December 2022

There’s still so much we don’t know about the next stealth strategy game from the makers of Desperados 3 and Shadow Tactics: Blades Of The Shogun. Until yesterday, all we had was a codename (“Süßkartoffel”, or Sweet Potato), and a few other scant business facts developer Mimimi Games posted about on their blog last year. In fact, the only concrete thing we really know about it right now is that it’s not going to be Shadow Tactics 2.

However, in chatting to Mimimi this week about leaving real-time tactics behind in favour of their new "Stealth Strategy" label, I’ve managed to glean a few more details. Alas, Mimimi still aren’t ready to reveal Süßkartoffel’s official name just yet, but head of design Moritz Wagner told me it’s not only going to be much more beginner-friendly than their previous games, but that it will also be much more like one big sandbox this time, resisting the urge to limit players by strict level constraints. To me, it all sounded a bit like they were aiming for something akin to Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, so I asked him about whether that was an accurate assessment of it. “Yes and no,” he said.

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The makers of Shadow Tactics: Blades Of The Shogun and Desperados 3 have been thinking a lot about real-time tactics recently. Not just because they’re knee-deep in making their next tactics game at the moment, currently known as Codename Süßkartoffel (the word for "Sweet Potato" in their native German), but because they feel the genre as a whole doesn’t quite convey what’s so special about their catalogue of excellent stealth ‘em ups anymore. It’s a fair cop – despite appearing in our best strategy games list for many years, even I’ve struggled to come up with a succinct way of describing them. Thus, it’s time for a change, say the studio.

In a blog post published today on Mimimi Games’ website, the studio announced they’re going to be referring to their work as “Stealth Strategy” games going forward, and they’re hoping this new genre label will help prospective players better understand their special blend of silent assassination tactics. This kind of shift isn’t without its challenges, though, so I caught up with the team at Mimimi to talk more about this newfound shift, and how it’s going to lay the foundations for what’s to come in Codename Süßkartoffel.

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Since release last Friday, The Callisto Protocol devs at Striking Distance Studio have been, I can only imagine, catastrophically hard at work on the PC build. The game was almost unplayable on PC because shader compilation was causing stuttering whenever anything new happened for the first time, which is not ideal in any game, but especially not an atmospheric horror game with jump scares. It's hard to be terrified by something if the game pauses for over a second when it happens.

Anyway, the point is that a patch was released over the weekend, and another yesterday. I'm out of town right now, so I haven't been able to install the second, but I did play test the first one, and whaddaya know? The Callisto Protocol ran smooth for me, using a PC with the recommended specs.

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It seems that the Final Fantasy Pixel Remaster games are heading to the PS4 and Nintendo Switch. A new ratings leak appeared. This time, ratings appeared for FFI through FFVI for the PS4 and Switch via the ESRB website. None of the ratings specifically note Pixel Remaster in their title. However, each rating does match the one given to the PC versions available on Steam. Square Enix hasn't officially announced anything yet. [Thanks, Cefaluu on Reddit!]

First, here's a list of links to each potential Final Fantasy Pixel Remaster PS4 and Switch ESRB rating. Each one mentions it as a 2D game. They also all note the PC version.

Final Fantasy VII Ever Crisis, Square Enix's compilation mobile game, is delayed. A video for the title appeared. At the end of the new FFVII Ever Crisis trailer, a Summer 2023 closed beta test announcement appeared.

Here's the new FFVII Ever Crisis Winter 2023 trailer. It begins with Soldiers in a helicopter. It then cuts to a main menu, which confirmed FFVII and Crisis Core: FFVII’s stories will both be told in it. When the Crisis Core one is selected, it is shown that chapters will be divided into main and sub sections for different episodes. After one is selected, it shows Zack fighting Ifrit.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8rbU2-mwW5I&ab_channel=%E3%82%B9%E3%82%AF%E3%82%A6%E3%82%A7%E3%82%A2%E3%83%BB%E3%82%A8%E3%83%8B%E3%83%83%E3%82%AF%E3%82%B9

Originally, the FFVII Ever Crisis closed beta was supposed to appear "later in 2022." There was never any exact release window for it. However, it was announced in June 2022.

As for the game itself, it was suggested it would appear by now. A CyberAgent financial report assigned it a September 2022 launch window back in May 2022.

Hidenari Ugaki, the voice actor for Goro Majima in the Yakuza / Like A Dragon games, said that he hasn't been invited to record lines for the latest game in the series. At least, not yet. The reveal came via a comment aired as part of an episode of anime series Pop Team Epic .[Thanks, Famitsu!]

For those who haven't seen it, Pop Team Epic is less a narrative-driven series and more of a variety show, featuring guest personalities doing voices and skits. Some skits are adapted from the original Pop Team Epic comic strip by Bkub Okawa, and others are original gags using everything from professional 2D animation to live-action segments parodying news programs. Each roughly 30-minute episode is divided into two almost identical 15-minute halves, using different voice actors and other differences between them. The back half of episode 11 featured Goro Majima voice actor Hidenari Ugaki and Takaya Kuroda, who plays Kazuma Kiryu in the Yakuza / Like A Dragon games. Following the episode, a special segment called Pop Tuber featuring the two ad-libbing their conversation was uploaded to the official Pop Team Epic YouTube channel.

Check it out below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EeDvMfsvk_s

Jun Kazama in Tekken 8 is a playable character. Tekken Series Director Katsuhiro Harada confirmed the fact during a panel following the Tekken World Tour 2022 North America Regional Finals. Jun has been missing and presumed dead since her first appearance in Tekken 2. She showed up in other Tekken games, but only as a flashback or cameo. She was last playable in 2012's Tekken Tag Tournament 2 and 2013's Tekken Revolution, which are not considered "canon." Harada also confirmed that Jun never actually died, and only went missing. Exactly why she was gone all that time might be explained as part of Tekken 8's story.

The panel also saw Harada and Tekken Series Producer Michael Murray show off some early concept art of Jun Kazama in Tekken 8. Jun's design comes from artist Mari Shimazaki, who designed the main cast of Bayonetta, Josie Rizal and Kazumi Mishima from Tekken 7, and the cast of anime series Luck & Logic.

https://twitter.com/BNEesports/status/1602091664134221825

A Pokemon Legends: Arceus Poke Ball replica figure is available in the Pokemon Center. It costs $69.99. According to the product description, the material is resin, and it has recreated the look of the wooden base and the metallic trim. This is only for decorative purposes. You cannot open up the Poke Ball.

The Pokemon Legends: Arceus Poke Ball replica will come with a display stand. It is around three inches in diameter, which makes it the right size to place around your house or apartment. It states that there is a purchase limit of two. However, it does not state if this accounts for each customer or each household.

Here are some pictures of the Poke Ball replica figure:

[gallery columns="5" link="file" ids="942947,942943,942944,942945,942946"]

In Pokemon Legends: Arceus, which takes place in the Sinnoh region of the past, trainers have to actually construct their own Poke Balls. The mechanism of the ball itself is the same as more “modern” Pokemon games, but the design is obviously different. For one thing, it appears to have a latch of sorts on the front, whereas newer Poke Balls have a button.

Pokemon Legends: Arceus is readily available for the Nintendo Switch. You can purchase the Poke Ball replica from the online Pokemon Center shop.

There’s a new free background from HoYoVerse. It updated the N0va Desktop add with a Genshin Impact live wallpaper of Yae Miko. The app and wallpaper are free to download. However, there is a limitation with this one. The tweet noted it is only for people using a Windows PC.

Whenever one of these kinds of backgrounds appear, it tends to show a more serene scene. In this live wallpaper, Yae Miko is wandering around the Inazuma area in Genshin Impact. She is carrying an umbrella and posed on some steps. If someone watches, she’ll look around her and toward the “camera.”

It’s been a while since HoYoVerse released a Genshin Impact live wallpaper. The last one showed up at the beginning of November 2022. It featured the five-star Cryo archer Ganyu. That one was also notable in that it wasn’t just available for PCs and Android tablets. It could be used on Android phones too.

Genshin Impact is available for the PS4, PS5, PC, and mobile devices. It might be a while before a gacha to acquire Yae Miko returns. Her last rerun banner just ended on December 6, 2022. N0va Desktop is available on PCs and Android devices. Once added, the Yae Miko live wallpaper will always be available there for free.

A new round of updates from Type-Moon Games brings another pair of Fate/Grand Order characters to the playable roster of Melty Blood Type Lumina. The latest round of Melty Blood Type Lumina DLC brings with it The Count of Monte Cristo (Edmond Dantes), and Ushiwakamaru. Both were first introduced to the Fate and Tsukihime multiverse by way of Fate/Grand Order. The DLC pack goes live on December 15, 2022, and will be free to all players, including the pair's character stories and battle stages.

Before joining via Melty Blood Type Lumina DLC, Edmond Dantes initially joined Fate/Grand Order as the game's first Avenger-class Servant. His character design comes from artist Rui Komatsuzaki, who designed the characters from the Danganronpa series. Dantes is voiced by Nobunaga Shimazaki (Eugeo from Sword Art Online Alicization, Ritsuka Fujimaru from Fate/Grand Order - Babylon).

Check out Dantes' battle preview below. In the preview he fights Roa. Though Roa doesn't recognize Dantes, Dantes has encountered a different version of Roa before - and burned him alive.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NQz5A6qdBuo

A new trailer for Fire Emblem Engage shows off how Dimitri, Claude, Edelgard, and Tiki will work if you get the Expansion Pass. They are the first wave of DLC characters for the upcoming Fire Emblem, and will launch on the same day as the game’s official release. The expansion pass will also have new accessories for you to dress your characters in, as well as new maps.

You can watch the trailer for the Fire Emblem Engage Expansion Pass here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-XLMHPDpJ_A

In the trailer, all three of the Fire Emblem: Three Houses characters appear from the same Ring. Every turn, the game randomly selects one of the three to be your equipped Hero. No matter who you have, the Engage Skills are the same. One is three consecutive strikes with an ax, a lance, and then an arrow. The Lineage Engage Skill will grant an 120% EXP boost to whoever has the Ring on.

As for Tiki, she can turn into a dragon when you Engage with her. One of her Engage Skills will make it easier for a character’s stats to grow when they level up. Another one appears to be an auto-revive that will kick in if your character dies. Tiki will be a very support-oriented character to use, based on this kit.

Square Enix will release round cocktail glasses of the Cactuar, Chocobo, and Moogle, mascots from the Final Fantasy series. These will come out in March 2023 and cost 1518 JPY per cup. That would be around $11.15. Because of the design, you can use it as both a drinking cup or as something to hold small ornaments. [Thanks, Famitsu!]

If you want the mascots to look like how they appear in-game, you will need to use drinks that match their color. However, that is not to say the cups are completely see-through. There are yellow wings on the Chocobo glass. As well, the back of the Moogle cup has its signature purple wings and orange bobble.

You can see more pictures of the Final Fantasy mascot glasses here:

[gallery columns="6" link="file" size="full" ids="942952,942953,942954,942955,942956,942957"]

At WonHobby G 2022 Autumn, a new Ryza figure appeared. Good Smile Company showed off a scale figure of Reisalin “Ryza” Stout in her Atelier Ryza 3 attire. Now, pre-orders are already open. She’ll debut in Japan sometime in December 2023. However, people in North America will need to wait until February 2024 for the statue. It will cost ¥26,378/183.99.

This Atelier Ryza 3 statue doesn’t come with any spare parts. She’s wearing the latest version of her staff. It features a pinwheel like the one she carried in Atelier Ryza: Ever Darkness & the Secret Hideout. Likewise, her outfit features callbacks to her past costumes, but still is entirely unique. The base actually features terrain, with a rock and flowers as accents.

Good Smile Company shared official pictures of it from various angles. Here’s a closer look at the figure. It is a 1/7th scale one. That means it will stand at almost a foot tall. (It is about 300mm.) It is the company's first figure of any character from this entry.
[gallery columns="4" ids="942898,942899,942900,942901" link="file"]

Atelier Ryza 3: Alchemist of the End & the Secret Key will come out on the PS4, PS5, Nintendo Switch, and Windows PC via Steam on February 24, 2023 worldwide. The Atelier Ryza 3 figure of Ryza will appear in Japan in December 2023 and in North America in February 2024.

The first Big Run event of Splatoon 3’s Chill Season took place this weekend, and the results are in. The invading Salmonid enemies were successfully warded off, and rewards are based on how well each player performed compared to others around the world.

For those unaware, Big Run is an event that is part of the Salmon Run game mode, but occasionally, Salmonid swarms overtake the normal game mode stages. This weekend, players worked to defend Wahoo World. The event kept track of the highest number of eggs each player was able to collect across each round of three waves.

The high score you achieved during this Big Run dictates the reward you receive as a percentile of other players’ scores. Specifically, you get a gold, silver, bronze, or participation locker trophy and Splashtag badge based on how well you did.

The top 5% of players received gold rewards, the top 20% received silver rewards, and the top 50% received bronze rewards. Everyone in the bottom 50% received participation rewards.

Here’s how many eggs you needed to have as your high score in order to get each reward:

The Wednesday Addams TV show has taken Netflix by storm, and like all popular media, it encouraged the creation of plenty of fanart.

One of the most interesting examples has been posted on Twitter by the Spanish artist duo Hanavbara (Pau and Alex), who specialize in anime-style art that resembles the nostalgic style of anime from the nineties like Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon.

They recreated two iconic scenes from the series including the Rave’N Dance, portraying both Wednesday herself and her colorful new best friend Enid Sinclair, alongside more members of the cast in the background. The Sailor Moon-like style certainly makes them even more adorable.

You can check out the original post below.

2K Games and Firaxis will soon release another package of new leaders for Sid Meier’s Civilization 6, and they’ve just introduced the first with a new trailer.

The Great Commanders Pack will include Tokugawa from of Japan, Nader Shah of Persia, and Suleiman the Magnificent of the Ottoman Empire.

Today we get to indeed see the mighty Tokugawa Ieyasu, who is the man who put an end to Japan’s Sengoku era, uniting the daimyo under his rule as Shogun and crushing all who opposed him, founding the Tokugawa Shogunate that lasted over two and a half centuries.

This new package follows the Great Negotiators pack released at the end of November, including Nzinga Mbande queen of Kongo, Sultan Saladin of Arabia, and President of the United States Abraham Lincoln.

More Leaders Packs are also coming down the line, (with no release dates announced for the moment). The Rulers of China pack will include Yongle, Qin Shi Huang the Unifier, and Wu Zetian. The Rulers of the Sahara pack will come with Ramses (Egypt), Ptolemaic Cleopatra (Egypt), and King Sundiata Keita (Mali). The Great Builders pack includes Theodora (Byzantines), Sejong (Korea), and Ludwig II (Germany). Lastly, the Rulers of England pack will bring to the game Elizabeth I (England), Varangian Harald Hardrada (Norway), and Victoria – Age of Steam (England).

While some of these leaders are brand new, a few are new takes on historical characters who appeared in the series before.

It’s worth mentioning that some of these are bound to other DLCs that unlock their civilization. If you don’t have the related civilization unlocked, a leader would be useless to you. That being said, this doesn’t apply to Tokugawa since Japan is part of Civilization 6’s default roster.

Black Desert developer Pearl Abyss hosted its “Calpheon Ball 2022” event from Los Angeles, providing a preview of what players can expect from upcoming updates.

We get the full reveal of the two twin classes that will be added to the game. The PC and Console versions will receive Woosa on December 14, while Maegu will be added to the mobile version, but she’ll also come to the other platforms about a month after.

The two classes are “twins born on a leap year day when neither the sun nor moon lit the sky.” They have followed different paths and discovered their own opposite styles of “Do.” As a result, they’re always in conflict.

While Maegu fights with a charm, Woosa fights with a fan, and you can see both in action in the cinematic and combat trailers below.

Interestingly, while the voice acting is in English, the developers opted to keep the Korean terms “unni” and “dongsaeng” respectively indicating the older and younger sister. This means that Woosa is considered the younger of the two and Maegu seems to be enjoying reminding her of that quite often. These terms might be familiar to some as they have been popularized by Korean dramas and manhwa.

Another relevant reveal is the “Land of the Morning Light,” an entirely new region set to release in February in Korea and likely further down the line in the west, adding to the already massive open world of Black Desert.

It’s located in the eastern part of the world and it’s inspired by ancient Korea. You can take a first look in the third trailer below.

Type-Moon hosted its Melty Blood: Type Limina Official Tournament and closed it with plenty of news about an upcoming update, and it’s a big one.

The update will come on Tuesday, Dec. 15, at 5:00 am UTC, and it’ll include a lot of goodies that will be completely free.

Two DLC characters will be included, Ushiwakamaru and The Count of Monte Cristo, including the related stories and battle stages.

Ushiwakamaru is described as “a speedy fighter who races freely across the field to take opponents by surprise.” The Count of Monte Cristo is penned as “his battle style branches into a variety of attacks that put pressure on opponents with a powerful rush that leaves no room for escape.”

We’re getting Spanish, French, and Brazilian Portuguese subtitles, on top of 530 additional words that can be used in the Customize mode. All characters will also get four new color palettes.

10 remastered music tracks from Melty Blood Actress Again will be included, to be enjoyed during battles and in the gallery.

Another gem is the “Boss Rush” mode, which will feature a story created by acclaimed Fate and Witch on the Holy Night writer Kinoko Nasu.

You can check out both new characters in action below.

Chinese developer Kuro Game released a new video about its upcoming open-world action RPG Wuthering Waves.

The video (which follows another providing an introduction to the game) focuses on the combat system featuring combat designer “Wolf.”

The concept is “casual but deep” letting players enjoy battles with ease, but also go deeper into the combat system if they so wish. Characters have normal attacks, Resonance Skills, and a Resonance Liberation, which is their ultimate skill.

Each character also has unique mechanics. For instance, Sanhua’s normal attack can be charged, delivering an additional special attack when used at the right moment. This special attack can also shatter and detonate the ice shards she leaves around with her Resonance Skill and Liberation.

Two more interesting mechanics are the Team Resonance QTE and the Concerto Effect. You can accumulate Concerto Energy during battles and when it reaches a certain level non-active characters will enter a Resonance State, letting you switch to one of these characters using a QuickTime event and trigger the Concerto Effect.

A “Wutrelic System” has also been teased, but the developers aren’t ready to delve into its details just yet. It’ll have its own episode in the future.

Amazon Games revealed a new trailer of the upcoming anime-style MMORPG Blue Protocol.

The trailer provides an extensive overview of the game in English as the publisher prepares for the western release coming next year.

We take a look at the story that puts you in the boots of an amnesiac hero, the characters that we’ll meet, and the monsters that we’ll fight.

We hear about the action combat and the five classes, which are the Blade Warden, Twin Striker, Keen Strider, Spell Weaver, and Foe Breaker. For unfathomable reasons Amazon decided to change names have been changed from the ones originally decided by Bandai Namco (Aegis FIghter, Twin Striker, Blast Archer, Spell Caster, and Heavy Smasher) despite the fact that they were already in English and arguably cooler.

Character customization is another big element, even if the trailer focuses more on the outfits, while Blue Protocol has a very deep character creation system that lets you pretty much design your own anime hero among a ton of options, which hopefully will pass Amazon’s localization unscathed.

We also see group gameplay and even raids against massive monsters. You can enjoy the trailer below.

Gran Turismo 7 producer Kazunori Yamauchi took to Twitter to tease the next update to the popular racing game.

The update is coming next week, and according to the silhouette in the tweet, it’ll include five new cars. Those appear to be a Chevrolet Corvette C8, a Toyota Celica GT-Four ST205 rally car, an Alfa Romeo Giulia GTAm, the Bugatti Chiron, and the previously-revealed Ferrari Vision Gran Turismo.

At the moment, we don’t know whether the update will include more than the cars, as Yamauchi-san’s teases usually don’t mention any content besides the new rides. We just got a new track, so expecting another after less than a month may be optimistic, but you never know.

You can find the tweet below.

Demon Slayer Season 3 is fast approaching its release date, and Ufotable has given fans a reason to be even more excited for the first episode’s release.

During a special event held on Dec. 10, a new promotional video for the series revealed that the hour-long first episode of the third season would be aired in theatres alongside the last two episodes of the second season in a world tour leading up to season 3’s release. The theatrical compilation will premiere in Tokyo on Feb. 4 and 5, and will then move to several other countries throughout February and March. The confirmed locations and their dates are listed down below.

• Los Angeles – Feb. 18
• Paris – Feb. 25
• Berlin – Feb. 26
• Mexico City – Mar. 4
• Seoul – Mar. 11
• Taipei – Mar. 19

The theatrical compilation will also be released in theatres throughout the United States and Canada on Mar. 3, with exact theatres and dates coming at a later time. The full season, meanwhile, is set to begin airing in April of 2023, with the most likely streaming platform being Crunchyroll due to their simulcasting both the previous seasons.

The promotional video also came with some brief new snippets of animation from the Swordsmith Village Arc. Most notably, Kibutsuji Muzan can be seen alongside several members of the Upper Moons, who he monologues to about wanting to maintain the status quo and decimate the Demon Hunters. There are also some new bits of animation focused on Tanjiro and Genya, as well as a scene of the Love Hashira and Mist Hashira engaged in combat with someone.

It’s not the biggest batch of footage compared to the last trailer, but fans of the series will still find it worth checking out. The full video can be viewed down below.

When it comes to a challenging Soulsborne title like Elden Ring, chances are, you would already have trouble with some of the intimidating bosses while playing normally. However, there exists a subset of players who are able to defeat these foes with a handicap, putting the rest of us to shame.

One of them happens to be variety streamer, MissMikkaa, whose exploits in the Lands Between have already made plenty of waves. Now, she has achieved another amazing feat, not only playing Elden Ring simultaneously on PC and PS5 but also beating bosses Margit the Fell Omen and Godrick the Grafted at the same time.

Chronicling her victories via both Twitter as well as a YouTube highlights video, it is simply breathtaking to see everything unfold. An already tall task with the precision and timing needed to both attack and defend, doing so while having your attention divided between two concurrently running games and using two different types of control is a feat that boggles the mind.

While Margit has been a thorn in the sides of many players, the satisfaction of watching the streamer vanquish this enemy in quick succession using her unique setup is immense. The same applies to Godrick, although that encounter is certainly an easier affair compared to Margit.

Call of Duty is set to launch its midseason update bringing a ton of new content to all the game’s modes. Players can expect Modern Warfare 2’s multiplayer component to receive a reworked Shipment map. Meanwhile, Warzone 2.0 will see new content, such as new locations in the mode and the World Cup crossover.

Despite all the new content, it’s been made apparent that standard features that have been a staple for quite some time won’t make an appearance. As announced by the official Call of Duty Twitter account, the midseason update will not bring Combat Records.

Citing “accuracy of the data population,” Combat Records won’t be appearing alongside the Season One Reloaded midseason update. Many fans aren’t happy with this, as this feature was highlighted during the announcement of the game’s first season after it didn’t make it during the game’s worldwide launch. There is also no word on when Infinity Ward will have the Combat Records feature ready.

Marvel Snap players finally got the chance to pull Galactus once Second Dinner rolled out Collector’s Tokens along with Series 4 and 5. Galactus has an incredibly unique ability, where he destroys all other locations, forcing players to fight for one single lane head up.

He also happens to pair incredibly well with Death, which is a 9-Cost card that gets discounted each time a card gets destroyed. By the time you get Galactus out on turn 4 or 5, you’ll likely be able to destroy a whole bunch of cards, resulting in a 0-Cost Death.

Enter Knull, who’s set to be the next Series 5 card that gets added to Marvel Snap. Knull is a 6-Cost, 0-Power card with an Ongoing ability that lets it gain the combined Power of all cards that have been destroyed during this game, which is absolutely insane. This makes Knull a natural pairing with both Galactus and/or Death, and going up against a big powerhouse like this might be a fool’s errand.

There are ways to counter this of course. Cards like Leader, Shang-Chi, and Enchantress to a lesser extent can deal with Knull, but you have to be aware that Galactus decks often run Spider-Man as well. If Galactus gets out on 4, and Spider-Man gets played on 5, you won’t be able to respond on turn 6, which usually means an automatic loss.

Marvel Snap is now available on PC and mobile devices.

When The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt was first released, several quests would award you with a sword that was supposed to be amazing, but by the time you earned it, you probably had better. The most egregious of this was in the Brothers in Arms questline in Skellige, which ended with Crach an Craite bequeathing Geralt the sword Winter’s Blade.

This sword was supposed to have been forged in dragon fire and was so legendary that even Geralt had heard stories about it. All that backstory for the sword to be so underwhelming felt like a crime.

However, CD Projekt RED turned this around entirely for the next-gen Witcher 3 release. Now, Winter’s Blade has a trait befitting a legendary sword. Winter’s Blade will scale up with Geralt, meaning the sword will never be outclassed. This is something that actually makes this sword useful, rather than just a piece of junk you’ll look at post-quest, and then it sits in your storage forever on your wall in Toussaint.

This also makes the Crach an Craite questline more worthwhile to do as soon as possible because you know the reward will actually benefit you on your journey.

God of War Ragnarok isn’t short on great moments, many of which hold so much emotional weight that any one playing should have a box of tissues nearby to dry their tears. Others, however, are more subtle in nature; one in particular is actually a callback to the previous installment and is arguably one of the most touching scenes in God of War Ragnarok.

Eagled-eyed Reddit user u/stash0606 noted a moment during Kratos’ quest to help Freya in God of War Ragnarok that parallels a scene in God of War, not just in terms of dialogue but the relationship, too.

For the past four years Freya had been hunting Kratos, but realized that her feelings were being channeled towards the wrong person, that everything led back to Odin. When she attempts to apologize, Kratos stops her and says, “No need to explain. Not to me. Not for that.”

During the events of God of War (2018), Kratos did not trust Freya, and rightly so—she was a goddess, after all. Over time, Kratos has his own revelation, that Freya is an ally and was there when he needed her most. Freya echoes the exact same lines when Kratos tries to make amends.

The long-awaited trailer for the sequel to Into the Spider-Verse has finally arrived, showcasing breathtaking visuals, outstanding voice acting, and a thrilling storyline that swings Miles Morales back into action. But, if you watched the video, you may have noticed many different versions of the heroic character, along with other slight hints scattered throughout this new debut. So, without further ado, here are all the Easter Eggs in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse official trailer.

All Spider-Man Easter Eggs in Across the Spider-Verse Official Trailer

Since this film is primarily based on the concept of alternate realities, it’s no surprise that the official trailer for Across the Spider-Verse has various Spider-Man variations from comics, video games, movies, and T.V. shows. Here is a breakdown of each one and several other Easter Eggs shown in the video:

Third-party developers shared news about Microsoft Flight Simulator add-ons focusing on upcoming aircraft, airports, and more.

We start with Aerosoft, which provided another look at the Airbus A330 focusing on the effect of ice accumulating on the leading surfaces of the fuselage, engines, and wings.

Looking for a way to get your Sims in the holiday mood? Well, you’re not alone, as everyone wants to get their house looking just right in the Sims 4 just in time for the holidays.

To help make that happen, we’ve come up with a few tips and tricks we are sure you’ll love, as there are plenty of unique ways to add a touch of festivity to your Sims builds – you just have to know where to find them. So let’s dive right in.

Atelier Ryza 3: Alchemist of the End & the Secret Key is coming relatively soon, marking the first time in the series a heroine retains her status as the protagonist throughout a whole trilogy. Ryza has come a long way since her beginnings in Atelier Ryza: Ever Darkness & the Secret Hideout, having grown up through Atelier Ryza 2: Lost Legends & the Secret Fairy.

Now it’s finally time to see the climax of her story before we say goodbye to this beloved heroine and her many friends. To learn more about the game, Twinfinite interviewed producer Junzo Hosoi and director Shinichi Abiko.

Giuseppe: Let’s start with something simple and straightforward: Why did you decide to create a third game with Ryza as the protagonist?

Junzo Hosoi: We actually intended on having the same protagonist for the entire series since we started planning the first Atelier Ryza game. The idea was similar to the Harry Potter series. You can see Harry Potter grow from a child to an adult.

I thought it would be great to have that in the Atelier series as well. So that’s the main reason why we have a third game for Ryza.

On top of that, with the first two games, Ryza herself has been very popular among the fans, so I think even if it wasn’t for the reason I mentioned, we’d want to make a third game anyway.

Giuseppe: I believe Ryza may very well be the most popular protagonist ever for the Atelier series. Do you agree? And if you do, why do you think that is?

Idea Factory International announced that Compile Hearts’ latest JRPG Fairy Fencer F: Refrain Chord is coming west.

The game, which is already available in Japan, will launch in North America and Europe in spring 2023 for PS5, PS4, Nintendo Switch, and PC via Steam. The release on PC is new, as the Japanese version came only to consoles.

The game, which is a sequel of Fairy Fencer F and its expanded version Advent Dark Force released in 2015, sees our hero Fang and his friends meet a mysterious woman named Glace who can brainwash people with her song. Another woman able to channel the power of song named Fleur joins the party to counter this new threat, so the battle of the Muses begins.

Pre-orders will be available soon from a variety of retailers, including physical editions for all the console versions. Speaking of which, a limited edition is also coming exclusively via the Idea Factory International online stores. It’ll be priced at $99.99, but the content and pre-order date have yet to be announced.

Fairy Fencer F: Refrain Chord is a turn-based tactical JRPG that lets you fight on classic grid-based maps. It features new mechanics based on the power of the Muses including the “Dramatic Resonance.”

It’s a positional element where the songs of the opposing muses overlap and in which both the buffs created by the friendly muse and the debuffs created by the enemy muse are doubled in effect. Basically, you can step into that area for some high-risk, high-reward plays.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse has released its first official teaser trailer, showcasing that the Spider-Verse will be growing exponentially in the new animated film. While the original film only featured a few different Spider-Verse characters, including Spider-Gwen, Spider-Man Noir, and Spider-Ham, the sequel is looking to include a plethora of cameos, which seemingly include Spider-Man Unlimited, the Bombastic Bag-Man version, and even the PS4 version of the web-slinger.

The trailer also features a better look at the film’s returning main characters, which include Miles Morales, his mom Rio, Gwen Stacy, Peter B. Parker, and Spider-Man 2099, voiced by Oscar Isaac, while also giving audiences their first look at one of the film’s new main characters, Spider-Woman, portrayed by Issa Rae.

Spider-Man 2099 only appeared in Into the Spider-Verse’s end-credit scene, teasing that he will be a sort of antagonist in the film, which this new trailer only further confirms. However, given the comic-book origin of the character, it is likely that he won’t remain an antagonist for the whole film.

Warner Bros. Games announced that the release of its potential blockbuster game set in the Wizarding World Hogwarts Legacy will be delayed on some platforms.

According to the announcement, Hogwarts Legacy will release on PS4 and Xbox One on April 4, 2023. Fans of the Wizarding World on the Nintendo Switch will get the game last and will have to wait until July 25, 2023, to explore the vintage version of the popular school for wizards.

Those who plan to play on PC, PS5, or Xbox Series X|S will be unaffected, as the launch date on these platforms remains February 10, 2023 with the promised 72-hour early access for those who nab the Deluxe Edition starting on February 7, 2023.

As a matter of fact, we also learn that these versions have gone gold, meaning that the development of what you’ll find on the disk, excluding day-one patches and similar updates, is complete and finalized.

Not much was said in terms of reasons for the new release dates besides the fact that the development team aims to provide the best experience on all platforms. The game certainly looks rather intensive visually, so it’s not surprising that Avalanche may need some more time to optimize the visuals on older consoles.

Incidentally, tomorrow the developers will hist a new gameplay showcase with game director Alan Tew, systems designer Mekenzy Toner, and community manager Chandler Wood. We’ll see more about broom flight and traversal, advanced combat, and we’ll get an introduction to the Room of Requirement.

Man, I was never much of a Flash liker, but even I feel a bit sorry for him in tonight's new trailer for Rocksteady's Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League. He gets a right old beating in the new Game Awards footage, but thankfully it looks like The Batman will be on hand to deliver some much needed... justice (sorry) when it comes out on May 26th 2023. Maybe. Miss you, Kevin Conroy.

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If you're looking for last-minute Christmas gifts, this hardcover coffee table book featuring glossy photos of consoles spanning from Atari to Xbox is discounted right now. The Game Console 2.0 is currently $20.79, roughly 50% off the original $40 price.

The listing is $26, but there's a coupon box you can click to get another $5.20 off. The discount will be applied at checkout.

When I got an email that Bratz: Flaunt Your Fashion, the first official Bratz dolls video game since 2012, was coming out in November across most platforms, including, remarkably, the PS5, I was intrigued and a little amused. When I booted it up, I got that familiar hit of nostalgia, as each of the four main…

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As we discussed earlier this week, the Steam Deck has had one hell of a launch year. It should be no surprise, then, that Valve has its eye on the future of its new handheld, which it has officially categorized as a “multi-generational product.” The company has now revealed a bit of what it’s hoping to improve and…

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In really stepping things up news, it’s just been announced that Amazon Games is set to publish the next Tomb Raider game. Following Square Enix’s retreat from the Western front, and the sale of both developer Crystal Dynamics and the Tomb Raider license itself, it was unclear what might happen to Lara’s ongoing…

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I am no stranger to the intricacies of video game porn. I see it all the time when I’m running gaming searches on social media. Yet Pornhub’s Year In Review list revealing the most searched games on the platform in 2022 has got me reconsidering everything that I know about gaming porn. Overwatch, I expect and…

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