Earlier this week Nintendo let me preview its upcoming attempt to graft Mario Kart onto remote control cars through augmented reality. It’s called Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit, and it looks like a lot of fun. It also looks very niche.
Photo: Nintendo
But is Nintendo’s next Mario Kart game more than just a clever spin on the franchise?
Click here to watch embedded media For many, this year has meant a lot of time at home finding new ways to entertain ourselves. With Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit, Nintendo is hoping to quell some of that monotony with a new way to play the classic series. Home Circuit allows you to control a real Mario RC car from your Nintendo Switch and race against your friends and AR opponents. You set up custom racetracks and can even add physical hazards as you're free to create inventive courses using the included cardboard gates.
Join Jeff Cork, Brian Shea, and me as we take you through all the fun possibilities and discuss what you can expect when the game drops later this month.
If you're a fan of the series and already have a Nintendo Switch (which you need to play the game), you don't have long to wait as Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit launches on October 16 for $100.
Games out this week:
NVC is available on your preferred platform!
Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit may involve real-world karts racing on a tracks you create, but it also has things like Mirror Mode and 4 engine classes.
The post Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit Includes Staples Like Mirror Mode and 200cc appeared first on Siliconera.
Even though it only hit Steam in 2018, and has only existed in any form since 2016, Raft feels like one of those survival games that has been in Early Access forever. That’s not a criticism, it’s just very much the mood the game has. It’s one of those ones you’ll play a bit of, forget about, and then look back a year later, only to find it’s grown a whole story and pigs you can fight. That gradual accretion of stuff is fitting, I suppose, as it’s exactly what Raft is about: gradually accreting stuff.
Happy Star Wars: Squadrons day, internet. I have nothing to offer but the sneer of a veteran Elite Dangerous pilot. A disdainful scoff as you vroomify your engines in the docking bay, click-clacking your flight checks in the seat of some dusty Y-wing, some classless X-Wing, some bogus B-wing. Who do you think you are? Sitting there in the pilot’s seat of that garish tin can. Only an exponent of the foulest incorrectitudes would indulge a shipyard with all the basic-ass nomenclature of an episode of Sesame Street. Here, you fripperist, you child, gaze upon the true list of the 9 best spaceships in games.
The Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War multiplayer beta is coming up very soon, and developer Treyarch has now shared a little more insight about what to expect from it.
Lead game designer Tony Flame said on Twitter that the beta will represent "quite an upgrade" over the alpha that PS4 players got to play in September. "I don't think anyone quite realizes what this team can do in a short amount of time," Flame said. "From new features to the core feel, nearly everything has taken leaps forward."
The Black Ops Cold War Beta is quite an upgrade over the Alpha. I don't think anyone quite realizes what this team can do in a short amount of time. From new features to the core feel, nearly everything has taken leaps forward.
— Tony Flame (@Tony_Flame) October 2, 2020
My favorite part tho: the new lobby music kicks it
Flame also pointed out that the Black Ops Cold War beta will be a separate download compared to the alpha, so you can delete it from your PS4.
Continue Reading at GameSpotChinese internet giant Tencent continues its push into the world of video games. The company has acquired a "major stake" in the Swedish game developer, 10 Chambers, a studio founded in 2015 by members of the Payday development team that released the sci-fi FPS GTFO as their first game in December 2019.
10 Chambers creative director Ulf Andersson said in a statement that Tencent is the right partner to help the company reach "new heights."
"As we're closing in on six years of development of GTFO, we've realized that our ambitious long-term vision for our studio will need more muscle," Andersson said. "We needed to find a partner that gives us the creative freedom to reach these new heights, while at the same time support our long-term commitment to the GTFO community. For the future of the studio as a whole; it makes it even more exciting."
Continue Reading at GameSpotMario Kart Live: Home Circuit is coming to Switch on October 16, and ahead of release Nintendo has shown off exactly how the game works and what you'll get in the box. This overview trailer shows how you can build a track within your home, and the various options available to you.
There are details in the trailer about how items can change the speed of your kart in real life as well as in the game, and you can race at up to 200CC. You assemble the four cardboard gates in the box as you see fit, and then design a track by driving through them--the path you take between gates determines the track layout.
It's recommended that you have at least a 10x12ft space to work in, and although the trailer is not explicit about needing hardwood floors, there certainly hasn't been any rugs or carpet in any of the marketing materials released so far.
Continue Reading at GameSpotControl has beguiled players with its mysterious setting, The Oldest House, with its weird environments and twisty layouts. But it turns out there's some interesting stuff happening outside the game's departmental setting as well.
Lance McDonald, who has become well-known for his game hacks, has produced a camera hack for the PS4 version of Control, and in his brief video of the tool on Twitter he's uncovered an interesting detail. Taking the camera outside of The Oldest House shows off the streets, which you don't see during gameplay, and there's more going on out there than you might expect.
There are detailed buildings and streets out there, including a truck parked around the corner that is not visible at any point during the game. Better yet, the traffic outside seems to obey the road rules, queuing up at the lights. This outside area is curiously detailed, considering that you never venture out there during the game.
Unlocked the debug free camera in Control for PlayStation 4 today. I already did this on PC the day the game released but PS4 hacking is cooler so I figured I should get around to doing it there too. pic.twitter.com/TfnHNAqmLf
Nintendo is once again blurring the line between toys and digital entertainment with Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit, a "mixed reality" product that's part-RC car and part-video game. Developed jointly with Velan Studios, Home Circuit gives you the ability to create your own Mario Kart courses in real life. The key to this is a toy kart that you can drive around using your Switch. The kart features a camera that streams a video feed back to the system's screen, which the game then overlays with a HUD, item boxes, environmental hazards, and other Mario Kart trappings.
It's a genuinely impressive conceit, the same kind of technological sleight of hand that made the company's various Labo kits--which combine peripherals you fashion out of cardboard with the Switch hardware--seem so mystifying when they were unveiled. Given how unorthodox it is, it may also be initially hard to wrap your head around, but Nintendo gave us a much better understanding of how it all works and what you can actually do in Mario Kart Live during a recent preview presentation. Here's what we learned.
Mario Kart Live is compatible with both the standard Nintendo Switch and the handheld-only Nintendo Switch Lite. If you have the standard model, you can also play in TV mode with the system docked. The game supports the Switch Pro Controller as well.
Continue Reading at GameSpotOctober is a big month in Animal Crossing: New Horizons, largely thanks to the many new Halloween items and spooky DIYs you can get to celebrate one of the best holidays of the year. But like with any month in New Horizons, there are also new critters to catch to keep up with your museum and Critterpedia. In this guide, we'll detail every new critter for both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres; note that these are only the new arrivals for the month and not every fish, bug, and sea creature you can catch this month.
For the complete 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. We also have a list of all 40 sea creatures plus tips on how to dive and catch them.
The new Super Smash Bros. Ultimate DLC character has been revealed, and after years of rumors we're finally getting some Minecraft in Smash Bros. Steve, the hero of Minecraft, is joining the game, along with alternate Alex, Enderman, and Zombie skins, and the Internet is going wild. As it turns out, discussions about getting Steve into the game have been happening for a long time--at least five years, in fact.
On Twitter, former Mojang employee Daniel Kaplan has been celebrating the announcement, and has revealed that discussions began long ago. After initially asking people to guess, he eventually revealed in a tweet that serious discussions first happened about five years ago, which would have been right around the time that development on Ultimate began.
here's literally one of the cofounders of Mojang talking about how long it's been in developmenthttps://t.co/EIpY3fMIRO
— Grimran Khan (@imranzomg) October 1, 2020
3 is not enough. At least five
In 2015, Microsoft worked with Saber Interactive on a free-to-play Halo game for Russia called Halo Online. It was short-lived, however, as Microsoft canceled it before it even left beta.
The game may get a new lease on life, as Microsoft has teased that maps from Halo Online could be incorporated into Halo: The Master Chief Collection in the future.
Design director Max Szlagor said in a blog post that included among the many, many other new features that are being discussed for MCC are Halo Online maps. "Is there an opportunity to bring over some of the Halo Online maps? There’s a lot of options out there and it’s all dependent on what’s feasible and everything takes time and has to be measured against the bug list, backlog, and feature priorities," Szlagor said. "All in all, we are definitely looking towards more goodness and continuing with more seasons."
Halo developer 343 Industries has provided an update on some of the features coming to The Master Chief Collection in the future, including cross-play.
In a blog post, the studio said cross-play between Xbox One and PC is currently "in test with our QA team," which suggests it may be ready for release relatively soon. More specifically, 343 said cross-play and other new features could begin to appear in MCC through an upcoming beta test, or "flight," for Halo 4 on PC. The beta test will also be available on Xbox One. To get in, you'll need to sign up for the free Halo Insider program and hope to be chosen.
Cross-play will come to MCC with another new feature, the ability to select your preferred input device for matchmaking. This will give players the ability to choose who they play against when it comes to controls--that could be a big deal because mouse & keyboard is generally understood to be a more precise manner of controls compared to a gamepad. You can see a work-in-progress screenshot of the new menu below.
Continue Reading at GameSpotOctober has officially arrived, and there are a number of events happening in Pokemon Go this month. Developer Niantic has now added one more to the schedule, announcing a special autumn event for next week that will feature a variety of fall-themed Pokemon, including a new monster from the Unova region.
The autumn event kicks off next Friday, October 9, at 8 AM PT and runs until 1 PM PT on October 12. Throughout that time, the following Pokemon will appear in the wild more often than usual:
Those aren't the only Pokemon you'll be able to find in the wild. The Gen 5 Pokemon Deerling will make its debut in Pokemon Go during the event. Deerling and its evolved form, Sawsbuck, have different forms depending on the season, and during next week's event players will have a chance to catch its autumn form. Additionally, Shiny Kantonian Vulpix will appear in the wild during the autumn event, and fall-themed Pokemon will be hatching from 5 km eggs.
Continue Reading at GameSpotHalloween is coming up and that means pumpkins are now available in Animal Crossing: New Horizons. As part of its latest Halloween update, New Horizons has made pumpkin starts available to purchase. These seeds can be planted and the resulting pumpkins harvested as a resource. You can place pumpkins as decorations on their own or save them up to craft some of the new October pumpkin DIY recipes, also called the Spooky Set.
Here's everything you need to know about growing and harvesting pumpkins in New Horizons.
You can purchase pumpkin seeds from Nook's Cranny during the month of October. They are available in the cabinet where you usually purchase tools like fishing rods and watering cans. Seeds (called pumpkin starts) cost 280 bells each.
Continue Reading at GameSpotThe Halloween update for Animal Crossing: New Horizons is live and perhaps its most anticipated addition, pumpkins, are now available. While pumpkins make great decorations on their own, there are also a handful of pumpkin DIY recipes you can collect and craft. Here's a list of all the Spooky Set pumpkin DIY recipes we know of so far and where to find them.
Pumpkins can be harvested from seeds, which you can now buy and plant. Check out our guide on how to get pumpkins for details on how to grow and harvest your own. You'll need to save up a bunch if you want to craft all the pumpkin DIY recipes this season.
You can find pumpkin DIY recipes, also called the Spooky Set, from villagers or by shooting down balloons.
Continue Reading at GameSpotCreate a Larian account or link you Steam, GOG, or Google Stadia account to access cross saves and cross play.
The post Baldur’s Gate 3 Will Let You Access Cross Play and Cross Saves If You Have a Larian Account appeared first on Siliconera.
Yesterday, Nintendo revealed that Minecraft avatar Steve will be the next DLC character joining the star-studded roster of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. While the news may have come as a surprise to some fans of the uber-popular crossover fighter, it seems that plans for Steve to join the Smash Bros. party go back as far as five years ago.
Speaking on Twitter after the reveal, former Mojang business developer Daniel Kaplan claimed that talks between Nintendo and the Minecraft developer began "at least" five years ago. This would suggest that Nintendo was considering a Smash x Minecraft crossover around the time of SSBU's initial conception, perhaps even envisioning Steve as a base roster character.
Whenever it comes to the cross-fraternising of licences, there is always much red tape to sift through, and given that both Minecraft and Smash Bros. are two of the biggest franchises in gaming, no doubt the road to securing Steve's arrival was a long one. Still, this only makes Steve's ultimate appearance all that more astonishing, and arguably the biggest reveal the Smash franchise has had since Snake made his debut way back in 2006's Super Smash Bros. Brawl.
Minecraft's Steve (not forgetting Alex, Zombie, and Enderman) will join SSBU as paid DLC in the near future, available as an individual purchase or as part of the Smash Bros. Fighter's Pass. More detailed information is expected from Nintendo tomorrow.
Take your protein pills and put your helmet on, for the morning has brought the release of Star Wars: Squadrons. EA’s new spaceship shooter has players boldly go into battle for both the New Republic and Empire, with a story telling both sides of the aftermath of Star Wars VI: The Undiscovered Country. On top of that, it has 5v5 multiplayer modes. And all those lasers that make the good noises.
Long term readers of my constant Sims 4 Simsposting will know that by far my favourite custom content maker right now is Ravasheen. Imagine my delight when I found out that, after three months of work and collaboration with another creator, Panda Sama, the pair have produced an extremely adorable tiny play kitchen for toddlers and kids.
Further long term readers of my work may also know that I am not the biggest fan of children (and in the game!), but in this case I will make an exception, because I tested some of the custom animations out with a sweet little toddler and he wore a little chef’s hat and everything. I also got in touch with Ravasheen to ask her about her cc process, and how she got into making it in the first place, because I am obsessed with her work.