Gamespot

Rocksteady Never Worked On A Superman Game, According To Report

2 months ago

Thanks to a Bloomberg report, Rocksteady never pitched or worked on a Superman game despite it being a popular rumor. After the studio finished working on Batman: Arkham Knight in 2015, it started working on Batman: Arkham VR.

Following that, the studio reportedly began to work on an unannounced multiplayer game that had nothing to do with the Arkham universe. Then, in 2016, Warner Bros. studio in Montreal canceled a Suicide Squad game after the project was handed over to Rocksteady.

Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League is set in the same universe as the Arkham franchises. In the upcoming game, you'll play as one of four DC villains in the Suicide Squad, and as the name suggests, you'll be tasked with killing the Justice League. Unlike the Arkham series, Suicide Squad will take place in Metropolis, which is also the home to Superman. In addition to that, it'll also feature the late Kevin Conroy as Batman.

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Luis Joshua Gutierrez

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Humble's AGDQ 2024 Bundle Includes Seven Awesome Games For Just $10

2 months ago

The Awesome Games Done Quick (AGDQ) 2024 speedrunning marathon kicks off this Sunday, January 14. To mark the occasion, Humble is offering an Awesome Games Done Quick 2024 Game Bundle featuring several games to be showcased during the week-long charity event.

For as little as $10, you get seven PC games, including AAA titles like stylish character-action brawler Bayonetta and Borderlands 2: Game of the Year Edition, as well as indies like the acclaimed puzzle-platformer Celeste, cyberpunk first-person shooter Sprawl, 2D action-platforming dungeon crawler Astalon: Tears of the Earth, and the Castlevania spiritual successor Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night. Rounding out the bundle is Sega's classic 3D platformer Sonic Adventure 2 plus its Sonic Adventure 2: Battle DLC. All games and DLC purchased in the bundle are Steam keys.

This would be a great selection of games at any price, but $10 is a steal. Grab the bundle now, and you might be able to try out some of the speedrunning strats shown off during AGDQ 2024 yourself.

Author
Brendan Hesse

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Disney Dreamlight Valley: All Scramblecoin Pieces And How To Get Them

2 months ago

Disney Dreamlight Valley has no shortage of activities to keep you busy across its various biomes, but that hasn't stopped Gameloft from introducing even more fun things to do in the A Rift in Time expansion. Among these is Scramblecoin, a board game that sees you face off against your villagers in a chess-like showdown where you both battle to gather more coins than the other player.

To play this board game, though, you'll need to accrue a solid collection of pieces with various abilities and movement options to give you plenty of options in each match. Here's how to get every Scramblecoin piece and what they offer.

Scramblecoin is the go-to tabletop game in Dreamlight Valley.

All Scramblecoins pieces in Disney Dreamlight Valley

There are currently 30 Scramblecoin pieces. Most are earned by playing Scramblecoin and leveling up your ranking, but a few require you to craft them at a timebending table. Below is everything you need to know about how to get each piece and how they work on the board.

Author
Billy Givens

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The Last Of Us 2 Documentary Trailer Reveals Peek Behind Curtain Of How The Game Was Made

2 months ago

Naughty Dog has released a new trailer for its upcoming making-of documentary for The Last of Us: Part II. The documentary chronicles the development of the PlayStation game, and filming originally started in 2016. However, the project was abandoned due to the pandemic. It's now back on, and the first trailer looks great. It's also filled with serious story spoilers, as is this story in general in case you haven't played the game yet.

Grounded II: Making The Last of Us Part II, as it's called, features insight from the people who worked on the game, including writer-director Neil Druckmann and writer Halley Gross. The trailer touches on Naughty Dog's decision to kill one of the first game's main characters, Joel, right at the start. "You're gonna piss a lot of people off," Joel's actor Troy Baker said.

The developers also discuss the struggles to make the game, with one person saying the game's prospects were "not looking great" at one stage. The developers also talk about feeling burnt out and the difficulty of working "crunch" hours on the game to get it done.

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Eddie Makuch

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Overwatch 2 Will Buff Damage And Tank Heroes With Passive Healing In Season 9

2 months ago

Damage and Tank heroes will be getting a self-heal passive ability in Season 9 of Overwatch 2. This major change will see non-support heroes get an automatic heal passive, which kicks in after not taking damage for a short period of time.

Announced by Overwatch 2 game director Aaron Keller in a blog post, the new passive ability will be added as part of Season 9, which kicks off in early February. Support heroes already have this passive ability, though it's much stronger. The version being given to the damage and tank roles will be toned down. The blog doesn't list how this version will be toned down.

"This should give non-Support players more options in terms of sustaining themselves. It should also take some of the pressure off Support players to keep everyone alive since individual players now have more control of their own health pool," Keller wrote. "In Overwatch, there is a constant tug of war between the power of a team and the power of an individual hero or player. A change like this shifts that balance a bit."

The main reason for the change is that Overwatch 2 currently has a bit of a problem when it comes to teamwork. When teams stick together, there is a ton of synergy. However, when teams don't stick together, Overwatch 2 becomes a more challenging and frustrating experience. Giving every hero a passive heal allows for splitting off to be more rewarding. It should also reduce frustrations for support players, who typically get blamed when damage or tank heroes run off alone and don't get healing.

Author
James Carr

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AGDQ 2024: How To Watch, Start Times, And What Speedruns To Look Forward To

2 months ago

This year's Awesome Games Done Quick (AGDQ) starts up on Sunday, January 14. The event is hybrid, and you can catch the in-person portion in Pittsburgh. The speedruns will be broadcast worldwide. This year, AGDQ benefits the Prevent Cancer Foundation, you can make donations during the event on the viewing page on the GDQ website.

AGDQ 2024 Start Times

After a pre-show starting 8:30 AM PT / 11:30 AM ET on January 14, the marathon will continue for seven straight days. The kick off will be Radicoon's Any% PC Tunic speedrun. The event will conclude on January 21, wrapping up with Zic3's Any% Cutscene Remover PC run of Final Fantasy V.

  • 8:30 AM PT
  • 10:30 AM CT
  • 11:30 AM ET
  • 4:30 PM GMT
  • 3:30 AM AET (January 15)

AGDQ 2024 Where To Watch

You can watch every speedrun on the Games Done Quick official Twitch channel.

AGDQ 2024 What To Watch

Aside from the opening and closing games, there's lots of weird and wonderful to look forward to at AGDQ. Ranging from obvious hits like Pikmin 4 or Hades to bizarre picks like Sneak King and Skull Island: Rise of Kong. Should donation benchmarks be hit, viewers can look forward to bonus speedruns of Resident Evil 4 Remake, Pokemon Diamond/Pearl, Super Mario 64, and Baldur's Gate 3.

You can read the full schedule on the official website.

Author
Grace Benfell

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WoW Players Think The War Within's Big Bad Is Secretly In Season Of Discovery Too

2 months ago

World of Warcraft Classic's Season of Discovery is currently in full swing, and players think they've found a startling connection to the modern, "retail" version of Blizzard's MMO in the form of a mysterious, Void-shrouded figure that just might be the franchise's next big-bad.

WoW is set to have a big year in 2024. There's a new expansion, The War Within, coming later this year to the modern version, while WoW Classic is getting new class abilities, reworked dungeons and raids, and the potential resurrection of cut content as part of Season of Discovery. Normally, these two different versions of the game don't interact at all. Mounts and toys unlocked in modern WoW don't unlock in the old-school versions, for example. They may be two versions of the same game, but in many ways they are miles apart.

Author
Cameron Koch

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Persona 3 Reload PC Preorders Discounted At Fanatical

2 months ago

Persona 3 Reload drops for consoles and PC on February 2. Preorders for the game have been available for a few weeks, but PC players can snag Persona 3 Reload at a nice pre-release discount at Fanatical. Fanatical's preorder deal applies to all three editions of the game, dropping the price for the Persona 3 Reload standard edition to $61 (normally $70), the digital deluxe edition to $69.59 (normally $80), and the digital premium edition to $87 (down from $100).

All preorders include the Persona 4 Golden BGM Set DLC pack, which adds six tracks from Persona 4 Golden to Persona 3 Reload's in-game soundtrack. You also get a coupon code for 5% off your next Fanatical order. All game and DLC keys purchased from Fanatical unlock via Steam, which requires a free account to use.

Author
Brendan Hesse

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Destiny 2 Has To Do Something Better Than This Ahead Of The Final Shape

2 months ago

Warning: This article includes spoilers for this week's Season of the Wish story events in Destiny 2. You might want to finish it before reading further.

With what is ostensibly the conclusion of the story of the Season of the Wish, Destiny 2 is now proceeding to the conclusion of its 10-year story with The Final Shape. Though the next big expansion has been delayed all the way from February to June, the stage is set for players to pursue and confront the Witness, the series' biggest villain.

Here's the thing, though: We should be barreling toward this concluding chapter. Instead, we're crawling.

That's not a function of the delay, though, although it certainly doesn't help that Destiny 2 fans are stuck twiddling their thumbs for another five months. It's a problem with the Season of the Wish, and really all the story Destiny 2 has told since the release of last year's penultimate expansion, Lightfall. Destiny 2's story isn't gearing us up for a throw-down with a godlike alien creature. It isn't showing us the terrifying or horrifying consequences of letting the Witness go unchecked. It hasn't even really made clear what the Witness's goals are or what it'll actually do.

Bungie absolutely needs something better than what we've seen so far--better than the Season of the Witch and absolutely better than the Season of the Wish--to bring up the tenor of Destiny 2 before The Final Shape. The game simply cannot head into its final chapter this downbeat, or downright boring, and expect players to tune in.

Author
Phil Hornshaw

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Activision Backtracks On Controversial New Call Of Duty: Warzone Feature After Backlash

2 months ago

Activision has announced that a major change to Call of Duty: Warzone is not moving ahead as planned. The "Covert Exfil" feature for the battle royale game, which would allow players to "win" a match by taking a helicopter ride out of the battlefield, is not coming to Warzone as part of the Season 1 Reloaded update.

The developer was planning to allow players to purchase covert exfils from buy stations before the gulag closes, with only five available per match. Purchasing a covert exfil calls in a helicopter that will fly you out of the battlefield and into safety. This wouldn't be counted as a traditional "win," however, but it was planned to be another way to make it out of the match alive beyond becoming the final player or team left standing.

Additionally, Activision was planning to introduce a new high-value weapon case to Warzone tied to covert exfil. The idea was that players would fight to obtain this case and call in a covert exfil prior to the traditional end of a match as another way to have fun in Warzone without being the last player or team alive.

The response came swift, as fans criticized the idea of getting out of a Warzone match alive without actually being the last player standing.

Raven Software said it still believes these to be exciting additions to Warzone, but they won't be part of the main battle royale experience. Instead, they'll be placed into a dedicated mode. "We're looking forward to the new challenges that these features will provide and to your continued feedback once the mode is available," Raven said.

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Eddie Makuch

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Starfield's Next Update Is Biggest Yet, Will Make Asteroids Stop Tailgating You

2 months ago

Starfield is getting an enormous new update next week on Wednesday, January 17. Although Bethesda hasn't released the full patch notes, the developer has given players a general idea of what to expect from the upcoming patch. Based on a recent tweet regarding the game's next patch, players can look forward to quite a few bug fixes and visual improvements to the game.

It's worth noting that the January 17 update--which includes "over 100" bug fixes and other tweaks--will only be available for PC players who have opted into Steam Beta, which lets players test out new features before they're officially released.

According to Bethesda, players who are exploring the cosmos on Xbox (or playing on PC via Game Pass) will have to wait about two weeks before they can access the update's features, which include the following:

Author
Claire Lewis

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Smite 2 Revealed, Will Run Alongside The First Game

2 months ago

Smite 2 is set to revamp the action MOBA's pantheon, with overhauled visuals and revamped Gods. The sequel has been newly constructed in Unreal Engine 5.

The sequel promises a cleaner user interface with easier-to-parse spell effects. Each God's abilities have also gotten changes, and some Gods like Ymir have new physics-based powers. The game adds two power sources, Strength and Intelligence, to further distinguish each God's abilities. At first glance, the game appears to play much as the first one did.

Smite 2 moves to a new backend, enabling cross-play, improved matchmaking, and a reworking of the ranking system. The Relic and Items systems have also been totally overhauled to be more accessible to new players.

If you've spent a lot of time or money in the original game, much of that will transfer into the sequel. All gems spent in Smite 1 will be converted into Legacy Gems in Smite 2 for spending on new purchases. Smite 2 will also include cross-generation skins that will work in both games.

The original Smite's servers will remain active as the sequel launches. That would imply that the game will not recieve continued content updates, but there has been no official word as yet.

You can wishlist Smite 2 on Steam, Epic Games Store, Xbox Series X|S, and PlayStation 5. No mention of whether You can also register for alpha test access on the Smite 2 official website. A release date has not yet been announced.

Author
Grace Benfell

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Seth MacFarlane Had No Idea What Fortnite Was Before Peter Griffin Crossover

2 months ago

Before adding Peter Griffin to Fortnite, the creator of Family Guy, Seth MacFarlane, had no idea "what the f**k Fortnite" was. But as soon as he learned about the game, he loved the idea of adding Peter to the island.

The news comes from the official IGN YouTube channel, where MacFarlane was presumably asked about his thoughts on Peter coming to the island. Here's what he had to say:

"It was great. I had to have somebody explain to me what the f**k Fortnite is. And then I said, well, that sounds kinda cool. Yeah, why not let's do it."

As the interview goes on, MacFarlane also addresses the reasoning behind Peter being so buff. According to MacFalane, Epic "didn't have the budget to create his actual body." To work around this, Epic decided to create the buff Peter that was introduced in Chapter 5 Season 1.

Peter Griffin is a playable character thanks to the Chapter 5 Season 1 battle pass, and he's also a boss you can fight. After killing him, Peter will perform the "hurt knee" from Family Guy and drop some high-value gear. And fans are in love with the fact that they can play as Peter Griffin.

For more Fortnite content, check out our guide detailing the best landing spots for Chapter 5 Season 1, and our guide detailing where the secret cave is.

Author
Luis Joshua Gutierrez

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Where Is Xur Today? (January 12-16) Destiny 2 Exotic Items And Xur Location Guide

2 months ago

Things are a little quiet in Destiny 2 now that Season of the Wish's storyline has almost wrapped up, but there's no harm in paying a visit to friendly arms dealer Xur for a look at his fresh stock of weapons and armor. Here's where you can find Xur this weekend and what he has for sale.

This week you can find Xur in The Tower, inside the Hangar. For his weapon, Xur is offering Merciless. Hunters can pick up Orpheus Rig leg armor; Titans can grab Mk. 44 Stand Asides leg armor; and Warlocks can buy the Wings of Sacred Dawn armor.

Xur location

Xur's location inside the Tower.

Spawn in using the Courtyard transmat zone in the Tower to find Xur this week. Head left and down the stairs to enter the Hangar section, then hang another left. Make your way to the north end of the area and look for a staircase that will take you onto a catwalk, where Xur is waiting.

Author
Darryn Bonthuys

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Final Fantasy XVI Was Originally Also Going To Be On PlayStation 4

2 months ago

Final Fantasy XVI producer Naoki Yoshida has revealed that the game originally had a PlayStation 4 version alongside its PlayStation 5 one.

PlayStation's Shuhei Yoshida conducted an interview with Yoshida on The AIAS Game Maker's Notebook YouTube channel about Final Fantasy XVI's development. Yoshida said, "Originally, we were expecting to have a multi-platform release on PlayStation 4 as well. And to some extent, the assets were pushing the PlayStation 4 to its absolute limits."

He continued, "But in the end, the Final Fantasy series has a certain level of graphical fidelity expected of it, and when we tried to eliminate basically all loading on the PS4 version, there were certain parts where we were having to reduce the quality to a point lower than [Final Fantasy] XV."

The development team wanted to craft the best story experience possible, so having no loading times was a priority. Yoshida suggested that the PS4 version be dropped and Square Enix approved. He also said that without the PS5's hardware capabilities, the development team would still be trying to figure out how the game would get finished.

Author
George Yang

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WoW: Dragonflight Season 4's Best Endgame Items Will Be Determined By Community Vote

2 months 1 week ago

For the first time ever, Blizzard is letting the World of Warcraft community vote not only on what its powerful endgame class tier sets will look like, but what kind of build-changing set bonuses the sets will offer.

WoW's current expansion, Dragonflight, will receive one final season this spring ahead of the MMO's next expansion, The War Within, later this year. Dragonflight Season 4 will be a "remix" of sorts, featuring retooled raids from earlier in the expansion with upgraded loot to boot. That loot will include upgraded class tier sets, which made a big comeback in Dragonflight after being absent for WoW's previous two expansions.

However, the tier sets on offer for Season 4 won't be entirely new. Instead, they will be voted on by the game's community, with players of each class and specialization having the option to mix and match tier set appearances and set bonuses from Dragonflight Seasons 1-3.

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Cameron Koch

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Madden 24 Franchise Cross-Play Beta Is Now Available

2 months 1 week ago

Madden 24 players can now play Franchise mode with cross-play, included for all current-gen platforms: PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. For the first time in the series, the game launched with cross-play last August, but the team at EA Tiburon noted that the feature wouldn't be there at launch for Franchise mode, though players in other modes like Head to Head and Ultimate Team were able to use it. After some internal testing, the feature launches for all players on those aforementioned platforms today. But there's a catch.

Franchise cross-play launches in beta, so EA has warned players that they may want to make a new league to use with cross-play, even though existing leagues do work with it right away. That's because, should EA later need to pull the feature temporarily while it's still being optimized, leagues already utilizing cross-play would be unavailable for that time, as noted on the game's blog.

"Please note that this feature is in live beta and can be implemented in any league," the blog reads. "However, please note we strongly recommend that you start a new Franchise file for Crossplay in the event our team would need to temporarily disable the feature during the live beta."

After December 2022's Franchise debacle that saw many leagues permanently deleted due to an error, the idea of losing a Connected Franchise is likely a jumpscare for some players. For those eager to use cross-play but only when it's truly ready, it may be best to wait for the beta period to come to a close.

Author
Mark Delaney

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Disney Dreamlight Valley Gourmet Grubs Recipe

2 months 1 week ago

Though meals can refill your energy or feed critters, cooking is also often a vital component of progressing quests in Disney Dreamlight Valley. If a valley resident is seeking a meal, you'll need to know exactly how to make it so you can move forward. That being said, if you've found yourself working through EVE's friendship level 7 quest "Directive: Plant," you'll want to know the Gourmet Grubs recipe. Here's how to make it.

How to make Gourmet Grubs in Disney Dreamlight Valley

Gourmet Grubs can be eaten, should you choose to do so--but you're most likely to need this slimy dish as you're advancing EVE's friendship quest. As such, you'll want to be sure you can get it together for her using these ingredients:

This looks delicious, doesn't it?
  • Sea Snail
  • Sand Worm
  • Scorpion

You can fish up Sea Snails from blue ripples at The Docks, while Sand Worms and Scorpions can only be fished up from biomes within The Glittering Dunes. The former is found in golden ripples, while the latter can be snagged from blue pools. Combine all of these creatures into Gourmet Grubs and then look on in shock when you realize the meal is largely represented as bugs. We don't get it either--but enjoy!

Author
Billy Givens

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Disney Dreamlight Valley Banana Split Recipe

2 months 1 week ago

If you've been playing Disney Dreamlight Valley for a while, you're likely quite familiar with cooking to complete quests and keep your energy meter filled. However, in some cases, you'll also need to cook up something to feed animals you'd like to add to your companion collection, such as a Banana Split, which is the favorite food of monkeys on Eternity Isle. Here's how to make a Banana Split.

How to make a Banana Split in Disney Dreamlight Valley

Eating a Banana Split can help replenish any energy you've used up, or you can feed them to monkeys to improve your chances of winning one over as a companion. With all of that in mind, when you're ready to make a Banana Split, you'll need to combine the following ingredients:

Author
Billy Givens

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Disney Dreamlight Valley: How To Get Rid Of Evil Plants

2 months 1 week ago

As with the original biomes in Disney Dreamlight Valley, you'll need to remove a variety of obstacles on Eternity Isle when playing the A Rift in Time expansion. Some of these show up in the form of strange evil plants that spawn in the Wild Tangle biomes, and you'll need to do some upgrading to your watering can before you can remove them. Here's how to make that happen.

How to remove evil plants in Disney Dreamlight Valley

There are two types of evil plants in the Wild Tangle: small and large. Below, we'll tell you how to remove both types.

How to get rid of small evil plants

To clear away small evil plants, you'll need to advance the A Rift in Time questline to the point where Merlin grants you a quest called "Village Project: Timeless Trash." During this quest, you'll need to obtain the following materials:

  • Mist x500
  • Tropical Wood x20

With these materials in hand, head to any timebending table and craft the Small Evil Plant Watering Can Potion. This will be automatically applied to your watering can, allowing you to use it to remove the small evil plants in the Wild Tangle.

Author
Billy Givens

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Disney Dreamlight Valley: How To Get Rid Of Copper Rocks

2 months 1 week ago

As with the original biomes in Disney Dreamlight Valley, the A Rift in Time expansion features a variety of obstacles that stand between you and where you'd like to go--such as the multi-sized copper rocks you'll notice all across the world. These will require you to upgrade your Royal Pickaxe before you can clear them, so let's walk through how to do so.

How to get rid of copper rocks in Disney Dreamlight Valley

There are two types of copper rocks to clear out on Eternity Isle: small and large. We'll cover how to remove both separately.

How to get rid of small copper rocks

To begin removing small copper rocks, you'll first need to advance to Jafar's "The Flying Metal Nuisance" quest, which occurs fairly early on in A Rift in Time's main story questline. As you move forward in this quest, Jafar will eventually upgrade your Royal Pickaxe to allow you to mine the small copper rocks scattered across Eternity Isle.

Unsurprisingly, Copper Rocks drop copper when mined.

How to get rid of large copper rocks

To clear away large copper rocks, you'll need to upgrade your Royal Hourglass to level 1, which will first require you to obtain 5,000 Mist. When you've obtained enough Mist, head to any timebending table and select to upgrade the tool, allowing you to now discover Ancient Cores when timebending throughout the world.

With your Royal Hourglass at level 1, you can now craft the Large Copper Pickaxe Potion at the timebending table using the materials below:

Author
Billy Givens

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Prince Of Persia: The Lost Crown - Where To Preorder Ahead Of January 18 Release

2 months 1 week ago

It's been a long wait, but Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown is almost here. Launching on January 18 for PC and consoles, the metroidvania offers a stylish 2.5D aesthetic along with tense platforming sequences, challenging combat segments, and myriad of cool ways to upgrade your character. The side-scrolling adventure comes from Ubisoft Montpelier, the studio behind other side-scrolling masterpieces like Rayman Legends and Valiant Hearts, as well as the excellent Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope. As noted in our recent hands-on preview, Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown has a lot of potential, and we're eager to play the completed game.

Fans can preorder Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown right now for all platforms, including a Deluxe edition that includes extra content and lets you play the game three days early, along with other preorder bonuses. Here's all the preorder info for Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown.

Author
Brendan Hesse

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Like A Dragon: Infinite Wealth - Save On Your Preorder Ahead Of January 26 Launch

2 months 1 week ago

The latest game in the Yakuza series, Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth, arrives on January 26. You'll play as both Ichiban Kasuga and Kazuma Kiryu in a sprawling adventure set in Japan and Hawaii. It looks every bit as wild as fans have come to expect and offers a retooled turn-based combat system. Plus, it's really exciting to see longtime protagonist Kazuma and Ichiban, the beloved protagonist of Yakuza: Like a Dragon, starring in the same game.

Its official launch is just around the corner, but preordering a copy ahead of time will get you some cool bonuses. The standard edition is the only version getting a physical release, though you can snag the Deluxe and Ultimate editions on Steam, the PlayStation Store, or the Xbox Store. The Deluxe edition gets you a bonus dungeon and a few other cosmetics, while the Ultimate edition gets you even more cosmetics--along with unique boosters and classic karaoke tracks.

Author
Jon Bitner

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Tekken 8 Preorders - Get Exclusive Bonuses At Amazon And Best Buy

2 months 1 week ago

We're just weeks away from the launch of Tekken 8 on PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. The iconic fighting series makes its long-awaited return on January 26. The new installment will feature some big changes, including a single-player Arcade Quest mode and reworked character designs. Fans of the series have a lot to look forward to in the coming weeks, and preordering the game ahead of time isn’t a bad idea, as it comes with a few exclusive goodies.

Here’s a look at Tekken 8 preorders, including all available versions and preorder bonuses. Also, note that all versions of the game (minus the Collector’s edition) are currently on sale at Fanatical, so if you’re thinking about playing on PC, reserving a copy ahead of time will save you some cash.

Author
Jon Bitner

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Minecraft Legends Development Is Ending

2 months 1 week ago

Mojang is backing away from Minecraft Legends. The developer announced today that it will not release any new content for the game as the studio takes "a step back from development" on the project.

The existing Lost Legends challenges will stay online for free, and players can continue to earn their related rewards. Additionally, technical support for Minecraft Legends will continue to be available, and all features and functionality will stay online. This includes support for PvP and co-op staying online and functional.

Minecraft Legends launched in April 2023 and is available across Xbox and PlayStation consoles, as well as Nintendo Switch and PC. The real-time action strategy game set in Minecraft's Overworld was developed by Mojang and Blackbird Interactive.

While support for Minecraft Legends is ending, Mojang said it expects to "continue bringing new experiences to the Minecraft universe" with other projects in due time.

One of the upcoming non-gaming Minecraft projects is the Minecraft feature film, which stars Jason Momoa and Jack Black.

Author
Eddie Makuch

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Game Developers Will Need To Disclose AI Use On Steam

2 months 1 week ago

Steam has implemented some new guidelines regarding the use of AI in video games being sold on its platform. Developers will be required to disclose how AI is being used in them.

Steam updated its Content Survey that developers fill out when submitting their games to Steam. In a newly added AI disclosure section, developers are required to describe how AI is being used in both the development and execution of their games.

The use is separated into two categories: pre-generated and live-generated. Pre-generated AI use refers to content such as art, code, and sound, created with AI tools during development. During Valve's pre-release review, the company will evaluate the output of AI-generated content the same it does with non-AI content. Since all developers are beholden to Steam's Distribution Agreement, Valve will also check their games for illegal or infringing content, and whether they are consistent with marketing materials.

For live-generated content, it refers to content that uses AI tools while the game is running. The rules for pre-generated AI use are also applied to live-generated content, but with one more requirement. Developers will need to describe in the Content Survey what kind of measures they will take to make sure that the AI isn't generating any illegal content while the game is running.

Steam is also releasing a new system where players can report any illegal content that they encounter when playing games with live-generated AI content. This system comes in the form of an in-game overlay, making it easy and convenient for players to report something that should have been caught by the measures the developer set up regarding live-generated AI content.

Author
George Yang

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Twitch Is Laying Off 500 Employees In Latest Round Of Job Cuts

2 months 1 week ago

Twitch is laying off 500 employees, or a staggering 35% of its own workforce, soon. Twitch has since confirmed the job losses in a blog post; the cuts were first reported by Bloomberg.

"This will be a very hard day. Our service exists to empower communities to create, together, and every single one of you has played a vital role in fostering our community and furthering that mission," CEO Dan Clancy said.

"I know many of you are wondering why this is happening. Over the last year, we've been working to build a more sustainable business so that Twitch will be here for the long run and throughout the year we have cut costs and made many decisions to be more efficient," the executive added. "Unfortunately, despite these efforts, it has become clear that our organization is still meaningfully larger than it needs to be given the size of our business. Last year we paid out over $1 billion to streamers. So while the Twitch business remains strong, for some time now the organization has been sized based upon where we optimistically expect our business to be in 3 or more years, not where we're at today.

"As with many other companies in the tech space, we are now sizing our organization based upon the current scale of our business and conservative predictions of how we expect to grow in the future. This decision, while incredibly difficult and painful, is necessary to ensure that we can continue to serve our streamers sustainably without impacting their ability to support their careers on Twitch. Part of what makes this so difficult is the passion that so many of you share for the Twitch community, and the hard work you’ve put into serving our streamers."

Author
Eddie Makuch

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Sony And Honda's Electric Car Can Display Your Fortnite Fandom On Front Bumper

2 months 1 week ago

Bumper stickers are too old-school for Sony and Honda's electric vehicle named Afeela. Instead, the prototype automobile offers the ability to showcase a Fortnite logo on the front of the car, among other options like Horizon: Forbidden West and Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse.

The Verge spotted the new Afeela user experience video on YouTube, which goes through various tech features for the electric vehicle. The front bumper displays are a part of the media bar. In addition to advertising your Fortnite fandom, the media bar can also show off helpful info, like charging status for the electric car.

The video also highlights driver-assistance systems and the entertainment options for Afeela's cabin. Sony and Honda say passengers can watch streaming movies--like Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse--on multiple screens inside of the car. Previously, it was announced that Epic's Unreal Engine 5 is powering the user interface for Afeela.

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Evan Campbell

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SAG-AFTRA Approves AI Voice Acting For Video Games

2 months 1 week ago

Actors union SAG-AFTRA, which also represents voice actors and mo-cap performers in the games industry, has announced a "groundbreaking" agreement with AI voice studio Replica Studios, and many voice actors aren't happy. Many of the industry's top talent has come out to state that they weren't consulted on the deal, and don't know anyone who was.

"The agreement between the leading AI voice company and the world's largest performers' union will enable Replica to engage SAG-AFTRA members under a fair, ethical agreement to safely create and license a digital replica of their voice," SAG-AFTRA's official statement reads.

"We are so happy to partner with Replica Studios, because this is a great example of AI being done right," added SAG-AFTRA president Fran Drescher.

The statement says SAG-AFTRA's AI deal was "approved by affected members of the union’s voiceover performer community," but a number of voice actors have responded on Twitter to criticize the agreement, adding that they were not consulted, and don't know any voice actors who were.

"No one asked me about this. No one reached out for my opinion," said Elias Toufexis, the voice of Adam Jensen in the Deus Ex series. "From what I'm seeing, no one asked any of my peers either." Steve Blum replied to SAG-AFTRA's tweet to add: "Nobody in our community approved this that I know of. Games are the bulk of my livelihood and have been for years. Who are you referring to?"

Author
Hayley Williams

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Baldur's Gate 3 Adds Guns Thanks To This Mod

2 months 2 weeks ago

Thanks to the modding community, the Forgotten Realms in Baldur's Gate 3 got a little more dangerous. Now, instead of worrying about some NPC trying to use magic against you, you'll also need to be on the lookout for bullets flying your way.

Thanks to an IGN report, we know that Palmaman33, a Neux Modder, uploaded multiple mods that include various modern-day guns. Some of these include the Glock 19, AKM, and a few others. Anyone in your party can equip these guns, and each one packs a serious punch.

What makes this even funnier is that the Baldur's Gate 3 community loves the idea of Asterion carrying a fully loaded weapon. In all of the thumbnails for the file, you can see what seems to be Astarion handing you a giant gun.

Some players have even gone to X/Twitter to voice their share their thoughts about some of their party members having guns. One user wrote, "Who gave this guy a f****ng gun I can't breathe." At the same time, other players decided it might be smarter to give characters like Gortash a gun instead.

Author
Luis Joshua Gutierrez

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Cyberpunk 2077's Phantom Liberty DLC Passes A Big Milestone

2 months 2 weeks ago

CD Projekt Red has revealed that Cyberpunk 2077's expansion, Phantom Liberty, exceeded 5 million copies sold in 2023.

CD Projekt Red took to Twitter with the announcement and thanked all of the fans for helping the game reach such a big milestone. While CD Projekt didn't give any more context to this announcement, we know that the studio is continuing to work on other projects now that Phantom Liberty has been released.

Currently, CD Projekt Red is working on several projects, including a sequel to Cyberpunk 2077 and a new original IP, codenamed Hadar. The Witcher 4, codenamed Polaris, and a remake of the first Witcher game are in development as well. The studio also reaffirmed that it is not interested in being acquired by a larger entity and that it values its independence.

Author
George Yang

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MSI Gaming Teases Its Own Steam Deck Competitor

2 months 2 weeks ago

MSI Gaming has showed details of a Steam Deck-style handheld, via a brief teaser video on its Instagram account.

The first part of the video shows the front of the device in a dark space, with only the offset sticks encircled by RGB light visible. It continues by showing details of the device's back, a red and black color scheme emblazoned with the MSI logo. The video's final frame shows a logo featuring multicolored claws and the text "#MSIxCES2024." The caption reads "A whole new breed of MSI dragon is coming. Get a grip and stay tuned." Presumably more details will release during CES from Jan 9-12. Price point and specs are currently unknown.

This is far from the first Steam Deck competitor to emerge. The ROG Ally released in June 2023 for $700 and was eventually joined by a cheaper $600 version. The Ally also has native Game Pass support, as it runs Windows. The Lenovo Legion Go uses the same AMD chip set as the Ally and has a similar price point at $700. However, it also has a bigger screen and removable controllers (a la the Switch's Joy-Cons).

The Steam Deck itself got an OLED upgrade last year. While they are still in stock, original LCD versions of the Steam Deck are on discount.

Author
Grace Benfell

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Amazon Prime Members Can Grab 4 Free Games In January 2024

2 months 2 weeks ago

To start off 2024, Amazon Prime members can become one of the last foxes on the planet, relax with a beekeeping sim, or explore a bit of Atari history with four free titles in the Prime Gaming January lineup. To claim these experiences, follow the usual steps on the Prime Gaming hub.

In addition, Amazon is offering new Amazon Luna games to check out this month at the same hub. The new catalog of free cloud-based titles for Prime members consists of Control: Ultimate Edition, Kitaria Fables, Wonder Boy: The Dragon's Trap, Young Souls, Trackmania, and Fortnite. These are all available now.

Prime Gaming lineup for January 2024

January 4

  • Endling - Extinction Is Forever (Amazon Games app)

January 11

  • Apico (Amazon Games app)

January 18

  • Atari Mania (Epic Games Store)

January 25

  • Yars: Recharged (Epic Games Store)

The Prime offerings begin now with Endling - Extinction Is Forever, which won a BAFTA last year for the Game Beyond Entertainment category. It's an environmentally conscious game that sees players becoming the last known mother fox on the planet trying to find a home for her three pups. Endling was added today to Prime Gaming.

Author
Evan Campbell

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The Metal Gear Solid 3 Remake Is Coming Out This Year

2 months 2 weeks ago

Metal Gear Solid fans won't have to wait much longer to climb that extremely hazardous ladder again in the upcoming Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater remake. Although it doesn't have a release date, it's scheduled to come out sometime this year.

The news comes from a video posted by the official PlayStation YouTube channel, where the company shared a two-minute clip of some of the biggest games coming to its platform this year. The video featured games that are already confirmed for 2024, such as Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth, Tekken 8, Helldivers II, and more. As the video nears its end, it's confirmed that Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater will come out later this year.

What's especially notable is that Konami, the company behind Metal Gear, hasn't commented on when the upcoming Metal Gear remake will come out. It's also worth pointing out that this wasn't the only Konami game that got a release window. The same video also confirmed that the Silent Hill 2 remake will be coming out later this year.

Although not much is known about the upcoming Metal Gear remake--titled Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater--we do know that it'll feature some of the original cast to some degree and will be playable on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S.

Author
Luis Joshua Gutierrez

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Former Nintendo Employees Predict When They Think Switch 2 Will Be Announced And What It Will Be

2 months 2 weeks ago

Former Nintendo employees Kit Ellis and Krysta Yang have weighed in with their thoughts on the next Nintendo console, including a prediction for when it could be announced and what the system might be.

In a video outlining their predictions for 2024, both Ellis and Yang agreed in their prediction that the Switch successor will be announced in the first half of 2024. Yang believes it will be announced in Q1, which runs January-March this year.

Yang said the timing of the announcement could be tied to Nintendo's next financial year, which begins on April 1, 2024. "Based on hardware patterns from the past, it does seem like you want to get an official announcement out before the end of the fiscal year, so you can remain really strong with your shareholders," Yang said.

Ellis, for his part, said he believes Nintendo management now more meaningfully considers its shareholders, including what they think and how they feel. He said this is a marked change from the past.

When will the next console be released? Yang said she believes it will be revealed in June or July, with marketing ramping up in April-May. She predicted stock for the Switch successor will be constrained at launch, but she expects these problems to be sorted out before the holiday shopping season. Ellis said he generally agreed with Yang's thoughts on when the console might launch, saying he believes it will be out by September 1.

Author
Eddie Makuch

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GTA Online Brings Back Peyote, Lets You Transform Into A Cow

2 months 2 weeks ago

GTA Online will now let you become a wildlife photographer and get so high you transform.

Animals were recently added to the Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5 versions of GTA Online (they've been in the single player since launch). Now you can take photos of them to earn in-game rewards. In a new Daily Collectable called Wildlife Photography, you can take pictures of up to three different animals. Despite the name, animals included can be either domesticated or wild. Taking one picture for the challenge will unlock the ability to purchase the new Declasse Park Ranger. Taking 10 photo will unlock the vehicle's trade price.

In other animal news, you can find Peyote plants out in the wilds. Ingesting them will cause you to change shape into an animal like a deer or a cow. These will only be available for a limited time, just like prior times Peyote has been added to GTA Online. You can always use the plant in single player.

As for other modes and rewards, you can steal the Lampadati Casco, Enus Deity, and Vapid Ellie for Salvage Yard Robberies. Adjustments have been made to Payphone Hits. The payout for assassinations is lower, but the cooldown between hits has been reduced to 10 minutes. You can also earn 2X GTA$ and RP in Rockstar-created Stunt Races, Junk Energy Time Trials, and HAW Races through January 10.

Grand Theft Auto V will be leaving Game Pass later this month. The first trailer for Grand Theft Auto VI debuted early after a leak in December 2023.

You can read the full details of the update on Rockstar's official website.

Author
Grace Benfell

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Heroes Of The Storm Is, Sort Of, Receiving New Content In The Form Of A Starcraft 2 Mod

2 months 2 weeks ago

Active development on Heroes of the Storm, Blizzard's MOBA starring heroes and villains from across its iconic game franchises, ended in 2022, but one group of dedicated fans is bringing the game back in a big way.

It's called Resurgence of the Storm, and it's a free mod for Blizzard's own Starcraft 2, albeit one that completely transforms the RTS into something that is near indistinguishable from the official Blizzard-made version of Heroes of the Storm. Unlike Heroes of the Storm, which is still playable but no longer receives new content (but does occasionally receive some minor balance updates and bug fixes), Resurgence of the Storm features never-before-seen heroes, updated talents and abilities for some existing heroes, and even a content roadmap. The mod has been in development for over four years and is now officially available to the public.

Author
Cameron Koch

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The Number of 2023 Steam Releases Is Too Damn High

2 months 2 weeks ago

2023 has quickly been inserted into the discussion for the year with the best selection of new game releases, with games like Baldur's Gate 3, The Legend Of Zelda: Tears Of The Kingdom, and Alan Wake 2 headlining the year. For Steam users in particular, there's a lot to consider, as reports say over 14,000 games launched on the service last year.

SteamDB, an independent site dedicated to analyzing Steam activity, states that 14,535 unique games launched on the platform in 2023, which marks a nearly 2,000-game increase from the previous year. VGC, via Circana (formerly NPD), also notes that Steam's 14,000+ launch figure dwarfs the second-place platform--the Nintendo Switch, which saw 2,360 games added to its library.

The number of new releases on Steam is staggering when compared to a decade before; 2013 saw only 435 new Steam games for the entire year. It also nearly doubles the service's output in 2018, when 8,900 games were launched.

In math terms: If you attempted to play every game that launched on Steam last year, you would have had to play video games every minute of every day of 2023. Oh, and you'd only be able to dedicate, at maximum, 37 minutes of playing time to each game.

2024 doesn't seem to be slowing down either, as SteamDB reports nearly 100 games have already launched as of the writing of this sentence, with the number set to eclipse the century mark by the end of the day. Notable Steam launches in January 2024 include Tekken 8, Like A Dragon: Infinite Wealth, and Enshrouded.

Author
Jason Fanelli

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Star Citizen Now Selling $48,000 Bundle That Includes Every Ship

2 months 2 weeks ago

Cloud Imperium Games is selling a new DLC bundle for the spacefaring game Star Citizen that will set you back the cost of a fancy new real-life car. The Legatus 2953 bundle, as it's called, includes every ship in the game, along with a variety of extras. The cost? $48,000.

The bundle comes with more than 175 ships from every one of the game's many manufacturers, which the developer said should allow players to "forge a lasting legacy, leading humanity towards a brighter future." It includes weapons and cosmetics as well. Nearly all of the content is available now, except for the Karna Ascension rifle, which will be released sometime during Q1 2024 (January-March).

Cloud Imperium Games has sold these type of bundles since 2018. As PC Gamer reminds us, the first iteration of the bundle was priced at $27,000, and now it's scaled to almost double that. The site also reported that players need to have already spent $1,000 on Star Citizen to buy the Legatus 2953 bundle. That's because the premium offering is apparently only available to people in the Chairman's Club.

Star Citizen alpha 3.21, the newest version of the game, is available now on PC. The developer is releasing the game on an ongoing basis, with more features and functionality introduced over time. A standalone single-player game, Squadron 42, is also in development but doesn't have a release date yet. The game recently crossed a major development milestone, becoming feature-complete in October 2023.

Author
Eddie Makuch

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