June 2020

A new video clip of rapper and fashion designer Kanye West playing Sonic 2 in arcade form has surfaced on social media and it is too wholesome.

Cellphone video captured by his fellow rapper and frequent collaborator Kid Cudi and shared on Twitter shows West playing through the end of the second act of Emerald Hill Zone when he encounters Dr. Eggman.

“That’s Jim Carrey’s character,” West can be heard saying in the video, referring to the fact that he portrayed Eggman in the live-action Sonic movie that released earlier this year.

As he was playing Sonic 2, West talks about how Sonic the Hedgehog is his son’s favorite character — he has two sons, Saint and Psalm, so it’s unclear which one he was referring to — and how the animation style of Kids See Ghosts, an animated show he announced last week that is inspired by his 2018 mini-album of the same name. “That video game, that’s forever, like some Sonic stuff,” he tells Kid Cudi.

Every once in awhile, a video game’s villain is just so good that fans beg for a spin-off title. The bad guys getting their own game isn’t unheard of, just a rare occasion that asks for a top-notch character to take the helm. With that being said, here are seven villains that need their own spin-off game.

Handsome Jack – Borderlands Series

Everyone’s favorite fast-talking baddie would be an impeccable choice to get their own video game villain spin-off game set in the world of Borderlands.

From the dialogue, voice acting, and potential story this game could hold, it would certainly be one that fans of the series would love to jump into, as well as one that would drive new players to the series.

Today Sega revealed a new AC Scratch collection coming to the western version of Phantasy Star Online 2.

The title of the collection is “Blessed World” and if the picture at the top of the article didn’t provide enough of a clue on its nature, perhaps the name will.

It includes crossover costumes from the KonoSuba: God’s Blessing on this Wonderful World! franchise.

The Japanese version of Phantasy Star Online 2 has a ton of crossovers with a myriad of IP, while until now the western version has stuck to Sega’s own franchises, prompting some to wonder if English-speaking fans would be locked out of this wealth of collaborations. I guess this answers that question. 

The collection will go live on July 1 at 12:00 am PDT and will remain available until July 28.

If you’re unfamiliar with AC Scratch, that’s basically the game’s loot box-like mechanic that you can get through tickets purchased with Arks Cash.

You can check out a trailer below and read the official blog post for a full list of the items. 

The original release of The Last of Us is one of the most influential games of the modern era, and its intensity, quality, and narrative resonance can be favorably compared to virtually any game released, before or since.

With the release The Last of Us Part II, Naughty Dog has shown that the grim, post-apocalyptic setting they have conjured still has plenty of mileage in it and that there are new and compelling stories to be told therein.

The sales figures for the game alone show that this world and these games have a massive fanbase willing to go along for the ride, even in spite of the unfortunate leaks that marred the Part II pre-release.

Just a quick heads up, this article will contain MAJOR SPOILERS for both The Last of Us and The Last of Us Part II. Read at your own risk.

Already, message boards and forums are ablaze with fans speculating about what a potential Last of Us Part III might look like. The ambiguous nature of the games ending, and the lingering plot threads and questions we as the audience still have upon reaching it, suggest that there are a lot of directions Naughty Dog could go.

Neil Druckman, Creative Director for both The Last of Us Part I & II, has said that if there was to be a Part III, it would focus on existing characters. This narrows the field quite a bit, as there aren’t a lot of characters left that could fit the bill as the credits roll on Part II.

Nintendo is holding another Turf War tournament for North American Splatoon 2 players, and it will be held on July 18, 2020.

The post Splatoon 2 Turf War Tournament for North America Coming in July appeared first on Siliconera.

Xbox One Console Deals

CrossCode's lead developer and composer talk to us about making and selling a retro-flavored RPG in the crowded markets of 2018. ...

Apple is reportedly moving toward a retention-focused revamp of Apple Arcade†™s future library, a shift that seems to indicate the $5 per month subscription isn†™t sticking quite as well as the company had hoped. ...

Joining the Chicago and Midwest Regional Joint Board

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The Ennie award nominations are out, winners to be announced July 31 during Gen Con Online

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Amazon has made the unprecedented decision to withdraw its struggling free-to-play team-based shooter Crucible from general release, and it will now, a little over a month after its initial launch, re-enter a period of closed beta testing.

Despite being Amazon's first foray into video games, Crucible released on Steam to remarkably little fanfare back in May, and while it managed to attract decent interest initially, concurrent player numbers have steadily fallen to peaks of less than two hundred players a day.

Amazon and developer Relentless' initial, and rather surprising, response was to retire all but one of Crucible's three modes, leaving only Heart of the Hives intact. "Focusing on one mode allows us to refine the design of core systems without the compromises we needed to make to support three game modes", Relentless explained at the time.

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July is just around the corner, and Pokemon Go developer Niantic has outlined a number of events it has lined up for the popular mobile game over the next few weeks. In addition to the weekly challenges being held in the lead up to Pokemon Go Fest 2020, July will bring a new Legendary Pokemon, Kyurem, to the game, as well as a new Research Breakthrough reward encounter and more.

July Research Breakthrough Reward

On top of a new batch of Field Research tasks to complete, there will be a new Research Breakthrough reward in July. Each time players collect enough stamps to achieve a Research Breakthrough next month, they'll earn an encounter with the Rock Pokemon Larvitar, and there's a chance it may even be Shiny.

Kyurem

Once Zekrom leaves Raids on July 7, the Legendary Ice/Dragon Pokemon Kyurem will make its debut in Pokemon Go. Kyurem will be available as a five-star Raid boss for several weeks, and there will be a Kyurem Raid Hour every Wednesday evening from 6-7 PM local time, giving you plenty of chances to catch it.

Paper Mario: The Origami King won't be divided into chapters like previous entries in the series and will instead feature a seamless open-world. In an interview with Game Informer, the development team talked about the open-world setup for the game.

Players are able to see the five streamers holding Princess Peach's castle hostage and use them as hints to where Mario's adventure will take him next. Each location features a large map that Mario can traverse across.

"One major feature that makes the world where this adventure takes place special is that there are huge maps to explore at every turn," says Masahiko Magaya, director at Intelligent Systems. "Because the game is laid out this way, we were careful during the design phase to make sure there is always something in the player's field of vision to catch their attention."

A new month has come and (almost) gone in Animal Crossing: New Horizons. July is right around the corner and that means a new set of fish and bugs to catch on your island. In this guide, we'll outline each new seasonal bug and fish arrival for the new month in both the Northern and Southern hemispheres. The new month also marks the arrival of New Horizons' summer update, hitting July 3, which adds the ability to swim and dive in your island's ocean.

For a more comprehensive list of every creature in Animal Crossing: New Horizons, we have a full list of all 80 fish to catch, including shadow sizes, and a list of all 80 bugs to catch, with tips on tracking down the handful of rare ones.

July Fish And Bugs In Animal Crossing: New Horizons

Here are all the new fish and bugs you can catch in Animal Crossing: New Horizons in July. We've sorted by bells so you know what to focus on if you're waiting for Flick or C.J. to visit, but if you're a completionist, you'll want to catch them all!

Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time will not have microtransactions, developer Toys For Bob clarified in a tweet. This comes after speculation that the game might have them because the Microsoft Store listing for the game states it "offers in-app purchases." This label may have been caused by the Totally Tubular Skins, which are included with the game but listed as a separate item on the store.

Animal Crossing: New Horizons's first free summer content update arrives on July 3. Not only will the update bring back another returning character, Pascal, it will also introduce the ability to swim, and Nintendo has revealed a bit more about how that will work.

Much like in Animal Crossing: New Leaf, you'll need to have a wetsuit to swim in New Horizons. Following the summer update, you'll find wetsuits for sale in Nook's Cranny alongside the other tools. After you purchase one, simply put it on and you'll be able to take a dip in the ocean around your island.

Apple is reportedly shifting its Apple Arcade subscription strategy, attempting to lean in on games that will retain its subscriber base.

Bloomberg reports that the company has scrapped some development contracts with game studios. Developers involved say they were told their games didn't have a level of "engagement" that the company is looking for, as it seeks to keep users subscribed over a longer period of time. Developers also noted that Apple specifically cited Grindstone as an example of the type of game it wants to see more on the service.

In a statement, Apple said it has always planned to make changes to its lineup based on feedback. The company has not shared metrics for Apple Arcade performance publicly, but developers have said the moves could signal that subscriber growth has been slow and those who sign up for the free trial aren't retaining their subscriptions.

In a bizarre move, despite having been released in May, Amazon's Crucible is shifting back into a closed beta beginning on July 1. The move comes after a quiet launch, which marked the first release from Amazon's internal game studios.

Crucible will continue to be accessible for players 24/7, but the development team will be scheduling out time to play with the community and solicit feedback. The game will also still be accessible through Steam for current players. Anyone that wants access to the beta should download the game prior to 9 AM PDT tomorrow July 1, after which you will need to sign up through the game's website for the beta.

There is no set date for when the game will exit beta and release again, with the post saying "it will be based on your feedback and the metrics that we see in-game." Players will keep all progress and customization items, plus the battle pass and in-game store will remain.

Respawn has pushed a hotfix update for Apex Legends which addresses several noticeable bugs that popped up in the battle royale game with the release of the Lost Treasures update. The full patch notes for this latest hotfix update are listed below.

Of note, the hotfix addresses the Mobile Respawn Beacon that spawned in the now-open bunker near Water Treatment. Currently, Mobile Respawn Beacons are exclusive to the limited-time Armed & Dangerous mode, but they're set to release into the standard modes when Lost Treasures ends. Some players--myself included--believed the beacon that spawned in the bunker was a hidden secret that teased what was to come, but apparently not! It was a bug.

The hotfix update also addresses notable issues with Wraith and Octane. In Lost Treasures, Wraith got a new legendary skin called The Marble Goddess. Equipping the skin caused a bug that prevented Wraith from taking headshot damage when hit in the head--instead, the game mistakenly assigned the less severe body damage to a headshot. That issue has now been fixed, alongside a bug that allowed Octane to use healing items while using Stim.

The Iron Banner has returned to Destiny 2 for the first time in the Season of Arrivals, and with it comes a new quest to unlock two re-issued weapons. They are The Forward Path, an auto rifle, and The Fool's Remedy, a sidearm, and both are worth adding to your collection. To get them, you'll need to complete the new Red-Hot Iron quest from Lord Saladin in the Tower.

The quest requires some grinding to get the guns, but it's actually really quick. There's only one step--here's how to knock out Red-Hot Iron quickly and efficiently.

Old Reliables

Defeat opponents with Sidearms (25) and Auto Rifles (25).

If you're a fan of Pokemon and shirts, then by golly, do I have a story for you. The Pokemon Company and Original Stitch have come together to create a line of custom Pokemon designs that are available in a number of different types of shirts, including polos, button-ups, and Hawaiian shirts. Any of the first 251 Pokemon from Gen 1 and Gen 2 are available for customization, though supplies are limited, so you'll want to act fast if you want a specific Pokemon's design.

Original Stitch's designs are pretty awesome, though they're also quite expensive. The polo shirts start at $85 USD each, while all button-ups start at $100 with customization options like pockets and different collars costing extra. Shipping for a single shirt costs $15, though if you purchase a second, you'll get your order shipped free of charge. Since these are custom orders, the shirts are expected to ship in three-to-four weeks.

Escape From Tarkov’s new June 29 update, officially called patch 0.12.6.2 by developer Battlestate Games, is live. The update adds two quests that involve a new expansion to the Reserve map, along with a handful of bug fixes and technical improvements.

The new quests are available through Prapor after level 10, titled The Bunker - Part 1 and The Bunker - Part 2. Both are set in the underground bunker below Reserve, which has been expanded with previously sealed doors now open, providing new entrances to the bunker and linking up several existing routes and locations. Scav Raiders now spawn in the bunker and a new extraction point called D-2 has been added, which requires players to restore power in another part of the bunker before it can be accessed.

Below you'll find the requirements for both bunker quests and the rewards, plus full patch notes for the update, detailing some of the aforementioned bug fixes.

Red Dead Redemption 2 Online players can earn triple payouts for Showdown Modes, including the Gun Rush featured series, this week. Players can also refill on all Trader supplies and Moonshine Mash for free, and the Butcher Table is five Gold Bars off.

Players also can complete the Veteran's Collection by delivering the 1792 Quarter, Old Tom Gin, and Aubrey Onyx Ring to Madam Nazar for a reward of reputation and money. A variety of combat related items are discounted as well, all of which are listed below.

• 40% Off all Guns
• 50% Off Melee Weapons
• 50% Off Thrown Weapons
• 60% Off Ammunition
• 40% Off Pamphlets
• Free Gun Oil

Twitch Prime Members (available for free for all Amazon Prime members) can receive five Gold Bars off the Butcher Table and 40% off a horse, stable slot, and shotgun. Members can also receive $1,000 in-game currency, 50 incendiary buckshot slugs, and 6,000 Trader XP.

PlayStation and Xbox's mega summer sales have already come and gone, but that doesn't mean you've missed out on the chance to snag some PS4 and Xbox One games for cheap this summer. Amazon offers great discounts on the regular, but it doesn't follow the same weekly schedule for deals as other stores, so it can be harder to keep track of what's on sale from week to week. Right now, we're seeing quite a few notable game deals, so we've rounded them up here so you can see at a glance the best games on sale.

Each week, we see thousands of digital game deals across PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC. Needless to say, sometimes it's challenging to parse through the overwhelming number of discounts to unearth the gems. And since there have been even more large sales as of late, it's easy to miss out on a discount for a game you've been eyeing. So, we've rounded up the best digital game deals on PS4, Xbox One, Switch, and PC this week. Plenty of excellent games are up for grabs for great prices, including Control, Disco Elysium, Half-Life: Alyx, and Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice.

Niantic's Pokemon Go and Harry Potter: Wizards Unite have changed the way that mobile players interact with the world. Now, the developer has announced that it has new real-world games coming soon to phones everywhere.

First, the company announced the impending release of Catan - World Explorers, which is based on the high-profile board game franchise of the same name. According to the announcement, World Explorers will transform your neighborhood, town, or city into a giant game of Catan. While there's no release date as of yet, players can pre-register to receive updates from Niantic on the game's website. Niantic has indicated that World Explorers will enter beta soon.

Second, Niantic has announced a partnership with Punchdrunk, the "immersive theatre" company best-known for Sleep No More, an interactive exhibition based on the Shakespearean tragedy Macbeth. While there are no concrete details on what the partnership is likely to produce, Niantic says it's hoping to create a game that casts players as the lead characters in an epic adventure movie. What exactly that looks like remains to be seen. These are only two of the 10 projects that Niantic says that they currently have in development.

[Update: Bandai Namco's Play Anime Live stream is about to start and if you link up your Twitch account, you'll get a free Steam copy of Naruto to Boruto: Shinobi Striker for tuning into the show.

I nearly let this one slip through the cracks. It's... it's been a long summer.]

[Update 2: The stream was, in a word, uneventful. You literally didn't miss anything!]

Are you ready? Here's another streaming event to catch in this endless summer of no-E3 gaming.

Bandai Namco is organizing a Play Anime Live showcase on Twitch, YouTube, and Facebook with fresh looks at the publisher's "lineup of console, PC, and mobile anime titles" alongside developer Q&As.

The event is weeks away – it's scheduled for 4:00 p.m. Pacific on July 22 – so there's plenty of time for speculation and leaks. There might even be enough time for me to come to terms with that odd name.

I'm expecting localization news, Switch ports, and a cool game or two.

Win a copy of Super Soccer Blast in today's contest!

For better or for worse, the world is trying its damnedest to get back to some semblance of normalcy. Restaurants are coming back to life, social gatherings are far less restricted, and organized sports are trying to stitch together some sort of respective season...albeit mostly without fans in the stands.

Well, video games still have digitized spectators, and what better game than the world's most popular sport to pretend the world is back to its regular ways? We're giving away some copies of arcadey soccer title Super Soccer Blast, so come win one for yourself. Nay, win one for the planet.

After 20 hours of lite farming, crafting, sailing, and fetch-questing, I finished Summer in Mara feeling like I'd probably never come back to mop up my final few optional questlines – at least not without updates. The game is wholesome and likable, but at a certain point you've seen the sights, you know the routes, and you're just mindlessly running from Point A to B to Z to give NPCs some new item or recipe.

I checked back in with Summer in Mara this week, and I was pleasantly surprised to find a recent quality-of-life update on Steam that helps cut down on monotony. It makes a huge difference.

The big new feature is something that should've been there on day one: fast travel.

Instead of manually sailing through the same repetitive ocean sections (and loading screens) to reach particular islands only to come all the way back again, it's now possible to pop open the map, click on a quadrant, and pay a small fee to fast travel. The price varies depending on how many "screens" you're going to bypass, and you can only jump to islands you've explored, but it's a great solution.

Better yet, you don't even need to be in your boat to use fast travel – it's a true time-saver.

There's a pretty linear, one-way path for game development. Very broadly, it goes something like: conceptualizing, prototyping, alpha, beta, 1.0 launch, post-release support. Amazon's Crucible is walking back a step.

Approximately a month after its launch, Amazon is moving Crucible back into beta. It, evidently, needs to cook a little while longer. Chris took a long look at Crucible last month, and found the design to be compelling but the execution to be lacking. That's not going to cut it when there are already so many good hero shooters on the market.

So, we're left to wonder whether Crucible bombed because it wasn't polished enough or whether it bombed because it was never going to be the hot new thing. Sometimes games with huge backings and sound premises just never catch on. Regardless, something needed to change because, as GamesBeat pointed out, Crucible's peak concurrent player count over the past 24 hours was 159 people. That's abysmal for a game that's only a month old and for a game that needs a decent player count for matchmaking.

So, it's back to the drawing board starting tomorrow. Developer Relentless Studios is going to be regularly hopping into Crucible with the players to take their feedback and suggestions. There's a whole roadmap of improvements and fixes that are being addressed too.

Starting today, the soundtrack for the new Borderlands 3 DLC Bounty of Blood is available through the usual streaming/purchasing channels.

Bounty of Blood is a strange mix (as when is anything in Borderlands not) of Old West and Japanese culture, so you can bet the Bounty of Blood soundtrack is able to give you the best of both.

The Bounty of Blood soundtrack is available for listening through Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, and more. You can purchase it through iTunes if that strikes your fancy.

The Bounty of Blood soundtrack consists of 7 tracks, all are named (minus Intro, of course) after their respective settings in the game.

The tracklist:

• Intro
• Vestige
• The Blastplains
• Ashfall Peak
• Obsidian Forest
• Bloodsun Canyon
• Crater’s Edge

These songs are all the creation of Raison Varner and include some of Brandon Potter’s narration heard in the DLC.

Video game soundtracks are an excellent way to connect with series you love or get into the moment on other games. If you are looking for more, Capcom just released a whole spread of soundtracks for their IP like Resident Evil, Monster Hunter, and yes, even Ace Attorney on Steam.

However, if streaming is more your desire and you still want something dark and atmospheric, Konami (stay with me, now) released all of the soundtracks for the Castlevania series on Spotify.

Today Bandai Namco reached out with a press release to announced its own news event later this summer.

The event is titled Play Anime Live and it’ll do exactly what’s on the tin, focus on games inspired by anime, which Bandai Namco delivers in spades.

It’ll happen on July 22 at 4:00 pm  PDT (7 pm EDT, midnight BST, and 1:00 am on July 23  CEST) on the publisher’s YouTube, Twitch, and Facebook Live channels.

On top of news and trailers, fans can expect giveaways and questions & answers sessions with developers. This will include games for consoles, PC, and mobile.

PLAY ANIME LIVE is a digital showcase where anime and gaming fans can get the latest news and view premiere trailers surrounding BANDAI NAMCO’s lineup of console, PC and mobile anime titles. Fans will see Q&As with developers, participate in live giveaways and more.

At the moment, no information has been provided on whether the event will be related exclusively to games directly linked to anime series, or we’ll see other anime-style titles as well, like Blue Protocol and Tales of Arise.

Of course, whatever is showcased, you can expect full coverage here on Twinfinite.

Simmers from all over the world have united this Pride month to show solidarity with the LGBTQ+ community during the first ever Sims Virtual Pride Parade.

Fans were asked to create and submit their best Pride looks through the in-game Gallery and social media using the hashtag #SimsPride2020 between June 15 and June 29. Creators wishing for their shared looks to be featured in the Sims Pride Celebration Event or group photo were not to use custom content.

We’ve gathered a few of our favorite shared looks (both with and without custom content) and compiled them for your leisurely browsing.

Check out Summer, a pastel-haired queen who strikes poses fit for the runway.

If more specific LGBTQ+ flag coloring is your thing, check out this Simmer’s self-inspired creation. The bi-pride shines exceptionally through that purple.

The GO Fest weekly challenges are only a few days away now, (July 3 start date) but that didn’t stop Niantic from announcing a bunch of Pokemon GO news earlier today.

The post by The Pokemon GO Team revealed details about the next Legendary raid, July’s Research Breakthrough, and the July Spotlight Hours.

There are two Dragons from the Tao Trio down with Zekrom and Reshiram. Now, there’s just one icy Legendary Dragon left to go. Kyurem will be entering five-star raids in Pokemon GO starting July 7 at 1 PM PT. There will also be weekly Raid Hours from 6 PM to 7 PM local time every Wednesday while Kyurem is in five-star raids.

That means you’ll be able to catch box-loads of Kyurem on July 8, 15, 22, and 29. We currently don’t know how long Kyurem’s tenure in five-star raids will be, but we can at least confirm the July dates.

Another weekly occurrence in July will be the Pokemon Spotlight Hours. Check out the easily digestible table below for more info on the featured Pokemon and bonuses this month. Keep in mind, each Spotlight Hour takes place from 6 PM to 7 PM local time.

None of the Pokemon featured in July Spotlight hours are too noteworthy. But you should still stock up on Zubat Candy leading up to July 14. That way you’ll be able to make the most of the evolution XP boost.

Nintendo president Furukawa recently talked about the Joy-Con drift lawsuit, upcoming games, and Nintendo Directs during an investors' Q&A.

The post Nintendo President on Joy-Con Drift, Games Lineup, and Nintendo Directs appeared first on Siliconera.

In a recent interview, Paper Mario: The Origami King producer Kensuke Tanabe revealed that the game will feature an open world to explore.

The post Paper Mario: The Origami King Will Have an Open World to Explore appeared first on Siliconera.

Following the latest round of complaints over poor ownership and a “toxic” office culture, the workers at the company behind Cards Against Humanity have decided to unionise.

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