David Wong

Writer and journalist for almost a year. Doing this for fun. Learned a lot along the way. I'm interested in businesses and the moves they make, tech and how it changes the world, and of course, enjoy playing some video games! I enjoy console and PC, but mostly RPGs, FPS, and League of Legends.

Studio Wildcard debuts open-world pirate MMO Atlas

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Studio Wildcard debuts open-world pirate MMO Atlas 1

Studio Wildcard made headlines with its brand new game it showed off at The Game Awards 2018. The company behind ARK: Survival Evolved has received mixed reviews with some praising the dinosaur survival game while others hated the company for releasing DLC when the base game isn’t even done yet. Regardless, they announced their new pirate … Read more

Far Cry 5 spin-off to be announced at The Game Awards tomorrow

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Far Cry 5 spin-off to be announced at The Game Awards tomorrow 2

A new game based on the Far Cry series set in Montana will be on the way and will be announced tomorrow at The Game Awards.

Ubisoft is making a new post-apocalyptic Far Cry spin-off game. Just a few hours ago, the publisher released a new trailer for a Far Cry game with a nuclear bomb going off in the hillside in what looks like the state of Montana, which was seen in Far Cry 5. The world then burns after the detonation and there’s a character shown holding a crossbow that seems to use buzzsaws. Yup. Buzzsaws.

The spin-off seems as if they took Far Cry 5 and let a nuke explode. The setting looks the same. The theme looks the same. It’s basically the same game, Far Cry 5, with a nuke and you play in the world after.

No branding or wording in this trailer talks about Far Cry 5 though. That’s the weird part. This will be a new (probably non-canon) game that’s entirely separate from the series and not related other than the setting. It doesn’t seem like an expansion nor DLC, but rather a spin-off game for FC5.

@Nibellion posted this on Twitter and Geoff Keighley of The Game Awards confirmed:

The trailer can be seen below:

Battlefield 5’s first major content update Overture delayed

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Battlefield 5's first major content update Overture delayed 3

Battlefield 5‘s first major free content update was scheduled for release tomorrow, December 4. But due to unknown reasons, DICE has pulled the update.

Just revealed a few hours ago, Chapter 1: Overture has now been officially delayed from the scheduled launch tomorrow. Other than it being a major free content update, not many other details are known as to why the patch was pulled last minute before going live.

DICE has seemed to just push the whole thing back to a later date that’s unknown at this time. This will definitely disappoint some players, but it’s probably better than pushing out an incomplete mess (*ahem* Fallout 76).

DICE tweeted about this on Twitter, and it will report back with more updates ASAP. The AAA developer said that they’ll follow up with more news tomorrow or as “soon as we have it.”

Overture will still release sometime this week as they “don’t anticipate a long delay,” but this can’t help BF5‘s reception- given that the game has mixed reviews and many loyal fans have decided to skip this one altogether.

Possible Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order details and speculations leaked on Reddit

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Possible Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order details and speculations leaked on Reddit 4

A leak on Reddit claims that the upcoming Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order will be scheduled for November 2019. The post has been credited by various people working for the company, but then again, they could all be fake.

The Reddit post dumped a bunch of information regarding many Star Wars projects. As suspected, the Reddit community was skeptical as ever because of all the other rumors about this game that are circulating the web. Later, a reliable source in the Star Wars community wrote a post mentioning details about Star Wars: Episode IX. This was written by MakingStarWars- a reliable source in the community. Even though it may still be wrong, there is a good level of trust.

They reported that Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order will be released in November of next year. And they said that the game takes place 5 years after Episode III: Revenge of the Sith and is based on the main character, Cal. Cal is a padawan who survived Order 66 and has a mentor figure “who is a woman named Ceres.”

MakingStarWars claims to get their details from a Star Wars Marketing Presentation by Disney.

With these two pieces of proof, we can slightly agree that the game will be scheduled for release within the announced date and we get to see some of the game’s plot. Then again, nothing is confirmed.

Respawn Entertainment’s Star Wars action-adventure project doesn’t have much information on the web since the game’s original announcement back in 2016. There have been plenty of rumors and speculation, but nothing that can debacle the upcoming action-adventure.

The only real, solid, info that fans have garnered is basically the title, Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order and a release window of “Holiday 2019” during EA Play this year. There will be more news released in April 2019 during the Star Wars Celebration event. With all this time and so little information, plenty of speculations have surfaced regarding the game.

Nike’s PG 2.5 X PlayStation Colorway shoes have a secret “glow” option

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Nike's PG 2.5 X PlayStation Colorway shoes have a secret "glow" option 5

A small but awesome easter egg has been discovered on the new pair of PG 2.5 x PlayStation Colorway sneakers.

For those who are unaware, this pair of kicks were inspired by the original PlayStation and they’re being made by Nike for PS fans. Right now, there are tons of pictures surfacing the web, but there’s an homage to PS4 that many people are missing. These are very hard to find right now in stores, so the best place to look is online if you’re just window shopping.

Many of the features of the sneakers pay tribute directly to the original PlayStation, such as the logo, color scheme, and even design and print. But Nike also snuck in a tribute to the current PS4 with a minor easter egg shoutout. A glowing Paul George logo with the PlayStation’s power button is found on the left shoe’s tongue. This is obvious just from any picture, but what’s not so obvious is that it can be controlled.

But what’s interesting is that the glowing logo has two options:

  • A solid blue glow
  • A rapid breathing, “sleep mode” strobe reminiscent of the PS4 before it goes to sleep

Twitter user SpongeYaDig shared this new information to DualShockers alongside a video demonstrating the effect:

For PlayStation fans, this is just pure bliss. When it comes to easter eggs, the minor attention to details is what matters. Paul George and Nike are both endorsers of PlayStation it seems since this isn’t the first time they’ve released PlayStation-themed sneakers.

The PG 2.5 x PlayStation Colorway sneakers have limited shelf availability and will likely never be found on shelves. The best way to get your hands on a pair of them is to used platforms like eBay or craigslist. I just checked on eBay and they range in price from $140 up to $600 at the time of this writing, so the limited stock release plus the special theme make these a valuable pair of shoes and definitely a collector’s item. You won’t see many people sporting these on the streets.

Cooking Simulator delayed until Q1 2019

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Cooking Simulator delayed until Q1 2019 6

Cooking Simulator has been delayed until early 2019 based on a post on the Steam Community page.

Cooking Simulator is exactly what it sounds like- you cook. As awkwardly as possible. The game is aiming for a realistic take on cooking with realistic graphics and a bunch of awesome things you can do in the game. Of course, it’s fun to cook up meals as directed, but it’s even more fun to microwave some tin foil and light the place on fire.

Gameplay will be as expected with any simulator game. There will real representations of food and the plenty of recipes that come along with them. You can expect realistic graphics and real-life cooking recipes. There will be a career mode where you can make dishes and build up your reputation and unlock more recipes. And there will be a sandbox mode, which I’d assume is where players will turn it into their own rendition of Overcooked.

Cooking Simulator was originally planned to be released sooner, but the devs have pushed it back to make sure it’s “prepped.” No jokes, please.

They may miss out on Christmas sales, but Wastelands Interactive wants to make things right with a polished game rather than rush it out full of bugs, like *ahem* Fallout 76.

Cooking Simulator can be added to your wishlist if you want to keep tabs on the game. It’ll come out early 2019 for PC, Xbox One, and PS4. Console editions will debut later. PC will debut first. And there will be a possible VR version at some point.

There’s an official trailer that you can check out below:

Fallout 76’s December 4 update will raise stash storage to 600 pounds; Full patch notes

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Fallout 76's December 4 update will raise stash storage to 600 pounds; Full patch notes 7

Fallout 76‘s rocky start will require more than just two giant patches to redeem itself.

Right now, the game is still poorly rated with a lot of mixed reviews and many 1-star reviews all over the web bashing Bethesda for releasing a rushed and empty shell of a Fallout game. Some are even threatening to sue them for not honoring returns.

Bethesda is under heat and trying to repair the game to make the whole thing a far more enjoyable experience. A new patch is scheduled for December 4 next week which doesn’t even compare to the previous patches in terms of size. From the patch notes, it’s an update built for fixing a ton of bugs and changing some elements that the community has complained about, such as increasing your storage capacity to 600 pounds.

The update is just 3GB for consoles and a mere 36MB for PC. This is the next closest schedule update to release for Fallout 76 and Bethesda has uploaded the patch notes (pasted below). There will be another update on December 11 which will include CAMP changes and some respeccing features, alongside the regular bug fixes.

At this point, the game is still in need of major repair for the plethora of bugs (some game-breaking ones) found all over the world. Afterward, they should focus on the quality of life and gameplay updates. Bethesda seems to know this already and thus is releasing bug patches first.

The patch will drop for PC and consoles on the same day.

Here are the patch notes for the December 4 Fallout 76 update:

GENERAL

  • Performance: PC framerates are once again uncapped. However, reaching very high framerates will no longer cause movement speed to increase. This was originally fixed in the November 19 patch.
  • Stability: The Fallout 76 game client and servers have received additional stability improvements.

C.A.M.P., CRAFTING, AND WORKSHOPS

  • Stash: Maximum stash storage has been increased by 50%, to 600 pounds. This is a conservative adjustment, and we plan to increase the storage cap further in the future once we’ve verified this change does not impact the stability of the game.

BALANCE

  • Enemies: XP rewards for killing high-level creatures have been reduced.
  • Bosses: Fixed an issue affecting instanced Boss loot. Players should now correctly receive 2-4 items per boss, depending on the creature’s difficulty and level.
  • Weapons: Automatic weapon damage has been increased by approximately 20% across the board.

PVP

  • Weapon Effects: Hitting another player with a Cryolator now applies a Chilled, Frosted, or Frozen status based on how many times they are hit. The duration of movement speed reductions applied by these effects have been significantly decreased.

BUG FIXES

STABILITY AND PERFORMANCE
  • Console: Fixed an issue that could cause the player to encounter an infinite loading screen when signing out of their console account while playing Fallout 76.
  • Xbox: Addressed a crash that could occur when sending multiple team invites immediately after exiting Vault 76 to a player who is not a friend.
GENERAL
  • Power Armor: Fixed an issue affecting Power Armor frames that could prevent the player from exiting their Power Armor.
  • Nuke Silos: Flipboards inside Nuke Silos no longer display portions of launch codes too soon after the codes were reset for the week.
C.A.M.P., WORKSHOPS, AND CRAFTING
  • C.A.M.P.: Moving C.A.M.P. locations will now correctly move standalone items built by the player into the build menu’s Stored tab.
  • Workshops: On PS4, wires will no longer appear to float in mid-air when attempting connect two or more objects.
  • Turrets: Will no longer become invisible if the player is not present at their C.A.M.P. when their turrets are destroyed.
PERKS
  • Perk Cards: Ranking up a Perk Card will no longer cause a duplicate card to appear.
SOCIAL
  • Teams: Fixed an issue that could prevent a team from being correctly formed in a game world after creating the team on the Main Menu when both players are using new characters.
  • Teams: Display durations for social notification have been reduced when many notifications are pending. This should help address an issue in which players did not see that they successfully joined a team.
SURVIVAL
  • Mutations: The Electrically Charged and Unstable Isotope Mutations no longer provide the player with bonus Health.
USER INTERFACE
  • AFK: Players will now be disconnected from a game world after 10 minutes of inactivity and will be prompted with a timer 1 minute before being kicked.
  • Atomic Shop: On PC, cursor position will no longer be disjointed from clicks in the Atomic Shop while using 16:10 resolutions.
  • Enemies: Red crosshairs and enemy health bars will no longer persist on-screen when an enemy is no longer in view.
  • Localization: Subtitles will now appear correctly, and English voiceover will play, for game clients in languages that do not have their own localized voiceover when listening to a Holotape or interacting with robots.
  • Pip-Boy: Fixed an issue that could cause duplicate data to appear in the Pip-Boy’s Stat and Effects interfaces.
  • Respawn: Dying while severely overencumbered will no longer remove all map markers when attempting to respawn. Instead, the player can now respawn at the nearest discovered Map Marker.
  • Quest Tracker: Quest objective notifications will no longer appear for inactive Quests immediately upon connecting to a world.

Epic Games delays account merging until early 2019; Free-to-play Save the World coming

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Fortnite Season 2 has no confirmed release date.

Epic Games stated that they would let players merge accounts from different platforms into a single account starting this month. Now that we’re on the last day of the month and no word has been announced regarding this feature, it’s likely that Epic will push back the feature launch date.

Back in September, Sony gave into to allowing cross-play with Nintendo Switch, Pc, and Xbox One. Fortnite was the headliner of this change, given that it’s the most popular game on the planet right now. Epic then went ahead and said they would create an account merge feature so players can use the same account across all platforms.

Epic is aware of the lack of announcements regarding this feature and has finally given an update about it at the very tail end of this month. Today, they said we can expect account merging “early next year.”

The reason for this is technical concerns since players will be able to “combine multiple console-linked accounts to transfer Battle Royale cosmetic items purchases, lifetime wins, V-Bucks, and Save the World campaign access.” Account merging deals with purchases made with real cash, so Epic Games wants to make sure everything works before releasing it to the public.

There’s no confirmed date other than Q1 2019, but Epic Games usually delivers what they promise. This is better than losing some of your hard-earned purchases due to technical glitches. Fortnite also delayed a free-to-play version of Save the World feature until 2019. Besides these two delays, they usually listen to their fans and deliver on time.

Fortnite is the world’s most popular battle royale game and is available on PC, PS4, Xbox one, Switch, and mobile platforms.

BioWare working on “secret Dragon Age stuff”; Possible announcement next week

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BioWare working on "secret Dragon Age stuff"; Possible announcement next week 8

With BioWare getting ready to release Anthem in 2019, you’d think they’d focus solely on that title and put other games on hold. But that’s not the case at all- they might be getting ready to reveal something in the coming month that has to do with one of their most best-selling franchise: Dragon Age.

Casey Hudson, BioWare’s GM, gave an update about what’s going on at the studio. Most of the content is reporting about their latest AAA title, Anthem, which is no surprise. But Hudson also said that they’re focused on other projects also like Dragon Age, Mass Effect, and Star Wars: The Old Republic.

Hudson said that there will be news coming about Dragon Age sooner than you may think, with a line hinting that they’ve been working on some “secret Dragon Age stuff” that’ll be revealed in December:

“If you’ve been following these blogs, or myself and Mark Darrah on Twitter, you know we’re also working on some secret Dragon Age stuff.  Dragon Age is an incredibly important franchise in our studio, and we’re excited to continue its legacy.  Look for more on this in the coming month (though I won’t tell you where to look…)”

For any Dragon Age fans, this could be a very interesting take. It could be anything from just a blunder to a mobile title (following Bethesda and Blizzard). Other than expecting the next title to add to the trio of games in the series, it could be something much less impressive. Don’t get your hopes up.

Hudson will appear next week at The Game Awards, so this is the reveal for the next Dragon Age project. The Game Awards will take place in Los Angeles with a new Anthem release trailer. Stay tuned for an update regarding both major titles from BioWare sometime next week.

Ninja tweets that he’s got something for Super Smash Bros. fans

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Ninja tweets that he's got something for Super Smash Bros. fans 9

The hype over Super Smash Bros. Ultimate is real. The game is just under two weeks until release and Nintendo has been teasing chain smashing in a series of 30-second videos and the game has recorded highest pre-sales in Nintendo history so far. The money’s secured even if the game is a total flop.

And now to add to the fire, a celebrity is fanning the flames- none other than Ninja himself.

The popular Fortnite streamer who has been featured on the Ellen Degeneres Show who’s exploded in popularity over the past year has tweeted something for the SSBU fans. Whether the two communities cross over and have similar audiences, it seems like many are interested with his Tweet garnering over 20K likes at the time of this writing:

Ninja didn’t say exactly what he’ll be doing, but he’s hinting that he’s got something “cooking up” for fans given that the game is so close to the game coming out. He could be doing a live stream with fans, or even giving away a copy of the game. Can you believe how easily Ninja makes the news? It’s just crazy to think about.

Regardless, we’ll get to know soon what he has in store for the fans.

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate releases exclusively for the Nintendo Switch December 7. You can pre-order a copy on Amazon. Get your fists ready for Nintendo’s brawler on its next-gen console!

Kingdom Hearts III gets exclusive Amazon Keyblade for pre-orders

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Kingdom Hearts III gets exclusive Amazon Keyblade for pre-orders 10

Amazon announced a new Keyblade DLC for Kingdom Hearts III yesterday on Cyber Monday during an announcement stream called the Dawn Till Tusk Keyblade.

The Keyblade is a variation of the classic Kingdom key design. There’s a green overlay on the usual gold-tinted handguards and sun/crescent moon design on the top side. This may be a simpler version of the Kingdom key and may have special stats in-game. This is yet to be revealed.

Players who want this Keyblade will have to pre-order or buy Kingdom Hearts III before its release or on its release on PS4 and Xbox One on January 29, 2019. People who buy it after won’t be eligible for getting this exclusive Keyblade, and it’s only available for Amazon purchasers.

Amazon Prime members will also get a $10 credit for pre-ordering KH3. This can’t be used to take $10 off the game, but rather can be used to buy anything else on Amazon (what do they not have?). The game has already been confirmed and this really happening. After many years of waiting, we’ll get to see the next Kingdom Hearts game to create the KH trilogy!

Some new trailers have been released showing off characters from Tangled and Winnie the Pooh.

For players who want the exclusive Amazon Keyblade, they can order the game on Amazon. This is pretty awesome, but then again, some players have had KH3 on pre-order for many years now on Amazon and all they’ll get to show for it is a rusty DLC Keyblade. But it’s better than nothing! Seriously!

Kingdom Hearts 3 has gone gold, so the game will be coming out no matter what. Unless there’s some terrible delay, fans will finally be able to experience the next entry into the legendary series that they’ve waited so long for.

Red Dead Online public beta debuts tomorrow

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Red Dead Online public beta debuts tomorrow 11

Red Dead Redemption 2‘s online mode will be available tomorrow, November 27th, for those who bought the $100 version of RDR2 (AKA Red Dead Redemption 2: Ultimate Edition). Then on the following day, for those who played the game on launch day, will get a chance at the online mode- anyone who played from launch to October 29th is allowed to play in the online beta.

Then finally, on November 30, anyone who bought the game can play Red Dead Online. The online mode will feature character customization, unlike the original game where you were locked to characters from specific factions like Walton’s Gang and the Rebeldes. The Verge reports that you can also tailor abilities “to suit your playstyle” as you roam around the game.

You’ll also be able to form a posse of players to play along with.

This is a public beta, so bugs and other problems will be bound to happen. But this is your first chance to take a look at what the online mode has to offer before the actual mode rolls out.

Cyberpunk 2077 will be on-par with Red Dead Redemption 2

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Cyberpunk 2077 will be on-par with Red Dead Redemption 2 12

Cyberpunk 2077 will aim to match Red Dead Redemption 2 in terms of gameplay quality. It’s currently one of the most anticipated games with CD PROJEKT RED’S impeccable history with titles like The Witcher 3.

With their reputation, speculators say that their release quality is on-par with AAA developers like Rockstar Games- which is known for masterpieces like the Red Dead Redemption and Grand Theft Auto series.

Adam Kiciński, CEO of CD PROJEKT RED, was interviewed about Cyberpunk 2077’s finesse in comparison to the recently released RDR2, which was positively received.

Kiciński, being humble enough, was asked the following question with an investor:

“Well, with The Witcher 3 the bugs took around 3 months to patch out after the release – from what I can remember – and the prevailing view seems to be that Red Dead Redemption was good enough on the day of release to merit that 97/100 score. Do you expect to be able to release Cyberpunk in a good enough state to score at least 95 points, or do you prioritize your release schedule?”

His remarks included:

“Without a doubt, quality is of paramount importance.” Kiciński insists, continuing that the company strives “to publish games which are as refined as Red Dead Redemption 2, and recent Rockstar releases in general.”

And

“Without a doubt, quality is of paramount importance.” Kiciński insists, continuing that the company strives “to publish games which are as refined as Red Dead Redemption 2, and recent Rockstar releases in general.”

He couldn’t have answered this question better. Without poking at the competitor but rather rooting it on, he sets the standard for his own title. He then talks about the future for hit titles that other gamers are hardcore fans about due to loyalty and/or time constraints with the huge amount of games out there nowadays.

Source: CD PROJECKT RED

 

Alien: Blackout trademark filed by 20th Century Fox; Kojima tweet hints at new “Alien” game

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Alien: Blackout trademark filed by 20th Century Fox; Kojima tweet hints at new "Alien" game 13

20th Century Fox Film Corporation has filed a new trademark for the Alien: Blackout title and is targeted specifically for games rather than films. They filed it just before The Game Awards, in which the game could get an official announcement at some point during the event.

An excerpt from the trademark filing reads as the following:

“Computer game discs; software, namely, game software, computer game and video game software, downloadable computer game software, downloadable mobile application software used for playing electronic games and streaming audiovisual and multimedia content in the fields of games and entertainment, interactive game software, and downloadable software […]”

Geoff Keighley announced that The Game Awards 2018 will have a lot of world exclusive game reveals in the entire show’s history. This means lots of companies will coming out with a new game reveals that we never saw coming. The event starts on December 6th, 2018 and there will likely be as much buzz around it as E3 2018. Assuming that the Alien: Blackout game will be revealed there isn’t an over-assumption.

The official Game Awards Twitter account hasn’t hinted at any of the projects that may show up on stage next month, but they’ve responded to a tweet from Hideo Kojima, who’s a friend of Geoff Keighley. He was visiting 20th Century Fox and saw a bunch of Alien-related props from the film sets. This says something- even if it’s just friendly chat between the two producers with each other:

Alien: Blackout was filed on this Thanksgiving day, and we’ll know for sure that they’re doing something in the realm of video games because of the trademark filing category. Even though it was just a few days ago, they’ll probably announce something about the game at this years Game Awards. Be on the lookout for their official Twitter account for news.

A possibly TGA appearance is all just rumor at this point and we don’t know what’ll actually happen there. Even if Alien: Blackout isn’t announced next month, FoxNext Games and Cold Iron Studios are working together on a new multiplayer Alien game slated for PC and consoles regardless.

We’ll keep you updated for news during the event. If there’s a new Alien game coming out, “world will change!”

Agent, the unreleased PS3 exclusive, gets trademark abandoned by Take-Two

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Agent, the unreleased PS3 exclusive, gets trademark abandoned by Take-Two 14

Agent, the Rockstar Games title that’s been in “development” ever since its announcement back in Sony’s E3 2009 press conference, has finally been abandoned and has been scraped by Take-Two Interactive.

The game that’s become a running joke for the past 11 years or so finally got axed in 2018. Take-Two abaonded the trademark for this unreleased PS3 exclusive with the US Patent and Trademark Office. I guess it’s safe to say that it’s now up for grabs- should any devleoper want to pick it up.

The USPTO says that the trademark was abandoned for the following reason:

“no Statement of Use or Extension Request timely filed after Notice of Allowance was issued,”

In other words, nothing was done with the trademark by Take-Two Interactive and therefore it’s been forfeited and defaulted. Now, considering that the PS3 is outdated and the PS5 is already on the way, there really shouldn’t be any surprise as Rockstar has never really commented on the game in the past 11 years.

You can still find it being tossed around as a joke or meme on Rockstar Games and even Take-Two’s websites. Rockstar did have a former artist post a bunch of game environments on Reddit, which gave the world its first look at Agent. Now, it’s pretty much just nothingness. At least the world will know whatever happened to that one game.

Now, commence with the memes.

Pokemon Let’s Go Pikachu and Eevee sells over 3M copies first week

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Pokemon Let's Go Pikachu and Eevee sells over 3M copies first week 15

Pokemon Let’s Go Pikachu and Eevee has received a mix of both praise and criticism for changing the game formula. However, the new pair of titles in the Pokemon series is still doing well in sales numbers on the market. The initial sales of the games have been revealed through a tweet on the Japanese Twitter account @poke_times:

Now, we can see how the games performed, and it appears that the two Pokemon titles had a level of success on greater than expected. The tweet announced that Let’s Go Pikachu and Let’s Go Eevee have collectively sold over 3M units in the first week of the game’s short history.

This is a very successful launch for the Pokemon series itself, which is still going after all these years, though isn’t as quite popular as before. The launch has now become the bets first-week release in the entirety of the Switch sales history.

However, the fact that the user base for the Nintendo Switch has grown since other games like Super Mario Odyssey and Zelda: BotW have definitely contributed to these sales figures for getting the users pooled together for the next major release.

Regardless, these two games are now the leader in week-one sales on the Nintendo Switch’s relatively short history. The only other game that I can see breaking this record in the coming weeks is Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.

We’ll report back to see how they compare soon after launch in early December. There’s a lot to be excited for Switch fans.

Rumor: Two new map variants coming to Black Ops 4; Firing Range Night, Seaside Sunset

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Rumor: Two new map variants coming to Black Ops 4; Firing Range Night, Seaside Sunset 16

Two new maps have been leaked and will be coming to Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 in the near future.

Well, they’re not exactly new maps, but rather, map variants. Variants are nothing new to CoD games, as Modern Warfare Remastered had multiple seasonal variants of game maps. This feature is also coming to BO4 as two new game files have been leaked from the game’s data.

Call of Duty fanatic NecrosCinema claims that a friend reported information about two new map variants added to the game after the latest Black Ops 4 update:

  • Firing Range Night
  • Seaside Sunset

From these map names, we can already see which newly modified maps and what variant they’ll receive. Firing Range will get a Night mode and Seaside will get a Sunset mode.

And he claims to have footage of these new variants. You can see the footage attached to the end of this post- straight from NerosCinema. There’s no set release date for these maps right now, but they’ll likely be going live soon enough because they’ve been added to the game already and there’s no point in keeping them there to hog up resources and make download unnecessarily lengthy for players, right?

These are the first few map variants in Blacks Ops 4, following the launch of Nuketown which is a whole new map released for all platforms last week- with PS4 owners getting the map a week ahead as part of a Sony/Activision deal.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 is available on PS4, PC, and Xbox One and is now a little over a month old. You can check it out on Amazon here.

This post contains affiliate links where barrelrolled may receive a small commission upon sales. (This helps us feed our writers the good brand of ramen noodles rather than the generic, store brand.)

Black Ops 4 major update 1.07; Weapon balancing, Nuketown, and bug fixes

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Black Ops 4 major update 1.07; Weapon balancing, Nuketown, and bug fixes 17

Another huge update for Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 has been dropped today that features some major game changes to every single mode. The update spans 9GB on PS4 and 10.95GB on the Xbox One. PC players will get a delayed update that’ll come later today.

Treyarch released a number of game improvements for Blackout, Multiplayer, and Zombies mode. Nuketown has also been added to both Xbox One and PC as the 7-day mark has now been completed and the rest of the playerbase can now get their hands on the Russian map. For those unaware, Sony and Activision have a partnership where PS4 owners get content one week earlier than other platforms.

For the Multiplayer mode, various Scorestreaks were adjusted. The Dart and Lightning Strike were both reduced while the Hellstorm and RC-XD were buffed. Zombies mode was adjusted like crazy with a huge list of bug fixes that relieve game crashes (over 70) and enhanced stability.

The update includes bugs across all four maps, UI enchamcents, and more. Treyarch states that they want to “take care of the remaining stability issues in high-round play” and that they’ve “bolstered our ability to research and investigate these issues” and that they have “several fixes int he works that will be rolled out in the near future.”

The update has some major weapon balancing. On consoles, the ABR 223 and the Swordfish have received buffs to diminish recoil, which is what Treyarch originally planned for that specific class of weaponry. They also noted that SMG buffs from the previous balance patch were too powerful for PC users and thus nerfed them again. They stated that this is “best [to] suit the needs of [the] PC community.”

 

Here are full patch notes for the 1.07 BO4 update:

Today’s title update is another big one, and we’re celebrating the long holiday weekend with our first QUAD FEED in Black Ops 4! Starting 10AM PT tomorrow, all players get 2XP in MP and Zombies, 2X Tier Boost, 2X Merits, and 2X Nebulium Plasma on all platforms through Monday, Nov. 26. Now, onto what’s coming to the game today…

Nuketown arrives on Xbox One and PC! Join the chaos in the dedicated Nuketown Featured Playlist this week, featuring 6v6 Team Deathmatch, Kill Confirmed, Domination, and Hardpoint in Nuketown. Also live on Xbox One and PC: Zombies invade Nuketown Island in Blackout for a limited time, and Blackjack’s Shop opens in the Black Market.

Big improvements to Multiplayer are here with today’s update! We’ve fixed several MP-specific crashes, increased the delivery speed of Care Packages, updated several modes and Challenges, enabled Mastercraft camos instantly on Signature Weapons, updated the visibility of Clan Tags and Kill Counters, adjusted the costs of several Scorestreaks based on current performance to ensure players are getting the most bang for their buck, and more. Remember to visit the Scorestreaks selection menu to adjust your equipped Scorestreaks accordingly after downloading today’s update.

We’ve also added TDM 100 as our latest Featured playlist on all platforms, bumping up the score limit for Team Deathmatch to 100 by popular demand. Hardcore Mercenary Moshpit, Mercenary Moshpit, and Gun Game round out the Featured category for the week. Jump into this week’s Featured playlists today and get those wins.

For our Zombies players, we’re delivering 70+ crash fixes and gameplay improvements today, making this stability pass even bigger than last week’s major update. See below for the full list, including fixes for crashes and bugs across all four maps, UI improvements, and more. As we continue to identify and address more specific Zombies gameplay scenarios that could cause the game to crash, our primary focus is now on taking care of the remaining stability issues in high-round play. We have bolstered our ability to research and investigate these issues, and have several fixes in the works that will be rolled out in the near future.

In Blackout, we’ve addressed issues with screen jittering when moving and changing attachments or healing, and made the Bowie Knife now available in Equipment Stashes, as a random drop from killing Zombies, and as a randomized item spawn in Zombies-themed locations on PS4, with other platforms to follow.

Finally, our PC update is coming later today, including its own set of unique changes in addition to the ones listed below. In this update, we’ve decided to roll back the SMG balance changes from last week’s update that did not translate as well to the PC meta. See below for full details in the dedicated PC section of the patch notes.

XBOX ONE / PC

The following updates are now live on Xbox One, with PC to follow shortly:

Multiplayer

  • Nuketown added to rotation in MP playlists.
  • Nuketown Featured Playlist added (6v6 Team Deathmatch, Kill Confirmed, Domination, Hardpoint).

Blackout

  • To celebrate the launch of Nuketown, Zombies now spawn on Nuketown Island with a new Zombies Stash spawn location behind the Nuketown sign for a limited time.

Black Market

  • Blackjack’s Shop added to the Black Market.

ALL PLATFORMS

We’ve made the following updates to the game on PS4 and Xbox One, with PC to follow shortly:

Multiplayer

  • General
    • Nuketown added to rotation in MP playlists.
    • Updated Clan Tag and Kill Counter Weapon Prestige rewards to use an LED display for higher visibility on weapons.
    • Players can now equip Mastercraft camos on their Signature Weapon as soon as they acquire the Signature Weapon.
  • Playlist Updates
    • TDM 100 added to Featured Category (Team Deathmatch with a score limit of 100).
    • Mercenary Moshpit added to Featured Category (Team Deathmatch, Kill Confirmed, Hardpoint, and Domination, no parties allowed).
    • Hardcore Mercenary Moshpit added to Featured Category (Hardcore Team Deathmatch, Kill Confirmed, and Domination, no parties allowed).
    • Gun Game remains in Featured Category.
    • Endurance Chaos Moshpit remains in Featured Category (PS4).
  • Stability
    • Fixed crashes that could occur:
    • When using the Reactor Core.
    • When a Firebreak player left the game after using their Reactor Core.
    • When a Nomad player left the game after using their Mesh Mines.
    • While freezing in the water in Icebreaker.
    • When piloting the Hellstorm.
    • When selecting a Specialist in the Specialist Draft.
    • When the player picked up a weapon in Multiplayer.
    • If the Transport Helicopter was destroyed while delivering a Care Package or Mantis.
    • Related to the Drone Squad’s wing-drone turrets animating incorrectly.
    • When failing to play a sound when picking up dog tags in Kill Confirmed.
    • When a player left a match while being shocked by the Tempest.
  • Scorestreaks
    • Care Package
      • Adjusted delivery chopper entry and exit points across all maps to reduce delivery times.
      • Increased the entry and exit speeds for the delivery chopper.
      • Reduced how often high-end Scorestreaks can be received in Care Packages.
      • Reduced the amount of roll on the smoke marker to ensure that the end position is a more accurate representation of where the Care Package will drop.
    • Score Adjustments
      • Dart reduced from 500 default to 450 / 350 with COMSEC Device.
      • RC-XD increased from 450 to 500 default / 400 with COMSEC Device.
      • Lightning Strike reduced from 900 to 850 default / 600 with COMSEC Device.
      • Sentry reduced from 950 to 900 default / 700 with COMSEC Device.
      • Hellstorm increased from 850 to 950 default / 750 with COMSEC Device.
      • Sniper’s Nest reduced from 1100 to 1050 default / 850 with COMSEC Device.
      • Mantis increased to 1100 default / 900 with COMSEC Device.
      • Thresher reduced from 1250 to 1200 default / 950 with COMSEC Device.
      • Attack Chopper increased from 1200 to 1300 default / 1000 with COMSEC Device.
      • Reduced score given for all Scorestreak kills from +25 to +10.
  • Game Modes
    • Hardcore
      • Resolved an issue where teammate names were not displaying properly in Hardcore Search & Destroy.
      • Teammates that die to a friendly bombsite explosion will no longer count toward the teamkill kick limit.
      • Care Package team kills will no longer count towards the teamkill kick limit.
    • Hardpoint
      • Reduced the score given for Hardpoint Secured to +50.
      • Resolved an issue that would prevent players from owning the Hardpoint while using the Lightning Strike tablet.
    • Search & Destroy
      • Silent Plant setting in Custom Games should now make planting and defusing the bomb completely silent.
    • CWL Custom Games
      • Addressed an issue where Specialist Weapons and Equipment would not update when players switched Specialists.
  • Specialists
    • Seraph’s Tac Deploy will now only allow 1 respawn per use in Free For All.
  • Challenges
    • Atomic Drop
      • The player’s death by their own Reactor Core will no longer track toward this Challenge.
    • Spotter
      • Kills in Free For All will no longer track toward this Challenge.
    • Air Cover
      • Resolved an issue where progress was not awarded in Hardpoint or Control.
  • Miscellaneous
    • Manually destroying the Tac-Deploy now gives Score.

Weapon Balance (MP Only)

Burst Tactical Rifles have been adjusted slightly to better define their role as ranged power-position weapons. With these changes in place, weapon balance on consoles is where we want it to be after the first month of changes, and we’ll allow the meta to stabilize before making additional balance passes.

  • Tactical Rifles
    • Swordfish
      • Reduced upward recoil to achieve a more accurate burst.
    • ABR 223
      • Slightly reduced upward recoil.
      • Extended 4-hit kill range from 25m to 32m.

Zombies

  • Stability
    • Global – Fixed crashes that could occur:
      • While Zombies spawned into the map.
      • While the Mystery Box loaded into the map.
      • When interacting a second time with an object that should only be used or interacted with once.
      • When an enemy climbed or mantled over railing or terrain in order to spawn into the playable space.
      • When updating player stats in the After Action Report screen.
      • When disconnecting and reconnecting the controller during a match, leaving the player stuck on the “Please reconnect controller” message.
      • After disconnects while one player was reviving another.
      • When triggering the Winter’s Wail explosion FX.
      • When a player disconnected within a certain time after joining the game.
      • When Zombies were moving away from downed players.
      • When a player was downed while using the Ragnarok DG-5.
      • When a Bot decided to kill the last enemy in the round.
      • When the player disconnected after using Point Drops and before they were picked up.
      • When a player disconnected as the Hellfire’s Infernal Tempest disappeared.
      • When a player used the Burned Out Elixir.
      • When the inventory updated while picking up an item.
      • When a player’s grenades were restored as the next round started.
      • When a player disconnected while a power-up dropped.
      • When the player disconnected from their party while in the Custom Games screen.
      • When calculating the player’s final score at the Game Over screen.
      • When interacting with the crafting table to craft any item for the first time.
      • When Dying Wish and Winter’s Wail cooldown UI elements were on-screen.
      • When updating the player’s stats and score when tracking Rush multipliers.
      • When the player disconnected while opening a door.
      • When killing Zombies with the Ragnarok DG-5.
      • When triggering Kill-O-Watt’s FX.
      • When triggering Frostbite’s FX.
    • Blood of the Dead – Fixed crashes that could occur:
      • When a player disconnected as the next Hellhound round was being determined.
      • Related to the UI at high rounds.
      • While following the Warden from the cellblock during the Main Quest.
      • When a player disconnected while looking at the bird during the Main Quest.
      • When killing Zombies during the banjo ghost event in the Main Quest.
      • When the player disconnected while following the ghost dog during the Main Quest.
      • When the player disconnected while riding the gondola.
      • When player was downed as they grabbed the Magmagat from the fireplace.
      • While running the unfinished Magmagat across the map.
      • When the furthest player in the catwalk during the gauntlet event disconnected.
      • For the host during the final boss battle.
      • When a power-up was dropped.
      • When loading into Blood of the Dead.
    • Classified – Fixed crashes that could occur:
      • Related to the UI at high rounds.
      • When the metal detector sounds played as the player walked through them.
      • When the player exited a teleporter.
      • When a player disconnected after being the first one to teleport into the Panic Room.
      • When a player disconnected while in a metal detector.
      • During a match of Classified Rush.
      • While the Mystery Box moved.
      • When placing the teleporter modifier while playing splitscreen with 3 or 4 players.
    • Voyage of Despair – Fixed crashes that could occur:
      • When spawning enemies in the first round of the boss battle.
      • When reaching the first Stoker-spawning round with the Wonder Weapon quest disabled in Custom Mutations.
      • When using the Kraken upgrade table.
      • When the Flying Car takes damage during the Upgraded Shield Quest.
    • IX – Fixed crashes that could occur:
      • When special enemies spawned during certain parts of the Main Quest.
      • When helping other players complete their challenges.
      • When a player disconnected and their Blade Trap became deactivated.
    • Tutorial
      • Fixed a crash that could occur with Bots in the tutorial.
  • Gameplay
    • Global – Resolved issues where:
      • Text for XP earned from each challenge tier was missing from the After Action Report.
      • The player could be permanently stuck when grabbed by the Blightfather’s tongue.
      • Concoctions UI remained on screen when switching from the Laboratory to the Identity screen.
      • UI incorrectly indicated to the player that Prestige unlock tokens could be spent on permanently unlocking Custom Class slots.
      • If a Prestige Master player did not gain any XP during a match (by launching the game and immediately quitting, for example), the displayed ranks would be incorrect, the XP bar would be completely filled, and there would be no indication of how much XP was required until the next level.
    • Blood of the Dead
      • Resolved an issue where the Hell’s Retriever could not pick up a power-up when thrown at certain angles.
      • Fixed incorrect subtitles stating that the voice for obtaining power-ups is the Warden.
      • Closed an exploit in Michigan Avenue that allowed players to use the Ragnarok DG-5 to jump on the railing on the top floor.
      • Resolved a rare issue where players were unable to progress the New Industries Portal in the Main Quest, despite having a fully-drained ghost killed in the Blade Trap.
    • Classified
      • Closed an exploit in the War Room that allowed players to use the Ragnarok DG-5 to jump on a terminal.

Blackout

  • Gameplay
    • Resolved an issue causing screen jittering when moving and changing attachments, or when moving and healing.
    • Bowie Knife now available in Equipment Stashes, as a random drop from killing Zombies, and as a randomized item spawn in Zombies-themed locations on PS4.

PC

In addition to the global changes above, the following updates are coming to the game on PC later today:

Weapon Balance (Multiple Modes)

We strive to provide a similar experience between PC and console whenever possible, making platform specific changes when appropriate. In our last weapon balancing pass, we made critical SMG balance changes that were needed on console. These changes did not translate as well to PC, where mouse-and-keyboard players already saw success with SMG weapons. We’re rolling these changes back to best suit the needs of our PC community, and taking it a step even further for the Spitfire. The above changes to the Swordfish and ABR 223 also apply to PC.

  • Submachine Guns
    • Spitfire
      • Reduced damage within 9m range. (MP only)
      • Restored previous ADS move speed.
    • Cordite
      • Reduced damage within 3m range. (MP only)
      • Restored previous ADS move speed.
    • MX9
      • Reduced damage within 6m range. (MP only)
      • Restored previous ADS move speed.
    • GKS
      • Reduced damage within 3m range. (MP only)
      • Restored previous ADS move speed.

General

  • Gameplay
    • Tilde key (~) can now be assigned in the keybinds menu.
    • Removed the slight camera roll from head bobbing when sprinting.
    • Resolved multiple issues with the Gesture Wheel.
    • Updated the recommended NVIDIA driver version to 416.81.
  • Stability
    • Fixed a source of hitching when video memory is full.
    • Fixed a rare crash during the first seconds after the game window appears.

Multiplayer

  • Resolved an issue where spawn selection would not be set to the Tac-Deploy by default when available.

Blackout

  • Added an in-game UI indicator for when a Perk is being activated.
  • Resolved an issue where a Stash would close when dropping a weapon.

-Treyarch

 

Fortnite Winter Royale Tournament puts $1M up for grabs

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Fortnite Winter Royale Tournament puts $1M up for grabs 18

Fortnite has announced that they’re offering up to $1M USD to all players in its Winter Royale Tournament. If you think you’re good at Fortnite, but never could make it into the pro leagues, think again.

Epic Games now lets you put your skills to test with its next upcoming official tourney where a nice chunk of cash will be up for grabs for all contestants. A test event will be held later this month that’ll emulate the World Cup Qualification process for 2019, so it’s kind of like a beta test for it. The Solo test events come in two parts:

  • Part one: Winter Royale Qualifiers
  • Part two: Winter Royale Finals

Part one opens up on November 24, which is just 4 days from now. In this phase, players will attempt to achieve a high score during any event session and the highest score you get will be the one that qualifies you. So you need to get the best score possible in any event because this is what’s used to rank you against other players and qualify you for the Winter Royale Finals.

For players within the US or EU, you’ll be automatically qualified to contest other players. If you’re good enough, you’ll be invited to play and take part in the Winter Royale Finals for your specific region.

Players outside of North Ameria or Europe won’t be able to participate, but Epic Games has said they’re looking to expand this tournament for the future.

Fortnite has already updated their in-game menus to reflect this information and has listed the following deadlines that you should be aware of:

  • Winter Royale Qualifier (Open): 11/24/2018 – 11/25/2018

  • Europe Winter Royale Finals: 11/30/2018 – 12/1/2018

  • North America Winter Royale Finals: 12/11/2018 – 12/12/2018

So, if you think you’re good at the game, it’s time to prove it and put your money where your mouth is! Epic has the right mentality for offering pro league gaming for everyone. This will surely get players more competitive. Get ready for the trash talking and rage-quitting.

Riot Games and Marvel partner up to release full-length comic featuring Ashe

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Riot Games and Marvel partner up to release full-length comic featuring Ashe 19

A new partnership between Riot and Marvel Games has just been forged. The announcement was made today and will soon put out one of League of Legend’s most popular character fusing with a comic book.

Marvel will begin a new series of comic books based on the League of Legends universe. It’ll kick off with everyone’s favorite tutorial champion: Ashe. The story will center around her as a narrative to serve as an origin point and tells the story of Ashe as she becomes the Iceborn Warrior like she is in the MOBA. It’ll be called League of Legends: Ashe: Warmother and the graphic novel will be written by Riot’s Odin Austin Shafer and drawn by Nina Vakueva with Cardinal Rae on lettering.

An article posted by Marvel details this full-length feature:

“Marvel and Riot Games are teaming up for an epic collaboration to bring the world of “League of Legends” to comics! A graphic novel published by Marvel and Riot Games will be released in May 2019, making this the first full-length comic based on “League of Legends” games. This complete collection will be the culmination of a series of monthly graphic novels based on the hit game that will be available on digital platforms beginning Wednesday, December 19!”

Riot Games had the following thoughts on this crossover:

“We love comics as a way to tell stories because it gives League of Legends fans an opportunity to see the world of Runeterra and not just read about it. We see similarities between the League of Legends Universe and the Marvel Universe, as both of them feature an array of characters with compelling and diverse backgrounds. Marvel’s success at developing a world through comics and creating great stories is industry-defining, and we’re thrilled to be working with them to bring our own stories to life.”

Editon-in-Chief of Marvel, C.B. Cebulski spoke about the partnership that many didn’t see coming:

“Many fans of the Marvel Universe and comics share their interests and passion for storytelling with the gaming community. League of Legends is one of the most well-known games in the industry, and their unique world and extensive roster of rich characters and are a perfect fit for comic books. We’re excited to partner with Riot and help build the League of Legends Universe for fans and players around the world.”

With Riot’s League of Legends already being one of the most popular MOBA games on the planet and many of the players also being into comics and interested in the backstory of the champions (fanfics), it makes sense to document and official work from Riot themselves. Combined with the production quality of Marvel, this is a partnership with a solid foundation and tons of potential for storytelling opportunities.

Ashe: Warmother releases May 2019. We’ll see the fruits of this partnership then.

Source: Marvel.

Featured image via Marvel.

You can ride Stink Bombs like rockets in Fortnite; Viral video shows it off

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You can ride Stink Bombs like rockets in Fortnite; Viral video shows it off 20

Rockets and Fortnite, what could be better?

Remember back then when players found out you can ride the rockets from the Rocket Launcher? That was awesome. Now, players have found out that you can ride the Stink Bombs also. Yup. That yellow throwable can be jumped on just like the rockets from the Rocket Launcher.

The Stink Bomb was added a few months ago in June as part of the V4.4 update and is typically used as a gas grenade to make players come out of hidden structures in nooks and crannies. But this post on Reddit just may have given them a new purpose.

A Reddit user named “kuzner” proved the concept with a recording. He records another player named “Zolo II” jumping onto the grenade after his teammate tosses. The window that you can jump on it is very narrow and your timing needs to be precise. But once you hop on, it’s pretty cool as you follow the arc of the throwable until it lands.

Stink bomb ride! WtF and a snipe! from FortNiteBR

You can’t compare the rocket and the Stink Bomb as they’re completely different modes of “transportation.” The throwable doesn’t hold a candle to the rocket’s distance in travel, but it’s still cool, nonetheless. I mean, imagine your enemy turning around to see you flying towards them on a ‘nade and then getting blown to bits in a cloud of smelly gas.

Zolo II then rides it until he hit a sniper shot on the final baddy and secures the Victory Royale. The video’s timing is epic and the Reddit post went viral with over 200 comments and 12K upvotes at the time of this writing. Not many players knew that you can ride the Stink Bomb in Fortnite, but this post will likely spread the word to the masses from now on.

Meta? Probably not. Hilarious? Definitely.

Winemaker Lot18 releases lineup of Assassin’s Creed-themed wines

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Winemaker Lot18 releases lineup of Assassin's Creed-themed wines 21

Winemaker Lot18 has released a special collection of wine with themes from the Assassin’s Creed series. They’re named after a various assassin’s from the game and you can choose between various types of wine- including cabernet sauvignon, blends, and even a whole case of whatever you want.

Each wine is based on notable characters from the entire series like Bayek, Ezio Auditore, and Connor Kenway. They range from $20 up to $192 for a full case. So far, the wines only range from Assassin’s Creed 2 and 3 plus Origins, with none named after the newest characters Kassandra and Alexious. There could be another lineup to come.

Winemaker Lot18 has done this before with Lord of the Rings and The Walking Dead, so they’re not new to combining games and wine into one world. They make a good gift for someone who’s obsessed with Assassin’s Creed, which is just in time for the holidays. Who wouldn’t want a bottle of wine from an awesome ninja to add to their collection? If you know someone who likes wine and Assassin’s Creed, this makes the perfect gift.

Here’s the lineup from this offering:

  • 2017 Aveline de Grandpré Appellation Côtes du Rhône Contrôlée – $20
  • 2017 Arno Dorian Qualitätswein Niederösterreich Zweigelt – $20
  • 2017 Altaïr Ibn-La’ahad Loire Valley IGP Cabernet Franc – $20
  • 2015 Bayek of Siwa Spanish Tempranillo – $20
  • 2016 Connor Horse Heaven Hills Cabernet Sauvignon – $20
  • 2015 Ezio Auditore Super Tuscan Red Blend – $20
  • Half Case – $108
  • Full Case – $192

And you can check them out here at their store page.

H1Z1 Pro League shutting down; Dwindling viewer numbers and negative earnings

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H1Z1 Pro League shutting down; Dwindling viewer numbers and negative earnings 22

The H1Z1 Pro League is shutting down for good according to a report from news giant ESPN. After viewer numbers have constantly decreased and failed stiped payments to teams participating in the Pro League, there’s not enough support to hold this program afloat.

Teams including Team SoloMid, Cloud 9, and Echo Fox were all previous participants in the ladder but received repeated stipend payment failures. basically, your favorite players aren’t getting paid by the League and there aren’t enough viewers to support the show and brand.

Twin Galaxies Co-Chairmen Jace Hall wrote in a public statement that went out to players:

“It’s with a heavy heart that a letter has been sent to the League’s team organizations providing notice that the 2nd Split has been suspended indefinitely, and that a second league season will not be renewed or scheduled at this time,”

So now that the H1Z1 Pro League is officially suspended (i.e. canceled), they’re working on getting players their overdue stipends and will be paid across the 15 teams totally about $3M with about $250K going towards player salaries. With not enough income from viewers and sponsors, the League will be at a net loss after payments are made. It’s pretty much safe to say that the H1Z1 Pro League is gone for good. With many other games in this saturated genre, there’s just not enough support for this quickly-evaporating title.

H1Z1 was one of the first games ever to start the whole battle royale genre but has now been “replaced” by many other games such as Fortnite. H1Z1 just can’t keep up and has lost many players to these newer titles.

Who knows? If H1Z1 can pull a massive turnaround and make their game more relevant (and more fun) than the current giants, then there just may be a miracle. But at this point, you shouldn’t hold your breath.

H1Z1 is available for PS4 and PC. Although it doesn’t have a professional-level setup, you can still play it casually as a stress-free alternative to competitive titles.

Fortnite action figures hitting shelves December 1st

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Fortnite action figures hitting shelves December 1st 23

Donald Mustard, Worldwide Creative Director of Epic Games, has announced that Fortnite will be releasing a series G.I. Joe action figures next month right before the holidays.

Since Fortnite is dominated by the younger crowd, this makes sense. Growing up, I was never really into playing with figurines others than the odd ones here and there. But all my friends at school knew G.I. Joe and I’d “tag along” to pretend I was totally into it. Kids grew up with small action figures, and although G.I. Joe isn’t as huge as it once was, Fortnite is a prime target to create action figures from. Kids love Fortnite, so they’ll surely like Fortnite action figurines.

Donald Mustard announced via his Twitter account that he’s partnering with Jazwares to create these Fortnite figures. And they want to create the “very best action figures possible.” You can see from his posts that quality was a priority:

He posts a few pictures of the toys and they look stunning. Attention to detail looks amazing. Mustard states that they’ll be out soon- by December 1st- which is enough time to grab one or two and stuff stockings with them. With the popularity of Fortnite, they’ll surely sell like crazy. You can’t escape Fortnite (or Halloween flossing). They’ll hit shelves soon.

Microsoft releasing (another) Xbox One refresh Spring 2019; Disc-less, $100 cheaper

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Microsoft releasing (another) Xbox One refresh Spring 2019; Disc-less, $100 cheaper 24

A report released earlier today claims that Microsoft is working on a new disc-less Xbox One console in 2019 by Thurrott. This would be the third console refresh for the Xbox One so far, with the original being the Xbox One, followed the Xbox One S, then the Xbox One X. Do we really need that many refreshes? Why not just make the next-gen Xbox and compete with the PS5, which has already garnered some attention with its (finally) backward compatible emulation.

There hasn’t been any solid confirmation regarding this from the big M, but the report details show that the console will release sometime next year and not allow users to insert any physical discs into the Xbox. Microsoft is also releasing a new “disc to digital” program that allows users to turn the physical discs magically into a digital format. Well, not actual magic is involved in the process. It’s just swapping a code at specific retailers.

Why would Microsoft be doing this when they could just release the next Scarlett console? The report states that they want to lower the price of a new console by $100 due to no disc drive. But would people still want to buy this current-gen when they can go next-gen? We’ll have to see.

The report also states:

“The company also has a revised Xbox One S SKU that is targeted for later in the year that focuses solely on cost reduction but does feature a disc-drive for those who still prefer the traditional way to buy your games.”

Microsoft still hasn’t decided on whether Scarlett will come with disc drives or not, but a decision will be made “shortly.” right now, the disc-less Xbox One will arrive Spring 2019 and is already in production according to the report. Then again, we haven’t heard news from many other media outlets so this could be a dud entirely. We’ll find out soon enough.

Source: DualShockers.

New teaser trailer released for Harry Potter: Wizards Unite; Details and speculations

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New teaser trailer released for Harry Potter: Wizards Unite; Details and speculations 25

Portkey Games released a new trailer showing off the latest in the line of augmented reality games to the newly announced Harry Potter: Wizards Unite. The game was nothing more than a rumor to be some kind of Harry Potter RPG a few months back, but in recent weeks news surfaced on the web with more solid evidence.

Now that we have a full-fledged trailer, we can truly get excited over something.

From the trailer, we can see that there currently isn’t much anything about the gameplay released. It’s teased from the viewpoint of a security camera with various text and timestamps watching an unknown woman cast a magical spell on a snitch. Then she disappears inside a hanging poster requesting help to keep Hogwarts and the Wizarding World a secret from the public eye.

Harry Potter: Wizards Unite is co-published and co-developed by WB Games and Niantic. They released a teaser trailer for the Portkey Games label- the same one used for the current mobile game Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery.

The game is set to go live sometime in 2019. WB Games states the game will have “players will be able to explore real-world surroundings to unravel a global mystery, cast spells, and encounter fantastic beasts and iconic characters along the way.”

So far, we’re not sure if this will be a global MMORPG or rather a single-player game. But they do talk about the game and its players working on a “global mystery,” which could be anything that involves all the players working and roaming around the castle together to defeat some boss via raids and instances, or it could just be a generic tag for some mystery players have to solve by themselves.

The original rumor said the game was an RPG with multiplayer elements. But we still don’t have any solid evidence of that.

You can get more information about the game here.

Are you stoked for Harry Potter: Wizards Unite? What do you want to see in this game? Leave a  comment and let us know.

Fortnite (V.6.30) Week 9 loading screens leaked; A.I.M skin is the hunter

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Fortnite (V.6.30) Week 9 loading screens leaked; A.I.M skin is the hunter 26

Fortnite’s V.6.30 update released today, November 14, shows some new data for the Week 9 Hunting Party. This new update featured the official release of the Mounted Turret and the Food Fight LTM.

Data miners have already uncovered the Hunting Party loading screen by completing challenges that took place throughout Season 6. The challenges are the extra ones like the Blockbuster and Road Trip challenges that spanned over the the current and previous season. Players who complete all 7 weeks worth of challenges got the A.I.M robot skin as a special reward.

Right now, data miners have dug up the Week 8 loading screen and leaked it. It features the A.I.M skin who appears to be using a handheld map to look for something specific. The Week 9 loading screen features the same character with a Calamity skin and another character. The Calamity skin is in a nature field enjoying some the scenery while the A.I.M skin is standing in the background, seemingly plotting something at the Calamity skin and the other character- who happens to be saluting the sunset. You can see it below:

Fortnite (V.6.30) Week 9 loading screens leaked; A.I.M skin is the hunter 27

While A.I.M is clearly in view through a gap in the foliage, we can’t tell exactly what he’s doing. Is he hunting these two characters enjoying the scenery? Or is it the other way around? With a leaked loading screen like this, we can only assume for now. But common sense says that A.I.M is the bad guy and he’ll be here to take down Calamity and her friend. You can clearly see that A.I.M is carrying something while appearing to be “hunting” for someone or something. And there are only two other characters in the loading screen, so it’s safe to assume who’s the prey and predator, right?

A.I.M could actually be the “bad guy” who’s hunting the two characters. This would kind of give way tot he Hunting Party titles for the S6 challenges and make a lot of sense. The “Hunting Party” title would imply that A.I.M is hunting Calamity, but he’s not a party. He’s just one dude. So then who’s the “party” in “Hunting Party?”

Five Nights At Freddy’s coming to Switch (and other consoles) in 2019

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Five Nights At Freddy's coming to Switch (and other consoles) in 2019 28

Five Nights At Freddy’s (FNAF), the viral animatronic horror point-and-click game developed by Scott Cawthon, is coming to the Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, PS4, iOS, and Android sometime in 2019 based on a news post on the Steam Community page of Ultimate Custom Night.

The game series has been extremely popular with the younger crowd and has spawned many different adaptations. FNAF will likely start with the original game followed by the sequels on the consoles and other platforms. There will be HD ports of the original games alongside the entire series and possibly the spinoffs.

Scott Cawthon states on the latest update post:

“I’m working closely with the people at Clickteam to create new, improved, HD ports of all of the original games! They will be released on Android, iOS, Switch, XBox and PlayStation!”

Five Nights At Freddy’s is a game released back in 2014 that has been played by famous internet celebrities and popularized by the content creators who screamed in fear when they were fazed by the game’s creepy-looking animatronic robots.

Players attempt to survive five nights at an eat-in diner called Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza, which is essentially like Chuck E. Cheese went horribly, terribly wrong. The place is swarmed with animatronics that have taken new life and you control a camera monitor and must keep watch to survive by acting various mechanisms and such.

The series has evolved to an entire media franchise complete with fan gear, toys, and 6 major entries with 2 spin-off titles and even had novels written to tell the story. The’res also been a film adaptation by Warner Bros. Pictures to recreate the game but has since then gone through multiple delays. The game has been covered by major internet celebrities, including Markiplier, PewDiePie, and jacksepticeye.

Cawthon also says that there will be new books, new games, and of course, the movie. You can check out the whole post below:

 

“Upcoming Projects Mega-Thread!
Updated 11-12-18

Hey everyone!

I’ve been promising an update, so here it is! There are a lot of great things being worked on, and most of them will arrive in 2019, including new ports, new games, and new books. The movie progress is still slow, but that’s OK because I want to get it right. Everything else however is moving full speed ahead.

Movie News:

Five Nights at Freddy’s (first movie): New script being worked on

OK guys, I had a script written; Jason liked it, and Chris Columbus liked it too, but I tossed it. I had a different idea for it, one that I liked better. I take responsibility for this delay; it’s my fault.

It’s been a real challenge for everyone, including myself, to come up with a good screenplay for this. But I’m determined to find the right story. I’m sticking to what I’ve always said, either the right movie gets made or no movie gets made. I hate delaying a project that’s already seen so many delays, but I have to go with my instincts on what I think will be exciting and interesting, and what I think the fanbase will really want to see. If that means that I have to start over ten more times, then that’s what I’m going to do. The good thing is that each attempt gets better and better, in my opinion. So, despite the delays, it’s going in the right direction.

One thing that most of you might want to know is that the movie (and sequels I hope) will take place in the universe of FNAF 1-3 only. The games after Five Nights at Freddy’s 3 will not exist in the movie universe. Like it or hate it, I felt that this was the best portion of the storyline to really focus in on.

Game Projects:

FNAF VR: (40% complete)

This game is looking terrific. I’m working with a company called Steel Wool to bring the VR game to life, and these guys are making some crazy stuff. If you liked repairing Funtime Freddy up-close in Sister Location, just wait until you try to do something like that in VR, up close, personal, with these huge animatronics that are just one mistake away from jumping at you. I refused to test it the first time and had my son Braden test it instead. (The repair section is one small part of the game.) And, for the first time, you’re going to all get to see an actual stage performance from the classic band!

FNAF AR: (10% complete)

The AR game is well under way, and while I’m not going to reveal any gameplay details yet, I will say that the impending doom of something hunting you will keep you up at night.

FNAF: Into Madness (0% complete)

This is the next game that I want to work on myself someday, a compilation of several previous gameplay ideas in the same vein as Update 2; just a free game for the fanbase. There isn’t a guarantee that it will happen though; I’m still recovering from the first four years! 🙂

Console Ports: (20% complete)

I’m working closely with the people at Clickteam to create new, improved, HD ports of all of the original games! They will be released on Android, iOS, Switch, XBox and PlayStation!

AAA Game: (0%)

There is a BIG deal in the works to create an incredible big-budget game! I can’t reveal any details yet as this project is still in its planning stages, but I’m working closely with the studio involved to ensure that it delivers what (I think) FNAF fans will want to see!

New Book Series: (20%)

There is a new line of books on the way from Scholastic! This will be very different from the original book series, as it will be a collection of short horror stories that takes place in the FNAF universe. The series will launch with five books, each containing three different short stories with unique characters and plot lines, some connected directly to the games, and some not.

That’s everything for now! Time for more coffee!”

Telltale’s Minecraft: Story Mode debut delayed on Netflix

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Telltale's Minecraft: Story Mode debut delayed on Netflix 29

Minecraft: Story Mode was supposed to debut on Netflix a few days ago on November 7- but it (still) hasn’t.

The show is an interactive show aimed at younger audiences on Netflix. Viewers could tag along with the adventure and make decisions that affect the outcome of the story- just like the video game. It’s pretty much an interactive TV show of the video game released by Telltale Games, which has shut down since the announcement.

Without going into too much detail, Telltale Games wasn’t getting enough sales from its story-driven, decision-based games and had to dissolve itself. It was working on a final project (The Walking Dead: The Final Season) but only completed Seasons 1 and 2. Another company then picked up the rights to the game and hired the original team to complete the project.

As for Telltale, they had a skeletal staff on board which has now been fired as well. Telltale is no more.

Minecraft: Story Mode was one of the very last things the company released. However, the show didn’t debut on time and there’s been no word on when it’ll be coming out. Netflix currently shows that it’s still “Coming Soon” on their own page with no other details at this time. We’ll update you with any news.

State of Decay 2 getting a free DLC pack called Zedhunter – Stealth, crossbows, and gear

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State of Decay 2 getting a free DLC pack called Zedhunter - Stealth, crossbows, and gear 30

A new DLC called Zedhunter was announced for State of Decay 2. The DLC is free and was announced during the X018 event.

From the announcement trailer, we can confirm that the free DLC pack will have new weapons, gear, and a stealth-based approach this time around. Crossbows are also being added as a stealth weapon to slay zombies alongside melee weapons and new gear that all let you play ninja-like and kill zombies silently.

We don’t know for sure what kind of gear we’re getting, but a night vision mode was hinted during the sneak peek.

There’s also a new jeep-type vehicle that lets players run over hordes of zombies together. State of Decay 2 still has a huge playerbase of 4M active players and 5B zombies killed so far. The game is still going strong. Undead Labs are also planning on adding an update in early 2019 that’ll get the community together, as announced during the X018 preview.

Fans of the game were thrilled to see more content updates- and free ones at that. Nice to see that the developer is still pushing out content after a so-so game launch. This is how you please the community.

The free Zedhunter DLC Pack will be available November 16 for everyone who owns the game. State of Decay 2 is also available on Xbox Game Pass- a $9.99/month subscription for access to over 100 titles. You can check out the trailer here: