Tag Archive

Report: Blizzard Cancels Starcraft Shooter To Focus On Overwatch Sequel


Posted on June 8, 2019 by Rae Michelle Richards

Blizzard Entertainment is notoriously secretive when it comes to their in-development projects but that didn’t stop gaming journalist sleuth Jason Schreier of Kotaku unearthing that the Anaheim based developer halted work on the yet another Starcraft shooter (RIP Ghost) to move developers onto either a continuation or spin-off title set in the Overwatch Universe currently called “Overwatch 2”.

Project Ares was the code name given to this potential Starcraft third person shooter helmed by veteran developer Dustin Browder. A playable build of the game reportedly cast the player as a Terran Marine who could “gun down Zerg monsters” but future plans for the title included the ability to potentially play as the Zerg, but development was slow and it’s not known if this milestone was ever reached. Project Ares has been in active development for at least two years and it’s sudden cancellation only occurred a couple of weeks ago.

With developers moved onto what is essentially “the next Overwatch title” – what does that game look like? It’s been compared to Valve’s Left for Dead Games By Schreier’s sources, meaning that it has is most likely not a single player game but something closer to the smaller scale P.V.E modes released every spring for the game’s anniversary event. Imagine a scenario where teams of 4 Overwatch members have to defeat waves of Talon Robots – a likely event were Blizzard to show us more of the non PVP aspects of Overwatch. Reportedly Overwatch 2, the still unannounced Diablo 4 and the cancelled Starcraft project all run on the same engine – a change for Blizzard which with the exclusion of Starcraft II and Heroes of the Storm generally have different engines for each major franchise.

The public didn’t hear about the former Project Titan (which would be later reworked into Overwatch) very much at all while it was in active development. Aside from the odd omission of the projects existence during investor calls (and to be honest none of us listen to those) – Titan was spoken about mostly by fans as speculation and nothing more.

Blizzard actually did issue a vague statement to Kotaku which read in part:

“We always have people working on different ideas behind the scenes – including on multiple projects right now – but the reason we tend not to discuss them publicly is because anything can happen over the course of development.”

[Source]


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Major Changes For Destiny 2 As Bungie Prepares To Go Free To Play


Posted on June 7, 2019 by Rae Michelle Richards

It’s been a couple months now since Bungie and Activision parted ways with the conclusion of the publishers involvement with the Destiny franchise. In a live stream held yesterday Bungie announced what the future has in store for the two year old shooter, the announcement of a new distribution platform for the game, cross-save functionality and even the next expansion. There is a lot to take in!

Destiny 2 will be jumping ship from the Battle.net launcher and making a home for itself on Valve’s Steam service starting this September. A process will presumably be in place by then to allow existing owners who currently use the Battle.net launcher to play the game to transition to Steam. It’s not clear at this point in time whether or not the Steam version will be mandatory or if the Battle.net version will continue to be updated.

Alongside this shift to Steam will be the release of Destiny: New Light, a free to play version of Destiny 2 which includes the 2017 base game, both the Warmind and Curse of Osiris DLC add-ons. This will give new guardians access to all of the Year One content that previously cost $$. Last year’s Destiny 2: Forsaken expansion will not be included on the free offerings but will instead be a separate purchase.

Cross-save functionality (not to be confused with Cross Play functionality) will also be coming to Destiny 2 in the September update. This means that if you play on multiple platforms (Xbox, PC or PS4) you’ll be able to carry up to 3 characters forward into this new system and will be able to logon to any supported platform and continue to play. This also means that previously PlayStation Exclusive gear and strikes will be available on all platforms. It is not yet known if you’ll need to buy separate expansion licenses per platform at this time.

Lastly, and perhaps most exciting for existing players is the announcement of the next Destiny 2 expansion, Shadowkeep. In breaking what has been a Destiny tradition for the entire entire life of the franchise – Shadowkeep will not require the purchase of all previous DLCs. Players will be able to jump right into this latest adventure on the moon without the Forsaken or Forsaken annual pass. Speaking of the annual passes – there doesn’t seem to be one for Year 3 of Destiny 2

Source: PC Gamer


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Blazblue Cross Tag Battle On Nintendo Switch Is Basically Dead, Will New DLC Revive it?


Posted on January 24, 2019 by Rae Michelle Richards

Last year brought a number of brand new indie and AAA fighting games to fruition. Alongside big names like Final Fantasy Dissidia NT entering the console arena for the first time and Soul Calibur VI teaming up with Square Enix, Arc System Works launched their own dream crossover title, Blazblue: Cross Team Battle last June.  During the summer months – after launch – it felt like CTB was sure to continue to foster a healthy community and would be a game that had potential to not just be a flash in the pan. When your roster spans Rooster Teeth’s RBWY franchise, Atlus’ Persona series, Arc System Works own Blazblue franchise and with newcomers from the criminally underappreciated Under Night In-Birth series, how could things go wrong?

Last night I loaded up BBTAG for the first time in a few months to try out the last DLC Pack that I finally got around to purchasing. After playing around with the katana-wielding Yuzuriha in a handful of offline VS matches, I went online to adjust my profile and pick up a few icons. While connected I decided to check the lobbies and surprisingly there were literally zero people playing online last night around 11 PM MST.  A fighting game’s ranked or competitive scene dying, I can see, it takes developer support and community interest to keep tournaments and the like going. But even the dozens of casual lobbies were empty. Things were a little better this evening, but not by much, with a grand total of 12 people in one casual lobby.

So what are some factors that might have worked against Blazblue: Cross Tag Battle to cause it to die within six months? I don’t have the exact answer but here are a few ideas:

  1. Poorly Received DLC Model BBTag shipped with two versions – a full priced $69.99 USD release that included the complete 40 character roster or a $49.99 USD version that unlocked only half of the fighters. Arc System Works rolled out 3 free RWBY characters over the course of early summer until a major update hit at the end of August that unlocked the remaining DLC characters. Despite not being released for a full two months after launch, criticism of the launch line-up was swift due to the fact that the majority of the sprites, announcers, and movesets were datamined almost immediately.
  2. Nintendo Online Requirement –  It’s much easier for folks to hop online and play the various free to play titles available on Switch than it is to fork over $20 USD for the now mandatory online subscription. Yes, Online on other platforms also requires a sub fee but for the first three months of its life, anyone who owned Cross Tag Battle could hop on battle online without a paywall.
  3. Lack of Developer Support – Everything looked a lot brighter when the last of the DLC characters were revealed in August. Unloading the remainder of the roster in one big mega patch was a bit of a gamble after the slow drip-feed leading up to the announcement. While BBTag’s add-on characters were significantly cheaper than say Capcoms ($6.99 for 3 Characters Vs. $39.99 CDN for the current SFV Season Pass), Arc didn’t do much to make the mega patch an event. A press release was sent out, we covered it, the community loved it and then…. that was everything we’ve heard about Blazblue Cross until the end of the year….
  4. The Smash Factor – When talking about 2018 fighting games, I can’t ignore the fact that Nintendo released one of its most anticipated games right as the year was coming to a close. Packing in an impressive roster of 75 characters, all of whom come with the game, a full single-player campaign, and marketing presence that Blazblue: Cross Tag Battle could never hope to match- it is a sound argument that some of BBTag’s community have simply moved over to Smash for the time being.

“What’s Next?” – As a community, we simply do not know. Back during the release stream for the last two character packs in August 2018, Arc posted the above image on their screens both on stream and at the event – seeming to tease a fifth “fate” or franchise to join the fray. Since then we’ve heard absolutely nothing but “Anime FGC News” on Twitter recently reported that something would be announced in February. EVO 2019 isn’t until August, so lets all hope that Blazblue Cross Tag Battle gets an entire second season of additional characters – with a fifth franchise there is so much more potential.


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GRIP: Combat Racing Collector’s Edition Detailed


Posted on October 11, 2018 by Rae Michelle Richards

Developer Caged Element revealed that the upcoming console release of their futuristic racing title, GRIP: Combat Racing will be available in a limited physical Collector’s Edition exclusively though GAMESTOP in the United States. After inquiring with their public relations people we can confirm that the Collector’s Edition will be available through EB Games in Canada.

Those who purchase the physical Collector’s Edition will receive the game’s soundtrack in 3 formats – CD, Vinyl and MP3 download, a set of art prints, a USB thumb-drive, a set of decals and exclusive DLC.

GRIP: Combat Racing Collector’s Edition:

  • GRIP: Combat Racing video game
  • Double Vinyl + CD Soundtrack + MP3 Download key
  • 3 x 12” double-sided art prints
  • Classic Game Manual & Lorebook
  • GRIP USB Drive
  • Exclusive DLC (Nyvoss Hex Paint Kit, Vortex Rims and Vehicle Decals)
  • GRIP Sick Bag
  • Vehicle Decals
  • Numbered card of authenticity

GRIP: Combat Racing is very clearly inspired by the fast paced anti-gravity racers from the mid to late 90s that graced the home consoles of the time. The developers cite the 1999 game Rollcage by Attention to Detail – which I can certainly see in the car designs. Fast cars gripping to the curved surfaces of futuristic racing courses also reminds me of the “Xtreme-G” series from the long defunct ACLAIM studios. Vehicle design and anti-gravity mechanics aren’t the only 1990s inspired features: the final release will also include 22 courses and more importantly – four player split screen!

GRIP’s complete soundtrack will include 24 tracks but the following 11 tracks have been licensed for use in the game:

  • Battery x Makoto “Submerge
  • Krakota x Urbandawn “Coyote”
  • Inja x Pete Cannon “War Games“ (Instrumental)
  • Krakota “Citadels
  • Royalston “Diorama
  • Rawtekk “Restless
  • Whiney “Sunday Grunge
  • Whiney “Talisman
  • Lynx “Clap Track

GRIP: Combat Racing will be released on Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch and Windows PC on November 6th.

Source: GRIP Public Relations


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Tales of Vesperia Definitive Edition Misses 2018, Coming In January


Posted on September 10, 2018 by Rae Michelle Richards

If you’re a “Tales of” fan like myself you’re probably really looking forward to the upcoming HD Remaster, Tales of Vesperia: Definitive Edition. Bandai Namco never officially gave ToV: Definitive Edition a solid release date in the west when it revealed the game at Xbox’s E3 presentation this past June.  Many fans and even some retailers expected the game to drop sometime this November but it appears the publisher had other plans for Yuri, Estelle, Rapede and Karol for their current generation debut.

The gang’s going to get back together for their 10th anniversary when Tales of Vesperia: Definitive Edition releases worldwide on January 11th on PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One and digital only on Windows PC.

RPGSite.net had a run-down of features for the game that looks like it comes from the official press release:

Features

  • A Beloved Tale Returns — The tale of a young hero on a quest for justice that captivated Tales fans returns to Xbox and makes its way for the first time to PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, and Steam!
  • Everything in One Edition! — Dive into the definitive version of this game with updated full HD graphics, brand-new music tracks, exciting mini-games, bosses, and a collection of unreleased costume DLC!
  • The Party Grows Stronger! — Yuri sets sail on his adventure with Estelle, a young noble woman; Karol; a boy in pursuit of a guild to call his own; Rita, an eccentric scholar; Raven, a laid-back archer; Judith, a mysterious dragoon; and Repede, a pipe-smoking dog… and now two more playable characters join the fray!
  • Patty Fleur, a cheerful and tough young pirate girl in search of treasure, adventure… and her forgotten memories.
  • Flynn Scifo, Yuri’s best friend and an Imperial Knight, now joins the rest on their journey!
  • Fight with Flair! — Assemble your favorite team and enjoy exciting real-time battles with all new Mystic Artes and skills!

Alongside the release date, Namco Bandai also revealed that the Definitive Edition will be receiving a special Steel Book physical edition. The case features the loyal woofer Rapede on the front cover and the backside features every “Tales of” fan’s favorite doggo striking quite a few poses.  In 2009 Bandai released a similar physical Steel Book edition that included a separate soundtrack CD. No word yet on what extras will be included in the 2019 special edition, but you can be sure I’ll write about it as soon as I do.

[Header Image Credit: Youtube]


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Paladins Impressions (Nintendo Switch)


Posted on July 25, 2018 by Rae Michelle Richards

At first blush Hi-Rez Studios Paladins is easily compared to Blizzard’s Overwatch – both games are bright and colorful, both games feature a large roster of heroes with different play styles and both games are all about co-operative teamplay. In the two years since launch Hi-Rez has worked hard to distance their game from Blizzard’s offerings so much so that they’ve revamped player progression twice and even cancelled entire game modes – Siege and Survival (that latter being spun off as Realm Royale). 

Hi-Rez’s PR department sent me a Founders Pack code for Paladins on Nintendo Switch ahead of today’s free-to-play. With the recent Rise of Furia event ending on PC and PS4 with the release of the latest patch – which should be out on Nintendo Switch sometime soon – I thought it would be a perfect time to share my thoughts on the game. 

Core Gameplay Is Solid 

As a team based first person shooter Paladins has quite a bit of competition, mainly from Splatoon, which also has a bright and distinct art style of its own. Paladins feels great to play with the joycons both in docked mode and handheld (which I used primarily while playing for this piece). Draw distance, team markers and character effects are all readable and get your attention even on the smaller screen. Once you get used to the game’s UI everything just works when playing in handheld, which is excellent. Similar to Overwatch, Paladins doesn’t bog you down with death percentages or KDAs, instead even assisting with a kill will count as an elimination – something that I wish more competitive FPS games would adopt.  Paladins in Switch might not run at the same 60 FPS as its PC counterpart but this is really not a huge drawback, given how well it seems to hold at 30FPS in handheld mode and can be played anywhere.

Progression Feels Like A Mess (and is RNG Dependent)  

Paladin’s Founder’s Pack instantly granted me access to all of the available champions with the promise of automatically receiving any future additions for free. When comparable MOBAs can single characters for upwards of $15 USD the $29.99 Founders Pack seems like a no-brainer, when it comes to Free to Play Title. What’s not advertised however is that the majority of the “progression” in Paladins is unavailable even with all of the unlockables provided within the Founders Pack. 

By completing games in either of the available modes you’ll earn gold which can be used to level up an individual champion.  Along the way, throughout the 50 individual character levels your chosen champion will be granted a spare amount of emotes, alternate voice lines and there’s a final “golden skin” available for those who make the ascent to level 50. The remaining various unlocks for all of Paladin’s champions are hidden behind RNG loot boxes which can only be earned through a premium currency. It is true that this currency can be earned in small amounts by completing 7 days of login rewards but it would take you almost a month to earn enough for a single chest, and even then you’ll have no control over what cosmetics are unlocked.

Playing As Furia

Furia wields a semi automatic mid range rifle with a bayonet attached. She is a ranged healer who can use one of the abilities automatically bound to the left shoulder buttons to apply a massive 1000 HP heal to a single target. Pyre Blade summons a slow moving vertical beam of light that deals a massive amount of damage over time to opponents who are within its range. Her utlimate – Inflame – acts as a sort of team boost, making Furia un-targetable for 2 seconds while giving teammates increased damage and movement speed. In the right hands Furia can be a valuable clutch healer and kill streak powerhouse, during my time playing her I think I racked up multiple 20+ streaks.

Try It For Yourself

Paladins: Champions of the Realm is now free to play on Nintendo Switch. You can go grab the game’s client and try it out for free from the Nintendo e-Shop as of today. Hi-Rez PR provided an advance copy of the Founder’s Pack prior to the public release for our consideration meaning that I had all of the game’s characters unlocked from the start. The free to play version provides a rotation of ever-changing free characters as well as the ability to complete daily challenges to unlock gold to purchase individual characters.

 


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11 Things That Have Changed In No Man’s Sky Since Launch


Posted on July 11, 2018 by Rae Michelle Richards

The next huge update to No Man’s Sky is about to hit all platforms at the end of the month on July 24th. We do know that No Man’s Sky: NEXT will be a full multiplayer experience that opens up the nearly infinite worlds to multiple players at once along with a number of other improvements. Details are still forthcoming on what exactly No Man’s Sky: NEXT entails but publisher 505 Games did release a video that went through 11 huge improvements that have to NMS since its launch in 2016.

Here are 6 of the 100s of updates that have been made to No Man’s Sky that I find the most interesting: 

  • Updates that make deploying camps viable.  These included deployable equipment, automatic harvesting, communication terminals and a signal scanner that can find mineral deposits. 
  • Ability for players to find uninhabited bases to use as their brand-new home base. Bases come in a modular structure allowing for decorations and other cosmetics.  
  • Purchasable freighters that players can use to traverse the galaxy. Freighters are able to transport good in bulk making trading a lot easier. 
  • A regenerating galaxy – loot, functioning economy and intra-system conflicts are able to regenerate across the galaxy. New technologies allow players to apply sorting filters to the galaxy map. 
  • While exploring the vast number of available worlds you might just the wreckage of a crashed freighter. Using terrain manipulator explorers can find valuable salvage and complete guild missions. 
  • Improved mission log – Mission tracking, the ability to view pending missions and an in-game mission guide was added with the Atlas Rising update. 

No Man’s Sky originally launched on August 6th 2016 and since then has had three major updates – The Foundation Update, The Pathfinder Update and The Atlas Rising Update in the 2 years that have followed.  With the upcoming July 24th of No Man’s Sky: NEXT players on Xbox One will be able to enter the infinitely explorable space simulation.  


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Fortnite Alternate Reality Game Grips Community Days Before Season 5 Begins


Posted on July 9, 2018 by Rae Michelle Richards

Fortnite’s Battle Royal community is buzzing with anticipation for the beginning of the game’s fifth season – all of this excitement has so far been capped off with an alternate reality game (ARG) that has seen recognizable in-game items leap into the real world. With vortexes appearing the sky, large burger mascots now living in the desert and rocket launches going awry it can be hard to keep track of it all.

Here is a brief, chronological look at the major events that have occurred thus far, leading up to the start of Season 5:

Sat June 30th Countdown Ends With Rocket Launch

Televisions across the Fortnite Battle Royale map were counting down to … something. As the days ticked away to become hours and minutes players could hear a distinct sound in the skies above. Last Monday, as players stopped killing each other in order to watch what all of the fuss was about, a rocket was launched into the skies. Sadly, things went sideways as the rocket exploded, opening up rifts in the skies above. One player took it upon themselves to kill all the other players in their match while they watched the rocket ascend into the skies – setting a new multi kill record for the game.

Fri July 6th – Durr Burger From Greasy Grove Found In California

This past weekend Players noticed that the burg chain’s mascot found in Greasy Grove was missing, possibly sucked into the rift never to be seen again. Los Angeles area photographer and twitter user @Sekashiloni found the burger in the California Desert of all places. Accompanying the mascot were a police car from the world of Fortnite and a sign warning passers by about the dangers of dimensional rifts.

Tues July 9th – Supply Llamas Show Up All Over Europe

Today’s development is even stranger than a large cartoon burger entering the real world – Supply Llamas, which contain building materials and weapons within Battle Royale have been found in multiple locations across Europe.  Confirmed locations for these rare drops include London, Cologne, Cannes and Warsaw. Photos of the Loot Llamas in these major cities are currently among the highest up-voted content to be found on the /r/FortniteBR sub reddit as of the time of publication.

[Image via Reddit]

What does it all mean? Only Epic knows at this point in time. Many have speculated that the Battle Royale map will be radically changed when Season 5 launches on July 12th. Save The World – Fortnite’s P.V.E mode has had an official development roadmap revealed over the weekend that includes flintlock weapons and western themed heroes. Will the new Battle Royale map not only be based upon the real world but also history as well?

We’ll find out soon enough.


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Detroit: Become Human | Review


Posted on July 9, 2018 by Meghan Kass

David Cage is a name that doesn’t sit will with many Players, especially after allegations of a toxic work environment and workplace harassment that has occurred at Quantic Dream. To say his games are for a particular niche is an understatement. Critics have not panned his games, in fact many have praised them for their rich story and environment, but the average consumer might go as far as to say his games barely qualify as games. I was recently asked how to sell someone on a David Cage game, and my answer was simple:

“Have you ever watched a movie and wish you could do something different? Have you ever thought if you were in a particular scenario you could make better choices than the characters? Then a David Cage game could be worth a try”

Detroit: Become Human is definitely a David Cage game. The gameplay doesn’t differ much other Cage games. You go through a story, make your choices that will affect the story and characters and perform in quicktime events at pee-determined times.

I found navigating within Detroit’s world be a little cumbersome. There are some issues controlling the character and getting them to move in the exact direction I wanted to and I found they moved a little slow for my taste. The quick time events were standard for a Cage game. For the most part they worked for the story, felt fluid and didn’t ruin the immersion – in fact, some QTEs fit in really well with android perspective technology.

The real star of the show is the story and characters and is the probable reason anyone is going to play a David Cage game. Detroit: Become Human takes a stab at the age old sci-fi story of robots gaining sentience.As many have pointed out post-release, Detroit: Become Human‘s are an analogy for real world racism – right down to the game’s sentient machines being placed at the back of a train and being forced to stand, no sitting for robots in the world. Oh, and apparently the world of Detroit Become Human is one where racism doesn’t exist because machines have gained sentience.

The main story is that of androids beginning to gain self awareness and humanity. Now androids want the same rights as every other person and the player follows three particular characters and what they will do to make a better life for themselves and even others around them who are suffering as well and how the world reacts to such a change and events that occur.

Your first playable character and storyline is “Connor, the android sent from Cyberlife”. He is an android cop who’s one goal is to finish his investigation into an outbreak of rogue androids and murders caused by them.Partnered with the salty cop Hank Anderson, you can choose how to approach the investigation, if you let perpetrators go, if you build a relationship with Hank and what you will do about the rogue androids and your own inner conflict. I found his story offers some wonderful character moments, fun action sequences and interesting choices that drastically change the outcome of his story-line

The second you meet is Kara, an android purchased by a questionable man who is meant to be a maid for the house and child care taker of sorts to his neglected daughter. Kara simply wants to get the little girl to safety and to start a new life free of what is essentially slavery. I very much enjoyed Kara’s heartwarming love for the girl Alice and their journey was genuinely interesting with some moments I definitely did not predict, one involving a robot bear. If you’ve paid attention to Quantic Dream’s PlayStation tech demos over the years you might remember the 2012 “Kara” tech demo which asked a lot of interesting questions about what it would mean for machines to gain sentience. That 2012 demo formed as the inspiration for Detroit: Become Human but it is hard to say that it laid the foundation for the game.

Overall, Detroit: Become Human plays like a choose your own adventure Sci-Fi TV season with some gameplay elements throughout. If you are in the mood for somewhat cliche sci fi story with decent world building, interesting and enjoyable characters and aren’t turned off by David Cage games, definitely give it a try; if you aren’t a fan of his games though, this most likely won’t change your mind about them.

For further reading on the on-going issues with Quantic Dream as a developer and the problematic content found within Detroit: Become Human the following articles are recommended:

The Profound Quandary of Blackness In Detroit: Become Human [Via The Root]
Quantic Dream Accused of Being A Toxic Workplace [Via Kotaku]

Sony Computer Entertainment Canada provided a review copy to BrokenJoysticks for our consideration.


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Shenmue I & II Port Release Date Confirmed For August 21st for PS4, Xbox One and PC


Posted on July 4, 2018 by Rae Michelle Richards

SEGA will take us back to mid 1980s Hong Kong and Japan with the re-release of Shenmue I & II on Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC on August 21st. The publisher confirmed the price, release date, discount and various technical details surrounding this dual port in an F.A.Q posted on the official SEGA website.

Shenmue I & II will be priced at $39.99 CDN and includes the full version of the 1999 Dreamcast title and its 2002 Sequel. In their F.A.Q SEGA confirmed that the codebase for this port comes from the Xbox Version of both games which was originally released back in 2003 in North America.  Working from the XBOX version ensures that features like photo mode, filters and better overall anti-aliasing are supported from the start. Gameplay segments will support 16:9 HD resolutions but cut-scenes will be preserved in their original 4:3 presentation. A “modern control scheme” has also been implemented that maps Ryu’s movement to the analog sticks rather than the D-Pad, as originally intended.

A number of other small additions have also been added to the Shenmue I & II port including both Japanese / English dialogue, configurable controls on PC, Achievements and the ability to save anywhere.

As well as the herculean effort of porting the code to the new platforms, there is a huge number of things we have added:

  • Choice of Japanese or English speech in both games
  • Saves can be carried over from Shenmue into Shenmue II on all platforms
  • Saving anywhere in both games
  • HD resolution rendering
  • Updated UI
  • New post processing effects for both games
  • Full controller support and configurable mouse and keyboard for PC users
  • Full Achievement support for both games on all platforms

Above: A Trailer From 2000 Official Dreamcast Magazine.

Shenmue I was heralded back in 1999 for its pseudo open world approach to game design – allowing players to explore a fully realized slice of Japan in full 3D with a working internal clock, the ability to rent motel rooms, visit pachinko parlors and even work a part time job. Players take on the role of Ryo Hazuki who witnesses the murder of his father – which launches a multinational adventure that spans multiple games as players help Ryo with his quest for vengeance.

On PC Shenmue I & II‘s minimum specs are quite relaxed:

Minimum:

    • OS: Windows 7 64Bit
    • Processor: Intel i3-560 / AMD FX-4300
    • Memory: 4 GB RAM
    • Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 650 Ti (1GB Vram) / AMD Radeon 6990
    • DirectX: Version 11
    • Storage: 30 GB available space

    [Source]


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Blazblue: Cross Tag Battle | Review (Nintendo Switch)


Posted on July 2, 2018 by Rae Michelle Richards

ARC Systemwork’s latest multiplatform fighting game is a dream matchup more than half a decade in the making as the cast of ARC’s Blazblue square off against the protagonists of Persona 4: Ultimax. Joining the fray as well are several fighters from Ecole Software’s Under Night: Rebirth series.  As if borrowing characters from the developer of Melty Blood wasn’t enough of a reason to be paying attention to Blazblue Cross Tag Team Battle, Team RWBY from Rooster Teeth’s multi-season animated action show join the cast to round out a roster that spans more than 40 characters.  

CAN’T ESCAPE FROM CROSSING FATE

At its core Blazblue: Cross Tag Battle is a 2 Vs 2 fighting game that utilizes flashy finishers, character specific special moves, assists and timely character swaps, not unlike the Marvel Vs Capcom franchise. Merging together three existing fighting franchises (each well known for their signature mechanics) together and incorporating RBWY characters while making the whole package feel cohesive might sound like an impossible task. Rather than merge mechanics from Blazblue, Persona and Under Night franchises into the basic systems – ARC Systemwork’s decided to start with a simple easy to understand base and build from there. Characters (generally speaking) will share a common set of input commands for their special moves, counters and basic attacks. Blazblue Cross Tag Battle is also incredibly new player friendly thanks to the Auto Combo system – by simply pressing either the A or B buttons in succession (A + A +A or B + B +B for example) the game will perform preset combos for you. Similarly, Distortion Finishes and EX Moves also share a pool of input commands that make it approach to try out different team combinations without having to master all of the nuance first. Players looking to turn the tide in battle can also hold down the C button to launch a brand-new type of attack – the cross attack – where both team members jump on screen and hit their opponent for a good chunk of damage. All of these mechanics come together to form the basis of a fighting system that is extremely beginner friendly while still offering the depth and fighting game aficionados demand. 

Where nuance starts to show is with the characters themselves rather than the base system. Each franchise has slightly unique gameplay alterations that change-up how they are played. Blazblue fighters handle pretty much identical to their their Central Fiction counterparts, so if you’ve played that title or any of the previous Blazblue games you should feel right at home with Ragna, Makoto, Noel and crew. Yukiko, Yue, Chie and the rest of the Persona crew are able to call their series’ iconic personality manifestations forward to aid them in battle. Persona’s generally come in for a second or two to deal damage but in one specific case heal your opponent. Unlike the Persona Summons in Ultimax, the ones in Cross Tag Battle can actually be destroyed. Unlike their colleagues, Under Night In Birth characters’ combos work a little differently than the others. Rather than using moves of the same type (A + A +A), Linne and company are able to freely swap between light, heavy and even sweep attacks while maintaining their combos. 

HEAVEN OR HELL LET’S ROCK

Blazblue: Cross Tag Battle has a lot to offer folks like myself who prefer to play their fighting games offline. While yes, ranked online play is present and very much alive on Nintendo Switch, it was not the focus of my three weeks with the game. A four chapter long single player campaign is available right from the start. Not counting the prologue each one comes in at about an hour and a half – complete with visual novel style dialogue sections, animated portraits and fantastic voice work. Once you’ve mastered the single player campaign there’s also your standard VS mode with multiple difficulty levels (although adjustable difficulty levels being hidden in the options menu is a bit of a crime). Those looking for a more traditional arcade experience will probably enjoy the challenge of Survival Mode as it comes the closest to scratching that particular itch. Also of note is Cross Tag Battle’s training mode that doesn’t just include the basics than throw you to the wolves – advanced tactics, counters and nuance are taught in the later tutorials and anyone who wants to get serious about BBCTB should check it out. 

I’ve enjoyed my time with Blazblue Cross Tag Battle – everything from the sprite work to the remixed music tracks absolutely feel like they belong in their respective franchises. With well-known voice actors coming into reprise their characters – and the voice cast of RWBY joining in, the whole thing feels lovingly crafted. Mechanically speaking Cross Tag is very deep while still being approachable. I also felt like my time was respected as everything you do from online matches to training to just playing around in training earns you in-game currency which can be spent on unlocking alternate colors, customization character cards and concept art. 

 

 

 


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Blazblue Cross Tag Battle Releases Yang For Free + Two New Character Packs


Posted on June 19, 2018 by Rae Michelle Richards

Fans of Blazblue, RWBY, Under Night: Rebirth or Persona 4: Arena should be excited because ARC System Works just dropped two new character packs as paid DLC alongside Yang from Team RWBY as a free add-on for all platforms. 

Character Packs #2 contains: 

  • Jubei (Under Night: Rebirth) 
  • Aegis (Persona 4: Arena) 
  • Carmine (Blazblue) 

Character Pack #3 contains: 

  • Hakumen (Blazblue) 
  • Naoto (Persona 4: Arena) 
  • Vatista (Under Night: Rebirth) 

Each pack is available separately for $4.99 CDN or as part of the $19.99 CDN Season’s Pass. Alongside the first character pack which was free for the first 14 days of release, we’ve had 9 of the promised 20 DLC characters released thus far. No word yet on who Character Pack #4 might contain but the Anti-Shadow Suppression Weapon, Labyrsm as she has been datamined in adorable Chibi form. 

Blazblue Cross Tag Battle is available for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 and PC. 


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Sony Praises Itself While Dodging The Switch Fortnite Lock-Out Issue


Posted on June 15, 2018 by Rae Michelle Richards

One of the biggest pieces of news that came out of Nintendo’s E3 presentation wasn’t the news that every Smash Bros character ever was returning or that an awesome mech game that opened the show developed by former Amored Core developers but one of the worst kept secrets – Fortnite has come to Nintendo Switch. 

With over 2 million downloads during the first 24 hours of availability, you’d think that Fortnite on Switch has been a smashing success (heh) but not all is well in the world of Fortnite, aside from ya know the zombies.  As It turns out if you’ve ever signed into an Epic Games account on PlayStation 4 your account is permanently locked out from playing on Nintendo Switch. This means players migrating from PS4 cannot access their purchased skins, Battle Royale Battle Pass unlocks and other account bound items – this means their only option is to create a brand-new account. 

Needless to say, the Fortnite community and the Nintendo Switch community are not happy:  

After nearly 3 days without comment Sony gave an official statement to the BBC about the Epic Games account lockout issue and the whole thing is very embarrassing. They used the opportunity to deflect criticism of the account issue and praise themselves for having millions of subscribers on their network. Oh, and Sony also praised cross play with iOS, Android and PC while deflecting the fact that it’s their fault that Epic accounts don’t work on Nintendo Switch as detailed above.

Here’s the statement that a Sony Spokesperson gave to the BBC:

“We’re always open to hearing what the PlayStation community is interested in to enhance their gaming experience. With… more than 80 million monthly active users on PlayStation Network, we’ve built a huge community of gamers who can play together on Fortnite and all online titles. We also offer Fortnite cross-play support with PC, Mac, iOS, and Android devices, expanding the opportunity for Fortnite fans on PS4 to play with even more gamers on other platforms. We have nothing further to add beyond this at this point”

Remember that corporations aren’t your friends, digital “goods” like skins, consumables and unlockables aren’t owned by you and corporations can take them away or lock you out of an account at any time for any reason.

Good job Sony, /s


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E3 2018: Death Stranding’s Fourth Trailer Is Just As Confusing As The Rest


Posted on June 13, 2018 by Rae Michelle Richards

Kojima Production’s Death Stranding has been confusing viewers since its debut at E3 2016 and the previous 3 trailers gave us no reason to suspect that the first glimpse of gameplay would be any differed.  Coming in at just over 8 minutes in length, this latest look at the game confirms that Norman Reedus’ character is named ‘Sam Porter Bridges’ and that he makes deliveries. Throughout the nearly ten minute presentation we see Sam carry a number of boxes on his back, utilize motorized robots and other delivery related equipment. HOLY SHIT WHO WOULD HAVE THOUGHT DEATH STRANDING WAS JUST A ‘STACK STUFF ON YOURSELF SIMULATOR’..

Of course, this is Kojima and things aren’t that simple: What we do now know thanks to this trailer:

1) Parts of Sam’s name have appeared on the two different suits that he has worn in trailers 3 & 4. With ‘Bridges’ and ‘Porter’ respectively.
2) As revealed at the end of the trailer – eating one of the slug shaped creatures will ‘keep the Time Fall away’.
3) The time reversing rain that we’ve seen in trailer’s 2 and 3 is known as Time Fall and causes rapid aging.
4) Kojima has talked about how death will not be the end of the game in Death Stranding. Instead, Sam awakens in an alternate death dimension. This is referenced directly by a voice over Sam’s radio in Trailer 4.
5) The invisible ‘things’ that killed the work crew in trailer 3 can be sensed by Sam but not seen, while his new female companion can see them it seems.
6) If Sam is eaten by one of the invisible creatures he will come back back to live but a giant crator will be created, just like we saw in trailer 3.

Now fans get to start piecing together … wait these pieces don’t seem to fit together at all. *sigh* well, we might be back at square one with this. Are the invisible creators (called ‘ludens’ by fans) the souls of former people? Is Sam’s name actually a combination of his job ‘porter’ as in “a person employed to carry luggage and other loads, especially in a railroad station, airport, or hotel.” and ‘bridges’, a company? Why do the little worm things keep the Time Fall away? Do they spawn clones of the carriers?

AAAAAHHH my mind is broken for now. Death Stranding still has no solid release date but it is coming eventually for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 4 Pro.


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E3 2018: Dante and Crew Are Back In Devil May Cry 5


Posted on June 13, 2018 by Rae Michelle Richards

Get ready for cheesy one liners, fluid chain building combat and an over the top melodramatic story featuring angels, demons and other mythological creatures in Devil May Cry 5. Billed by Capcom as a true sequel to 2008’s Devil May Cry 4, DMC5 marks the first time Capcom has taken the series in-house after a decade hiatus.

The story of DMC5 picks up several years after the last entry – with a demonic invasion looming and the seeds of the Demon Tree starting to take root within Red Grave City, Dante’s younger ally Nero is drawn to investigate this new threat.  Without the power of his demonic arm, Nero must utilize a new mechanical prosthetic (which he can ride like a rocket) to dispatch the forces of hell. Can Nero find Dante in time to stop the oncoming invasion?

Devil May Cry 5 is powered by Capcom’s RE Engine which made it’s debut in last year’s Resident Evil 7. It’ll be directed by Hideki Itsuno and will be released on Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and Windows PC in the Spring of 2019.

Reveal Trailer 

Screenshots


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