Welcome to Morning Music, Kotaku’s new, daily hangout for folks who love video games and the cool-ass sounds they make. Today’s pick comes out of left field: an obscure PlayStation 2 puzzler that randomly happens to have an achingly gorgeous soundtrack.
Click to watch embedded media Marvel's Avengers is here and to celebrate, we're going live to show off the game's opening hours and see what changes Crystal Dynamics has made since our time with the beta.
We went live earlier but be sure to check out the full archive of the stream above! If you can't get enough of our live shows, remember to subscribe on YouTube, Twitch, Twitter, and Facebook to get notified when we go live each week!
Intel’s Gamer Days deals continue this week with discounts aplenty across a whole range of retailers, and the next one I wanted to highlight is this gaming desktop deal from Scan UK. They’ve currently slashed £150 off their 3XS Arctic Evo RTX PC, taking this normally £1650 desktop down to £1500. Inside, you get one of Intel’s brand-new Core i7-10700K CPUs as well as an RTX 2070 Super graphics card, and it also comes with a free code for Marvel’s Avengers when it launches on September 4th.
Stardew Valley is packed enough on its own: so much so that I haven't really sought out the comfort of mods. But the modding scene has been incredibly robust ever since the game hit the market, to the point where just about anyone can whip up their own custom scenario. Enter this marriage proposal.
Posted on Reddit this past week by Chubbyloveshinobi, the scene is short and sweet, and apparently happened a couple of months ago. They say that the now-fiance actually proposed in real life, too, after the in-game event. What would have happened if they hit "no" in the game?
Chubbyloveshinobi says they are getting married next week. Good luck! This is the sort of thing we all need to be seeing more of right now.
I don't know if this will present right [Reddit]
Electronic Arts left Steam nine years ago to do their own thing with Origin, but over the last few months their games have been returning. Now, their subscription service, EA Play, is on Valve’s platform, too, allowing you to play games like the Dragon Age series, Battlefield V, and more on Steam for a monthly or yearly fee. It’s not just the old stuff EA are letting Steam have though, because you’ll be able to access some of the publisher’s new releases through the service as well.
The curtain has fallen on the crowdfunding campaign for retro-infused RPG Eiyuden Chronicle. From a $500,000 target, developer Rabbit & Bear Studios successfully secured over $4.5 million USD in capital from just over 45,000 backers.
This incredible figure registers as the third-highest final total for a video game in Kickstarter history, behind Izanagi Games' Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night ($5.5 million) and Ys. Net's Shenmue III ($6.3 million). Backers have smashed through a slew of stretch goals, securing extra maps and fortresses, voice acting, multiple language support, extra characters, mini-games, and many other fun features for the base adventure.
In addition, passing the $4.5 million mark has secured a standalone "companion game," which in this case will be a town-building/management sim co-created with Natsume-Atari. The companion title is expected to launch well in advance of Eiyuden Chronicle, and will not only star some of the main adventure's cast, but will give players the opportunity to get a head-start on crafting items and armour ahead of Eiyuden Chronicle's launch, tentatively set for 2022.
Gundam models have excellent box art. Twitter user Cody has brought classic mecha art to life with a three-dimensional plastic model.
After a rocky launch for Pokémon Go's big new Mega Evolution feature, developer Niantic has promised to address widespread fan criticism of its implementation.
At present, Mega Evolution is temporary (as it is in Pokémon's main series games) but requires a consumable resource named Mega Energy to unlock and continue using. This is primarily obtained from Go's new tier of Pokémon raids.
Fans have said Mega Energy is being doled out too sparingly, which means a large number of raids are required to unlock each Mega Evolution. The rewards from each raid (a non-Mega Pokémon without its best moveset) and the requirement to battle it with as many people as possible to earn more Mega Energy have also been criticised.
Magic: The Gathering is showing no signs of stopping anytime soon, and we're about to zoom headfirst into yet another set. But before we all crack open Zendikar Rising boosters together, Wizards of the Coast has announced a ton of new sets: basically filing their entire schedule throughout 2021.
First up, Zendikar is scheduled to be released on September 17 in Arena, with a September 25 release in tabletop form (the physical delay of previous sets like Ikoria seems to be over). Wizards has revealed new art for the set today, which includes Jace, Nahiri and Nissa planeswalker cards. The Kicker and Landfall keywords are also in, as are double-faced cards and the party mechanic.
But beyond that, a lot more is coming to Magic. Kaldheim (vikings) will enter the arena, as well as Strixhaven ("the most elite university in the Multiverse") in spring of 2021, Adventures of the Forgotten Realms (billed as "Dungeons & Dragons comes to Magic) in summer 2021 and Innistrad (across two named sets: this is the world of vampires and werewolves, a fan favorite) in fall of 2021. Time Spiral Remastered and Modern Horizons 2 are also teased, as well as new Secret Lair drops: including one that's "an exciting collaboration with AMC's hit show The Walking Dead."
Oh, and Magic: Arena is re-confirmed for mobile today, with more news "coming soon." Like I said, it's a big day for Magic! There's tons of new sets to look forward to with some classic sets returning, as well as hope on the horizon for meaningful news regarding Magic on mobile devices.
Get a look at some cards, and the timeline, below!
About a fortnight ago, Fall Guys developer Mediatonic began pitting brands against each other in a bidding war to get their skin design in the game, with proceeds going to video game charity Special Effect. And after a fierce battle that included bids from Warframe and even a bidet company (complete with an "ask me about my butthole" t-shirt), we now have a winner. Or several.
Totalling a whopping $1m (£744k), the combined bid comes from Tyler "Ninja" Blevins, Jimmy "MrBeast" Donaldson, G2 Esports and Aim Lab, who will each get their own costume design added to the game. On top of this, the quartet has announced they will soon host a charity stream to raise even more money for Special Effect.
Special Effect is a charity dedicated to making video games accessible for those with physical disabilities, and helps create custom controls adapted to each individual's needs. Recently the charity uploaded a video of eight-year-old Theo and his setup for Fall Guys, which includes a special joystick and buttons combo to make the game easier for him to play. Special Effect thanked the donors, and said the Fall Guys contribution would "enable us to continue making gaming dreams come true for people with physical disabilities around the world".
Millions of Monster Energy drink cans with Halo Infinite double XP codes and cosmetic gun skins are now rolling onto shop shelves - even though you won't be able to use that sweet, sweet loot until some point next year.
Halo Infinite was meant to be Microsoft's big Xbox Series X launch title, released in just a couple of months' time. Alas, that is no longer the case.
But this delay clearly came too late to stop the Monster Energy train. Cans boasting double XP codes are rolling onto US shop shelves from today, 1st September, and will be available here in the UK from 1st October.
‘s Shadowlands expansion is getting a formal release on October 27th, but Blizzard’s recently updated PC requirements for the game have been causing quite a stink among its player base. While the minimum CPU and GPU requirements haven’t changed all that much, the minimum storage requirement now seems to imply that you need an SSD to play WOW’s Shadowlands expansion rather than a traditional HDD.
I got a new controller for my Xbox since mine was broken. Interestingly enough, the Game Pass Ultimate trial code sheet mentions the unannounced @Xbox Series S. It’s definitely a thing. pic.twitter.com/GX1rOYG5g7
Tokyo Game Show 2020 Online live streams will run from September 24 to 27, and numerous Japanese publishers will reveal their new games. Check the schedule here.
The post Check Out the Tokyo Game Show 2020 Online Live Stream Schedule appeared first on Siliconera.
Marvel's Avengers has been a roller coaster of a game from the announcement all the way up until its launch today: so long as you're a Digital Deluxe owner.
We first heard it existed back in 2017, but when Square Enix showed it off at E3 2019, people couldn't believe that it was nearly finished. It didn't look finished, that's for sure! The publisher seemingly agreed, and pushed it back further a few months, citing the need to polish it more.
It probably could have used a bit more time, but with Marvel breathing down their neck, it's possible they got as much as they were allotted. Today, we get what we get. And there's plenty of fun to dig around for in this oddity of a game.
Over the weekend, Ubisoft published and then deleted a claim that the PS5 will not offer backwards compatibility with older PlayStation consoles.
A post on Ubisoft's support site stated PS5 backwards compatibility would be available for "supported PlayStation 4 titles", but would "not be possible for PlayStation 3, PlayStation 2 or PlayStation games".
Sony is yet to discuss whether it might offer some form of backwards compatibility for older PlayStation consoles, so Ubisoft's statement raised eyebrows.
While legislation has been "looking" at loot boxes for some time, a lot of powers that be have set their sights on a new target: the right to refunds.
Steam got ahead of the situation very early by offering a generous refund policy, but a few other marketplaces have a long way to go. Nintendo is throwing people a bone as of this week when it comes to the eShop.
A new policy on their official site has made digital pre-orders a little more forgiving as of today: "You may cancel your pre-orders up until time of payment." Breaking that down further, "payment is processed and download is started immediately for preâorders placed within seven days before game launch." In other words, as long as you cancel more than a week ahead of time (before the money is transferred), you're good. As Engadget points out, this process kicked off today at 15:00 JST (2AM ET this morning).
This will likely change as refunds are looked at under a microscope in the coming months or even years. For now, this is a minimal effort token "change" that Nintendo can show to anyone to prove that they were playing ball. And it's something you should probably know, just in case! It should come in handy for lengthy delays, as well.
About Pre-orders [Nintendo via Engadget]
Capcom has announced that the newest entry in the Resident Evil series, Resident Evil Village, will be showcased at this year's Tokyo Game Show (TGS), which takes place later this month.
Capcom revealed the news in a tweet earlier this morning, where the famous developer/publisher apologised to fans for a lack of info regarding the gothic horror sequel. Resident Evil Village will feature in a TGS presentation to be held on Sunday, September 27. The presentation will offer up new details - and hopefully new footage - pertaining to the eighth mainline entry in the survival horror franchise.
Resident Evil Village will be part of Tokyo Game Show 2020 Online and Capcom's own TGS LIVE 2020!https://t.co/jXTSrLQqkI
If you missed the Gamescom Opening Night Live Destiny 2 stasis power clip: I don't blame you! It was in the middle of the day, after all.
But while stasis was the highlight last week, it isn't coming to Destiny for quite some time. Instead, Bungie opted to talk about the more recent hotness of patch 2.9.2 following the stream; which is coming to Destiny 2 on September 8.
The big thing to note is that Warmind's Sleeper Nodes (which are being retired eventually) should now be easier to collect, as Bungie had a secret backend checklist that was separate from the in-game one (classic), and the discrepancy has been altered. Bungie calls it "bad luck protection," which begs the question of why it wasn't in the game to begin with.
The patch also deals with some more brass tracks type stuff, like Gambit freeze bugs, cosmetic issues, an expansion of Spider's bounties (now there's three instead of the typical one) and a fix for the Merciless Fusion Rifle exotic perk. "More general bug fixes" are also in but aren't detailed yet.
Good luck! My focus is mostly forward on the expansion, and seeing if they don't botch the implementation of the vault.
This Week at Bungie [Bungie.net]
Previously, if you pre-ordered a digital Nintendo game and then changed your mind, tough! As soon as the order was placed, your credit card was charged. That’s now changed—in the Japanese eShop, at least.
After weeks of teasing, today’s the day that Nvidia are going to announce their next-gen Ampere RTX 3000 graphics cards. Or at least we jolly well hope so. Their GeForce Special Event is due to take place at 5pm BST / 9am PDT today, and here’s how to tune in so you can watch it live.
In case you haven't heard, the Sega Ages re-release line is done. That's bad! But apparently, M2 isn't done collaborating with Sega. That's good!
In a hilarious turn of events, directly following a statement to Game Watch from a Sega creative producer that he can't confirm whether or not M2 is working with Sega on an upcoming project: we get direct confirmation from the M2 Twitter account that something is brewing. For reference, M2 is not owned by Sega, and is a go-to developer for many retro re-releases for several publishers.
In response to this lovely fan art for M2 from Twitter user Tracker, M2 replied with the following statement: "Thank you for the great art, and your continued support! While we have concluded the Sega Ages series with Herzog Zwei, we are expecting further collaboration between M2 and Sega. Please stay tuned, and we wish you AGES of fun!"
In case that it wasn't clear that M2 isn't coming back with that very coy statement from Sega, the studio's Twitter account may have spilled the beans. I'll take what I can get!
M2 [Twitter]
As if the gaming community wasn't already on tenterhooks for CD Projekt RED's long-awaited Cyberpunk 2077, the action-RPG adventure wowed judges at gamescom this past weekend, scooping up no less than five "Best of gamescom" awards.
The future-noir title, currently in development for PC and both current and next-gen consoles - came out on top in multiple categories, walking away with the awards for Best RPG, Best PC Game, Best PlayStation Game, Most Wanted, and the coveted Best in Show/Best of gamescom. No doubt this will only help to stoke the anticipation of fans awaiting Cyberpunk 2077's November 19 launch.
In other categories, DontNod's dramatic tale Tell Me Why won Best Xbox Game, while Reflector's mysterious Unknown9: Awakening won Best Announcement. Tarsier Studios' Little Nightmares II won the Best Trailer/Presentation and Best Nintendo Switch Game awards. The Most Wanted Hardware award was won by Xbox Series X, though it appears that this category only included three nominees - none of which was PlayStation 5 - which frankly makes the award completely moot.
You can check out the full list of winners below, courtesy of GamesIndustry.biz.
The Japanese CESA announced the lineup of developers that will broadcast at Tokyo Game Show, which will be hosted exclusively online this year.
Besides Square Enix and Koei Tecmo, which already announced detailed line-ups, the list of livestreams is pretty long.
You can find the major names below. Simply click play on the embed for each livestream to see the time automatically converted to your time zone.
For now, we know that Capcom will present a “special program” on September 25, plus dedicated livestreams for Street Fighter V: Champions Edition on September 26, and Resident Evil Village on September 27.
The livestream will be on September 25. For the moment, the lineup is unannounced.
It's important, I think, to be grateful for what you've got, and as a fan of racing games I can say with some conviction it's rarely been any better than it has right now. The current crisis that saw garages shuttered at racing tracks across the world put the spotlight on sims as drivers looked to get their kicks in the virtual space, and showed us what a fine crop there currently is: there's iRacing, looking as strong as it ever has in its 12 year history, with rFactor 2 finally taking shape as a proper contender too, while console players recently got a chance to sample the delights of Kunos Simulazioni's Assetto Corsa Competizione - and looking beyond that, on console you're spoilt for choice, with F1 going from strength to strength while off-roaders get not just Dirt Rally but also Kylotonn's equally excellent WRC series. What a time to be alive, frankly.
"But!" I hear you ask, "what about the arcade racers?" Well, my friend, have patience and perhaps put a few pennies aside, because they're coming. And they're coming very, very soon.
Next week is set to be one of the most remarkable for the genre since Blur and Split/Second famously clashed at release (and infamously crashed and burned soon after, but I'm hopeful that won't be the case here), with two of the very best arcade racers I've played in the last decade going head-to-head. Hotshot Racing is first up, the hotly-awaited spin on early 90s arcade classics from Lucky Mountain Games releasing on September 10th. A day later and the lesser-known but no less fantastic Inertial Drift from Level 91 and PQube comes out, the game drawing inspiration from late 90s racers and with more than a few twists of its own.
Today Koei Tecmo announced its lineup for Tokyo Game Show, which will be hosted exclusively online this year.
There will be two livestreams. The first will be dedicated to two “major games” the first of which is Atelier Ryza 2: Lost Legends & the Secret Fairy. The second is unannounced.
This one will be on September 26 with the first Atelier Ryza 2 live gameplay and a new trailer at 9:00 pm Japan time followed by the reveal of the unannounced game at 10:00 pm.
The second livestream will happen on September 26 at 3:00 pm Japan time and will celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Dynasty Warriors series.
Developers will discuss the history of the series and will reveal the previously-teased two Dynasty Warriors games that will be launched to mark the anniversary.
Below you can find the embeds for both livestreams.
Today King Art Games and Deep Silver are finally releasing the alternate history dieselpunk RTS Iron Harvest, and they’re celebrating with videos.
First of all, we get a launch trailer showcasing the cast of characters, mecha, and soldiers belonging to the three playable factions.
Then we get a longer tutorial video explaining the basics of the game.
You can check both out below.
[Update: These games are live later today! Make sure you grab Fall Guys and Modern Warfare 2 if you haven't already.]
PlayStation Plus! You're back again!
Last month gave us the unlikely pairing of Fall Guys and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, with the former scoring very big within the PlayStation community. This month we're getting another shooter, as well as another fairly interesting pick.
Alongside of the ever-enduring battle royale PUBG, the always-polarizing Street Fighter V will arrive on PlayStation Plus on September 1. We've reached out to Sony to clarify exactly what that release entails, but it seems like this is going to be the $19.99 "PlayStation Hits" version and not the "all-the-bells-and-whistles-edition." Capcom's got DLC and extra SKU add-ons to sell you! As a reminder, the Championship Edition Upgrade Kit is $24.99.
Sony also says that Street Fighter V tournaments will start on September 4 in the US and Canada, with prizes that include a "unique PS4 theme" and a custom in-game title. Both games will be listed on the service until October 5, so make sure you redeem them starting next Tuesday.
While Tokyo Game Show will be hosted exclusively online this year, Japanese developers are already gearing up to participate, and among them is Square Enix.
The publisher opened its special site for the event and the lineup includes plenty of games that will be showcased.
Here is a list.
Yet, perhaps the most interesting part is in the schedule for the livestreams split over four days.
There are five slots marked as “coming soon” which possibly indicates unannounced games.
Those slots are on September 24 at 6:00 pm and 10:00 pm local time, on September 26 at 12:30 pm local time and 10:00 pm local time, and on September 27 at 4:00 pm local time.
It’s worth mentioning that possibly not all of them are unannounced games, because Babylon’s Fall and Balan Wonderworld appear in the lineup but not yet in the schedule.
Today Takara Tomy released a new gameplay trailer of Zoids Wild Infinity Blast, alongside the release date for the Japanese market.
The game will launch locally on November 26, exclusively for Nintendo Switch.
At the moment, a western release of this game, which is the second on Nintendo’s hybrid console, has not been announced.
The trailer showcases both CGI cutscenes and plenty of gameplay featuring well-known Zoids.
You can check it out below alongside a previous one, which I had missed when it was released, so you’re getting it now.
If you want to see more, you can also check out a gallery of screenshots released with the original announcement.
It was only a year ago, when I moved into my new apartment, that I realized I'd been enjoying an insufficient audio experience whenever I hopped on to play some games. There is so much technology out there creating amazing sound, and here I was settling for the cheapest Sony headphones I could find at Best Buy. When I was able to test out the A40 Astro Gaming last year, it was like I was actually hearing these games for the first time. Since then, I've upgraded to the wireless A50 headset, which provides equally extraordinary sound quality.
With the next generation of consoles right around the corner, there is a real possibility I'll be getting both the PS5 and Xbox Series X. One for the exclusives, the other for GamePass. If that is the road I do indeed travel, there's a good chance I'll also pick up the second generation A20 headset from Astro Gaming as it will be its first wireless headset to work with both Sony and Microsoft consoles, as well as PC and Mac.
Sony and Microsoft have already laid out how current-generation controllers will work on their next-gen consoles, but if you've spent money on a headset you really like, you might be wondering if you can still use those when you pick up a PS5 or Xbox Series X. The good news is, if you use Astro Gaming headsets, they're most likely going to be compatible with the new consoles.
Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown is going to expand its aerial arsenal with three new aircraft. This new DLC is scheduled for an autumn release, and contains the ASF-X Shinden II, XFA-27, and the CFA-44 Nosferatu planes. All of these have appeared in earlier entries in the franchise.
You can check them out in action in the trailer below. As well as these planes, the DLC will contain new weapons, skins, and emblems--the skins are revealed in the trailer alongside the new aircraft. It's unclear how much this DLC will cost, and a specific release date has not been announced yet.
At the same time, a free update will unlock a new, easier difficulty level for Ace Combat 7. The new difficulty is called "Casual Easy," and is designed as an entry point for players who struggle with the harsher elements of Ace Combat.
Anu Chouhan is an illustrator and character artist from Canada working in the video game business.
Image: Walt Disney Studios
