August 2020

As someone who played the hell out of Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles back in the day, it came as a shock that the upcoming remaster would not support local play. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized that this remaster could work perfectly well for a new generation; not to mention the fact that it deserves to be preserved.

I sat down with the game's director, Ryoma Araki, to find out how he got involved with the project and why local multiplayer was cut.

BioWare has outlined Anthem's upcoming new and improved loot system - and it sounds much better than what's currently in the game.

It's fair to say Anthem's loot system is pretty bad. In fact it was one of the parts of the game heavily criticised when Anthem launched in February 2019.

"Gear skills are treated as loot, which means that your ability to experiment is dependent on drops, or that you sometimes have to choose between optimising your character and keeping a favoured playstyle - not a fun choice," wrote Oli in Eurogamer's Anthem review.

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Atlantis is now in Fortnite.

The battle royale's lowering water level has decreased again and now reveals new areas once submerged. Chief among them is Coral Castle - Fortnite's version of Atlantis.

Fortnite players had expected Atlantis to pop up at some point during Chapter 2: Season 3 after DC superhero Aquaman dove into the game earlier in the season as a character skin.

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From classic thrillers to cozy rom-coms

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Granblue Fantasy Versus didn’t get specific news during the Fighting Game Publishers’ Roundtable, but now we know when we’re going to hear more.

Kazuto Sekine, who worked as lead planner on the game on the Arc System Works side, teased news about the game coming next Saturday during a livestream.

While it wasn’t mentioned explicitly, we already know which livestream Sekine-san is talking about. Cygames is going to host its Granblue Fantasy summer livestream on Saturday, August 8, at 1:30 am PDT, 4:30 am EDT, 9:30 am BST, or 10:30 am CEST depending on where you live. 

You can find the embed of the livestream below if you want to watch it as it happens.

We already know that Granblue Fantasy Versus is going to have a second season pass which will launch in the fall starting with Belial and including six characters. At the moment, we don’t know much about those characters, even if we got some small hints.

Monster Crown wants to feel tough. It wants to feel alienating at times. It wants you to feel like you’ve earned what you have.

The post Monster Crown Strives to Give the Pokémon Genre a Hard Mode appeared first on Siliconera.

The Humble Double Fine Bundle collects 20 years of Double Fine (and Double Fine-adjacent) games for less than $10.

The post The Humble Double Fine Bundle Celebrates 20 Years of Adventure appeared first on Siliconera.

Recently, my PlayStation 4 has developed the annoying new habit of beeping a lot. Not predictably, or consistently, but just enough that I’m always waiting for those next beeps. This is fine, I guess.

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During the Japan Fighting Game Publishers Roundtable livestream Fighting EX Layer developer Arika provided new info about the future of the game.

Arika founder Akira Nishitani mentioned that the development team is working on improving online connectivity and while a date has not been confirmed yet, the Steam version of the game is going to receive a menu to select character skins. For the moment, the feature will be specific to the Steam version.

On top of that, the developers have been working on adding their own version of Rollback Netcode, which has actually been released in a patch this morning both on PS4 and on PC.

The team is also testing crossplay, but it isn’t known whether it’ll actually be implemented or when. 

Fighting EX Layer is currently available for PS4 and PC. If you’re unfamiliar with the game, you can check out an official description.

“That” EX Series Is Back! 
After a long while, the EX Series loved by Fighting Game fans around the world has finally returned!

The Characters Are Reborn With Beautiful New Graphics
Kairi, Skullomania, Blaire, Pullum and the rest; in total 15 classic characters have been recreated with beautiful new models. Watch as the EX series is reborn and the battle unfolds with the latest graphics!

The New “Gougi System” Plays A Huge Role In Battle
By fulfilling certain requirement mid-battle, your character is given amazing new abilities- that’s “Gougi”!5 Gougi make up 1 Set which is called a “Gougi Deck”. There are 15 different Gougi Decks ready for you to try.

Experiment with the different characters and Gougi Decks, and find the combination that matches your own style!

Koei Tecmo was present at the  Fighting Game Publishers’ Roundtable and talked about the current situation of the Dead or Alive franchise.

Dead or Alive 6 Producer Yohei Shimbori was on the panel alongside Masato “Mochi A” Yoshikawa, but they did not have groundbreaking news to share besides sales and the upcoming release of Tamaki in the arcade version of the game in Japan.

That being said, Shimbori-san mentioned that while Dead or Alive is “taking a break” in terms of new releases, the player base is actually expanding and the game is doing quite well, also thanks to the free Core Fighters version which has passed three million downloads.

Toward the end of the stream, Shimbori-san mentioned that fans playing and supporting the game alongside gatherings with other producers like the one happened yesterday motivates him to continue to work hard

Yoshikawa-san added that while Dead or Alive is currently on a break releases-wise, the team still wants to do more, and the fans’ support of the game and its Core Fighters version helps Shimbori-san push internally to achieve that.

As a funny note of color, a ghost from the past of the franchise was summoned during the panel, courtesy of Tekken 7 producer Katsuhiro Harada, as you can see below.

Soulcalibur VI Standard Edition (PS4) | $19 | Amazon
Soulcalibur VI Standard Edition (XBO) | $16 | Amazon

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I’ve fallen into a pop-cultural rut: Dunno why, but I feel incapable of ingesting new media that isn’t part of my work. There are shows I want to catch up on, comics I want to read, games I want to play, but getting myself to sit down and engage with them feels nearly impossible... with a few exceptions.

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The Super Mario series turns 35 this September, so chances are that if you read this game blog, the franchise has been in your life for as long as you remember. I'm old enough to recall the first time I played the original game. I was 10 years old, and it was at a demo kiosk in Toys R Us. I'll forever associate the series with that point in my childhood. 

Of course, I've grown up a lot since then, and so has Nintendo. When they first started releasing their own home consoles, their sole focus was catering to children, but now that many of those '80s kids have kids (or even grandkids) of their own, they've branched out to create games that appeal to all ages. That sometimes means throwing in a cheeky reference now and again, intended for adults to understand but kids to avoid or ignore. 

There is just such a reference in a recently released Nintendo game, and the only thing I found surprising about it was fans' reactions. Specifically, a lot of fans denied that there was anything sexual about it, seemingly unwilling to admit to themselves that yes, sometimes Nintendo does dick jokes. I'm not going to spoil it here, because it's actually related to one of the quiz questions below, but please, if you were one of the folks who doesn't believe that Nintendo ever gets "inappropriate," you have a lot to learn. With any luck, this fun quiz will teach you a thing or two about the birdos and the bees. 

Mikage LLC updated its website back in June, revealing the release windows for their upcoming SRPG and another unannounced title.

The post Mikage LLC Upcoming Games Set for Fall 2021 and Winter 2022 Respectively appeared first on Siliconera.

Video on social media appears to show Call of Duty: Modern Warfare players gathering in person during an amateur tournament, American Gaming Network’s Indianapolis Open, despite the event officially being moved online due to concerns over covid-19.

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The Heart of Deimos is going to make for one hell of an introduction for players new to the Warframe experience, but for those who have been playing since the beginning, a new feature coming soon to your Orbiter may allow you to customize your playing experience even more. When Heart of Deimos launches at the end of August, your infirmary will have a new occupant. Say hello to Audrey II Helminth.

Earlier this year, Digital Extremes asked Tenno around the world to submit their ideas for a new Warframe in the fantastically popular free-to-play looter shooter. Plenty of ideas were submitted, but the most popular entry by far was from a user named 'eaterofstorms" who pushed the idea of a Broken Warframe, one that is, "obviously not put together correctly and it's pretty much the epitome of making a bug a feature."

An absolutely dope idea that finally has a dope design. Say hello to Xaku, a gender-neutral Warframe coming to the game with the launch of the Heart of Deimos.

Last year at TennoCon, Digital Extremes teased a new open-world area known as the Duviri Paradox. That update for Warframe is currently on hold. Instead, more than 50 million players around the world will get access to a new open-world later this month called the Heart of Deimos. 

Deimos is the second moon of Mars that holds the origin to the Infested. As players complete quests across the satellite, they'll uncover the mysteries of the nauseating creatures and how they came to be. During a pre-TennoCon presentation, we were given a look at this fleshy world overrun with some of the most gruesome creatures Warframe has ever seen.

Stompy mechs, a giant mouth, and more is coming to Warframe

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Warframe

‘s gone and infested an entire moon with creepy crawlies for its Heart Of Deimos expansion. Shown properly for the first time during today’s Waframe fan event livestream, the expansion also includes other cool stuff, like customisable Warframe powers and a huge new open world area. But I’m more interested in the pair of gigantic worms endlessly warring to take control of the moon. At least, that’s what I think they’re doing. Guess we’ll find out when the expansion releases on August 25th.

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Today, during the celebrations for Tennocon 2020, Digital Extremes showcased the upcoming Warframe expansion Heart of Deimos.

Heart of Deimos will be the third open world added to the game and will be released on August 25 on PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC.

This is the first time a Warframe expansion is released at the same time on all of its platforms. 

Heart of Deimos will bring players to the main hive of the Infested faction, which is a place as beautiful as it is grotesque due to its organic environments.

You can check out a recording of the livestream below alongside a trailer featuring the Hydroid Prime and one showcasing a beautiful figure portraying Lotus.

Today Creative Assembly released a new trailer of the upcoming Total War game A Total War Saga: Troy.

This new video focuses on the heroes hailing from Troy itself. The choice of which warlord to play will strongly influence your playstyle, as their abilities are very different. The only exception is that Hectors and Paris share one ability in their rivalry to become kings of Troy. 

This trailer makes the pair with yesterday’s, which focused on the heroes from Greece.

You can check the video out below.

Streaming libraries expand and contract. Algorithms are imperfect. Those damn thumbnail images are always changing. But you know what you can always rely on? The expert opinions and knowledgeable commentary of The A.V. Club. That’s why we’re scouring both the menus of the most popular services and our own archives to…

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A world inhabited by infested creatures, an abundance of insects, and a daily power struggle between two opposing sides? No, it's not the British summertime in 2020, it's the new Warframe expansion Heart of Deimos, which has just been unveiled as part of this year's all-digital TennoCon presentation.

The update brings a raft of goodies - including a fleshy open world, K-Drive combat, mechs and warring giant wyrms - all of which should keep players occupied as they search for the origins of the Infested faction. Oh, and there's also a little thing called the Helminth Chrysalis System, which allows players to transfer an ability to another Warframe (something that should create some truly wacky combinations).

But given this year has been so disruptive for many studios thanks to the impact of COVID-19, I was curious to know how Digital Extremes had shifted its content plans and managed the workload for Warframe: particularly given the game normally receives a fairly consistent flow of updates and content. After watching a press deimos-tration, I had a chat with Warframe COO and dev team member Sheldon Carter, who was able to tell me more about the challenges of working during lockdown, how the Necramechs work... and what the hell is going on with that Helminth.

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This year's TennoCon presentation was a little different to normal, having fully migrated online due to COVID-19, but there were still plenty of changes announced for the Warframe universe, including a big new open-world area, a Warframe ability transfer feature... and mechs.

Releasing on all platforms simultaneously, the Heart of Deimos expansion is set to land on August 25th, and will introduce players to a new open world centred around the Infested faction. On the second moon of Mars, players can discover more about the Infested faction's origins, "unveiling the lost Entrati family and the marvels of technology and horror it left behind". There's also flying fish and two giant wyrms, with the latter locked in an eternal battle for power (and with one wyrm causing a "surge" in Infested power to keep players on their toes). Underground, players will find an area created from a series of procedurally-generated networked tunnels and vertical spaces to explore.

The K-Drive hoverboards introduced in Fortuna are getting a re-skin on Deimos - literally - as they appear as insects called Velocipods which you can ride over the hellish landscape. You can take them into combat, too, as the Velocipods will allow you to shoot while riding them, creating a "whole new combat dynamic". Or, if you need something with a little more firepower, you can try a Necramech: a pilotable suit of armour that comes with its own abilities, and is particularly effective when it comes to dealing with waves of Infested. They also appear as enemies within the Heart of Deimos expansion, and look pretty terrifying.

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Hello and welcome to the latest edition of the Giant Bomb Community Spotlight and I, @zombiepie, am once again honored to be your host as we look back on the best creative endeavors of the Giant Bomb community! Sorry for the delay in what was meant to be a "return to normalcy" for the Community Spotlight, but as they say, shit happens. Anyways, it was a busy news week for the site, and we have a lot to review before jumping into the wonderful things the community has been up to recently. So, let's jump right into it!

• For those users struggling to keep up with all of the streaming content during Lockdown 2020, user TigerDX made a terminal application for grabbing the latest videos on the site!
• The French Abby parody account on Twitter is a complete delight. If you are not following it right now, then you should fix that immediately.
• Moderator @finaldasa celebrated their birthday last week! Feel free to wish they a "Happy Birthday" if you have not already done so.
• Ben started a huge debate on Twitter if the Mario in the Paper Mario franchise is canonically the Mario in the mainline series or some alternate timeline bullshit.

Tweets

Fighting EX Layer was patched with rollback netcode in an update today, and other features like cross-play are being considered.

The post Fighting EX Layer Patched to Rollback Netcode in Latest Update appeared first on Siliconera.

Beyond Good & Evil is getting the Netflix feature film adaptation treatment, possibly directed by the Detective Pikachu director.

The post Beyond Good & Evil Goes Even Further Beyond With Netflix Film Adaptation appeared first on Siliconera.

Please be warned that there are images of spiders in this article.

My dad had a spider in his shower for months and he named it Boris, and when one day the spider was no longer there, he seemed genuinely upset. It seems they'd formed quite a bond. I must have inherited his befriend-a-spider gene because I rather like them, like having them around the house. They're my household security against other pests. When I see occupied corners and windowsills I consider the room well fortified because nothing stands a chance against them. They're beautifully efficient, wonderfully evolved.

But not everyone likes them, you might be surprised to hear. When I try to tell my girlfriend it's good to have them around she doesn't seem to understand. "Can you get rid of it? Don't pick it up!" She doesn't even care if it's a house spider and it's supposed to live here! She wants it evicted, how heartless. Mind you, one did crawl across the duvet onto her neck so I suppose that's a contributing factor.

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Screenshot Saturday Sundays! It’s been an absolutely roasting weekend, folks, so let’s chill out in the shade and crack open a refreshing can of work-in-progress screenshots, videos and ice-cold gifs. This week: cross-dimensional translation, precarious hangouts, neon zombie raves and (not quite) pong.

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Football Manager developer Sports Interactive has confirmed that "despite all the problems going on in the world", Football Manager 2021 will release later this year, albeit "a little later than originally planned".

"...[W]e have continued to work on our games throughout this troubled period - and we've managed to do this despite not being together in our office since early March," studio director Mile Jacobson wrote in a "State of FM" update on the official website (thanks, VGC). "Having a 'distributed' workforce isn't new to us, as some of the team have worked remotely for decades, but moving the entire team to work from home was a huge challenge. Everyone's personal situation is different, and our main priority as a studio was to ensure that the whole team and their families remained safe, healthy and happy.

"After that, our priority was to ensure that every team member was able to continue to work effectively (while taking their home situation into account) so that we could continue to create and deliver great games," Jacobson continued. "We're now in a position where we're set up to continue to work in this fashion for as long as it takes. None of us know when things will return to 'normal', but I would be very surprised if we're all back in the studio working together until well into next year."

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Yesterday's Japan Fighting Game Publisher Roundtable stream might have offered fans new info pertaining to Tekken, Samurai Shodown, Guilty Gear, and Soulcalibur, but it was a little slim on reveals for great tag-team slugfest Dragon Ball FighterZ.

Never fear, Goku fans, as publisher Bandai Namco has announced that it does have plans for DBFZ, plans that will be revealed in a special live stream later this month. Unfortunately that's all the info you're getting for now - an announcement of an announcement - but at least fans can take heart knowing that their favourite fighter is likely to see support into the new year and beyond.

We will keep you informed as and when a date is announced for the live stream. Dragon Ball FighterZ is available now on PS4, PC, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.

A deal on John Wick 4K Blu-Rays, Tie Bar’s 5 packs of masks, a deal on a fight stick, bathroom towels for $30, and more are some of Sunday’s best deals.

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Hello! It’s time for Kotaku’s Sunday Comics, your weekly roundup of the best webcomics. The images enlarge if you click on the magnifying glass icon.

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