In today's contest, we're giving out four-day passes to PAX East in Boston!
Hey! How ya doin'? I'm Wes, and I'm here to give away PAX East tickets! Why? Because I can, that's why!
We've got four-day tickets up for grabs so you can experience all the games, news, reveals, demos, videos, and smells that gaming conventions are known for. So, whaddaya waitin' for?!
It's getting harder and harder to put off playing Subnautica: Below Zero, a game I know I'll immediately fall in love with but would ideally rather dive into once it's finished and out of Early Access. I'm at the point now where I'm even considering starting up a fresh save in the original game – I'm that far gone!
The latest update for Subnautica: Below Zero, the Lost Ship update, might be the final push I need. It adds a cute little Trivalve companion that you can pet (not unlike Subnautica's beloved Cuddlefish).
Along with "polish and improvements" to biomes like Lilypad Islands and Thermal Spires, there's a split-apart sunken vessel to explore. One of the creepiest parts of Subnautica is combing through wreckage only to get turned around, run low on oxygen, and panic when you can't find your way back out.
Ice formations called Brinicles, plump Deep Lilypads, and Aurora Borealis round out the update.
Unknown Worlds also warned that the Lost Ship update is our last chance to play Below Zero's current story before the studio takes another stab at it in the next game update. I'm feeling the pressure!
One of the better (and most modern) Assassin's Creed games is free right now. As part of Epic's weekly free offerings on the Epic Games Store, 2015's Assassin's Creed Syndicate is up for grabs at no cost to you. If you slept on it, give it a whirl.
If you're getting a sense of déjà vu, that's because we already told you about this earlier in the week. But, it's actually live now, ready to be downloaded and enjoyed. A little nudge never hurt anyone. (Also, think of all the poor souls who don't read every single article on Destructoid. They deserve a second chance at a heads-up, even if they're monsters.)
Let's double down on the PSA. While you're at it, deck-building strategy game Faeria is also free. Want a triple dose of intel? Next week, heady cosmic exploration game InnerSpace is free. It's described as "A game about exploration, about player-driven moments both small and grandiose. Take your time, soar through the skies and dive through the oceans, and the secrets of the Inverse will reveal themselves." Quite the whiplash from stabbing thousands of Englishmen through the neck.
Assassin's Creed Syndicate, Faeria [Epic Games Store]
KeyWe is way too cute. It's a cooperative puzzle-platformer about a pair of flightless birds who are trying their absolute best to manage a chaotic postal office and get messages where they need to go.
Also, they're named Jeff and Debra. I can't cope! They're so precious.
KeyWe is coming to PC and Mac in 2021 "for sure," according to Stonewheat & Sons, but the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One versions are stuck in "we hope!" limbo for the time being.
I'm seriously late to the party on this one – it's been known about for a good long while, as evidenced by the most recent trailer, posted back in April 2019 – but I've got to do what I can to spread the word.
If you're attending PAX East this month in Boston, you can try KeyWe at booth #30071.
Borderlands is a popular video game franchise because of all the video game things it does well. It's an excellent shooter, it scratches a cooperative social itch, and it overwhelms players with a staggering amount of loot. The things it struggles with -- story, dialogue, anything that isn't shooting -- are the exact reasons it'd be a tough adaption to anything outside of an interactive medium. Yet, Borderlands is being turned into a movie anyway.
Lionsgate has announced that it's moving forward with a Borderlands film that has Eli Roth attached as the director. Roth (Hostel, Thanksgiving) says "I look forward to bringing my own energy, ideas, and vision to the wild, fun, and endlessly creative world of the game. Randy Pitchford and everyone at Gearbox have been incredibly supportive of my ideas -- it really feels like a perfect storm of creators coming together. We are out to make a new classic, one which the fans of the game will love, but also one which will find new audiences globally." Pitchford is attached as an executive producer.
Even though Lionsgate hasn't talked about the story of the Borderlands movie, each game generally tells the same narrative: A group of Vault Hunters try their damnedest to open a Vault on Pandora (and beyond). It feels all but assured that the film will follow that same formula.
Here's a cool thing: If you're getting Cyberpunk 2077 on Steam, you'll also be able to play the game on launch day with Nvidia's GeForce Now. The service has free and paid options, and lets players stream supported titles to "nearly any laptop, desktop, Mac, Shield TV, or Android mobile device."
Nvidia didn't have much else to add – reminder: Cyberpunk 2077 was recently delayed and it's not coming until September 17 – but $4.99-per-month Founder players can benefit from RTX. The game will be "fully optimized and instantly available, even on your Mac laptop," according to Nvidia.
As for potential GOG compatibility with GeForce Now, something a fan asked about on Twitter, we'll see. Nvidia simply said it's "always looking for new ways to support the games you love and play."
The one hurdle holding me back from trying GeForce Now is my monthly data cap, which worries me to no end when it comes to lengthy streaming-based play sessions. Otherwise, I'd be all over it.
I've seen people mention Cyberpunk 2077 as their possible intro to Google Stadia, so this is a big deal.
Cyberpunk 2077 Coming To GeForce Now [Nvidia]
We are just over a month away from the western release of expanded JRPG Persona 5 Royal. Publisher Atlus has decided to give everyone a quick "crash course" into the weird, colourful, and often scary world of The Phantom Thieves, in a new six-minute trailer offering a summary of the Persona 5 universe.
Narrated by mouthy moggy Morgana and new gal Kasumi Yoshizawa, the video explains the roles of personas, The Phantom Thieves, confidants, and the Metaverse. Our hosts then look at some of Persona 5 Royal's new content, including The Thieves Den, the new grappling hook ability, hot doc Maruki, the mysterious Jose, and the new Kichijoji district.
The fact Morgana can summarise this jive in a six-minute video further begs the question as to why the Persona 5 itself expositions these concepts repeatedly for HOURS UPON HOURS over the course of its mammoth playtime.
Persona 5 Royal launches March 31 on PS4. School's back in session.
Much like Natalie Imbruglia, Respawn Entertainment was torn. The studio knew that Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order needed a few more tweaks and some polish, and then it'd be the best it could be. Conversely, the ship date was rapidly approaching and everyone was really against a delay that wasn't 100 percent necessary.
EA had lofty hopes for Jedi: Fallen Order's sales -- between six and eight million copies before the end of the fiscal year, which seemed ambitious for a singleplayer narrative-driven game, even one that carries the Star Wars branding -- and that wouldn't be realistic if it were pushed back to the spring. So, Respawn carried on, launching on-time in November despite technical hiccups.
In a recent interview with USgamer, Respawn CEO Vince Zampella admits that talks of a delay were entertained, saying "Yeah, it was a conversation that we had and we decided that we wanted the game out there, we wanted to get it, you know, being out for the holiday." Apart from holiday sales, Zampella pointed to the launch of Disney+, the Mandalorian series, and the premiere of The Rise of Skywalker as reasons why it made sense to ensure there's a new Star Wars game on shelves.
NIS America will release a localised demo for its retro-remake Langrisser I & II today. The demo, expected to be an English-language version of the previously released Japanese demo, is live on PS4 and Nintendo Switch, ahead of the game's official release in March.
Those checking out the demo will gain access to several chapters from both titles, and will also bag themselves a bonus of 5,000 gold and 2 CP should they pick up the full game on release. The demo will also give players the opportunity to check out the Classic/Remastered art styles, which can be switched out at the mere press of a button.
We've seen so many video game adaptations of Warhammer 40,000 over the years, but this one still caught me off-guard. Warhammer 40,000: Dakka Squadron is a third-person aerial shooter about Orks.
Players will "fly Dakkajets, Burna-Bommas, and Blitza-Bommas, equip them with an array of guns, bombs, and missiles, learn special maneuvers, and unleash [their] dakka to conquer a galaxy riddled with ancient enemies." The campaign spans 20-some missions, and you'll also take on ground targets.
Based on the official site, it looks like there will be five clans in Dakka Squadron: the Blood Axes, Goffs, Bad Moons, Deathskulls, and Evil Sunz. Depending on which you choose, you'll have different bonuses like sturdier planes, higher speeds, faster afterburner recharging, and more explosive damage.
I know my pick! The Deathskulls "have lucky planes and will occasionally ignore a hit or will output critical damage." As much as RNG screws me in video games, I can't pass up chance-based abilities.
Who's making this game? That's always the question. Phosphor Games Studio is developing Warhammer 40,000: Dakka Squadron. The team's planning a Q4 2020 release on PC and consoles.
I'm not expecting anything too fancy here, but the premise alone is fun.
Devil May Cry 3 is a classic that is only rivaled by the most recent entry and a few other heavy-hitting action projects like both Bayonettas and Ninja Gaiden Black. It's a game that demands respect despite the fact that it's over 15 years old. The thing is, I was afraid Capcom would rush it to the eShop and ruin its re-introduction to a whole new audience, kind of like how they did with the polarizing HD Collections and the first two over-priced Switch ports.
Thanks to some actual new and impactful additions, that's not the case. But it also clearly cements the expectation that Capcom should be putting forth the same amount of effort for other ports if they're going to be charging so much for them.
Granblue Fantasy: Versus might not be out on these shores just yet, but Arc System Works is all ready to drop the beautiful fighter's first DLC character. The Chaos Bringer himself, Beelzebub, will be made available to purchase worldwide on March 3, which also happens to be GF:V's North American launch date.
Having spent thousands of years sealed away in Pandemonium for his invasive acts, Beelzebub is awakened by the fallen angel, Belial. Returning to his chaotic ways, Beelzebub immediately continues to his endless quest to become the one supreme being, supported by Avatar, the embodiment of destruction, and rocking some frankly fucking amazing hair.
In case you weren't aware, Gearbox has been running the Vault Insider Program for Borderlands 3 for a while, which led into the release of the newest entry.
It's a hub of sorts where you can log in and earn free stuff by linking your accounts together and unlocking items with points: well, it was, at least. Gearbox has just announced that they are ending the program, which will shut down on May 18, 2020 at exactly 11:59PM PT. The studio warns players to spend all of their VIP Points before that date because after that, they're gone.
The end seems final: "Currently, we have nothing to announce regarding alternate methods for receiving VIP reward items in the future." If you've never logged in before or need to clear out the rest of your points, check out this link right here. You can also find rewards, like new skins, heads and weapons, here.
These sorts of programs are relics in a way, much like the weird Resident Evil points hub: like extensions of those physical "Capcom Edge Points" you'd find on old PS1 discs.
Vault Insider Program [Gearbox]
Bandai Namco has released a lengthy gameplay trailer for the next DLC character en route to anime tag fighter Dragon Ball FighterZ. The four-minute-plus video (remember when these trailers were 60 seconds?) gives us an in-match showcase for one of the few women fighters joining the DBFZ roster, Kefla.
Kefla, the fusion of both Kale and Caulifla, is a supremely confident Saiyan fighter who made her debut in the Dragon Ball Super manga volume "Universe 6's Last Resort." As demonstrated in the video, Kefla's slight form gives her amazing speed, allowing not only for agility both on the ground and in the air, but also for rapid punches and Chun-Li-esque lightning legs.
The time has come: nearly every genre and facet of the eShop is getting some love today. Even the Wii U!
The huge game this week is indubitably Devil May Cry 3 Special Edition, which comes with all sorts of extras. The Mega Man Zero/ZX Legacy Collection is also coming on February 25, and One Finger Death Punch 2 is arriving on February 26.
Beyond that there's a whole lotta games! You know it's a big week when Samurai Shodown is just kind of tucked away in there.
The much-beleaguered Uncharted movie project continues to inch its way towards fruition. Recent reports suggest that Sony has bagged a new director for the project - the seventh to take on the adaptation - and that the movie will finally commence shooting in around four weeks' time.
Following on from Dan Trachtenberg, Shawn Levy, Travis Knight, and numerous other lensmen, new rumours point to Venom's Ruben Fleischer as being the new name to step into the directorial hot seat. Actors Tom Holland and Mark Wahlberg have long since signed on to the project, but numerous issues - mostly involving schedule conflict - have repeatedly delayed the film's shooting schedule.
Spider-Man star Holland still seems enthusiastic about the movie. "We start shooting in like four weeks," Holland told IGN. "Mark Wahlberg is going to be amazing as Sully, the stunt department that we have out there in Berlin have done an amazing job already prepping the stunts, and it's gonna be an exciting one... It's a pretty awesome movie, and it's global, we travel the world. We see some amazing places."
Uncharted is scheduled to release in theatres on March 5, 2021.
Uncharted movie set to start filmining in four weeks [gamesradar+]
Game Freak has been running all sorts of monthly events for Pokemon Sword and Shield, but they also keep the competitive train running from Sun and Moon, which has its own set of rewards.
This month The Pokemon Company is hosting another International Challenge event in-game, which helps players earn Championship Points on the road to the 2020 Pokemon World Championships. If giant eSports scenes aren't your thing, you can also just dive in and try your luck for a simple reward.
Just for participating and completing one battle, you'll unlock a "fashionable t-shirt" featuring our "good friend" (their words) Ball Guy: the new mascot of freebies in the Pokemon world. You have from today until February 27 at 3:59PM PT to register, so make sure and do that if you're a completionist.
The Pokemon Company also reminds everyone to link your Trainer Club registration with your Nintendo Account, or you won't be eligible for anything. Maybe do that now just in case! Oh, and now that Pokemon Home is in the mix, you can only use Galar region Pokemon to compete.
Enter the Pokemon Sword and Pokemon Shield International Challenge February Online Competition [Pokemon]
SNK will be getting the second season of its successful fighting title Samurai Shodown underway next week, launching the first DLC character of its second season pass, the spiritual Mina Majikina.
Making her debut in 2003's Samurai Shodown V, Mina is one of the more modern characters to join the SamSho roster, having been designed as a lead character for a "new era" of titles. In a particularly dark backstory, Mina was raised from birth to be a demon exorcist, but while out on a mission her family and entire village were destroyed by the demonic being, Chample - that cute little critter she's carrying in the trailer.
While the SSV ending implies that Mina kills Chample and then herself, it seems that we can simply ignore that bit of lore, as now Chample's demon form is kept sealed within his diminutive form, a pact that has cost Mina her right eye. Ironically, this vision impairment has helped hone Majikina's exquisite archery abilities in battle.
This week, Destructoid is made possible by KATANA KAMI: A Way of the Samurai Story, an isometric hack-and-slash dungeon crawler with over 100 different weapons, nine unique fighting styles, co-op, and the series' patented ability to betray or ally with the game's three factions. This is a sponsored post.
Ah, Way of the Samurai. Who doesn't remember the first time you immersed yourself into a riveting drama between warring factions, forged meaningful bonds with complex characters, then randomly attacked said characters because you wanted their fancy sword?
To celebrate the release of KATANA KAMI: A Way of the Samurai Story, let's voyage down memory lane for a quick refresher on the series.
All eyes were on today's Nintendo Direct to clear up a rather curious issue with save data backup for Animal Crossing: New Horizons, and the company didn't really deliver.
In the beginning of the Direct, Nintendo teased and frontloaded a special FAQ section, which went over various topics like families using the same Switch device, as well as amiibo support. But once they got to the save backup portion, it was kind of glossed over.
Very quickly, the voiceover noted that cloud backups were not available for Animal Crossing: New Horizons, and gave no promises for ever including them. However, in the case of damaged, or lost consoles, "a service will allow you to recover back up save data from the server." This service won't even be available when the game arrives: instead, it's coming "sometime after launch." Also, did you catch that tiny print that flashed on screen for a second or so? "Nintendo Switch Online members can only have save data recovered one time due to loss or damage of system."
So there you have it. Don't lose your console before this nebulous "after launch" timeline!
Today during the lengthy Animal Crossing: New Horizons Nintendo Direct, some of the game's major features were laid out ahead of the March launch. Although the bulk of the Direct mostly dealt with cute animal interactions and small nuances that hardcore fans will notice, there was an "FAQ" section at the end that touched on a few hard-hitting questions.
Nintendo cleared up the multiplayer aspect of the game, explaining just how families will share islands: "With one Switch system and a game, up to eight people can live on one island (which is the max). Each user can register one resident with its own house." To use tools like shovels and axes (which can ruin layouts and structures), you need to be flagged as a "best friend" (similar to a Real ID in Battle.net or another similar service).
The game will support amiibo figures and cards from the Animal Crossing series. Not a whole lot of detail was provided, but you can see all of the 100% confirmed figures and cards in the gallery below, which were shown off on the stream. Scanning an amiibo and having a character show up was teased, as was the Phototopia photo opp location (which is literally just photo shoots with cute animals). "More support" is coming later.
Free seasonal updates are also confirmed, including "Bunny Day" (Easter), which is arriving on the March 20 launch. That's in addition to an app called "Nook Link," that's coming in "March 2020," likely a little ahead of launch. You can get a look at teasers for all of those in the gallery below.
Finally, Nintendo reminds everyone that the official Twitter account will be providing the most up-to-date info for future events. I think we're all set for this thing to finally come out!
Animal Crossing: New Horizons is almost here, with just under a month to go until those pre-loads unlock. Literally! As in, roughly under a month and mere hours, New Horizons will launch and we'll all be able to collectively live in another world for months and years to come.
But before that happens, Nintendo has some news to give us. What could they possibly tell us all that they haven't already? Well, we'll find out in this 25-minute (!) Direct that's airing in just half an hour. The only info shared so far is that it will provide an "in-depth look at Nook Inc.'s Deserted Island Getaway Package," which is pretty much the premise of the game.
Although a lot of it is likely going to be fluff and inside Animal Crossing baseball info for the fans, I'm expecting some sort of acknowledgment of the wild "no save transfer" situation that's still being decided.
Right now Nintendo hasn't communicated that whole fiasco on a global scale: just the Japanese portion of their site. Some clarification would be appreciated. For the moment, be prepared to be overloaded with cuteness as we all watch the festivities together.
We've got a double-dipper in today's contest: Win either Marooners or Crash Drive 2 for Switch!
What's better than a contest featuring a free game? A contest featuring two free games! Duh.
We've outdone ourselves on this one -- we're giving away Switch copies of party games Marooners and Crash Drive 2 so you can have fun with your friends, family, neighbors, garbage men, and possibly even your local elected representatives. Look, I don't really care who you play with, just come win some free games, ok?
Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord has narrowed down its launch window to a launch day, a moment that's many, many long years in the making. The sprawling medieval RPG is releasing on March 31, 2020.
This should come as no surprise to Mount & Blade fans, but the sequel will run its course on Steam Early Access. The current timeline is "around a year," which seems optimistic, especially given TaleWorlds Entertainment's development philosophy. "Our focus is on ensuring that the game is fun and enjoyable rather than imposing a deadline that might have a negative impact on the final product."
At launch, the Early Access build of Bannerlord will have single-player story content and multiplayer.
In summary: "Players can create their own character using the game's character creation system; explore the continent of Calradia; gather their own warband of troops; command and fight alongside their troops in large scale battles using the game's extensive command system and intuitive skill-based directional combat system; raid settlements; lay siege to and capture enemy towns and castles; trade items and goods using the game's deep economy system; engage in politics and diplomacy; manage their own clan; upgrade and manage settlements; gather armies and wage war; and much, much more... all in a vast single-player sandbox setting where no two playthroughs are the same."
Shovel Knight is done -- dead and buried, six feet underground. Okay, maybe it was more ceremonious than that, but it's the only way the digging puns fit.
Yacht Club Games has spent nearly seven years on Shovel Knight, with the final expansion, King of Cards, launching last December. That's a long time to be creatively-chained to one ever-growing project. It's time for something new.
We'll get an update on Yacht Club's going-ons next Wednesday. On February 26 at 9am Pacific, Yacht Club is hosting its second Nintendo Direct-like livestream to keep us abreast of the studio's projects. It can be viewed on YouTube and Twitch.
Some expected topics are Cyber Shadow (a fast-paced side-scrolling platformer that will draw comparisons to Ninja Gaiden, and developed by Mechanical Head Studios) and Shovel Knight Dig (a Shovel Knight spin-off in the vein of Dig Dug which is being primarily developed by Nitrome, not Yacht Club). Of course, there are promises of "surprises you've never seen."
Game Freak has announced that its think-'em-up RPG Little Town Hero is coming to PS4 in June, and will receive a similar physical release to its Nintendo Switch brethren in the form of the Little Town Hero: Big Idea Edition.
Released back in October of last year, Little Town Hero is a cutesy adventure game which sees a bored young boy name Ax finally embark upon the exciting escapades he has long dreamed of when a gaggle of ghastly monsters invade his quaint, sleepy village. No match for the invaders in terms of physical strength, Ax and his friends must drive the enemy back using the games "ideas" mechanic, implying adaptation and forward-thinking over rage-fueled sword-swinging. You can check out our own Adzuken's review right here.
Biomutant is one of the more out-there mainstream-facing games I've seen in the last few years, and ever since playing a brief preview build, I've wanted to know more. The open-world action-RPG blends a lot of different styles and influences in a way that's messy, and textured, but still undeniably fun.
I'm not the only one who's curious to know what's up with Biomutant. It's been unusually quiet, which tends to spur a sense of dread. The developer, Experiment 101, recently broke its silence.
In a statement posted to Twitter, the studio said it knows fans are getting antsy – and to hold tight. "We are doing everything we can to make this the best game all of us have ever worked on," the post said.
"We can only hope for your continued support and patience as we complete the final stages of its development. As some of you might understand or know, the work involved in finishing a game is long, challenging, and unpredictable. The sheer magnitude, size, and length of Biomutant adds to said effort."
"We will reveal the release date as soon as everyone at our studio feels confident about hitting that date and that the game is ready for it," the developer continued. "Again, thank you for your understanding and for your continued support and enthusiasm for our game."
If everything comes together like I hope it will, I think Biomutant is going to catch people off-guard.
It's been at least six or so days since I got to write about a Persona 5 Scramble: The Phantom Strikers video, and frankly, I was starting to get cold sweats. Fortunately, Atlus has come through with what is the musou-like's third official trailer - provided you don't can't the intro movie, character trailers, Morgana Reports, and live streams.
The trailer blends both cinematic and gameplay footage from the new adventure, which is just one day away from being in the hands of Japanese audiences. This video mostly focuses on new characters Sophia and Zenkichi Hasegawa and, while they've all been presented out of context, appears to be a little spoilery for my tastes, Atlus has never been one for "less is more" when it comes to any element of the Persona franchise.
There's a lot of quality running rampant through PlayStation latest sale, and that's kind of the idea. The Essential Picks event is supposed to be a sale of games that need to be on your hard drive. Bloodborne, Uncharted 4, inFamous Second Son, The Witcher 3, Red Dead Redemption 2, Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order -- there's some truly good stuff here.
But, there are also some stinkers that aren't "essential" by any definition of the word. WWE 2K20 is, alphabetically-speaking, the very last game on the list. In terms of merit, it's probably also the very last game on the list. Do not buy the clown show that is WWE 2K20. (Although, at least it works again, unlike January 1 when WWE 2K20 had its own bizarre Y2K scare.)
So, I will let you be the arbiter of quality. You can decide what's essential and what's inferior. Sony is running this PS4 sale until March 3, so you have ample time to figure it out.
Here's everything in the PlayStation Essential Picks Sale:
Did you ever have one of those old Tiger Electronics LCD handheld games?
I did! I don't know where it came from (a garage sale?), or where it went (another garage sale?), but I had the Sonic the Hedgehog 3 LCD game. It's something I haven't thought about in years, but it's suddenly relevant again. Hasbro is bringing a few of the Tiger handhelds back in 2020 for nostalgia's sake.
The Tiger handhelds will cost $14.99 this fall, and they're currently up for pre-order at GameStop.
I wouldn't necessarily buy one – they were short-lived thrills, even back in the day – but I still appreciate their iconic background art. I asked Chris if he ever owned one, and he came back with a whole list of games that triggered long-lost memories. I forgot just how pervasive these things were!
Tiger's retro LCD handheld games are making a comeback [The Verge]
Beenox is capping off Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled with one final event – the Gasmoxia Grand Prix – on February 20, 2020, at 7:00 a.m. Pacific. If you've only dabbled in these high-stakes online events over the last eight months, it'll be tough to show up now and compete against battle-hardened players who never put the game down. That said, you might want to log in to try some newly-added time trials.
The Gasmoxia Grand Prix includes a new track (Drive-Thru Danger), another playable character (Emperor Velo), and three new karts (the Void Manta, Velo Chopper, and Galactic Cruiser), along with Pit Stop cosmetic items like Space Spyro and Astronaut Kong. Here's the full reward rundown:
As for time trials, there's a couple of things to note.
Every track will have a Nitros Oxide and Emperor Velo time trial to beat, and once the Gasmoxia Grand Prix wraps up, the developers at Beenox plan to post their personal bests. That's when things really get scary. If you manage to outpace Nitros and Velo, you'll earn champion decals for your trouble.
Beenox also confirmed that Gasmoxia is the "final opportunity" to unlock the Champion Kart. As usual, the kart is given to players in the top five percent of the Grand Prix leaderboards. It's now or never.
I've skipped all of the DLC for Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order so far (one: the game is on my back-burner, and two: despite cool characters, the content seems uninspired and stale), but I might have to make an exception for the final release of the season pass, Fantastic Four: Shadow of Doom.
As confirmed this morning by Nintendo, the Doctor Doom-centric DLC is releasing on March 26, 2020. If you already got Rise of the Phoenix and Curse of the Vampire, well, it won't be much longer. I'm at a burned-out point with Ultimate Alliance 3 where I need a gameplay or story shakeup – preferably both!
One of my most-worn t-shirts as a kid prominently featured Doctor Doom, so I kinda can't pass this up even if it's more of the same. I guess if I'm getting Shadow of Doom, I might as well go all-in.
Doom has some of the best out-of-context comic panels around.
We all know the Final Fantasy VII Remake is going to be a bit different. We've seen new faces, remixed faces, and Midgar as a whole is going to feel a lot bigger.
While we've already seen some of those changes in the form of the summons shown off so far, Final Fantasy VII Remake is adding a few completely new ones into the mix on top of the Chocobo Chick: Carbuncle (who shields the party) and Cactuar (who fires off its signature 1000 Needles attack). Shown by way of the game's official Twitter account, you can see all three of them in action. But there's a catch.
Chocobo Chick is a pre-order bonus for everyone, Carbuncle is a First Class/Digital Deluxe exclusive, and Cactuar is a Digital Deluxe/physical exclusive. While Cactuars started off as regular old enemies they eventually evolved to a new plane of existence entirely, becoming a mascot of sorts for the series. Carbuncle has also shot up in cachet in recent years, having hosted a big-deal Final Fantasy XV demo.
Boston's preeminent video game convention will be one major exhibitor lighter than usual. Sony just announced that it's pulling out of PAX East due to safety/health concerns raised by the coronavirus outbreak.
In an update to its previous PAX East plans, Sony said "Today, Sony Interactive Entertainment made the decision to cancel its participation at PAX East in Boston this year due to increasing concerns related to COVID-19 (also known as 'novel coronavirus'). We felt this was the safest option as the situation is changing daily. We are disappointed to cancel our participation in this event, but the health and safety of our global workforce is our highest concern."
The PAX East PlayStation booth was set to have hands-on opportunities with a lot of highly-anticipated first- and third-party games on PS4 including: The Last of Us Part II, Final Fantasy VII Remake, Nioh 2, MLB The Show 20, Persona 5 Royal, Predator: Hunting Grounds, and Spelunky 2.
Hello Games has released the latest in a long line of updates for its interplanetary exploration title No Man's Sky. Along with a huge list of bug fixes and mechanical tweaks, the "Living Ship" update adds some very strange new vessels, ships which are, as the name suggests, organic creatures in and of themselves.
These organic and sentient vessels can be added to your fleet, allowing you the chance to explore their pretty unsettling interiors in full VR. Hope you like tentacles and tendrils. The origins of these creatures will be explored in an all-new story mission, Starbirth, which will let you incubate, grow, and birth your own living ship... Annnd we're done with lunch.
For a second, I didn't believe that the below video really was a Minecraft creation, but it all becomes clear.
So here's the thing: it looks like they're just showing footage of Metroid Fusion. But at 0:30, the camera pulls back and you slowly see that the entire framework of the game is inside of a Minecraft build in creator mode. Created by redditor Nyubug, the way it works is through a 1024x1024 image that can store 256 64x64 sprites. According to them, it is playable and not just a short film.
Platformer advancements in Minecraft have come a really long way. Roughly seven years ago, fans were trying to use rudimentary tools and gadgets to simulate boxes jumping and moving. Now we have this. Astounding. Metroid Fusion is also a prime candidate for testing, as it's become of the more forgotten Metroid games in recent years.
THQ Nordic has announced that it plans to release a remake of classic RPG Gothic on PC and next-gen consoles. The news comes months after the success of a short playable teaser, which was used to ascertain whether there would be suitable interest in the project from the community.
Released on PC in 2001, Gothic is an epic role-playing adventure in which the player assumes the role of a slave who, against the backdrop of a war-torn fantasy world, takes an opportunity to cast off his shackles and rise above his oppressors. Gothic launched to positive press and would go on to spawn two sequels as well as some spin-off titles.
Some 180,000 players checked out the Gothic Playable Teaser, before filling out a questionnaire in which almost 95% of players expressed great interest in a remake. It is believed that THQ Nordic will hand development of Gothic to a new studio based in Spain. No release date was mentioned, but the remake will not be arriving anytime this year.
Gothic remake announced for next-gen consoles, PC [Gematsu]
Just last month during a polarizing Byleth Smash Ultimate reveal, Smash head honcho Masahiro Sakurai revealed a second Fighter's (Season) Pass.
In short, it will have one additional fighter in its pass system (bringing the count from five in Volume 1 to six), and will run "through the end of 2021." At the time, fans assumed this was an end date of sorts for Ultimate, and based on a new Famitsu interview, it might be.
Speaking to Famitsu (as translated by PushDustIn), Sakurai explains that "there are no other plans" for another pass after the second one. It's a very simple statement, but it's a meaningful one. He also notes that there are "no plans" for a follow-up to Smash Ultimate right now, but with nearly 20 million copies sold just on one console, Nintendo won't leave that money on the table.
He follows that up by re-iterating that Nintendo decides who to bring in as DLC, and that while working on Smash full-time doesn't allow him to be as free as he would like with original ideas, it makes him happy to make everyone else happy. For now, he will "give it his all" for the last six fighters.
It's crazy to think the end is coming for Smash Ultimate, but we have nearly two years until that happens. For now, we wait to see how many Fire Emblem and Pokemon characters are taking up those six slots.
Smash Ultimate [Famitsu via Ryokutya2089]
Street Fighter V fans were on tenterhooks this week with the sudden news that a "netcode adjustment" was headed to their favourite fighting game, assuming that some of the lag problems plaguing Capcom's fighter were finally about to be put down for the count.
But now the patch is live, it is being reported that said adjustment has blocked a fan-made fix to the problem. The PC mod, created by Reddit user Altimor, worked by attempting to closer sync packet speeds between opponents, thus preventing the "teleporting" problem that SFV has been facing online. While many celebrated the success of the mod, including notable FGC names, others were concerned that it caused slowdown, and that it might give PC players an unfair advantage during cross-play with PS4 players.
So when Street Fighter Producer Yoshinori Ono announced last week that the "netcode adjustment" was incoming, fans naturally - or perhaps optimistically - assumed that Altimor's mod had forced Capcom's hand, pushing the developer to take action and fix the online woes itself.
So The Witcher 3 is kind of turning heads in the Switch port community: we even talked about it yesterday!
Although Panic Button has a choke hold on the Switch port market other studios are known to do some great work, and Saber Interactive (who is also responsible for the Vampyr port) is part of that list. Not only did fans notice it, but THQ Nordic's parent company (Embracer Group) did as well, which is why they offered them $150 million, minimum (up to $375m if conditions are met), to join. Saber agreed to be acquired, and will work for the increasingly powerful Embracer/THQ empire.
But it wasn't just the Switch ports that led Embracer to pull the trigger: Saber Interactive also worked on the financially successful 2019 shooter World War Z, and has provided background work for games like Quake Champions. In fact, founder and CEO of Embracer Lars Wingefors even calls out World War Z specifically as one of the reasons why Saber was grabbed.
Matthew Karch, co-founder for Saber, states that throughout the company's 19-year history, they have had "its share of suitors," but decided to pull the trigger with Embracer. This is just another bold move for Embracer as a whole, who now runs a combined 92 studios both internally and externally, after the acquisition of Saber's eight.
Embracer Group acquires Saber Interactive [Cision] Thanks Rick!
