August 2021

20 years on, Max Payne is as stylish as ever

2 years 7 months ago

You've got to give it to Remedy: they know how to start a story off with a bang. As Max Payne opens, our antihero is on the summit of a skyscraper while sirens wail in the gloom below. "They were all dead," Max says with that famous frown. "The final gunshot was an exclamation mark to everything that had led to this point."

We go back a few years next, to the brutal double murder of Max's wife and newborn child, then follow his revenge mission (guns do the talking, and two wrongs do indeed make a right). By acts two and three, the guns are bigger and the body count has mounted while the web of lies are slowly untangled. The next thing you know, the dénouement comes again - Max back on his perch above the tinny whine of those police cars.

Starting at the end and coming full circle means Max is able to narrate the entire tale: a classic literary trick that more games ought to use. The meat of Max's bone-dry narration overlays graphic novel panels that come at the chapter breaks and during levels as well. I spoke to Kiia Kallio, who was in charge of bringing the panels to life. "Initially there were ideas for doing video cutscenes," Kallio tells me, "but there was no budget for that, so graphic novel panels were used as an alternative method of storytelling."

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Author
Edward Love

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José Mourinho says Fortnite is "a nightmare" and keeps his players "up all night"

2 years 7 months ago

Fortnite is "a nightmare" for AS Roma manager, José Mourinho.

In a "rapid response" Q&A video shared on the football team's social media channels during which "The boss" gave his opinion on a myriad of things - from life in Italy to his views on Instagram - Mourinho said that his players spent too much time on Epic Games' fan-favourite battle royale, staying up "all night" and implying it affects their performances on the field the following day.

When asked what he thought of the game, he smiled and said: "a nightmare".

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Author
Vikki Blake

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Final Fantasy 14 redesigns an icon to stop triggering players' phobia of holes

2 years 7 months ago

Final Fantasy 14 developer Square Enix has revealed it will redesign the logo for new job sage following fan feedback that for some, it triggered their trypophobia - a phobia of holes.

Taking to the official website to explain the changes, Final Fantasy 14's producer and director Naoki Yoshida said that the team didn't think the job's icon was a "particularly big" deal, but soon "received feedback from players all over the world" that the icon "made them uncomfortable or fearful".

"This aversion is known as trypophobia, and those who have it feel disgust and fear when they see clusters of small holes or bumps," Yoshida explained (thanks, PC Gamer). "The severity of the reaction varies between people, and what triggers it in some may not do so in others.

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Author
Vikki Blake

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Take a new tour of Life Is Strange: True Colors' Haven Springs

2 years 7 months ago

A new two-minute trailer gives us a peek at "the small town with a big heart" Haven Springs, the setting for the next Life Is Strange chapter, Life Is Strange: True Colors.

Introducing us to the sights and fine folk of the picturesque town "set beneath breathtaking views of the rocky mountains" in Colorado, the brief teaser is narrated by no other than Before the Storm's Steph Gingrich. Check it out below:

"A bold new era of the award-winning Life is Strange begins, with an all-new playable lead character and a thrilling mystery to solve!" the video description exclaims. "Alex Chen has long suppressed her 'curse': the supernatural ability to experience, absorb and manipulate the strong emotions of others, which she sees as blazing, colored auras.

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Author
Vikki Blake

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Halo fans wonder if this doughnut ad has inadvertently revealed Halo Infinite's release month

2 years 7 months ago

Microsoft has teamed with Krispy Kreme doughnuts to mark 20 glorious years of Master Chief.

To celebrate Halo's 20th anniversary, the doughnut purveyor has created a special edition Halo Infinite doughnut that boasts blue icing and a familiar helmet. It'll be available between 30th July and 30th September, although right now - I'm very sorry to say - it seems limited to Krispy Kreme Brazil.

That's not the only thing getting Halo fans excited, though. The advertisement has some people speculating that the ad has solidified Halo Infinite's vague "Q4 2021" release window, too, teasing: "Why wait for November?"

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Author
Vikki Blake

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Respawn shuts down "dashboarding" cheaters on Apex Legends

2 years 7 months ago

Most of the 2000+ accounts recently banned from playing Apex Legends for "dashboarding" or exploiting matchmaking in Ranked mode had been playing on PS4.

The statistic came courtesy of Conor Ford, who manages Apex security at developer Respawn. They confirmed that of the 2086 players banned on 29th July 2021, 1965 had been playing on PS4, 62 on Xbox, 44 on PC, and 15 on Nintendo Switch.

The ban hammer primarily targeted players caught "dashboarding", players who forcefully shut down the game at the end of a losing match to avoid losing RP. By abusing it, players can erroneously maintain their high-rank status but thankfully, Respawn noticed the trend.

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Author
Vikki Blake

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The Idolmaster: Starlit Season Getting Demo Next Week; New Music Video & Gameplay Released

2 years 7 months ago

Today Bandai Namco showcased the upcoming idol management and rhythm game The Idolmaster: Starlit Season in a new livestream.

We learn that the game is getting a demo for PS4 that will be released on August 5. It’ll include a “practice session” with three songs. Another demo with a sample of the rest of the gameplay will be released at a later date and that one will let you transfer data to the final game.

We also get a music video of the song “Aishite no Jubaku ~Je Vous Aime~ ” and a lot of gameplay to enjoy.

On top of that, a teaser video reveals that Leon and Shika from 961 Production will appear as rivals alongside a third mysterious new idol described as Tsundere.

You can watch all the videos below.

Author
Giuseppe Nelva

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It's GeoGuesser, But In GTA Online

2 years 7 months ago

Grand Theft Auto Online is an old game, being released all the way back on Xbox 360 and PS3 in the year 2013. Since then, many people (myself included) have continued to play GTA Online and after nearly a decade of hanging out in the same virtual world, I and others have mostly memorized the map. That’s not super…

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Author
Zack Zwiezen

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Marvel's Avengers' free weekend sees thousands of players get involved on PC

2 years 7 months ago

To usher in Black Panther's arrival on 16th August, Marvel's Avengers is having a free trial weekend on Steam, PlayStation, and Stadia. It kicked off on 29th July and ends later today, 1st August, sending interest in the action game on PC soaring.

Looking at SteamDB (thanks, TheGamer), the game usually averages around only a few hundred concurrent users at a time, but the freeplay event has set a 24-hour peak of 10,161 players - with 10,121 online right now at the time of writing.

It doesn't quite hit the heights of its launch period - Marvel's Avengers peaked at almost 32,000 Steam players when it released last September - but it's a considerable spike for a game that had hitherto struggled to get even 1000 simultaneous PC players online.

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Author
Vikki Blake

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Half-Life 2 Remastered Collection is fan-made but reportedly has Valve's "consent"

2 years 7 months ago

Valve has reportedly sanctioned the release of Half-Life 2: Remastered Collection, a passion-project mod that "completely overhauls" the seminal shooter.

As noted by SteamDB (thanks, PCGN), the collection comes from Filip Victor and is "not Valve related", but Tyler McVicker - who focuses on news about Valve and Steam - reports that the remaster has "Valve's consent".

It's apparently the next iteration of the fantastic mod Half-Life 2: Update, a "completely free and extensive community-developed update for Half-Life 2 featuring beautiful lighting, countless bug fixes, and a brand new Community Commentary Mode". It's available to anyone who owns Half-Life 2 on PC and offers "countless" bug fixes in "one free standalone download".

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Author
Vikki Blake

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Star Citizen New Videos Featuring Loot & More as Crowdfunding Passes $378 Million

2 years 7 months ago

Star Citizen developer Cloud Imperium Games released more videos about the growing space simulator after a short hiatus.

The first video focuses mostly on loot, which is going to be added to the game as a further incentive for exploring, performing missions, and more activities.

The second video showcases how the commercial cinematics for ships are made.

In other Star Citizen news, the crowdfunding total has just passed $378 million today and it’s currently sitting on $378,014,098.

Author
Giuseppe Nelva

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Genshin Impact Getting Gorgeous Ningguang Figure; Pre-Order Available

2 years 7 months ago

If you love Genshin Impact, and specifically the beautiful Tianquan of the Liyue Qixing Ningguang, this one is for you.

MiHoYo itself is releasing a gorgeous figure titled “Gold Leaf and Pearly Jade” portraying her, and she’s currently available for pre-order.

You can find it at Ami Ami for 27,200 yen, which translates approximately into $248.

Sculpted by APEX Toys in 1/7 scale, she even comes with her own lighting for the lantern, on top of a full diorama.

You can check out what she looks like below.

Author
Giuseppe Nelva

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Microsoft Flight Simulator F-35, F-104, Airbus H145, & Pilatus Porter Get New Screenshots & Videos; Great Britain Central & Jackson Hole Released

2 years 7 months ago

Third-party developers have released new assets and content for Microsoft Flight Simulator.

We start with IndiaFoxtEcho that provide a new look at the F-35 Lightning II alongside a development update.

“Still VERY preliminary… as the F-35B model is clearly not finished in these pics, but we thought they were too cool not to share them. … so here are the images of the first F-35B sea trials in MSFS!

The USS America is based on the ship we published for P3D in the past, and will either be included in the F-35B package or released as freeware. Currently, it is a static landable scenery object – at the moment it is placed not too far from NAS Point Mugu, but we think to place it in multiple locations around the globe in different configurations (should you have suggestions on where to place the ship let us know!!!)…

As for the F-35 itself, it is moving forward at a steady pace… F-35A external model is now finished (except the emergency tailhook), F-35 is 80% finished (cockpit and weapon bay doors missing) and while we have just started the conversion/improvement of the F-35C model.

The virtual cockpit is experiencing some delays…as we had to remodel a number of parts to achieve the level of detail we wanted. We cannot show it yet, but we are very happy with it.”

Author
Giuseppe Nelva

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Review: Cotton Reboot Offers Two Great Shmups in One Package

2 years 7 months ago

Cotton Reboot is a remake of 1993’s frantic “cute ‘em’ up” Cotton: Fantastic Night Dreams. Well, cute in a Castlevania kind of way, as you’ll be blasting all kinds of ghouls, zombies, and undead monsters as you try to get a few pieces of candy. And save a kingdom or something. Not exactly a big concern for our lead witch, Nata, who’s only interested in laying waste to hundreds of living creatures if there’s some tasty treat involved. It’s as good a motivation as any for this lighthearted, fun, but challenging shmup. Shmups, to be more precise. This title contains […]

The post Review: Cotton Reboot Offers Two Great Shmups in One Package appeared first on Siliconera.

Author
Joel Couture

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Doggone Is a Cute Game About a Lost Dog Trying To Get Back Home

2 years 7 months ago

Doggone is a new indie game in development for PC by Raconteur Games, based on the story of a lost dog trying to find its way back home to its family. The developers made a post in their Twitter account announcing that the game can now be wishlisted on Steam. There’s no planned release date for now, as it’s listed in the store as “Releasing: When it’s ready”.

The game itself is a 2.5D platformer where the player gets into the role of said lost dog, solving puzzles and progressing through the world. The canine in Doggone has a special “smell-o-vision” ability that allows it to sniff out points of interest. He can also dig to reveal items and hidden collectibles. There are also just regular dog actions like barking and rolling around.

According to its developers, the game offers an adventure that takes some pages from classic movies like Disney’s Homeward Bound and an art style inspired by artist Eyvind Earle, known for Sleeping Beauty. The gameplay takes a bit from games like “Inside” with light platforming and puzzles, but it’s not as sad.

One thing that is made clear by Raconteur is that Doggone is a feel-good type of game. There’ll be an emotional roller coaster through the story, but there’s no violence against the dog and no sad ending. There’s even a small joke from a casual talk between the developers and Xbox’s Phil Spencer, where they guarantee it’s not going to be like “Old Yeller”.

Author
Rafael Monteiro

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Jurassic World Evolution 2 Gets New Trailer All About Scientists

2 years 7 months ago

Frontier Developments released a new trailer of Jurassic World Evolution 2, focusing on one of the features that will come to the new game.

We hear about scientists that you can hire to improve your scientific progress, but you’ll also need to make sure that their stress doesn’t go through the roof. Working with T-Rexes is a stressful job.

You can check out the trailer below.

If you’re not familiar with Jurassic World Evolution 2, you can check out a description below. The game is coming for PC (via Steam and Epic Games Store), PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X|S, and Xbox One.

Jurassic World Evolution 2 is the much-anticipated sequel to Frontier’s highly successful Jurassic World Evolution, building upon the groundbreaking and immersive 2018 management simulation. It introduces a compelling, new narrative campaign, incredible new features, and awe-inspiring new dinosaurs brought to life with captivating authenticity. Together with expanded construction and more customisation options, the result is an even bigger, better and authentic Jurassic World game.  

Features

Author
Giuseppe Nelva

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Exclusive New Shin Megami Tensei V Screenshots Show Off The Characters And Demons

2 years 7 months ago

Publisher: Sega
Developer: Atlus
Release:
Platform: Switch

In the lead up to Shin Megami Tensei V's launch in November, we've been rolling out exclusive previews on the highly anticipated RPG from Atlus. In past articles, we've taken a look at the protagonist and the characters, but now we're shining a light on the other side of the fence: the demons.

Author
Brian Shea

Fortnite’s Rift Tour With Ariana Grande Kicks Off this Weekend

2 years 7 months ago

The Fortnite collaborations won’t end, as Epic Games is hosting a Rift Tour this weekend, this time featuring pop star Ariana Grande. The event will allow players to enjoy her music along with in-game activities whenever they log into the game at the appropriate times. You can check out the trailer for yourself down below:

And here’s the schedule for the Rift Tour itself, which will run from Aug. 6 to Aug. 8:

Show 1
Friday, August 6 @ 6PM ET

Show 2
Saturday, August 7 @ 2PM ET

Show 3
Sunday, August 8 @ 12AM ET

Show 4
Sunday, August 8 @ 10AM ET

Show 5
Sunday, August 8 @ 6PM ET

And of course, the Ariana Grande Outfit and the Piggy Smallz Back Bling will be made available in the in-game shop as well to tie in with the event. Fortnite is now available on PC and consoles.

Author
Zhiqing Wan

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Speedrunner Beats Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice While Blindfolded

2 years 7 months ago

The Soulsborne community will never cease to impress, and if you thought you were good at FromSoftware’s Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, wait till you see what speedrunner Mitchriz has just accomplished.

After 100 hours of practicing and troubleshooting the run itself, he’s finally managed to clear the game while completely blindfolded. You can check out the run for yourself down below:

Relying purely on instinct, sound cues, and memory and knowledge of the game, Mitchriz was able to beat the game without needing to see anything. Of course, he also went for the Shura ending, which is the shortest ending in the game and also allows players to bypass some of the toughest players.

It’s an impressive feat nonetheless, as a run like this requires the player to have a good knowledge of the game in order to beat it completely blind.

Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice is now available on PC and consoles.

The post Speedrunner Beats Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice While Blindfolded appeared first on Twinfinite.

Author
Zhiqing Wan

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Melty Blood: Type Lumina Gets New Gameplay Trailer Introducing Akiha Tohno

2 years 7 months ago

Type-moon released a brand new trailer of its upcoming fighting game Melty Blood: Type Lumina, which will soon launch both in Japan and in the west.

The trailer focuses on one of the playable characters, Akiha Tohno, showing her in gameplay action alongside her powerful moves.

You can check it out below alongside an official description of the character from the developer.

After the death of her father, she inherits the role of leader of the Tohno family, a distinguished house in Souya.
One year younger than her brother Shiki, she arranged for his return from the Arima family.
Her flawless etiquette and bearing perfectly epitomize the daughter of a noble house.
She is strict even on herself, rejecting such things as modern-day amusements and frivolity.
Because of her prideful and strong-willed nature, many find her difficult to approach.
Sensing a mysterious presence in her town, and determined to uphold the Tohno family name, she sets off into the night to investigate…

Author
Giuseppe Nelva

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Shin Megami Tensei V Gets New Screenshots & Art Showing Characters, & Gameplay Features

2 years 7 months ago

Today Atlus released a large gallery of screenshots and artwork of the upcoming JRPG Shin Megami Tensei V.

First of all, we take another look at the members of Bethel, an organization created to fight against the demons with the demons summoning program.

They are Tao Isonokami, Yuzuru Atsuta, Miyazu Atsuta, Ichiro Dazai,, and Hayao Koshimizu. More screenshots showcase the turn-based battles that are the focus of the game, and we also get to see the Magatsushi skills.

During battles, a dedicated gauge fills up depending on your actions. When it’s completely full, you can use the Magatsushi Skills that have a variety of effects including attack, support, and recovery.

Another element is skill aptitudes for demons. Demons are strong at some skills and weak at others. Those they’re good at are marked by a “+”, making them more powerful. However, if they inherit a skill they’re not suitable for, those will be marked with a “-” and their power will be weakened.

You can check out all the images below.

Author
Giuseppe Nelva

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