March 2021

Fans React To New Elden Ring Footage With Memes And Hype

3 years ago

Elden Ring fans have grown increasingly desperate for news of From Software's highly anticipated game, and a leak of what appears to be grainy footage of the game in action has triggered a torrent of memes. On the Elden Ring subreddit, which has become ground zero for the game's increasingly-desperate fans to express their displeasure at From Software's radio silence, the reaction has been divided between unrelenting hype and humorous memes.

The Elden Ring subreddit has become increasingly meta in its sense of humor as the wait for the game has continued. For example, the above meme compares a low-definition screencap of a carriage from the newly revealed footage to the carriages from a photoshopped screenshot of Bloodborne Kart, a non-existent game that has become a meme unto itself in the community.

Other top posts in the subreddit poke fun at the footage's highly questionable video quality. Another popular post compares a tree seen in the footage to an image from the manga Berserk, which Souls creator Hidetaka Miyazaki often references in his games.

Author
Steven T. Wright

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Twitch And Rolling Stone Launch New Music Streaming Channel

3 years ago

Twitch has partnered with legendary music publication Rolling Stone to launch a brand-new channel on the streaming platform. Titled Rolling Stone on Twitch, the channel will feature a variety of content for music fans, including news, interviews, and live performances.

Rolling Stone on Twitch goes live Monday through Friday from 1-3 PM PT/ 4-6 PM ET on the publication's new Twitch channel. It will be hosted by Rolling Stone producers Tia Hill and Jon Weigell as a variety show, with original segments and existing franchises happening every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Live musical performances are scheduled every Tuesday and Thursday. This week's guests include Marcus King, Ted Park, and the Russo brothers.

Twitch's vice president of music Tracy Chan said the company believes Twitch is not only the intersection between artist and fan but also the place where the two can create together.

"We believe that the future of music will be defined by a deeper interaction between artists and fans, where they are not only engaging with each other but also creating together," Chan said in a press release. "This happens every day on Twitch, and it's been incredibly exciting to see more and more people find Twitch as the space for this type of interaction to unfold."

Rolling Stone president Gus Wenner echoed Chan's sentiment, saying the publication will use its pedigree to create high-level content.

"We are honored to be a part of Twitch's growing music strategy and will leverage our access, authority and storytelling abilities to create meaningful content at the highest level," Wenner said.

Author
Jeremy Winslow

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GameStop Stock Growth May Have Been Fueled By Bots

3 years ago

GameStop stock has been rising and falling ever since its initial surge, and that activity may be driven in part by bots on social media sites like Reddit and Twitter. That claim comes from an analysis from the cybersecurity company PiiQ Media, which concluded that organized actors may be working together to fuel the surge.

That analysis found that bots used Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to promote GameStop and other meme stocks such as AMC. However, it's unclear to what degree these bots actually contributed to the surge itself. PiiQ Media stated that it found similar patterns on GameStop-related posts, with activity on these accounts strongly correlating with the beginning and end of the market trading day. The firm concluded that these patterns indicate bot activity.

"We saw clear patterns of artificial behavior across the other four social media platforms," PiiQ Media's co-founder Aaron Barr told Reuters. "When you think of organic content, it’s variable in the day, variable day-to-day. It doesn't have the exact same pattern every day for a month."

The ongoing GameStop stock controversy has resulted in an SEC investigation and even a hearing in the US Congress. The SEC suspended trading for 15 companies due to unusual trading activity last week, amid apparent attempts to artificially inflate their stock prices. However, Barr stated that it's difficult for firms like PiiQ Media to measure the actual effect of these bot campaigns.

Author
Steven T. Wright

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Netflix’s DOTA: Dragon’s Blood Gets a Story Trailer Ahead of Debut this Month

3 years ago

A couple weeks back, Netflix announced a new animated series for Dota which is set to make its big debut on the streaming platform later this month. Titled DOTA: Dragon’s Blood, it follows the setting and lore of Dota fairly closely, while also introducing a new spin and some new elements to the story.

A new story trailer has just been released for the series, and you can check it out for yourself down below:

The synopsis of the series is as follows:

‘The sweeping fantasy series tells the story of Davion, a renowned Dragon Knight devoted to wiping the scourge from the face of the world. Following encounters with a powerful, ancient eldwurm as well as the noble Princess Mirana on a secret mission of her own, Davion becomes embroiled in events much larger than he could have ever imagined.’

DOTA: Dragon’s Blood is set to premiere on Netflix on March 25.

The post Netflix’s DOTA: Dragon’s Blood Gets a Story Trailer Ahead of Debut this Month appeared first on Twinfinite.

Author
Zhiqing Wan

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Destiny 2 Players Are Managing To Glitch 12 People Into Raids

3 years ago

While raids in Destiny 2 normally cap out with a team of six, players have figured out a way to cram 12 players into a raid team.

The glitch was reported by PCGamer this week, but has been floating around Destiny 2 communities for a while before that. A number of videos from high-profile players showing the exploit have made the rounds recently, however, bringing it to the attention of more of the community and, no doubt, Bungie itself.

Instructions on how to pull off the raid can be found in this Reddit post--all you need is 11 of your closest friends, a voice call, and some pretty spot-on timing.

Author
Hayley Williams

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The Epic Vs Apple Trial Is Due To Take Place In Person From May 3

3 years ago

Judge Yvonne Gonzalez has met with lawyers from Apple and Epic Games in order to arrange the specifics of a trial that will seek to decide whether Apple's App Store practices are monopolistic and anti-competitive, as reported by MacRumors. The judge has said that the case is significant enough to be heard in person, with witnesses believed to be less likely to lie when testifying in a physical court.

The trial may be changed to a virtual one taking place over Zoom if COVID-19 numbers are high at the time of the trial, but it is due to start on May 3 no matter what happens. If the current plans go ahead, witnesses will have to travel to Northern California to testify, unless they have valid health reasons not to travel. The trial will be held as a bench trial, meaning there will be no jury.

Epic's lawsuit against Apple alleges that the tech giant is a "behemoth seeking to control markets, block competition, and stifle innovation," saying that Apple's practices are anti-competitive and monopolistic. Epic's main beef with Apple is over the 30% cut it takes from App Store payments, as well as rules disallowing apps on the App Store from processing microtransactions outside of Apple's payment system.

Author
Hayley Williams

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Game Developer Accuses Publisher Of Hacking Game And Uploading It To Steam

3 years ago

After asking players not to buy a version of Lovecraftian horror game The Sinking City that appeared on Steam last week, developer Frogwares has now posted a blog explaining that the Steam upload is a hacked version of the game allegedly stolen by publisher Nacon. The game was originally delisted from Steam in an ongoing dispute between the developer and their contracted publisher on The Sinking City.

As reported by Vice, the studio published an extensive blog post titled "How Nacon Cracked and Pirated The Sinking City," which calls the Steam re-release "corporate bullying, and incompetent hacking, at its finest."

The blog post details how "Alain Falc, Nacon owner and CEO, warned us on December 28th 2020 in writing that 'you have 48 hours to upload a new Steam master otherwise we will use all solutions available within the law and the contract.'" The post alleges that after the 48 hours was up, Nacon aquired a version of the game from DRM-free marketplace Gamesplanet in order to upload it onto Steam.

Author
Hayley Williams

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NieR Replicant ver.1.22474487139 Soundtrack to Launch in April, Features 4 New Tracks

3 years ago

NieR Replicant ver.1.22474487139 is a remaster of the original NieR that released for the PS3 and Xbox 360, and this version features a new main character that was only available in the Japanese version of the game, and not the English version. After the success of NieR: Automata, it’s no surprise that Square Enix would greenlight a remaster of the original game so quickly.

The original NieR was known for having a phenomenal soundtrack as well, and it looks like NieR Replicant ver.1.22474487139’s soundtrack is set to be released on April 21, and you can now pre-order it over at Square Enix’s store.

In addition to that, the soundtrack will also feature four new tracks that weren’t in the original collection.

Author
Zhiqing Wan

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How the grand dame of shooting games is making its return

3 years ago

There are shooting games, and there are shooting games. Irem's 1987 R-Type can't exactly claim to be the first of its kind, and you could well argue there are more widely acclaimed shooting games, but you'd be hard pushed to find any as iconic as this stately sci-fi venture. Cold, composed and challenging, it's the archetypal 80s shooter, and a prime example of the genre in its pomp.

The popularity of shooting games would wane throughout the 90s, however, and by the turn of the century those in charge of the series wondered whether it had a future at all. Which explains the brilliantly fatalistic air that hangs over R-Type Final, the 2004 entry that was imagined as a full-stop for the series.

R-Type Final lead designer Kazuma Kujo has since discovered there's life yet in the series, though. The veteran of Nazca, Irem and now Granzella - the studio where many Irem alumni ended when the company moved away from video games - now finds himself heading up development of a sequel, somewhat bafflingly called R-Type Final 2, after a Kickstarter campaign more than doubled its targets. A month ahead of R-Type Final 2's release on April 29th, we spoke to Kujo about R-Type's return, and what it will entail.

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Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury theme drops into Tetris 99 Maximus Cup

3 years ago

Battle royale block-dropper Tetris 99 is gearing up for its next Maximus Cup event, which is set to take place in-game this coming weekend, allowing players to square off against a horde of fellow Tetris fans in chaotic, non-stop action.

There's also extra incentive to jump into battle for Mario fans, as all players who accumulate 100 event points will receive a free theme, based on smash-selling Switch release Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury. As per usual, the theme comes complete with background art, as well as unique sounds and Tetrimino shapes inspired by the Wii-U remake. Launching on Switch in early February, Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury saw immediate success, and is currently the best-selling new game of 2021.

The new Tetris Maximus Cup event will begin Thursday, March 4 at 23:00 PT and Friday, March 5 at 02:00 ET / 07:00 GMT and will end at the same time on Monday, March 8 and Tuesday, March 9 as applicable.

Good luck!

Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury theme drops into Tetris 99 Maximus Cup screenshot

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Author
Chris Moyse

BAFTA Games Awards 2021 Nominations Announced

3 years ago
The nominees for the BAFTA Games Awards 2021 have been announced, with The Last of Us Part II leading the pack with 13 nominations. The Last of Us Part II featured in various categories this year, including Best Game, Animation, and Game Design. Ashley Johnson (Ellie) and Laura Bailey (Abby) also earned nominations for Best Performer in a Leading Role, while Jeffrey Pierce (Tommy), Shannon Woodward (Dina), and Troy Baker (Joel) were all recognized in the Supporting Roles category. With 13 nominations in total, The Last of Us Part II makes BAFTA Games Awards history this year, as it beats last year's record of 11 nominations held by Control and Death Stranding.
Author
Adele Ankers

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People Are Loving a Destiny 2 Glitch That Adds 12-Person Raids

3 years ago
Players are enjoying a Destiny 2 glitch that lets up to 12 people play together in a raid. As reported by Forbes, players can merge two teams of six in a raid – twice the normal maximum number of players – by having one fireteam join the other when the launch timer says "Launching in 0:02" during an activity's loading process. If the other fireteam joins at just the right time, they'll both load into the same map, and a dozen players can take on a single raid. You can see the glitch in action in this video from YouTuber Scrub, where a crew makes very short work of Taniks, The Abomination, the final raid boss of Deep Stone Crypt. One player mentions how their frames per second count tanked as a dozen players attacked a single enemy. On Twitter, community members are referencing the chaos of this new development. A clip from Aura shows 12 players slamming down a rally banner at the same time, and a video from evanf1997 shows 12 players firing the exotic rifle Telestos into the floor in unison, with the resulting effect crashing the host's game.
Author
Jordan Oloman

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Date set for Apple v Epic Games trial

3 years ago

The battle between Epic Games and Apple over in-game microtransactions is still rumbling on, and after months of arguing it seems a date has finally been set for an in-person trial. Yep, it seems this one is going all the way.

Yesterday a management conference was held in the US District Court for the Northern District of California, in which judge Yvonne Gonzalez organised a bench trial between Epic Games and Apple (as reported by MacRumors). A date has now been officially set for 3rd May, which will require witnesses to travel to Northern California to appear at court in person.

The reason for the physical trial is that judge Gonzalez feels the case is serious enough that it should be heard in person, and believes witnesses are less likely to lie when being sworn in a courtroom. Those required to travel will apparently be given the resources to quarantine for two weeks after the trial, while other Covid safety measures will also be taken, such as limited numbers of people in the courtroom at any one time.

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The Last of Us Part 2 receives record number of BAFTA nominations

3 years ago

PlayStation 4 exclusive The Last of Us Part 2 has received 13 BAFTA Games Award nominations - the most for any single game in the history of the awards.

Sony games dominate BAFTA's nominations list, with 10 nods for Ghost of Tsushima, seven for Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales, six for Dreams and four for Sackboy: A Big Adventure.

Supergiant's brilliant Hades - Eurogamer's Game of the Year for 2020 - has eight nominations, while Nintendo's Animal Crossing: New Horizons and Media Molecule's Fall Guys share five.

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Ex-Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2 studio suffers lay-offs

3 years ago

UPDATE 3/3/21: The former developer of Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2 has confirmed this week's layoffs, but said it would continue to operate and was developing multiple unannounced projects.

In a statement issued to RPS, a spokesperson for Hardsuit Labs stated that redundancies had affected "a small number of individuals", though a specific number of people was not disclosed.

"While we worked hard to source some great work opportunities for the studio to move forward with, we were unable to provide work for a small number of individuals and thus made the difficult decision to part ways. This decision was not made lightly and was done so only after we felt we had exhausted the opportunities to avoid such a layoff," Hardsuit said. "We sincerely wish the very best to our former colleagues and thank them for their contributions to the studio and our projects during their time here."

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Outriders dev explains all those pesky loading cutscenes

3 years ago

If you've been playing the Outriders demo since it came out last week, you may have picked up on an annoyance: loading cutscenes.

The third-person looter shooter game from People Can Fly (Bulletstorm, Gears of War: Judgment) plays a short cutscene whenever you want to move to a new area.

These cutscenes show everything from a character opening a door to climbing a ledge. They include a full fade to black opening before playing the cutscene, then another fade to black before you get back into the action.

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Valheim already has dozens of nifty quality-of-life mods

3 years ago

So along with 4m other people, you're really enjoying Valheim at the moment - but perhaps there are a few quality of life improvements you'd like to see, or maybe you just want to turn the game into a building sandbox. Despite the lack of official support, the modding community has been hard at work on Valheim, and has already produced a number of mods to serve almost every community request. Here's a round-up of some of the most useful mods so far - along with a quick explainer on how to get started.

Before you get stuck into Valheim modding, you'll need to download a couple of prerequisite mods that make the rest of Valheim modding possible. One of these is Valheim Unstripped DLLs, which Vortex (Nexus Mods' mod manager) will recommend installing. Another mod called BepInExPack for Valheim carries out a similar function, providing a general purpose framework for Unity modding, which basically gives mod creators the tools they need to alter Valheim ( and you'll need to download it for these mods to work). You can find it over on Thunderstore. Oh, and remember to back up your save files before diving in - you can find them through Steam by opening the properties menu for Valheim, then 'local files' and 'browse'.

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Crash Bandicoot: On The Run Hits Mobile Devices Later This Month

3 years ago

Click to watch embedded media

King Digital Entertainment has announced Crash Bandicoot: On the Run will come to mobile devices on March 25. The latest mobile auto-runner game sees the titular bandicoot running through a variety of colorful environments, drawing inspiration from the myriad titles in franchise history.

As Crash and friends run through the stages of Crash Bandicoot: On the Run, players will encounter classic characters, bosses, enemies, and levels. In the story, Crash's old nemesis, Dr. Neo Cortex is back to try and conquer the multiverse alongside his menacing henchmen like Scorporilla, Nitrus Brio, Dingodile, and more. As usual, it's up to Crash and his sister Coco to put an end to the shenanigans. The stages players can expect to run through include Temple Ruins, Turtle Woods, and Bear It. In addition to the platforming challenges, you can look forward to weapons crafting, customizable characters, and asynchronous multiplayer runs.

Author
Brian Shea

Tekken 7's Polish prime minister is out for Mishima blood

3 years ago

Fans of Bandai Namco fighter Tekken 7 had their curiosity piqued by the reveal of an all-new DLC character last week, whose appearance was teased during the Japan Fighting Game Roundtable presentation. Little was revealed about this new warrior, set to step into the ring this spring. We do know, however, that this newest ass-kicker is, in fact, the Prime Minister of Poland.

Further tidbits have been brought to light, courtesy of a leaked (since removed) Microsoft Store page. As reported by Reddit, it appears that our pugilist politician is named "Krystyna", and is entering the King of Iron Fist tournament in order to perform an industrial coup on the Mishima Zaibatsu corporation, claiming it for herself and the people of Poland. It also seems that she has "personal motives" with the Mishima family which, for 80% of Tekken's cast, means one of two things:

1) You're a member of the Mishima family.

2) Someone you loved died at the hands of the Mishima family.

And thus, Prime Minister Krystyna is ready to throw down with Anna, Law, King, Xiayou, and yes, even Lucky Chloe in a bid to get her hands on the Mishima Zaibatsu, breaking the conglomerate's hold over worldwide industrial and militaristic operations while improving the global standing of the nation she steadfastly holds near and dear. As the old saying goes: If you want peace, prepare for war(saw).

Tekken 7's Polish prime minister is out for Mishima blood screenshot

Author
Chris Moyse

Netflix's Dota 2 Anime Has a Hidden Teaser

3 years ago
Internet sleuths have uncovered a secret video for Netflix's DOTA: Dragon's Blood anime series, scheduled to premiere on the streamer at the end of March. PCGamesN mapped out the discovery, which started with Twitter user @GrandmaRuby_ finding parts of a QR code hidden in the corners of four different Netflix posters for the upcoming series. When pieced together to form one large poster, the full QR code revealed itself. The code was linked to an unlisted Netflix Anime teaser for DOTA: Dragon's Blood. @wykrhm shared the clip, which you can watch below:
Author
Adele Ankers

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Valheim: Update 0.147.3 Patch Notes

3 years ago
From major changes to the way that dedicated servers now work to small updates to the rarity of boss trophies, IGN has you covered with the complete patch notes for the 0.147.3 update in Valheim.
Author
Angie Harvey

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PS5 DualSense Controller Drift: Everything You Need to Know

3 years ago

If you own or intend to own a PlayStation 5 at some point, you might have recently found reason to ask yourself an important question: how often am I going to have to drop $70 on new controllers because my old ones started drifting for no reason?

Ideally, if you're budgeting for a new controller, the ideal situation is because you want... well, another controller! As in, one more than you had before. But recently, numerous user-reported issues with DualSense controllers have made it clear that at least with the PS5, you might have reason to consider replacing the ones you have more often than expected. As more reports come in about DualSense drift and a class action lawsuit looms, you may be wondering how it is this problem will impact you, and what to do if you encounter it.

What is DualSense drift?

What's essentially happening is pretty straightforward: something is going wrong with some DualSense controllers where the controller is registering left or right stick inputs that are not actually being put in by the player. This Reddit thread from November 26 -- just a few weeks after the console's US launch -- shows off the problem pretty obviously in Destiny 2. The first-person camera is rotating around on its own, despite the player not touching the right stick at all.

Author
Rebekah Valentine

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