February 2020

Before we started recording this episode, neither Leo or I had heard of Paper Cult's new game, Bloodroots. Reiner's pitch sounded interesting, though. He said it had the combo-focused structure of a Tony Hawk game, but with swords and barrels and fish instead of skateboards. Sold! Leo took the sticks, and was immediately won over. Check it out!

Bloodroots' Mr. Wolf is an efficient killing machine, but he's far from unstoppable. One hit will send him back to his maker. Thankfully, thanks to a quick restarting mechanic and solid controls, Leo managed to rise to the challenge. At least, until we had to kick him off. Seriously, he probably would have kept playing for the rest of the day.

Bloodroots is out February 28 on PlayStation 4, Switch, and PC.

At the heart of Bloodroots rests a classic Western story of revenge: Work your way through an army of henchmen to reach the person who left you for dead. Your bloodlust has no bounds, allowing you to kill with anything you can grab, be it an axe or even a carrot.

The official “World Gameplay Reveal” of Baldur’s Gate 3 is due to happen live on stage and stream tonight buuut some website has jumped the gun and leaked a load of screenshots early. They confirm that, as you might expect from the coming-together of Baldur’s Gate and the studio behind Divinity: Original Sin, it’s a top-down RPG with a cinematic conversation view and an air of Divinity about it. Specifics will have to wait for tonight but you can pore over these dozen screenshots now for hints of story, setting, systems, and such.

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The next addition to the Sea Of Thieves arsenal is going to be a doozy – they’re introducing chain shot cannonballs to take out your enemies’ masts. These projectiles are pretty self explanatory, they’re basically two cannonballs connected by a chain. When you hit a ship hull with these you aren’t going to do huge amounts of damage, but if you nail the capstan, masts or wheel, your enemies can say goodbye to escaping your attacks.

They also make a brilliant noise as they whizz over your head, which you can hear for yourself in the video below, or when the update drops on March 11th.

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The Pokemon news train keeps on rolling, and like Whitney’s Miltank after it uses Rollout, there’s seemingly no stopping it. Just yesterday, Game Freak revealed Mewtwo Max Raid Battles, and today, the company officially announced a new, powerful Pokemon that doesn’t monkey around.

Earlier today, the Pokemon YouTube channel unveiled Zarude, the Rogue Monkey Pokemon. This sinister simian lives up to its name with red eyes, vines wrapped around its wrists, an almost skull-like face, and a Dark/Grass typing. Zarude shares this dual typing with Nuzleaf, Shiftry, and Cacturne, although those are technically Grass/Dark-types.

According to the trailer, Zarude’s ability is Leaf Guard, which protects it against status effects during sunny weather. Moreover, the video description features a short blurb about the Pokemon, which is likely Zarude’s Pokedex entry:

When fighting, it swings around using trees and their branches, attacking relentlessly with its sharp claws or any other means it has. Its quick wit helps it excel in battles.

The video doesn’t include any more information, such as if Zarude features a signature attack or how to catch it. However, the trailer promises “more information coming soon.”

Today Square Enix released the first episode of a series of videos that will showcase the tale of the creation of the Shadowbringers expansion for Final Fantasy XIV.

We start with one of the best aspects of Shadowbringers, which is its story. If you know me, you also know that I believe that it’s the best Final Fantasy story even written. Two major updates in, I still stand firm by that belief, which has only been reinforced. 

The video features producer and director Naoki Yoshida, world lore creator and main scenario writer Banri Oda, and main scenario writer Natsuko Ishikawa. 

You can listen to their story below.

If you’d like to learn more about Final Fantasy XIV, you can read our recent interview with Naoki Yoshida and Banri Oda,  our review of Shadowbringers.

Today Bandai Namco hosted a livestream about its upcoming anime-like MMORPG Blue Protocol.

First of all, we get to see dungeon gameplay, showcasing the new dungeon that will be introduced in the closed beta.

The developers showcased a nice chunk of really spectacular gameplay, showing off party play. Unfortunately they wiped before reaching the boss, but they weren’t far,

The second gameplay setting focused on the arena. Despite the name, it isn’t a PvP feature. It’s basically a horde mode prompting players to defeat waves of monsters solo or in a party at ranks ranging from C to S. 

You’re also timed, with 30 minutes to get to the end. 

Greninja was the most popular Pokemon in 2020. Also, Zarude will appear in a new movie and Pokemon Sword and Shield.

The post Pokemon of the Year Is Greninja, New Mythical Pokemon Is Zarude appeared first on Siliconera.

Marvelous released a new gameplay trailer for Kandagawa Jet Girls that highlights Senran Kagura guests Homura & Hikage and Murasaki & Mirai.

The post Kandagawa Jet Girls Trailer for DLC Guests Homura & Hikage, Murasaki & Mirai from Senran Kagura appeared first on Siliconera.

Mewtwo will appear, but it will not be available to catch.

The post Legendary Pokemon Mewtwo Will Appear in Max Raid Battles For A Limited Time appeared first on Siliconera.

After weeks of teasing (as The Pokemon Company tends to do when they have a multi-billion dollar franchise on their hands), the curtain has finally been pulled back on the new mythical Pokemon that's debuting in Sword and Shield: Zarude.

It's described as a "Rogue Monkey," and "when fighting, it swings around using trees and their branches, attacking relentlessly with its sharp claws or any other means it has. Its quick wit helps it excel in battles." You can find the full stat breakdown below (as well as the full out-of-game artwork), including the reveal of its dark/grass archetype.

According to Game Freak it will be a Sword and Shield exclusive, and "can't be encountered during regular gameplay," making it a typical event-based mythic. Further details weren't given out, but a distribution event is likely coming soon, either through the Mystery Gift online function or by way of a retail chain (maybe not GameStop given their troubles lately).

Anyone else immediately get Darude's Sandstorm stuck in their head?

Okay, if I grab the hammer from that stump I can use it to take out two of those mooks guarding the shish kebab, then dash past the crush traps. The guy at the end of the trap line is wearing a pool floatie as armor, so I'll have to use a ranged weapon to take him out, or else it'll take two swings and I'd really rather drop him in one hit.

I'll have to balance on the exploding barrel to avoid the spike pit, but would I do better to crash it into a dude and boost jump up to higher ground, or just use the cannon to gain altitude? No, wait, I can use this tiki torch to blow past those guys and take them from behind if I...

Crap, they got me. Let's try that again.

Annapurna Interactive might hold claim to a prestigious-yet-regrettable crown within games: It's the publisher that consistently funds incredible projects but kind of goes unnoticed. Annapurna has been around for three years now. In that time, here's a sampling of some games it has published: What Remains of Edith Finch, Gorogoa, Florence, Donut County, Outer Wilds, Telling Lies, Sayonara Wild Hearts, and Wattam.

Although we only have a trailer thus far, the latest game to be announced seems like it could fit in with that fine company. It's called Maquette and it's a first-person puzzler where shifting perspectives fuels the whole experience. Developer Graceful Decay describes it as "set in a recursive world where players experience the life cycle of a loving relationship" and that "[the] narrative takes players through an adventure of love, loss, and acceptance."

At first glance, there looks to be a parallel to be drawn between the recently-released Superliminal and Maquette. The angle of both games is manipulating size to make things fit. However, whereas Superliminal stuck to the confines of a Portal-like testing center, Maquette breaks out into a fairy tale imaginationland. It's a more inspired choice.

Maquette is said to be "coming soon," but there's no confirmation of which platforms it'll land on. Nevertheless, it looks like Annapurna has another hit on its hands. 

Nintendo Switch Lite (Yellow and Turquoise) | $183 | eBay

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The third installment of PopCap’s legendary flower defense game series has gone live on iOS and Android devices in the Philippines, with more regions rolling out in the coming weeks. Plants Vs. Zombies 3 is vertical instead of horizontal and 3D instead of 2D, but the basic idea is the same.

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Granblue Fantasy Versus, the gorgeous Arc System Works fighting game based on the popular mobile role-playing game, isn’t just for PlayStation 4 players anymore. Cygames has announced that a Steam version of the anime brawler is dropping March 13, a mere 10 days after its North American PS4 debut. Surprise?

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Square Enix has revealed a whole host of official merchandise to commemorate the upcoming Final Fantasy VII Remake in Japan. Some of it looks excellent. These, however, do not.

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UPDATE 28/2/20: Zarude, the newly-revealed Mythical monkey Pokémon, had something of an underwhelming introduction yesterday when he popped up via in-game footage from Pokémon Sword and Shield. Now, there's a trailer for his movie debut - and it's much more of an entrance.

Of course, Zarude will be the star of upcoming Tarzan-inspired Pokémon film Coco - whose trailer below just casually drops in a Shiny Celebi too.

Zarude looks like he acts as a guardian of the rainforest - and him being a long-lost creature only found deep within it would fit his Mythical status. Here he is in action:

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The Cyberspace Administration of China has removed Plague Inc. from the country's App Store over the inclusion of "illegal" content. ...

Pokemon Day 2020 has arrived. Millions of fans have voted, and now, the time has come to reveal the most popular Pokemon of the year according to all of you Trainers worldwide. You’ll see some obvious top vote-getters, as well as a few others that may come as surprises with their placements.

The top 10 Pokemon reveal isn’t the only news surrounding Pokemon Day this year. Other announcements include the introduction of a new mythical Pokemon, and the appearance of Mewtwo in Pokemon Sword & Shield max raid battles.

The Pokemon of the year voting period lasted almost a month, and top five lists are available for each generation on the Pokemon website, if you’re curious about the winners for each region. As for the overall top ten, they were revealed with a short video in a tweet from The Pokemon Company.

Many of you may be shocked (or relieved) to see that neither Charizard nor Pikachu came out on top, but you can check out the video below to see the results:

Even if you have already "bought" a color, you need a Premium Ticket to go back to it.

The post Dead or Alive 6 Hair Color Changes Cost a Premium Ticket Every Time appeared first on Siliconera.

In case you missed it, Google held a "Pokemon of the Year [2020]" poll recently, and allowed everyone to vote on their favorite creatures. The results are in! And for the most part, will not shock you.

Coming in fifth is Umbreon (of course an Evee-lution made it in) with 67062 votes. The enduring Charizard is fourth with 93968, a substantial increase over Umbreon. Recent favorite Mimikyu is unsurprisingly high-up in third with 99077 votes. Lucario is second with 102259 votes, cementing his place in Smash Bros. along with Charizard. And...drumroll...taking the number one spot is Greninja, with a whopping 140559 votes: who is also in Smash Bros. Remember when ninjas were in everything in the '90s? Well they still rule the roost, apparently.

If you're interested, you can delve further into the poll here and discover top-voted Pokemon in each fictional region, from Kanto to Galar. Also, the full top 10 can be found below, with Garchomp, Rayquaza, Gardevoir and Gengar taking the sixth through tenth spots respectively.

Pokemon of the Year 2020 [Pokemon]

After weeks of teasing, the Pokémon Company reveals Zarude, the rogue monkey Pokémon, the latest Mythical Pokémon for Pokémon Sword and Shield. Look at its claws. Check out its teeth. It’s amazing anyone in the Galar region is still alive.

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Acclaimed action game developer Platinum Games has several projects in the works, including a Wonderful 101 remaster and the hero-focused action game Project GG, but it's also moving into entirely new territory. The company is opening another studio focused on live-service games, and it's looking to hire new developers quickly.

Located in Tokyo, the new Platinum Games studio will be helmed by former EA, Sony, Disney Interactive, and Sony developer Motoi Fujita. Platinum Games' Tokyo studio will develop "live ops" games for consoles, and Fujita has experience with live services on both console and mobile because of his time on the FIFA franchise.

"On live ops titles, finding a following for the title is an important step, so Platinum definitely has an advantage here," Fujita said in an interview. "And I believe this can also be a change to introduce a new wave of fans to Platinum Games' titles."

As teased, The Pokemon Company has revealed a new Mythical Pokemon for Sword and Shield as part of its Pokemon Day celebration. The new Pokemon is called Zarude, and it'll play a major role in the upcoming Pokemon movie, Coco, which premieres in Japan later this year.

Zarude is known as the Rogue Monkey Pokemon. It's a Dark/Grass-type with the Ability Leaf Guard, which prevents it from being inflicted by status conditions when the weather on the battlefield is sunny. According to the Pokemon website, Zarude is able to grow vines from its wrists, neck, and feet, and can use these to battle or treat wounds thanks to the vines' healing properties.

Few other details have been revealed about Zarude thus far, but the official Pokemon website confirms that you won't be able to obtain it in Sword and Shield through normal gameplay, which suggests it will be released as part of a special distribution or event. The Pokemon Company teases that "more information [is] coming soon."

Nioh 2 is right around the corner, and you can try the Souls-like before it launches during a special free trial period on PS4. Koei Tecmo released a teaser trailer to show off the trial, and it's every bit as flashy and intense as we expected.

The Nioh 2 Last Chance Trial features three missions from the game, including the Mount Tenno location, and the character you make during the demo will transfer into the full version. Your progress won't, but it gives some incentive to play the trial for those already set on purchasing the game. Unlike in the first Nioh, you play as an avatar rather than a set character, so you can go nuts to make them look as ridiculous as possible. Those who play the trial will also get the Kamaitachi Helmet in the full game.

The Division 2 is available for just £2.50/$2.99 right now on the Uplay Store.

The offer is running over the next few days in the UK and US to coincide with The Divison 2's free weekend that got underway today. Access to the entire game has been granted to all on PC - as well as PS4 and Xbox One - and all of your progress will be carried over if you decide to buy the game during the sale or at a later date. I don't expect it to get much cheaper than this, though.

You get the impression that Ubisoft is trying to give the game a bit of a shot in the arm what with the Warlords of New York expansion due for release on 3rd March. This paid DLC sees the action return to the Big Apple - the setting of the first game in the series - as you hunt down a rogue agent.

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The 90s are back - as if they ever really went away - with the delicious looking Hotshot Racing that's coming to PC, Xbox One, PS4 and Switch this spring.

It's from Lucky Mountain Games, who can count the likes of Burnout and Midnight Club on their CV, with help from Sumo Digital - who've pretty much bossed the arcade racing genre over the past decade - with Curve Digital on publishing duties.

There's a heavy helping of Sega AM2 boldness to it all with blue skies and high-energy music, with some 16 tracks and eight different drivers to choose from, though the most pleasing figure being bandied around is the 60fps action that's promised across all platforms. There'll also be splitscreen and online multiplayer, and I'm sure a bit more besides.

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I'm not going to lie, watching this trailer gave me a real sense of dread - like when you think you've woken from a dream, only to realise you're just dreaming about waking up. Oh no.

Developed by Graceful Decay, Maquette is a first-person puzzle game releasing sometime later this year on PC. It's the newest game to be published by Annapurna Interactive, which has garnered a name for itself as a publisher of lovely and unusual titles; such as our 2019 game of the year Outer Wilds, along with What Remains of Edith Finch, Sayonara Wild Hearts and Telling Lies.

This one's set in a world "where every building, plant, and object are simultaneously tiny and staggeringly huge". You can move items to play with scale and navigate the twisted environment, with small cracks becoming vast chasms as you move from the miniaturised centre into the grand outer edges. The Steam description compares it to the work of artist M.C. Escher, who was known for impossible constructions and mind-bending designs.

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Hideo Kojima will be honored with the prestigious BAFTA Fellowship award at the British Academy Games Awards in April. ...

Digital game storefront GOG has updated its refund policy to let users fully refund a game within 30 days of purchase, even if it has been downloaded, launched, and played. ...

Players can ask for a refund no matter how long they’ve played a game — just ‘don’t be that person’

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The movie is a direct sequel to the 1992 horror flick

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