service.

For example: A bunch of films based on D.C. comics, including the the…

Read more...

PlayStation will pay out rewards for credible information on security flaws relating to PlayStation Network or the PS4 itself. ...

During today's Marvel's Avengers War Table presentation, we got an extensive look at gameplay for Crystal Dynamics' upcoming superhero game. While the action was plentiful and the details went deep (you can read the entire recap of the video, plus our interview with the team here), one subtle detail caught our eye.

In the opening cutscene of Thor's "Once An Avenger..." Hero mission, a reporter is broadcasting beneath the Avengers' helicarrier while a battle rages on. Upon further examination, the microphone flag features the logo of none other than The Daily Bugle, the publication that Peter Parker works/worked for. Could this potentially be a tease that the webslinger himself could be recruited by Ms. Marvel to help Iron Man, Thor, Black Widow, and Hulk in the future?

One Punch Man: Road to Hero 2.0, the sequel to the previous mobile game, is poised to give folks a chance to be super on the go at the end of the month.

The post One Punch Man: Road to Hero 2.0 Will Launch June 30, 2020 appeared first on Siliconera.

Spartans have spent the better part of two decades putting the Covenant in their place. If it's not Covenant, it's mostly the Flood and Sentinels that are causing problems for the UNSC. However, you'd have to play one of the non-FPS Halo side-games to be acclimated with one of the enemy factions in Halo Infinite.

Today, the Halo Twitter account posted the following cryptic tease:

A creative director at Ubisoft's Montreal branch has announced his plans to leave the Assassin's Creed Valhalla project behind. Ashraf Ismail, who previously worked on both Black Flag and Origins, is stepping down amid allegations of infidelity.

"I am stepping down from my beloved project to properly deal with the personal issues in my life," Ismail wrote on Twitter. "The lives of my family and my own are shattered. I am deeply sorry to everyone hurt in this."

In a follow-up tweet, Ismail said he didn't want to detract from the work others on the project are doing. "There are hundreds of talented, passionate people striving to build an experience for you that do not deserve to be associated with this," Ismail said. "I wish them all the best." [Update: Ismail appears to have now deleted his Twitter account.]

Val Kilmer has made all kinds of movies throughout his long career, and many of his most high-profile performances (think Top Gun, The Doors, Tombstone, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, and his groovy debut in Top Secret!) can be found in drama and action films. But when the Juilliard-trained actor—who’s had some health problems…

Read more...