January 2021

2020 has made me reconsider what 'game of the year' means

3 years 2 months ago

Around this time, everybody starts reflecting on the past year and what it meant. What memories will we keep from it, and specifically for us, what games were our favorites? Top ten lists go up across Twitter, and we call the game in the number one spot our personal "Game of the Year."

But 2020 was different. It was devastating. It will be the subject of documentaries. It could encompass an entire chapter in a history textbook. In all my life, there has never been another year like it.

Sure, humanity has weathered disasters in the past. And sure, most of the time, goings-on in the real world have been at least possible to ignore when considering the game of the year. Last year, however, the entire world's population -- all 7.6 billion of us -- went through some version of the same thing. We all experienced some amount of isolation, sadness, and loss over the COVID-19 pandemic, and there was one game from 2020 that arrived at exactly the right time to provide togetherness, joy, and respite from the horrors of the world. If there is one game from last year that will forever define the year in my memory, it is Animal Crossing: New Horizons.

2020 has made me reconsider what 'game of the year' means screenshot

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Author
Darren Nakamura

Both Sides Claim Victory In Massive EVE Online Battle

3 years 2 months ago

Ragnarök, the death of the Norse gods, played out in EVE Online in the wee hours of New Year’s eve. Hundreds of the game’s mightiest vessels gathered together in the M2-XFE system, and Titans from the game’s two largest factions spent over 12 hours exchanging fire and unleashing their incredibly devastating doomsday…

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Author
Lee Yancy

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All the Times We Hacked Each Other's Lives in 2020

3 years 2 months ago

Lifehacker’s ethos is to help our readers “do everything better,” and that includes each other. Because even when we’re hacking others’ lives, we still need to live our own.

In this post, each of us has selected a favorite 2020 post from another writer on staff. The choices represent the most useful, the quirkiest, and…

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Author
Joel Cunningham on Lifehacker, shared by Riley MacLeod to Kotaku

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Shenmue creator Yu Suzuki says his 2021 plans include 'head-to-head battles,' a 'sequel' and 'shooting/RPGs'

3 years 2 months ago

Yu Suzuki will always be a legend for what he managed to craft with the Shenmue series. But a lot of people forget that he was one of the main dudes at Sega AM2, pumping out hits like After Burner and Space Harrier; which were featured in Shenmue years later as arcade games.

He's over 60 years old now, and still seemingly has just as much passion for the industry as he did in the '80s: the long road to get Shenmue III made is proof of that. So what's next after that aforementioned revival? Well, hopefully more Shenmue so we can actually see the story through! It's been over 20 years, after all.

As far as the immediate future goes though, things might get a bit wacky over at his studio, Ys Net. He recently caught up with Famitsu to vaguely tease what's coming in 2021, and his keywords were "shooting/RPG." Okay...I can sort of follow that.

He then subsequently shared his ambitions for 2021, which are "reflect on head-to-head battles," and the phrase "sequel." So the sequel is probably Shenmue IV, but I wonder if the "shooting" portion is Suzuki getting bit by the battle royale bug.

Either way, there are seemingly plans, and Shenmue III didn't bankrupt the studio (Suzuki said its performance was "fine" earlier this year). I'm hopeful for what we see next.

Author
Chris Carter

After three long years, Mistwalker's new game Fantasian is 'near completion'

3 years 2 months ago

Remember Fantasian? I wouldn't blame you if you forgot about it!

Mistwalker, the studio behind Blue Dragon and Lost Odyssey — two absolute classics — is releasing a new RPG on mobile devices soon. Wait, don't go! Fantasian looks like a legit JRPG romp, one that will free them from their Terra Battle routine they've been in for the last seven years or so. If you want to see some footage, check out the below video at the 1:16 mark.

It's is going to be released on Apple Arcade, mind, so it's not going to be microtransactioned to hell and back. So when is it coming out? Well, thanks to a new end of year interview with Japanese outlet Famitsu, we know it's coming relatively soon.

Speaking on 2021, Mistwalker founder and gaming legend Hironobu Sakaguchi muses: "Fantasian, which we’ve been developing for three years, is finally near completion. It’ll release for Apple Arcade in 2021." So whether you've been waiting for it or not, it's almost ready.

I wish them luck with SEO, because Googling this game is a Lovecraftian nightmare when Disney has the phrase "Fantasia" on lockdown.

End of Year Creator Interviews [Famitsu via Gematsu]

After three long years, Mistwalker's new game Fantasian is 'near completion' screenshot

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Author
Chris Carter

Students Are Filling in the Plot Lines of the Green New Deal

3 years 2 months ago

The Green New Deal tells an important story about what society could be instead of what it currently is. It’s about transitioning to a system that allows everyone a fair shot at succeeding and fixing past wrongs from pollution to colonial land grabs.

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Author
Brian Kahn on Earther, shared by Riley MacLeod to Kotaku

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How to Find and Use Skippy in Cyberpunk 2077

3 years 2 months ago
Here's everything you need to know about the talking gun, Skippy, as we guide you through its exact location and the best firing mode you should select.
Author
Angie Harvey

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Runeterra, fold-ins, and the power of print

3 years 2 months ago

Print can do some really good things. There's the ritual of browsing the local corner shop looking for something you fancy, the bizarrely thin paper that somehow smells bloody delicious, and front covers screaming at you to pick them up and give them a read. Walking past the magazine section at my local Asda, I got to thinking about all the super cool stuff made possible when you whack out the ol' presses.

One that immediately sprung to mind was Mad Magazine and its fold-ins. They used to have this weird back page thing where the reader folds the page to change one image into another. They've been hand-drawn by Al Jaffee since the '60s, and show two completely different scenes, telling a two-part story that will often subvert what you initially expected to see.

It might not be super deep, cutting satire - Mad's brand is more pointing out the obvious. You have the question posed at the top of the page - 'what frightening, ancient relic will be the focus of much attention and fanfare this summer?' with an accompanying image of an Indiana Jones style adventurer in an ancient tomb. However, folding the page in obscures most of the image to reveal the words 'John McCain', along with a goofy looking bust of the former Presidential candidate (this fold-in was from 2008). The content is simple, but the presentation is brilliant. It's like a game on the back of a magazine - a story is being told, and the reader is a part of it.

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What are we all playing this new year weekend?

3 years 2 months ago

People dancing round a bonfire in an illustration from 'La Bretagne ancienne et moderne'.

Hallo again, and a happy new year to you! We’re slowly rousing from our slumber before RPS returns on Monday the 4th but while I’m briefly up to grab a wheel of cheese to gnaw on in bed, I may as well ask: what are you playing this weekend? New year, new games? New gaming habits? Though I understand old habits die hard, I say after falling back into The Binding Of Isaac over the hols. But enough about me, officially I’m not even here; what’s up with you?

Author
Alice O'Connor

Microsoft reminds us Age of Empires 4 is still in the works

3 years 2 months ago

Age of Empires 4 - announced over three years ago - is still in the works, and progress is being made, Microsoft has said.

At XO19 in November 2019, Microsoft showed off a snippet of Age of Empires 4 in action (check out the video below), but we haven't heard a peep about it since then.

In a blog post summing up what's going on with the Age of Empires franchise, Shannon Loftis, studio head of World's Edge, said: "We are making great progress on Age of Empires 4."

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Long-forgotten PS1 Net Yaroze game Magic Castle comes out over 20 years later

3 years 2 months ago

Magic Castle is an eye-catching roguelite made on the Net Yaroze platform by a handful of Japanese developers back in 1997. But it never came out - until now.

For the uninitiated, Net Yaroze was a Sony project that made available to hobbyist coders a basic version of the PlayStation dev kit for £550. Around 1000 units were sold in Europe, which effectively created a ready-made community of budding developers working independently on the PlayStation platform. (For more, check out Eurogamer's 2013 feature, The story of Net Yaroze, Sony's first indie push.)

A Magic Castle prototype was built using Net Yaroze, but unfortunately the game was never finished or released. In March 2020, NetYaroze-Europe.com interviewed the head creators of Magic Castle: K. Matsunami, a game designer who now works at Sega, and a game designer who goes by the name PIROWO, and in the interview Matsunami revealed Magic Castle was created in just eight months as a pitch to a game production company. Sony expressed interest, but asked the developers to work on another project at the company instead. They declined. Eventually, the team disbanded.

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The Binding of Isaac: Repentance expansion has a late March 2021 release date

3 years 2 months ago

The Binding of Isaac: Repentance comes out 31st March 2021, developer Edmund McMillen has announced.

The "sequel sized" final expansion for the hugely popular roguelike hits PC via Steam then, with consoles to follow later.

The announcement was made via a new trailer, below, which is packed "with nods to the past, present and future", McMillen teased in a post on Steam.

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Whatcha been playing this week, Destructoid?

3 years 2 months ago

It is now - officially - a brand new year. I was starting to think that we'd never get here. I sincerely hope 2021 brings you much joy, success, and happiness. Do err on the side of caution, however. The date is merely a number, after all, and we are not suddenly auto-immune from the myriad problems that troubled the planet over the course of 2020. There is definitely hope ahead, and that's beautiful, but stay safe and be wary of falling into the "New Year = No Problems" mentality that some have chosen.

This week has seen me smashing through a selection of games new and old, in-between bouts of grumbling onto the scales and feeling blue about what the festive week has done to my waistline. I've been barrelling through the run 'n' jump chaos of Super Meat Boy Forever, (of which you can expect a review very soon indeed), while also chipping away at a 100% completion rate in Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night. The latter has seduced me with secret protagonist Bloodless, however, who now has me gallivanting around Hellhold Castle all over again. Curse her and her adorable guillotine parasol.

Anywhoo, I gotta get back to work. It's a new year and there is much to do. But thank you, as always, for taking the time to stop by. Be sure to dive into the comments and share with us the video games that are ringing in the new year for you. Whether you're picking through your backlog, playing some newly acquired releases, or just chilling with familiar favorites, fill us in on the action. We always, always enjoy hearing all about it.

Have a safe and pleasant weekend, from all of us at Destructoid.

Whatcha been playing this week, Destructoid? screenshot

Author
Chris Moyse

Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War's DMR is so overpowered it's making Warzone "unplayable", fans say

3 years 2 months ago

If you've been playing Call of Duty: Warzone recently, you'll no doubt have encountered - or possibly even used yourself - the controversial DMR 14.

The DMR 14, a weapon added to the battle royale as part of the integration of Treyarch's Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War, is currently dominating the Warzone meta. Dominating is too soft a way to put it - the DMR is considered essential to success, and it's absolutely everywhere.

The DMR 14 is a semi-auto tactical rifle, with increased fire rate and minimum recoil. It's devastating at long rage, maintaining reliable damage to down enemies in a blink of an eye.

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Awesome Games Done Quick 2021 commences this weekend

3 years 2 months ago

It's January, and you know what that means, it's once again time for some of the savviest players in the business to gather together for a non-stop marathon of fantastic gaming action.

Awesome Games Done Quick is upon us once again, and will see players from across the globe congregate to showcase their skills on a great (and not-so-great) plethora of titles. While the world remains mired in the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, AGDQ 2021 has shifted to an online capacity - much like SGDQ 2020 - but that doesn't mean you can't tune in and watch all of the action from the comfort and safety of your own abode.

This year's schedule sees recent entries such as Hades, Carrion, and Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice rub shoulders with a bevy of AGDQ regulars from the Metroid, Castlevania, The Legend of Zelda and Sonic the Hedgehog franchises. Entries from the Final Fantasy and Silent Hill series are in attendance, as are AGDQ mainstays such as Mirror's Edge, Crash Bandicoot, and Spyro the Dragon.

As the week progresses, viewers can donate to the event, with all proceeds once again going to the Prevent Cancer Foundation, which continues its effort to research and develop groundbreaking advances in the curing of cancer. Last year's marathon raised a record-breaking $3.1 million USD, with the AGDQ event having cumulatively raised over $15 million USD since its inception back in 2010.

Author
Chris Moyse

Diablo Immortal: Why Fans Should Give It A Chance

3 years 2 months ago

A few years back when Diablo Immortal was unveiled, I was less than enthused. Headlining Blizzcon with a mobile game when the Diablo community was desperate for anything related to Diablo 3 or 4 was a rough reveal, and what’s more the game didn’t look or feel anything like I was hoping it would. I’ve been playing Diablo games since the original game. I remember being eaten by the Butcher, picking up the oddly-boxed Hellfire expansion (Yeah did you know Sierra made and published a Diablo expansion? What wild times those were...) at CompUSA and going hard in the very Zerg-inspired Hive, and that was just a taste of how important the franchise would become in the annals of gaming. Diablo II set the standard for the ARPG genre when it was revealed, and it’s still the title that all others are measured against. I still have an awesome hardcore-mode ear collection out there somewhere. I’ll never forget my level 80 necromancer dying to Izual when my dorm room ethernet blinked out for a few moments during a Diablo II LAN party. Yeah, we did those.

Author
Daniel Tack

The Robot Apocalypse Looks Like A Lot Of Fun

3 years 2 months ago

Happy new year! This week we check in on the best games released in 2020, hang out with Dunkaccino, learn what this month’s PS Plus games are, mourn the lack of people playing Dreams and watch some robots dance like nobody is watching.

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Author
Zack Zwiezen

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Cyberpunk 2077 players are using a dodge glitch to run so fast the cars won't load

3 years 2 months ago

Ever since Cyberpunk 2077 came out in December, players have been experimenting with the game's various sci-fi powers to get protagonist V to run faster than anyone should be able to. Now, players are taking running fast in Cyberpunk to the next level.

Redditor Strikielol uploaded a clip of the glitch in action to the Cyberpunk sub:

Here's how it works: first, equip the Maneuvering System cyberware mod in a Nervous System slot (get the mod from Octavio's Clinic at Arroyo, Santo Domingo). This allows you to perform dodges in mid-air - or, as Strikie reveals, dash.

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Final Fantasy XIV Boss Naoki Yoshida Teases a Thrilling and Unexpected “Ending” & More for 2021

3 years 2 months ago

Final Fantasy XIV producer and director Naoki Yoshida took to the official Lodestone website to post his traditional New Year tease.

After talking about how COVID-19 affected development, we catch a glimpse of what we can expect in 2021.

Usually, this kind of message includes cryptic hints to how the story will evolve in the year to come, so you may want to listen closely.

“So, where do we stand? The saga of Shadowbringers concluded in Patch 5.3, and hinted at the next story to come. Ah, but of course we had Patch 5.4, which then flipped the page to the “final chapter in the tale of this star.” Keep a close eye on the team’s progress this year as events build once more to a thrilling and unexpected “ending.” (To the story, not to FFXIV itself!)

Our progeny may never know
Wherefore we look unto the sky,
Nor why we dig for truths below;
We bear their scorn or watch them die.

… I’d barely finished typing this when I had an unannounced visitor─a minstrel, as he introduced himself, on a journey from faraway lands. He placed a note into my hands, and it had this poem written on it:

Who is this “resolute man”? And what’s this about his “progeny” scorning him?
I turned to put these questions to the traveler, but he was gone. Vanished, as if swallowed into a rift between worlds…”

This is not the first tease dropped by Yoshida-san over the past few days. The prolific developer wants to achieve a “leap forward” for Final Fantasy XIV this year.

Author
Giuseppe Nelva

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The Worst Games Of 2020 According To Metacritic

3 years 2 months ago

2020 was a terrible year in many, many ways, but we did get some great games too. Hades, Ghost of Tsushima, Fall Guys, Miles Morales, Crusader Kings III, and more all released this year. But as usual, it’s not all good and this year saw the release of some games that weren’t well-reviewed by critics or fans.

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Author
Zack Zwiezen

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Final Fantasy XIV Getting Artwork Exhibition in Japan This Month

3 years 2 months ago

If you happen to be in Japan later this month and you love Final Fantasy XIV, Square Enix has a treat in store.

The publisher announced that an artwork exhibition dedicated to the game will be hosted at the scenic O-YANE Plaza venue in Roppongi Hills, Tokyo.

The exhibition will last only a few days, from January 8 to January 12.

Not only the exhibition will showcase artwork from the game, but also scenic views displayed in different weather conditions via beautiful screenshots.

The University of Tokyo LEGO Club will contribute with its own piece made with over 200,000 blocks reproducing one of Final Fantasy XIV’s cities. It took over half a year to make and it comes with led lighting.

You can check out a few images below.

Author
Giuseppe Nelva

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Level-5 head Akihiro Hino: 'There are a lot of areas we need to do better in'

3 years 2 months ago

Like NIS and a few other typically niche Japanese studios, Level-5 has ups and downs. The absolute explosion of the Yo-Kai Watch franchise roughly five years ago was a definitive "up!" I was there in Japan to see its influence on location: and in some ways, at the time, it was bigger than Pokemon.

But that fame and fortune never really translated well outside of that region, and over time, it too faded in Japan. That shift was bad news for Level-5, as they struggled to manage their other cross-media franchises, most of which did not reach the same level of success as Yo-Kai Watch at its peak (if you want a quick read on the rise and fall of Yo-Kai Watch, check this out!). Their financial issues came to a head this year after it was reported that Level-5 shuttered their US base of operations.

Level-5 head Akihiro Hino certainly isn't shy though, and in a recent end-of-year interview series over at 4Gamer, gives us a frank update. Hino says that they are not giving up their cross-media strategy, but there are "a lot of areas [they] need to do better in." Hino specifically mentions delays and bugs as part of their 2020 shortcomings, vowing to "roll up [their] sleeves and focus [their] efforts."

Author
Chris Carter

Editor Top 10 Picks Of 2020

3 years 2 months ago

You already know our staff-wide Top 10 Games of 2020, but that list doesn't paint the whole picture. As you might imagine, these lists are often hard-fought battles over many hours as members of our staff struggle to squeeze their favorites onto our official list. Unfortunately, not every game we played and loved over the course of the year can be represented in the official Game Informer list, which is why we put together these editor-specific top 10s.

Below you'll see the top 10 games of the year for each editor, so check out our personal favorites and see which staff members' tastes most align with yours. Also, while you're here, feel free to drop your own top 10 in the comments section!

Author
Game Informer Staff

The 'Shop Contest Awards: 2020

3 years 2 months ago

Hello everyone and welcome to this year’s ‘Shop Contest Awards. This year, like last year, we will be looking back at the best, worst, funniest and weirdest images you all created over the course of 2020. And as always, I’ll be handing out some awards!

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Author
Zack Zwiezen

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Microsoft Is Trying To Ramp Up Xbox Series X/S Production, Phil Spencer Says

3 years 2 months ago

The Xbox Series X and Series S systems have been extremely difficult to find since they launched in November, and stock hasn’t improved much at the major retailers. However, head of Xbox Phil Spencer said he's taken some steps to ensure the console will be more plentiful soon. It's unclear how soon "soon" is, but the issues affecting Microsoft are likely similar to the ones affecting Sony.

Talking to Xbox Live's "Major Nelson" Larry Hryb on his podcast (via VGC), Spencer explained that Microsoft has been making new consoles as quickly as possible, but he's also working with their production partners to further increase output. This includes AMD, which creates the system's GPU and CPU. The Switch is the only major system to not use AMD for these components, relying instead on Nvidia.

"It really is just down to physics and engineering. We're not holding them back," Spencer said. "We're building them as fast as we can. We have all the assembly lines going. I was on the phone last week with Lisa Su at AMD [asking], 'How do we get more? How do we get more?' So it's something that we're constantly working on, but it's not just us. I think gaming has really come into its own in 2020."

Continue Reading at GameSpot
Author
Gabe Gurwin

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Microsoft Flight Simulator Gets Sydney Airport by FlyTampa; Partnership With Orbx Announced [UPDATED]

3 years 2 months ago

Today Third-party add-on developer FlyTampa announced that it will release Sydney Kingsford Smith (YSSY) airport for Microsoft Flight Simulator.

The announcement comes alongside the reveal of a partnership with Orbx, which will launch the airport on its popular Orbx Central service.

Update: Just one day after the announcement, the airport has been released and it’s now available for roughly $18.

No release date has been announced besides “very soon.”

With FlyTampa being a fan-favorite developer for scenery, Orbx certainly scored another relevant partnership here.

Below you can take a look at a gallery of screenshots and an official description of the airport.

Author
Giuseppe Nelva

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Uncharted Live-Action Movie Gets New Teaser Images

3 years 2 months ago

With the new year, the official Twitter account of the upcoming Uncharted movie has revealed four more images.

While the pictures don’t show new actors or anything especially revealing, we get to see environments and props that will appear in the movie.

You can check them out below and see if you find them interesting.

The movie is set to premiere on the American silver screens on July 16, 2021.

Tom Holland will play a young Nathan Drake, while Mark Wahlberg will play his mentor, Victor Sullivan. As you may imagine, the movie will be a prequel to the popular PlayStation series by Naughty Dog, which culminated with Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End in 2016.

Author
Giuseppe Nelva

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Muv-Luv Fan Game The TSF Forefront R Gets New Release With More TSF Mecha & Gameplay

3 years 2 months ago

While the Muv-Luv series has some of the best mecha in the gaming industry, there isn’t an official game allowing you to pilot them just yet.

The G-TAG doujin circle has been working on just that, a fan game focusing on slaughtering countless BETA aliens while piloting a powerful TSF mecha. Its title is The TSF Forefront R.

An alpha version was released for PC back in May, and a new one has just been launched to celebrate the latest edition of Air Comiket. You can purchase it on Pixiv Booth for 390 yen, which translates into less than $4.

In addition to the content included in the older alpha we get three TSF to enjoy (YF-23 Black Widow II, EF-2000 Typhoon, and F-5 Freedom Fighter), and an additional mission.

The gameplay has also become more interesting, with the addition of Laser-class BETA and more.

Speaking of official products, during a recent event, we saw the reveal of the official title of Muv-Luv Resonative, of the upcoming Early Access for Project Mikhail, and of more artwork from the upcoming Muv-Luv Alternative anime.

Author
Giuseppe Nelva

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Arcade Archives welcomes 2021 with perhaps its nichest release in Shanghai III

3 years 2 months ago

As we enter a brand new year, we can more than likely expect another glut of old-school releases from the retro enthusiasts over at Hamster. The publisher's first title of 2021, however, is perhaps a little more specific than many in the west would hope, as Sunsoft's Shanghai III makes its grand return on Nintendo Switch.

Originally released in Japanese arcades in 1993, Shanghai III is, naturally, the third entry in Sunsoft's digital mahjong series, bringing the ancient tabletop game to the digital realm. Players work against the clock to clear the playing field of a precarious stack of playing pieces - each emboldened with symbols denoting suit such as Dragon, Flower, and Tiger.

The Arcade Archives release uses the original Japanese ROM, but those with a passing knowledge of mahjong shouldn't have too much trouble getting stuck into the action. Shanghai III is available to download now on Nintendo Switch, priced at around $8.

Arcade Archives welcomes 2021 with perhaps its nichest release in Shanghai III screenshot

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Author
Chris Moyse

The Community Spotlight 2021.01.02

3 years 2 months ago
Credit to Giant Bomb user bananabreath
Credit to Giant Bomb user bananabreath

Hello and welcome to the latest edition of the Giant Bomb Community Spotlight as well as the year, 2021! At this point, I feel as if you've heard the same piece about 2020 being a shit show of a year and that we should be grateful that we were able to make it to 2021. So, I'll spare you of the usual histrionics and simply thank you all for following this series and the support you have shown it despite the "roughness" of the past year. The site has had some highs and lows as a result of the pandemic, just as we have, and the fact things kept going is a testament to the resolve of the staff and this community. Let's try to keep that positive momentum going as we start a new and hopefully better year. With that in mind, we have the site-related housekeeping.

Author
Marino - Brad Lynch

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This Fan Animation Reimagines a Pivotal Steven Universe Moment With the Pilot's Art Style

3 years 2 months ago

Steven Universe’s art style is characterized by a cute, iconic sense of style. But the original draft, was seen in the unreleased pilot, was a lot different. Not worse, mind you, but a bit less simplified, a bit more odd. We never got to see that Steven Universe. But a new fan animation gives a hint of what it would…

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Author
Julie Muncy on io9, shared by Zack Zwiezen to Kotaku

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