Throwback World War II FPS Battalion 1944 Announces Beta

Posted on January 10, 2018 by Rae Michelle Richards

Indie developer Bulkhead Interactive confirmed that their ambitious WW2 shooter, Battalion 1944 will enter exclusive closed beta from January 19th thru the 22nd. Players who pre-purchased from the Humble Bundle Store or backed the game on Kickstarter will get guaranteed access. Everyone else is able to enter on the game’s official website for a chance to participate.

Built upon the technology of Unreal Engine 4, Battalion 1944 is focused on “skill based gameplay” – meaning that pay to win mechanics and some of the comforts we’ve come to expect like auto-aim and movement assists aren’t present. The game features era-accurate weapons and is focused primarily on infantry combat – so you won’t be hoping into a tank and blowing up entire enemy teams, sorry. One of the more unique aspects is the ability for individual players to form teams (called Battalions, of course) – where they can collectively work together based up their skill and progression to unlock rewards. Battalion 1944 also features both LAN and clan support, something they a lot of modern FPS games have done away with as they move towards Games As A Service.

Howard Philpott, Creative Producer on the game had this to say:

“the action in a Battalion 1944 encounter is as feverish as it is credible. We’ve looked to bed the play down in maps that are both competitive and authentic, for which our trips to Normandy proved immensely useful”.

After the closed beta weekend Battalion 1944 will enter Steam Early Access for $11.99 USD and will include six as of yet unannounced gameplay modes.

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Goku Black Joins The Roster of Dragon Ball FighterZ

Posted on January 8, 2018 by Rae Michelle Richards

The latest fighter to join the upcoming brawler Dragon Ball Fighter Z is none other than a permutation of Goku, the rose form of Dragon Ball Super’s Goku Black. 

Namco released a brief trailer showing Goku Black using various Ki energy blade techniques including an energy scythe and an energy sword. Also included is a team-up attack with Shin that unleashes a devastating charged Ki ball. 

Dragon Ball Fighter Z will be released on January 28th – just three weeks away – for Xbox One, PS4 and PC.  

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Nintendo Launching Nindies New Years Sale On Switch

Posted on January 8, 2018 by Rae Michelle Richards

Nintendo is going to be highlighting 9 specific indie tiles with this week’s discounts on the Switch e-shop. If you’ve waited for a discount on Death Squared, GoNNER, Graceful Explosion Machines, INVERSUS, Lovers In A Dangerous Space Time, Severed, Thimbleweed Park or Thumper, you are in luck.  With discounts up to 35%, there is a lot of spare change to be saved. 

Here’s the full list of discounts and prices as they will appear on the US e-shop: 

  • Death Squared – $11.24 USD (25%) 
  • GoNNER – $6.99 USD (30%) 
  • Graceful Explosion Machines – $8.99 USD (30%) 
  • INVERSUS DELUXE – $9.74 USD (35%) 
  • Lovers In A Dangerous Spacetime – $9.99 USD (33%) 
  • Semispheres – $5.99 USD (30%) 
  • Severed – $9.99 USD (33%) 
  • Thumbleweed Park – $14.99 USD (25%) 
  • Thumper – $13.39 USD (33%) 

Discounts aren’t the only exciting going for Switch indie developers and fans – a special Reddit AMA featuring the developers of all 9 titles will be held later today at 2PM. 

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Finalists Announced For The 2018 Game Developers Choice Awards

Posted on January 5, 2018 by Rae Michelle Richards

Some big AAA games share the spotlight with some of 2017’s indie darlings in the list of finalists for the upcoming 2018 Game Developer Choice Awards.  Split across 10 different categories including Best Narrative, Innovation , Best Audio and of course Game of the Year – over 20 titles from the past twelve months will be eligible for honours form the GDCA when the curtains rise on March 21st.

Do games like Nier: Automata, Horizon Zero Dawn, Night In The Woods, Persona 5 or Destiny 2 sound familiar? Aside from being some of the best games released this year in their respective genres, they were all featured in our “Best Games We Played 2017” series of articles over the past couple of weeks.

Below is a categorized breakdown of each award as provided by the GDCA organizers. Broken Joysticks staff will once again descend onto San Francisco to cover as much of the GDC chaos as we possibly can.

BEST AUDIO

Cuphead (StudioMDHR)

Nier: Automata (PlatinumGames / Square Enix)

Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice (Ninja Theory)

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo)

Horizon Zero Dawn (Guerrilla Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment)

Honorable Mentions: Super Mario Odyssey (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo), Star Wars: Battlefront II (EA DICE / Electronic Arts), Resident Evil 7: Biohazard (Capcom), Destiny 2 (Bungie / Activision), Persona 5 (P-Studio / Atlus), Night in the Woods (Infinite Fall / Finji)

BEST DEBUT

Team Cherry (Hollow Knight)

Sidebar Games (Golf Story)

StudioMDHR (Cuphead)

Infinite Fall (Night in the Woods)

Jason Roberts / Buried Signal (Gorogoa)

Honorable Mentions: Game Grumps (Dream Daddy: A Dad Dating Simulator), Terrible Toybox (Thimbleweed Park), Team Salvato (Doki Doki Literature Club!), Lizardcube(Wonder Boy: The Dragon’s Trap) 

BEST DESIGN

Super Mario Odyssey (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo)

Horizon Zero Dawn (Guerrilla Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment)

PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG Corporation)

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo)

Nier: Automata (PlatinumGames / Square Enix)

Honorable Mentions: Cuphead (StudioMDHR), Gorogoa (Jason Roberts / Buried Signal / Annapurna Interactive), What Remains of Edith Finch (Giant Sparrow / Annapurna Interactive), Divinity: Original Sin 2 (Larian Studios), Getting Over It with Bennett Foddy (Bennett Foddy), Prey (Arkane Studios / Bethesda Softworks)

BEST MOBILE GAME

Reigns: Her Majesty (Nerial / Devolver Digital)

Hidden Folks (Adriaan de Jongh and Sylvain Tegroeg)

Monument Valley 2 (ustwo games)

Gorogoa (Jason Roberts / Buried Signal / Annapurna Interactive)

Bury Me, My Love (The Pixel Hunt / Figs / ARTE France / Playdius)

Honorable Mentions: Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo), Fire Emblem Heroes (Intelligent Systems and Nintendo EPD / Nintendo), Old Man’s Journey (Broken Rules), Flipflop Solitaire (Zach Gage), Gnog (KO_OP / Double Fine Productions)

INNOVATION AWARD

Gorogoa (Jason Roberts / Buried Signal / Annapurna Interactive)

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo)

What Remains of Edith Finch (Giant Sparrow / Annapurna Interactive)

Everything (David OReilly / Double Fine Productions)

PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG Corporation)

Honorable Mentions: Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice (Ninja Theory), Cuphead (StudioMDHR), Nier: Automata (PlatinumGames / Square Enix), Horizon Zero Dawn (Guerrilla Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment), Super Mario Odyssey (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo), Tacoma (Fullbright), Pyre (Supergiant Games)

 BEST NARRATIVE

Night in the Woods (Infinite Fall / Finji)

Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice (Ninja Theory)

What Remains of Edith Finch (Giant Sparrow / Annapurna Interactive)

Horizon Zero Dawn (Guerrilla Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment)

Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus (MachineGames / Bethesda Softworks)

Honorable Mentions: Nier: Automata (PlatinumGames / Square Enix), Tacoma (Fullbright), Persona 5 (P-Studio / Atlus), The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo), Divinity: Original Sin 2 (Larian Studios), Uncharted: The Lost Legacy (Naughty Dog / Sony Interactive Entertainment)

BEST TECHNOLOGY

Destiny 2 (Bungie / Activision)

Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice (Ninja Theory)

Assassin’s Creed: Origins (Ubisoft Montreal / Ubisoft)

Horizon Zero Dawn (Guerrilla Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment)

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo)

Honorable Mentions: Star Wars Battlefront II (EA DICE / Electronic Arts), Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus (MachineGames / Bethesda Softworks), Uncharted: The Lost Legacy (Naughty Dog / Sony Interactive Entertainment), Nier: Automata (PlatinumGames / Square Enix), Resident Evil 7: Biohazard (Capcom)

BEST VISUAL ART

Persona 5 (P-Studio / Atlus)

Cuphead (StudioMDHR)

Horizon Zero Dawn (Guerrilla Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment)

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo)

Night in the Woods (Infinite Fall / Finji)

Honorable Mentions: Gorogoa (Jason Roberts / Buried Signal / Annapurna Interactive), Star Wars Battlefront II (EA DICE / Electronic Arts), Assassin’s Creed Origins (Ubisoft Montreal / Ubisoft), Destiny 2 (Bungie / Activision), Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice (Ninja Theory), Super Mario Odyssey (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo)

BEST VR/AR GAME

Superhot VR (SUPERHOT Team)

Star Trek: Bridge Crew (Red Storm Entertainment / Ubisoft)

Lone Echo (Ready at Dawn / Oculus Studios)

Resident Evil 7: Biohazard (Capcom)

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim VR (Bethesda Game Studios / Bethesda Softworks)

Honorable Mentions: Farpoint (Impulse Gear / Sony Interactive Entertainment), Rick and Morty: Virtual Rick-ality (Owlchemy Labs / Adult Swim Games), Luna(Funomena), Robo Recall (Epic Games), Gnog (KO_OP/ Double Fine Productions), Doom VFR (id Software / Bethesda Softworks)

GAME OF THE YEAR

PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG Corporation)

Nier: Automata (PlatinumGames / Square Enix)

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo)

Horizon Zero Dawn (Guerrilla Games / Sony Interactive Entertainment)

Super Mario Odyssey (Nintendo EPD / Nintendo)

Honorable Mentions: Cuphead (StudioMDHR), What Remains of Edith Finch (Giant Sparrow / Annapurna Interactive), Persona 5 (P-Studio / Atlus), Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice (Ninja Theory), Gorogoa (Jason Roberts / Buried Signal / Annapurna Interactive), Divinity: Original Sin 2 (Larian Studios), Night in the Woods (Infinite Fall / Finji)

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Best Games We Played 2017 Runner-Up: Destiny 2

Posted on January 4, 2018 by Rae Michelle Richards

Destiny 2 was one of the most hyped games of this past fall, and with the amount of online advertisements and cross promotion it was must have been hard to not get caught up in the waves of hype (I got so excited for D2 I ended up playing it on both PlayStation 4 and PC). Now that the dust has settled and the hype surrounding Bungie’s follow-up online FPS effort has disapated – it is time to have a discussion about why Destiny 2 didn’t make it among our “Best Games We Played” finalists.

The experience of levelling a brand new Guardian from 1 through 20 is an exhilarating ride, especially if you have the entire campaign ahead of you for the first time. Bungie took all of the feedback players gave them through the years of D1 and that game’s particular shotgun approach to narrative and used it wisely. While certainly not award winning material in the writing department, Destiny 2’s narrative introduces all of the core gameplay mechanics and worlds to the player in under 15 hours. Providing players with an enjoyable introduction to the world of Destiny, even if they happened to skip the first game.

It is after level 20 that the lack of “post-campaign” content becomes apparent. Instead of levelling up past 20, each successive level will award players with a “bright engram”, which can be traded in at the Ever Verse for an assortment of random items. Forcing players into your RNG based cash shop in the hopes of catching a few whales, who might drop a few hundred dollars in the hopes of securing an entire set of matching shaders, is pure averse at best and certainly praying on the psychological vulnerabiltiies of those who are prone to addictive behavior. “Ignoring the cash shop” is certainly possible if you wish to horde all of the bright engrams D2 throws at you but you’ll still be faced with another problem – tripping over legendaries left and right.

Remember how in Destiny 1 legendary weapons were a point of pride for players who spent the hours grinding out the RNG drop on heroic strikes and the like? I’m all for the game giving casual (and less skilled) players the same gear as the “hardcore” who are going to run the Leviathan raid 50 times. But with the abundance of vendor tokens to be found within the game’s many open worlds, there is no challenge or even pacing to the legendary gear. Instead of say tying them to weekly quests or daily activities, it is entirely possible to horde EDZ tokens until you have so many that legendary turn ins that can max out area NPC’s legendary rewards in a couple of hours. If Bungie’s intention was to make D2 a game that players were supposed to play for a number of weeks or even months, they’ve failed in that regard.

All of this discussion of Destiny 2’s end-game doesn’t even begin to discuss how they locked paying customers out of content that was readily available to them before the first expansion dropped in December. How they accidentally turned PVP into laser tag by releasing a broken Exotic Weapon and instead of pulling the weapon or nerfing it, they decided to just give it to everyone until a further patch in January.

Destiny 2 is a fun game with very pretty graphics and satisfying gun-play. Unfortunately Bungie has mismanaged the game spectacularly and after all of the shiny guns and flashy animations have worn off – at its core, it just isn’t very appealing. D2 has been haemorrhaging players for months now and with each misstep Bungie is reducing the chances that existing players will want to come back.

This is why Destiny 2 is only a runner-up for one of the best games we played in 2017.

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The Best Games We Played 2017: Night In The Woods

Posted on December 29, 2017 by Rae Michelle Richards

2017 is coming to a close and that means it is time for our contributors, editors and staff to look back on the best games that they played over the past twelve months. Whether that game was on the brand new Nintendo Switch, an aging Dreamcast or the original N.E.S, it matters not. If a game was played by our staff in the past twelve months it is eligible for one of these personal retrospective pieces.

Contributor Jeb takes a look back at indie darling Night In The Woods, and why it resonated so strongly with them. If you enjoyed this piece, you can find more Jeb over at the podcast Downloadable Concept.

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As 2017 winds down, it has become evident that this has been an exceptional year for video games. The topic has been discussed for months already, and I am certainly not going to dispute that. However, it makes for a very difficult decision when trying to find a single game to call best. 

At least, it would have been for me, had it not been for a bunch of trash mammals (and a reptile). 

Night In The Woods from Infinite Fall was a game I knew very little about going in. I heard tidbits of excitement from various circles as release came close, and I was intrigued enough to pick it up. By the time I put it down I had not only finished it but I spent a good week digesting what I’d just played through. 

The story of Mae coming back home from an unfortunate attempt at college itself resonated hard with me, but the town of Possum Springs hit close to home too as its old ways struggled feebly against the demands of modernity. The cast clinging to each other at the same time trying to hold on to their individuality only reinforces this same clash. 

Night In The Woods tells a small story in a big way, and in doing so, swept me up into the lives of characters who felt unique and familiar at the same time. I could talk for hours about the relationship between Angus (my sweet good boy) and Gregg (gregg rulz ok), or the aspirations of young Lori as she smashes figurines under trains, but all of these on their own don’t do justice to everything going on. 

Even the silly minigames scattered throughout were endearing instead of tedious. Whether it’s batting light tubes, knife-fighting with a friend, or doing crimes, these reinforced the slowness of the town; and I was reminded of a time when I was desperate for anything at all to do in my own dead-end town.  

Night In The Woods is nostalgic in a way that most games playing for nostalgia never attempt. It is warm and familiar, while still being something very different. I have never met these characters, but I know these people. Possum Springs isn’t real, but I’ve lived in that town many times.  

In a year of big games with grand narratives and vast expanses and content content content, a number of which are outstanding in their own rights, it was a tiny game about insignificant people in a wilting town that stuck with me most of all.  

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The Elder Scrolls Online Will Get New Expansion and 3 DLC Add-Ons In 2018

Posted on December 23, 2017 by Rae Michelle Richards

Great news for the thousands of residents of the online-only version of Tamriel – your world is about to get a lot bigger with the announcement of 5 new pieces of add-on content coming next year.

Over on the official Elder Scrolls Online website, game director Matt Firor posted his yearly letter to the community. Most of the letter is a retrospective of major content drops that took place in 2017 – The Horns of Reach DLC, Clockwork City DLC and of course the Morrowind Expansion as well as mentions of the New Life Celebration, Mid-Year Mayhem and Witches Festival events.

What is probably the most interesting to veteran players like myself is the last section of the letter, “Looking Forward to 2018”.Mr.Firor surprises us with a tantalizing look at what is to come in the next 12 months: 3 add-on DLCs and a fully new “chapter” (read: expansion). In early 2018 Zenimax will lift the veil of secrecy surrounding “Dragon Bones”, a Nord themed dungeon DLC add-on pack. Along with the two new dungeons, we’re also due for several quality of life updates including “one often requested feature”.

Dragon Bones as they appeared in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim [Source: Nexus Mods]

Here’s the full quote about what is to come:

“I’m very happy to say that you can expect three more DLCs and a full new Chapter for ESO in 2018. We’re not slowing down, at all. There’s so much to do and explore in Tamriel, and we are very excited to take you to some highly-requested areas next year.

We’ll officially announce the first DLC of 2018 just after the first of the year, but here’s a small preview: It’s a dungeon-based DLC called The Elder Scrolls Online: Dragon Bones. As the name implies, it is Nord-based in theme, with each of the two dungeons expanding upon the lore of that region.

Coming with Dragon Bones is an update full of quality-of-life improvements and additions, including at least one long-awaited feature that everyone who cares about their characters’ appearance will love and the Homestead storage items I talked about earlier. We’ll give you more details on this update when it launches on the PTS early (very early) next year.

It’s not always about new content, of course—we’ll be spending some time adding more improvements and fixing any outstanding issues and bugs. Stay tuned for the PTS patch notes for updates on those and, obviously, keep your comments coming on the forums and elsewhere. We value your feedback and take it very seriously.“

Where do you think 2018 will take our adventuring characters across Tamriel? Could we possibly revisit Cyrodil from TES IV? Perhaps Western Skyrim will be added to the game finally, joining the existing Earmarch province. Considering that we got both Eastern and Western Skyrim Scout outfits this past year and the new add-on DLC is called “Dragon Bones”… Hmmmmm….

That last part is pure speculation on my part, we won’t know anything official until Zennimax Online announces more details sometime in 2018. Leave your comments below, I’d love to hear other player’s speculation about where the game is going next.

[Source]

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Team Ninja Says Goodbye To The Dead or Alive Franchise

Posted on December 20, 2017 by Rae Michelle Richards

The Dead or Alive franchise has been a staple fighting game franchise since the days of the PlayStation 1 but after two-plus decades, Team Ninja is finally saying goodbye to the series that put them on the map

Fans learned that DOA would be put on ice thanks to an announcement made via special video presentation that was shown after the finale of the Dead or Alive 5 Battle Royale Tournament. Developers had mentioned on social media that an announcement was imminent, with fans expected a possible DOA 6 teaser – only to have their hopes crushed.

Director of Dead or Alive 5, Yohei Shimboru, had this to say about the discontinuation of DOA:

“We created so much downloadable content that the sheer amount would be worthy of the Guinness Book of World Records, .. However, it is time to stop what we are doing for now and look into the future, which means we may not be around for some time… but we are very much looking forward to seeing you again someday. And I hope you will maintain your love for Dead or Alive and keep on fighting!” 

PlayStation 1 fighting fans got their first fix of DOA in November of ‘96 with the sequel, DOA2 releasing in early 2000 on Dreamcast and PS2. DOA 5, the latest iteration was released in 2012 on last generation consoles before being ported to the PlayStation Vita as DOA 5: Plus.  Team Ninja took the game free to play with the release of Dead or Alive 5: The Last Round which saw a physical release with all characters and story content unlocked. Free to play players could get a limited selection of fighters with the option to purchase extras for $5 USD. In total, over a thousand pieces of DLC were released, which must be some sort of record.

[Source]

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Yooka Laylee Now Available For Nintendo Switch

Posted on December 15, 2017 by Rae Michelle Richards

*insert cute cartoonish animal noises for the remainder of this post*

Playtonic’s throwback to the Rareware platformers of the N64 era, Yooka-Laylee, is now available on Nintendo Switch.  Cartoony and cute animals pairing up to take down a big baddie in a colorful world was once a winning formula for the Nintendo and Rare. Two decades later, the unlikely pairing of a chameleon and bat pick up the mantle left behind by Banjo and Kazooie to fill the 3D platforming void. 

Featuring seven explorable worlds, fifteen unique special moves and tons of collectables, there is a lot to do in this retro platformer.  The Switch port may have taken an additional eight months to complete (PS4 / Xbox One version was released in April of this year) but the wait has been worth it. Rather than contract out the Nintendo Switch version to an external team, Playtonic themselves handled the port and created custom assets that better suit the Switch’s hardware profile.  In the end Switch get a version of Yooka-Laylee that clocks in at just over 5GB and runs at 630p while in handheld mode. While docked Yooka-Laylee runs at a solid 900p. 

Yooka-Laylee is priced at $50.31CDN for a digital version on the Nintendo E-Shop. Team-17, the game’s publisher, provided us with a review copy for Switch. Look forward to a review after the holiday break. 

 

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New Titanfall 2 Update Brings Holiday Themed Decals, New Playlist and New Weapon Skins

Posted on December 14, 2017 by Rae Michelle Richards

After nearly a year and a half of release, I figured that the days of Titanfall 2 updates were over but apparently not. Next week the next update for Respawn Entertainment’s criminally under-played mech shooter, dubbed Operation Endeavor brings a whole pile of smaller content drops just in time for the holidays. 

Six weapons will be receiving new Elite Warpaint skins which will be available for $4.99 USD or $19.99 USD for all six. 

These new skins include: 

  • Heat Sink EM-4 Cold War 
  • Masterwork D-2 Double Take 
  • Phantom Longbow DMR 
  • Purple Fade G2AS 
  • Crimson Fury R-21 Carbine 
  • Sky R-97 

Two new banners will be made available in standard and gradient quality: “Before Grapple” and “Sliegh-er”. 

Also coming just in time for the snow to start falling are a set of tweaked gameplay modes with modified rule sets. It might not be that new map you wanted for the holiday update or an entirely brand new mode but what we do get is Last Titan Standing with huge cooldown and health changes. Also coming to Titanfall is the classic arena FPS mode, Rocket Arena! Old school fans of the Quake series might have a reason to check out TF2’s latest patch. 

Here’s a full breakdown of the new modes: 

  • Turbo LTS – Last Titan Standing gametype with double core generation and dash regen rates. Everyone also has Turbo Engine kit. 
  • Spicy Attrition – Attrition where everyone’s Ordnance ability is replaced with Ticks. 
  • The Otherside – All Phase Attrition. 
  • Rocket Arena – Live Fire with modified EPGs and autopistols. 
  • Turbo Titan Brawl – Titan Brawl with double core generation and dash regen rates. Everyone also has Turbo Engine kit. 

Make sure to check out the full post by Respawn at the source link for detailed changes found within this upcoming patch. I know a lot of the community were not happy with the huge Grapple nerf, meaning no more swinging around like your pilot belongs in Attack on Titan. Respawn has at least reverted a bit of that nerf, in that the Grapple ability can now store two charges. 

[Source]

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How Death Stranding Subverts a Common Gameplay Mechanic

Posted on December 14, 2017 by Rae Michelle Richards

There once was an explosion within a trailer that ignited a thousand online debates. There once was an explosion within a trailer that confused the hell out of us. The next explosion is brief details about how Death Stranding will play and how the game subverts a very common gameplay mechanic – death itself. 

In a recent interview with IGN.com Hideo Kojima detailed the place that protagonist Sam visits after the large explosion in the latest trailer for Death Stranding is actually a sort of purgatory.  In this world of beaches and water Sam will explore purgatory in a first-person perspective until it is time for him to return to his body. We don’t know how this dimensional travel is possible (is it the babies?? I bet it’s the babies!) but we do know it is due to a “special ability” that Sam possess. 

Kojima contrasted this mechanic with the arcades of the past, where death was a means to suck another quarter from the player: 

“Games started over 40 years ago with arcades. When the player dies, it’s game over. You continue, and time goes back to before you die. You can die as many times as you want, but you always go back to a little bit before you die. That was a mechanic made specifically for putting in coins, and it hasn’t changed since then.”

Aside from digitized versions of Norman Reedus, Guillermo Del Toro, and Mads Mikkelsen, the spotlight has been fixed on the various babies we’ve seen in each of the three trailers. During the interview with IGN, Hideo Kojima confirmed that the baby that washes up on the shores in trailer 1, the baby held by Del Toro in trailer 2 and the baby pointing finger guns in Reedus’ esophagus are one in the same. We also now know that the babies will tie into the purgatory mechanic somehow.’ 

Still no definitive answers about the mysteries of Death Stranding but certainly now we have a lot more pieces of the puzzles. We know that the game takes place in the near future and that the rapid aging rain and the monsters that attacked the corpse disposal crew are common knowledge. We know a little bit more about the babies. We also know that gameplay will be split between third-person open world action while Sam is alive and that death does not mean “game over” but will affect the overall game world. 

Perhaps we will see actually Death Stranding gameplay at next June’s E3 or perhaps Kojima will make a surprise appearance at GDC 2018, like he did at GDC 2013 to promote The Phantom Pain. Rumor has it that Death Stranding is currently targeting a Q4 2018 release window, so the hype should just keep building. 

Oh and all of our internet theories about the baby being a clone of Sam, Mads being the real protagonist or Del Toro being the game’s villain? Kojima eats that shit up and loves every second of it. 

“I think it’s fun, I really think it’s fun. It’s one of the unique things about games, that you can start having fun with people before you release the game. There are things I intentionally put there so that I can start this back and forth process with players, because I think it’s fun for everyone.” 

[Source]

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Bayonetta 1 and 2 Coming To Nintendo Switch On Feb 16th

Posted on December 8, 2017 by Rae Michelle Richards

Platinum Game’s original hack and slash heroine Bayonetta is coming to a handheld system for the first time with a re-release of 2009’s Bayonetta and 2014’s Bayonetta 2 on Nintendo Switch. Due out on Feb 18th, 2018 these two witchy action titles will come packaged together, just as they did when Bayonetta 2 was released on the Wii U.  The sequel will come loaded on a Nintendo Switch game card with a special downloadable code for the original game packed inside. Fans looking for both games on a single cartridge might be a little disappointed with this news but fans of combo-heavy action titles have a reason to rejoice. 

Bayonetta was originally released on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 by SEGA in 2009. It was re-released on Nintendo’s Wii U in 2014 and on Windows PC just this past August thanks to SEGA. Nintendo co-financed the development of Bayonetta 2 and it has remained a Nintendo exclusive, soon to be joined by the also announced Bayonetta 3. When the black-haired witch made her way to the Wii U she brought along quite a few extra pieces of wardrobe. Namely costumed based off of The Legend of Zelda, Star Fox and Metroid! 

According to USA Gamer Bayonetta 2‘s double pack will also receive a special edition which includes a collector’s box (cardboard), a steel case for the game, a Bayonetta 2 Game Card, Bayonetta 1 DLC code, collectible stickers and a set of collectible cards.

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Death Stranding’s New Trailer Is All Sorts of What The $@#!

Posted on December 8, 2017 by Rae Michelle Richards

Hideo Kojima continues his reputation for mystery and sheer WTF-ery with a brand-new trailer for Death Stranding debuted during The Game Awards. Unlike the debut E3 2016 glimpse at the game or the 2016 Game Awards trailer, this latest trailer gives us quite a few clues about possible gameplay mechanics and a few small strands of the storyline. 

We now know that Norman Reedus’ character is named Sam and that his character will witness a horrific near future sci-fi disaster. Sam and his fellow team members are assaulted by an invisible enemy that can make their victims dissolve into nothingness almost instantly.  During the attack, Sam tells his teammates to stop breathing, presumably because the invisible enemies’ human dissolution powers are airborne. It wouldn’t be a Death Stranding without an appearance from those mysterious babies. This time around we see two things of relevance: 1) That the guy who is about to meet his doom begins to stab his stomach instead of say, going for the throat. 2) Just as Sam is about to meet his maker, the baby attached to his machine becomes fused with his body (just like we saw in the initial E3 2016 trailer). 

There is a lot more to dissect from this lengthy Death Stranding trailer which will keep Kojima fans guessing until its eventual release. Just like with the Metal Gear Solid V trailers, it is completely possible that Death Stranding‘s marketing is full of fake-outs, misdirection and not enough information for us to know for sure. Is Sam even the real protagonist? What is the text written on his power armor? What is up with the babies? 

Start pausing the trailer, squinting and guessing for months or possibly years. 

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Dying Light Is Getting a Stand-Alone PVP Expansion In 2018, Technical Test Sign-Ups Open

Posted on December 7, 2017 by Rae Michelle Richards

Battle Royale games have been front and center this year when it comes to the discussion of online multiplayer titles. Perhaps then it is no surprise that Techland, the developers behind the Dying Light franchise, will be bringing their own unique spin on the genre with the reveal of the stand-alone Dying Light: Bad Blood expansion.  

Bad Blood‘s official website promises that Techland’s approach to BR will set itself apart from the competition by incorporating P.V.E elements into a traditionally P.V.P only genre. Not only will players have to fight against each other but also A.I controlled zombies and in some instances powerful boss monsters that could turn the tide of battle. The inclusion of P.V.E elements means that players will be encouraged to form temporary alliances to overcome these challenging foes but they’ll also have to watch their backs. In order to escape from the horrors of Bad Blood players will need to buy their way onto to an evacuation helicopter at the end of a round using collected samples. Since every player purchases their one-way escape ticket separately, alliances are sure to be broken. 

A closed technical test will take place during the last few weeks of this month via Valve’s Steam service with more players being invited over time. Additional platforms for Dying Light: Bad Blood are expected to be revealed later on in 2018 and there has been no word if a console release is planned. It is also not known how Dying Light: Bad Blood will be monetized – whether free to play, free to existing Dying Light owners or buy to play. 

Expect more news and media from Bad Blood in the coming weeks as the technical test has no embargo or media capture restrictions. If you want to sign-up yourself you can do so here. 

 

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Devil May Cry HD Collection Coming To PS4, Xbox & PC In March 2018

Posted on December 7, 2017 by Rae Michelle Richards

Capcom, not content with reviving the Mega Man franchise to much fan hype and positive coverage, has announced that the Devil May Cry HD Collection will be making its way to PC, Xbox One and PlayStation 4 on March 13th. 

This collection features up-rez’d ports of the 2001 PS2 original Devil May Cry, 2002’s Devil May Cry 2 and 2005’s Devil May Cry 3: Special Edition. All three of these games have enough demon slaying, arcade-style combo action that it’ll make you hungry enough for a slice of pizza (yes, I’m making the obvious DMC 3 references now). 

Greasy Pepperoni Goodness in HD! 

Originally the Devil May Cry HD Collection was released on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 in April 2012. Ninja Theory’s reboot of the franchise D.M.C  was also ported to 8th generation consoles back in 2015 but if recent leaks are to be believed, we could see a continuation of the original white-haired Dante’s story with the announcement of Devil May Cry 5 at The Game Awards later tonight. 

Above: Launch trailer for the 7th generation release of DMC HD Collection from 2012.

Source: Capcom Unity Blog

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