News

New Railway Empire DLC Crossing the Andes; Get the details

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New Railway Empire DLC Crossing the Andes; Get the details 1

The latest expansion from Railway Empire has been officially released. The DLC is called Crossing the Andes and offers several new things for players to construct and cruise along great South America.

Crossing the Andes will take players to their new adventures in South America during the early 20th century. Players will encounter new investors and discover ways to cross the Andes. The mountains and jungle terrain will be difficult for even the most professional and seasoned veterans of Railway Empire.

Some other new features in this DLC are new scenarios that cover early history of railway legends in the Andes Mountains. Players will also get a new map of S. America for both the Free Game and Sandbox game modes, and more than 10 new goods like llama wool and guano. Lastly, players will get 34 new cities just waiting to be discovered with two new engines to traverse South America. Railway Empire fans are in for a treat.

These new features can be seen in a new trailer released for the Crossing the Andes (attached below). Railway Empire is the train locomotive builder game currently available for PS4, Xbox One and PC. The update is free for all current owners of the game, and the game is currently on sale for 50% for those on the fence deciding whether or not to snag a copy of the game.

You can check the game out on Steam.

UK gaming magazines GamesMaster and GamesTM shutting down

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UK gaming magazines GamesMaster and GamesTM will print their last issues on the first of next month. Future, the global multi-platform media company that publishes brands like PC Gamer, Kotaku, Xbox The Official Magazine, PlayStation Official Magazine UK, and more, has announced that GamesTM and GamesMaster are no longer being published due to sales.

GamesTM has been printed since 2002 and was originally owned by Image Publishing before they were bought out by Future. GamesMaster has been running for 25 years since 1993. The two magazines will be halted and the staff will be reassigned.

Future announced in a press release:

“Despite the company’s strong performance overall, unfortunately games™ and GamesMaster are no longer profitable parts of the business, which means that their next issues, on sale November 1st, will be the final editions,”

“The decision was an extremely difficult one, but everyone here is enormously proud of what the magazines have achieved in their lifetimes – an incredible 25 years in GamesMaster’s case – and we are currently deploying affected staff within the company.”

GamesMaster posted the following tweet:

UK readers will definitely be upset over this announcement. However, it’s nice of the publisher to assign the editors to other magazines and positions to keep their influence within the company.

Cuphead confirmed for Mac; Studio MDHR releases animated short

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Cuphead confirmed for Mac; Studio MDHR releases animated short 2

After a long-time, non stop requests from fans, the rage-inducing, retro platformer Cuphead has finally been released on Mac. And Studio MDHR went one step ahead and even released a new animated short for its release on Macintosh.

Cuphead was released a little over a year ago on Xbox One and PC and was one of the best platformers of 2017. With its new take on traditional side scrolling platformer by going backwards in time, the game was unique and offered something fresh to the platforming genre that’s often dominated by newly released games from indie developers.

While the industry is filled with platformers that release on a daily basis, only a few of them are good. Platformers seem to be a favorite amongst indie developers, but a lot of them are just rushed, sub-par creations.

Cuphead was one of the few gems that sparked some interest back into the genre. Now, Mac owners can get a piece of the action on their computers. Studio MDHR has ported the game over to Mac players with the same experience you’d find on Xbox One or PC versions.

And to top it all off, they’ve marked down the price to just $15.99- a 20% discount to celebrate Mac glory. The sale will run until October 22nd. So if you’re a Mac owner who missed out on the fun, it’s your chance to get in on the action right now.

Studio MDHR animated short features Cuphead, Mugman, and a new character with an apple for a head. The short is called “Crisp Apples” and is a silly little video as this apple guy stumbles upon Cuphead and Mugman eating apples and he freaks out. This is just what you’d expect from this developer.

Cuphead is now available for PC, Xbox One, and Mac.

You can watch the new launch trailer here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1gKRzuNcwdIF

Ace Combat 7 shows off two new gameplay videos

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Ace Combat 7 shows off two new gameplay videos 3

Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown Missions 06 and 07 have shown off some new gameplay videos that show off the first half of each mission and the mission briefing. Fans of the long-running series are stoked about this, as there hasn’t been a new Ace Combat game in a long time.

The video for Mission 06: Long Day shows the gameplay in a desert where you need to attack a Erusean base. The F/A-18F Super Hornet is rendered in glorious detail fully loaded with AQQM missiles and some 360 degree visuals to show off the plane before takeoff.

There’s some convos between you and your squad as you’re prisoners forced into this mission. Do fans get some backstory about the game. The player also spends a lot of time in low-flying areas so there’s a lot of dangerous flying about. The visual detail is superior to all previous AC games.

As for Mission 07: First Contact, the mission brief tells you how useless you are as a convict. Your goal is to help your allies escape by destroying enemy towers, radars, and AA turrets in a mountainous valley. You get to use the F-22A Raptor and the same set of AQQM missiles.

The area is cloudy as the weather has an overcast on the mission area. There will be clouds, light rain, and other various weather distractions making your mission slightly more difficult. You’ll see a cutscene mid-mission where drones attack and a thunderstorm also can screw with your UI.

For any Ace Combat fan, the gameplay of Missions 06 and 07 has gotten a lot of attention. Fans seem to be praising the game so far from the comments in the video and grateful for the nostalgia this game has brought them over the decades and glad that this game is making a return.

Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown will be released on January 18, 2019 for PS4 and Xbox One. PC players will get their hands on the action-packed plane fighter sim on February 1st. Pre-orders will get a remaster of Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War for PS4, and Xbox One pre-orders will get Ace Combat 6: Fires of Liberation.

 

Sleep Tight may be coming to Europe; Developer We Are Fuzzy teases on Twitter

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Sleep Tight may be coming to Europe; Developer We Are Fuzzy teases on Twitter 4

Developer We Are Fuzzy released their first game called Sleep Tight a few months back. Sleep Tight is a twin-stick arcade shooter that was only released in North America due to a limited budget.

But We Are Fuzzy may be porting the game over to other regions soon- with Europe in its sights currently.

The news was announced on Twitter, with a nonchalant tweet saying that they’ve got nothing to announce other than they’ve been seeing a bunch of “EU shop requests” and they’re working making it happen. Fans of Sleep Tight have been asking for a release of the game in EU for a while and a PS4 and Xbox One version. We Are Fuzzy stated that they have some a “very exciting announcement coming soon” for fans who’ve been waiting.

Sleep Tight is a fast-paced twin-stick shooter game with an old-school top-down view but with modern graphics and artwork. We Are Fuzzy is an indie developer who you’ve probably never heard of, but that doesn’t mean the little engine can’t try. Sleep Tight was released on July 26, 2018 and is currently available on Nintendo Switch and PC in North America.

Fortnite’s new customization options coming in future patch (leaked)

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Fortnite's new customization options coming in future patch (leaked) 5

Some genius data miners at FNBRLeaks have discovered that Epic Games could soon be adding a new set of options to customize the Playground mode in Fortnite.

They found some info in various game files that direct suspicion to new customization options for players in the near future. Epic is looking to add custom loot rates, modifiers to move speed, damage options, and more.

A list of all customization options that’ll be released in a future Fortnite patch (Via DualShockers);

  • Friendly Fire
  • Glider Redeploy
  • Loot Levels
    • Scarce Loot
    • Regular Loot
    • Lots of Loot
  • Movement Speed Multiplier
  • Damage Multiplier
    • Half Damage
    • Regular Damage
    • Double Damage

Epic Games had already made many changes to the Playground LTM in the V6.01 update. Some changes to Fortnite in this new patch included  a series a seven customization options which allow players to change settings like starting HP, shield HP, fall damage, gravity settings, and even the time of day.

These options were added recently to the game, but the leaked options don’t have a confirmed release date yet- so we don’t know which patch they’ll eventually show up in. Stay tuned for updates.

Source: DualShockers.

Call of Duty: Blacks Ops 4 will get its first major patch today

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Call of Duty: Blacks Ops 4 will get its first major patch today 6

Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 will be getting its major update today, when it’s just one week after its very successful release that shattered Activision’s day one sales records. After a launch like that and continued community feedback, Treyarch will be scheduling a new update today with some changes to the hottest game on the market right now.

The game sold more than $500M in just three days on the market, which made it the best-selling game on launch in Activision’s history.

Treyarch announced on Twitter that they’ll stabilize, remove, and change some aspects and features across all game modes on BO4. There will also be a special double XP weekend, starting today to celebrate the game’s first week. The specific modes where this event takes place is still yet to be announced. Zombies mode should use the double Neulium Plasma to their benefit so they can buy extra Elixirs.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 is currently available on PS4, Xbox One, and PC. We’ll cover the updates to the game after the first major update. See you post-patch!

 

Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 still has no sign of COD points from Treyarch

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Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 still has no sign of COD points from Treyarch 7

Treyarch’s Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 has been a massive success. The game sold more copies on day one release in Activision’s entire history. And the game is being fine-tuned with player feedback via social accounts.

The next thing players seem to be waiting for them is the ability to use their COD points (Call of Duty points) to make in-game purchases. They can buy a variety of products each giving them some unique way to stand out.

Players have been using COD points as premium currency for a year now and expect that each release of the game will allow them to buy COD points for cosmetics, weapon skins, and some unique weapons.

But in BO4, there hasn’t been any mention of COD points, even though the currency was part of the game’s pre-order specials. The special editions of the game that cost over $100 promise a large sum of COD points on launch. But players were reporting that their premium points were nowhere to be found. And right now, players can’t even check how many points they have.

Treyarch still hasn’t said anything about when players will get access, so players still aren’t sure exactly what they can buy with $100. The game has no signal of microtransactions so far, with Blackout. Zombies mode has some microtransaction details, but not much. There’s a place where you can buy Concoctions with currency earned through matches- and only this way, but other than that, there’s no mention of COD points right now.

We’ll have to see what Treyarch has planned.

Fortnite Battle Bus moves faster with V6.10 update

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Fortnite Battle Bus moves faster with V6.10 update 8

Fortnite’s Battle Bus doesn’t really get too much attention, but it looks like now Epic Games is doing a major update to the Bus with their latest patch to the game.

Fortnite posted a tweet to let fans know that the Battle Bus will now travel a whole 25% faster than previously when flying.

While the Bus has gone through some minor updates here and there, this is the first time when it’s gotten praise directly- and in a tweet. Players have gotten some special ballons for the game’s anniversary and the ability to even thank the driver, but now with faster movement speeds, this will only add for more fast-paced action. This update affects gameplay because the speed adjustment will affect the game ever so slightly.

The update was announced just a single day after Epic Games detailed the new changes to Fortnite in its V6.10 update, which also was featured alongside other major changes like map adjustments and the new vehicle: The Quadcrasher.

Dota 2’s Treasure Update shows drop rates for loot crates

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Dota 2's Treasure Update shows drop rates for loot crates 9

Dota 2’s new treasure update will now show drop rate percentages for loot boxes. Valve is changing the way loot boxes and disclosures work in the game with players able to see in-game percentages before they buy. This is nothing new, as many games are now required to show this information in many countries worldwide.

Valve’s latest update for Dota 2 will show the exact chances of getting rarity loot, all based on the number of keys you buy. More keys mean more chances of getting the loot, to no surprise.

Countries globally have been enforcing these kinds of laws. Blizzard Entertainment recently took out loot crates for Overwatch and Heroes of the Storm. Developers have also announced many times that their games won’t contain any loot crates. Dota 2 is just another domino in the long line of games starting to feel the heat.

Besides the changes in Dota 2, there are some other updates tot he game. Dota Plus subs will get access to new a perk that allows them to recycle unwanted treasures for treasure fragments. Once six are collected from the same drop, an extra copy of the treasure and 2K Dota Plus cards will be given.

Players will now also be able to shuffle their item sets for each hero during matches.

You can get more information about this update here at Dota 2’s page.

Ubisoft’s Frédérick Duguet will take reigns as new CFO

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Ubisoft's Frédérick Duguet will take reigns as new CFO 10

Ubisoft has announced a new CFO after the current one will officially retire from the company at the end of this year. Alain Martinez is the current Chief Financial Officer of Ubisoft, but will resign by 2018’s end.

Frédérick Duguet will be replacing him, who is currently Ubisoft’s Chief Financial Planning Officer and has been since 2009.

The current CEO, Yves Guillemot, made a few remarks on the change of CFOs in the coming months:

“The appointment of Frédérick as Ubisoft’s Chief Financial Officer is excellent news for the Group. His expertise, intimate knowledge of the company and deep understanding of the value creation drivers in the video game industry are all assets that will greatly aid Ubisoft in its new development phase. On behalf of all Ubisoft teams, I would like to express my most sincere gratitude to Alain for his unfailing commitment throughout his 19 years with the company. With passion and rigour, Alain has been instrumental in shaping Ubisoft’s success and the Group’s profile as we know it today.”

The transition will also be worked out as smoothly as possible with Martinez working closely with Duguet. The official start date for the CFO switch beings on January 1st, 2019. The new CFP is still undisclosed. Stay tuned for updates.

Meet Fortnite’s new vehicle: The Quadcrasher

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Meet Fortnite's new vehicle: The Quadcrasher 11

While the most popular battle royale game in the world certainly excels at many things (that’s why it’s so popular), it does have a few things missing- namely a huge selection of vehicles.

Fortnite does have its own variety of ways to “get around,” but vehicular combat isn’t Fortnite’s main game. Though, there has been a shopping cart and an all-terrain kart, but now they’ve announced a new vehicle- the Quadcrasher

The Quadcrasherin an ATV that seats two, with the passenger able to fire their weapon at enemies and the driver having the ability to give the vehicle a shot of adrenaline with a nitrous boost. The bike controls kind of like a tank, but has the ability to smash through obstacles and gets you across any terrain- quickly.

This thing has a ram bar with a mean face and a set of AT tires. Fuse a motorbike with an ATV and put on some funny decals and you’ve got the Quadcrasher. This thing seriously looks like something out of Halo– like the Warthog or something with one person running and the other piloting this bad boy.

You can see the new trailer Epic Games has released for the Quadcrasher here:

New Kingdom Come DLC trailer released: The Amorous Adventures of Bold Sir Hans Capon

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New Kingdom Come DLC trailer released: The Amorous Adventures of Bold Sir Hans Capon 12

A new content release for Kingdom Come: Deliverance called The Amorous Adventures of Bold Sir Hans Capon was just released today. Warhorse Studios and Deep Silver released this DLC and priced it at a fair MSRP of $9.99. Players can purchase this add-on on the PS Store, Xbox One, and PC.

The DLC adds a few new features to the game. First, they’ll attempt to rescue their friends Hans Capon, who has fallen for a character named Karolina and needs your help to guide him. You’ll need a family jewel, potion, and a romantic poem to get this plan working.

A new Rattay Combat Tournament has also been added to the game for players who want to prove their combat skills in the arena. Players who rise to the top can acquire some pretty unique armor equips.

The Amorous Adventures of Bold Sir Hans Capon is the second add-on for the original game, Kingdom Come: Deliverance, following From the Ashes which was released back in July of this year. This DLC was known for allowing players to establish a village as a newly appointed bailiff starting a new bustling city.

A new trailer to promote this DLC was also released. You can view it here:

Nintendo Switch Diablo bundle revealed; Get the details

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Nintendo Switch Diablo bundle revealed; Get the details 13

Nintendo Europe announced that a limited edition, special version of the Switch console will be released to pair with Diablo III on the local EU markets. The pack will include Diablo III: Eternal Collection and a special console with docking base that has a custom paint job and special carrying case- all themed to D3’s getup. And the Ganondorf armor set will be paired with the bundle, of course.

There are no current reports on when the bundle may release in North America. The only news was a trailer and a few product picture show sing off the console and accessories, one of which is attached as the featured picture on this article.

UPDATE: Nintendo has announced that the Diablo Switch bundle will launch in the US at the same time as the EU market, but will exclusively be sold at GameStop.

Here’s a trailer showing off the awesome paint job:

The Switch Diablo bundle will launch on the same day the game rolls out- November 2nd. But then again, this is just for EU players. The game will be a port to console from PC back in 2012 and will obviously include extra content for the Nintendo market.

There were also rumors that the game would feature cross-platform play between the consoles, but that was later debunked by a Blizzard representative.

Here’s a screenshot of all the goodies included in the bundle:

Nintendo Switch Diablo bundle revealed; Get the details 14

Fortnite tournaments now live with version 6.10

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Fortnite tournaments now live with version 6.10 15

Fortnite now officially has in-game tournaments starting today. The official announcement by Epic Games was made yesterday, and anyone who plays ForFortnitetnite knows that there are always news updates about esports tournaments.

But now, new in-game tourneys allow anyone to join in Fortnite official matches. This news was leaked a few days ago, but the confirmed announcement was made yesterday afternoon by Epic.

The addition was released with today’s version 6.10 update. Each tourney will have players that start out on the same tier, and competitors scoring points through their final placement during matches or by getting kills. Matchmaking will pair players based on skill- sort of like MMR- but it’s not.

Here’s the official announcement by Epic:

On release, the following tournaments will be scheduled in NA*, EU, BR, ASIA, and OCE regions.  Scheduled times will vary by region – check the tournament inside the client for details.

  • Alpha Tournament (Solo)
    • Dates: October 16 – October 21
    • Description: Participate in the first in-game tournament, spanning across several days of daily competition!
  • Beta Tournament (Duo)
    • Dates: October 23 – October 25
    • Description: Grab a friend and take on the world – until you are the last two left.
  • Friday Night Fortnite (Squad)
    • Dates: October 19 – November 30
    • Description: Join your friends every Friday and kick off your weekend with some exciting Squad action.
  • Salty Springs Cup (Solo)
    • Dates: October 27 – October 31
    • Description: One week and three attempts to prove you’re the saltiest that Salty Springs has to offer.
  • Tomato Temple Cup (Duo)
    • Dates: October 28 – November 1
    • Description: Become legends of the Tomato Temple Cup.

*Note: NAE and NAW are combined together into the same tournament, but players will still connect to their nearest server except in low population circumstances primarily when a player has a high score.

The new update also added a rocket launcher and a new trap called the Chiller. There’s also the Discom Domination limited time game mode, so check that out for some laughs.

The game will also be competitive across platforms, so it doesn’t matter what your platform of choice is, you can play competitively against any other (or same) platform. Game balance was a concern since obviously some peripherals are known to give the benefit during matches, however, Epic issues that based on their observations and research, the controller and keyboard are on-par.

Regardless, you can now play with others in tournaments across all platforms. Fortnite is settings the standard for cross-platform play.

Skybound Games hosting AMA to clear fan confusion

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Skybound Games hosting AMA to clear fan confusion 16

With Telltale Games officially shutting down and firing their remaining staff, fans were anxious about what would happen to their final project: The Walking Dead: The Final Season. Skybound Games then took over by stepping in and agreeing to finish the series with the original developers to keep the integrity of the storyline.

But this didn’t quench the minds of fans who still had dozens of questions that went unanswered. So let’s get some answers.

So now Skybound Games is officially hosting an AMA on Reddit (ask me anything) this week on Wednesday, October 17th at 5PM EST on the official Walking Dead subreddit. CEO Ian Howe will be answering questions on the thread that fans have about the project and how the game will continue moving forward after Telltale’s fiasco.

Skybound has done everything right so far by hiring the original staff, and now answering questions. Let’s see how they’ll handle this project.

The next season, Season 3, of The Walking Dead: The Final Season hasn’t been announced, but we’ll probably learn when they’ll release it as it’s a popular question amongst fans and will be guaranteed to be asked during this Skybound AMA.

Stay tuned for updates. We’ll post the most significant questions and answers from Skybound in another post to keep you updated. We’re as anxious as you.

KARNAGE shows off Diamond camo in BO4; Treyarch praised

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KARNAGE shows off Diamond camo in BO4; Treyarch praised 17

The Diamond camo in BO4 is pure awesome. Treyarch has gone to new heights with the camo by adding a new color-changing effect for every five kills you get without getting killed yourself. The camo turns to various shades of blue, red, and green.

But when you get a color change seven times during a single match, the Diamond camo starts becoming animated into a rainbow effect. This was discovered by KARNAGE, a clan on Black Ops 4.

Here, they show off a Tactical Rifle called the Swordfish:

To get the Diamond camo, you have to land 100 headshots with a weapon to get the basic set, then you’ll unlock the next set. Once all the challenges are unlocked for a set, you’ll get the Gold camo for that weapon. Once you earn the Gold camo for every weapon, you’ll get the legendary Diamond camo for all weapons in that glass.

However, there’s one last camo you can get once you unlock- assuming you can get Diamond for every weapon class. The camo’s called Dark Matter, and this one’s only for the most dedicated players. You can guess how you’ll look just from the name. Do you have a Dark Matter camo already? Let us know in the comments!

PS4 users forced to factory reset system after seeing glitched message

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PS4 users forced to factory reset system after seeing glitched message 18

PlayStation 4 users are having a problem with their consoles where it gets frozen and are forced to do a factory reset after getting a prompt from the console. Users are advising other players to set their messages to private after receiving a message on their console. When it’s viewed, it freezes the entire system and requires a complete wipe to get it working again.

The message can’t be deleted from the console dash or the mobile app, but mixed reports surfaced on the web. This bug was found on Saturday and has yet to be fixed. Reddit users are reporting the problem all over the PS4 subreddit:

“Even deleting the message from the mobile app doesn’t work. It happened to me during Rainbow Six: Siege. A player from the other team used a dummy account to send the message and crashed my entire team. We all have had to factory reset. Only one of our guys wasn’t affected and he has his messages private. Do this ASAP to prevent this from happening to you.” (Via Huntstarck on Reddit.)

Setting messages to private will prevent getting this message that locks up your machine- just to be safe. Sony hasn’t reported or announced anything about this problem just yet. Stay tuned for some quick updates on this system-breaking bug.

CoD: BO4 shatters day one sales records in total Activision history

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CoD: BO4 shatters day one sales records in total Activision history 19

Activision came out with a press release yesterday to announce their latest publication, Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, has been the most successful day one digital release in the publisher’s entire history. This means that sales for CoD: BO4 broke all previous sales records- including the record set by Call of Duty: WII and broke the record for day one sales on the entire PlayStation Store and release day sales on Xbox One.

PC digital sales were over double that of those set by WWII on first day sales. Player count also grew since last year’s release. The press release also had a remark from Call of Duty Executive VP and GM Rob Kostrich:

Black Ops 4 is an incredible game, and the community’s response to it has been amazing. We have shattered multiple digital day one sales records, and the number of people who connected online on day one to play has grown year on year. But probably the most important thing is that the community is having so much fun across Multiplayer, Zombies and Blackout. We are so incredibly thankful for the community’s trust and support. This is just the beginning, it’s going to be an incredible journey with Black Ops 4.

This is the first entry into the CoD lineup that features a battle royale mode and has absolutely no single-player campaign. BO4 is available for PS4, Xbox One, and PC.

Dragon Quest XI update for PC and PS4; What’s new?

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Dragon Quest XI update for PC and PS4; What's new? 20

The Dragon Quest XI team released a new patch for PS4 and PC yesterday. The update adds a bunch new improvements and adjustments to both versions- with PC players getting the benefit of the patch. Square Enix has gone ahead and added some features and settings PC players will surely appreciate, such as FPS settings and key bindings.

Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of an Elusive Age was launched last month. The story is an epic adventure with a JRPG format. A Nintendo Switch version has been planned, but there’s no word about the game yet- or at least very little. Rumors say it’ll be based off a PS4 version and will be titled Dragon Quest XI S with special goodies not found in the original PS4 game.

Regardless, here are the full patch notes:

PC

  1. We’ve identified a bug which can sometimes cause the game to crash when the player is 300m away from their horse on the field, this has been fixed.
  2. Players are now able to send log data to the DRAGON QUEST XI development team in cases where the game crashes.
  3. Players are able to choose between three (Low, Medium, High) pre-set graphic settings before launching the game (see below for details).
  4. People’s names (such as “Robert”) have been removed from the list of prohibited words when selecting the main character’s name at the beginning of the game.
  5. Multiple text bugs have been fixed.
  6. It’s now possible to move the command selection cursor using the left stick, and by extension WASD on keyboards, with very few exceptions in certain screens.
  7. It’s now possible to select which key exits the game (by default this is set to Esc) and it’s also possible to bind the Esc key to a different function.
  8. More frame rate options have been added; 90 fps, 120 fps, 144 fps as well as the option to leave the frame rate unlocked.

PS4

  1. We’ve identified a bug which can sometimes cause the game to crash when the player is 300m away from their horse on the field, this has been fixed.
  2. People’s names (such as “Robert”) have been removed from the list of prohibited words when selecting the main character’s name at the beginning of the game.
  3. Multiple text bugs have been fixed.

Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales preview – 37 minutes of gameplay

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Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales preview - 37 minutes of gameplay 21

Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales, developed by CD Projekt has released a new gameplay video today. The video showcases 37 minutes of in-game footage showing off more of the game’s playstyle.

The video covers the game’s first act and allows interested players to see both the storyline and the actual gameplay. There are also a few encounters where players can see the turn-based, strategic combat. Over-dubbed commentary by CD Projekt RED Community Manager, Pawel Burza, talks about some of the facts behind the game and guides players through the actual storyline.

Thronebreaker is a single player RPG set in the world of The Witcher. It combines both explorations with narrative-driven puzzles and card battles. Developers that made The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt have their own take in this game, which spins on the tale of Meve. Meve is then forced to fight again on a dark journey of destruction and revenge after an invasion in his town.

This game is a spin-off of the popular Witcher series and allows players to explore parts of the world they’ve never seen. Complete with rich characters, explorations, and strategic battles, this is Witcher like you’ve never seen. The game will be available October 23 for PC on GoG.com. A console release for PS4 and Xbox One will follow in December. Currently, pre-orders can be made only through the official site.

Any Witcher fan will surely appreciate this entry- even if it’s not a direct successor to Wild Hunt.

Here’s a description of the video:

The walkthrough focuses on the game’s first act and is rich in both story and exploration gameplay, as well as turn-based card battle combat. The video also features commentary from Paweł Burza (Community Manager), who provides gamers with insight into the world of Thronebreaker.

And here’s the video:

Stay tuned for coverage upon the game’s rollout.

Tfue destroys all of Tilted in one go; Epic releases hotfix

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Tfue destroys all of Tilted in one go; Epic releases hotfix 22

Turner ‘Tfue’ Tenney destroyed Tilted Towers in just a few seconds in a viral clip. Epic Games has then released a hotfix to correct the weird bug within the game.

FaZe Clan’s Tfue built a 3-floor build and a ramp next to a  building in Tilted Towers, and then he destroyed the ramp. He was able to destroy the main building in the area. The glitch was likely due to a  recent update Fortnite underwent which made any non-player structures “think” they were created by a player, so they can get destroyed.

He knew what he was doing because he got the bug to work immediately and surprised his many viewers at the same time.

Epic Games released a new update on October 14 to patch this bug:

Bug or not, Epic responded fast and that’s what matters. Keeping an eye on their game shows some form of quality control. You can see the clip here.

Diablo III: Eternal Collection won’t have cross-platform play

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Diablo III: Eternal Collection won't have cross-platform play 23

A Blizzard representative confirmed that cross-play between PS4, Xbox One, and the Switch won’t be happening for Diablo III: Eternal Collection.

The release was released to DualShockers and states the following:

“While we love the idea of bringing our players together across platforms, we do not have any plans to implement cross-platform gameplay for Diablo at this time.”

The news follows speculation from a report that rumored the next entry could have cross-platform play.

Yesterday, a report from Business Insider interviewing a Blizzard rep surfaced the web. The gist of the report is whether or not Diablo III will have cross-play. Since Diablo III will have multiple platforms that are near identical and the Diablo series being a multiplayer game, it makes sense for it to have cross-play capabilities.

The Blizzard rep told Business Insider that “It’s a question of when, not if” which hinted at the possibility of all platforms being able to play with one another in the ARPG that is Diablo.

The folks working with Diablo were also said to be working with partners at Sony and Microsoft to enable cross-play with the Switch. Microsoft and Nintendo seem to have no problem playing with other competitors, but Sony was always the odd-man out.

Back in September, Sony did backtrack their decision about cross-play and started considering joining the bandwagon, which surprised many PlayStation owners. Given that the company’s CEO Kenichiro Yoshida saying that the PS4 is the “best place to play,” the turnaround was quick. Fans were surprised with the decision and overall pleased to be able to join others gamers on other systems globally.

With Blizzard’s confirmation on this ordeal, fans now won’t be too disappointed when the game doesn’t deliver what was speculated. Although, just that report made fans happy for that single day. But then again, “it’s a question of when, not if.”

Diablo III: Eternal Collection comes out November 2nd for PS4, Xbox One, and PC. Get ready for another epic RPG.

Source: Business Insider.

Fornite’s gifting system: Details, rules, and screenshots

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With Fortnite raking in millions of dollars a day, you’d expect that the game would at least have their gifting system figured out by now. Players have been demanding one for a while, but Epic Games hasn’t responded to any requests.

Until now. There was a new emote called “behold” added by Epic on October 12, which could be a way to start gifting your friends items such cosmetics, skins, gliders, pickaxes, back bling, and emotes. Some people just don’t want to pay, can’t afford them, or don’t have many friends that are generous enough to gift in Fortnite in the first place!

Now, based on data from FortniteINTEL, who are basically data miners that get the good stuff from Fortnite, they’ve accessed a “beta” version of the gifting system. From the screenshots posted, the gifting system has some interesting features:

  • You can gift multiple people at the same time – up to 4 people
  • You can only gift the same friend once every 10 days
  • You can “gift wrap” the gift by sending a personalized message attached to the present
  • You can gift yourself, but the gift can’t be returned
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(Via FortniteINTEL.)

Your giftees may be able to return the gift you send them (such as a troll gift). But your own gifts may not be returned. Or this is just a beta and gifting yourself may be removed from the final system. Or it can be used for parents gifting to their kids (no more stealing credit cards!).

Epic Games hasn’t said anything about this news yet, and we’re not sure when this system will be confirmed. But the system is in the code of the game, so we can expect Fortnite gifting to go online eventually.

You can check out more screenshots at FortniteINTEL.

Final Fantasy X/X-2 Remaster and XII on Switch: Details and release date

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Final Fantasy X/X-2 Remaster and XII on Switch: Details and release date 26

Square Enix revealed that they would be bringing new Final Fantasy games to the Switch. This was news back in September of this year and would be the first time many of these Final Fantasy games would be on a Nintendo platform.

A trio of the newest entries into the long-running, legendary series that is Final Fantasy just made the list of games to be ported onto the Nintendo Switch:

  • Final Fantasy X and Final Fantasy X-2 (HD Remaster bundle)
  • Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age

Here are some product features (via Amazon)

  • Updated and reconstructed visuals to be Far more realistic and richly textured vs the original game
  • Upgraded models for each character, graphical updates for a more immersive environment, Xbox One exclusive Achievements
  • Estimated gameplay hours: 40-50 per title
  • Sound – players will be able to choose between original sound and the new, re-arranged sound

They’ve all just become available for pre-order. Pricing for X and X-2 HD will be available on the Switch as a collection and will run you mere $49.99- less than the price of a AAA title for these bundled, remastered, epic games.

This is an awesome price, especially if you’ve never played them before. Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age will also be available for $49.99 and will be the Definitive Edition of FFXII. For the books, these prices are identical to the launch prices on PS4.

FFX is the most recent game that features turn-based strategic combat and does it right. FFX-2 has a newer combat system based on character avatars and equips that focuses more on real-time combat. FFXII is a passive combat system that works by deciding what your character will do before the actual battle takes place.

Each game is wildly different in terms of the combat, so players can literally cherry pick their favorite. PC and PS4 had their share of FF games, now it’s time for some Nintendo action! Awesome.

Release dates have been confirmed. The games will be released on December 31, 2019. So that’s more than a year from now. Regardless, we’ll keep you updated until then.

CoD: Black Ops 4 new patch on launch day; What’s new?

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CoD: Black Ops 4 new patch on launch day; What's new? 27

Treyarch has released a new launch day patch for Call of Duty: Blacks Ops 4 that covers everything from UI to FPS to player count. This is the first major update Treyarch has released so far, and it just so happens that’s it on the launch of CoD: BO4.

Let’s dive in and see what’s new.

The major change is for FPS for PC players. Originally, it was capped at 120FPS. Now Treyarch has raised that to 160FPS this afternoon and eventually plans to remove the FPS cap in the coming days. Now PC gamers can enjoy BO4 without stutter and get that silky smooth G-Sync or FreeSync gameplay they crave.

The right-click bug where a UI would appear in the Personalization menu was fixed. This was pretty annoying to deal with. A few other UI bugs were fixed with menus being persistent when the game starts or Socials/Settings menus being not accessible during Blackout.

Razor Wire also now won’t trigger “team kill” detection in Hardcore modes.

Spawning locations in Domination were fixed.

Some general stability improvements have also been made.

Some other minor fixes were also released to all platforms today. Various UI enhancements for the menus were updated and some stat tracking problems were fixed in Blackout mode. Apparently, some players had XP issues for multiplayer which has also been resolved.

Some mode changes for Zombies have also been added. Easter eggs are now live for all regions so you can hunt down and find the hidden eggs all over the Zombies game modes in Voyage of Despair, IX, Classified, and Blood of the Dead.

And a few other fixes were also done: FFA players would also sometimes appear on a team together, this has been fixed. Players can also now get extra XP for unlocking Reactive and Mastercraft camos. And some game descriptions for Challenge modes were fixed.

Treyarch is monitoring the BO4 subreddit for player feedback and will have another detailed update coming tomorrow, October 13th. Right now, they’re actively listening to suggestions, bugs, and other posts by players across their social channels based on a post on the BO4 subreddit:

“First off: we’re currently tracking everything you’ve been sharing with us here on the subreddit and across our social channels. We’ll have a more detailed update coming tomorrow, so please keep your feedback coming in the comments below in the meantime. We see you.”

Here are the full patch notes (via Reddit):

Welcome to Launch Day! 

After three years, two Betas, and an incredible amount of feedback from the Call of Duty community, we’re finally able to celebrate the official launch of Black Ops 4 with you all!

This only the beginning…

You can expect regular updates and frequent communication from us going forward, just like during our MP and Blackout Betas. The big difference today: October 12th marks the beginning of a living, breathing game that we’re fully committed to over the long haul. There’s going to be a lot to talk about, starting with today’s game update.

First off: we’re currently tracking everything you’ve been sharing with us here on the subreddit and across our social channels. We’ll have a more detailed update coming tomorrow, so please keep your feedback coming in the comments below in the meantime. We see you.

Also, a hugely important piece of news for our Zombies players: we’ve enabled Easter Eggs worldwide in Voyage of Despair, IX, Blood of the Dead, and Classified! Good hunting out there.

We’ve made the following updates to the game today (Global):

  • General
    • Made many stability and UI improvements based on early tracking of live issues prior to official launch.
  • Multiplayer
    • Fixed an issue where Free-for-All players could sometimes appear on a team together.
    • Players are now granted bonus XP for unlocking Reactive and Mastercraft camos.
    • Corrected some inaccurate Challenge descriptions.
  • Zombies
    • Turned on Easter Eggs for all Zombies levels.
  • Blackout
    • Addressed some issues with Merits and stat tracking.

We’ve also made the following additional fixes specific to PC:

  • Framerate
    • Framerate cap increased to 160 FPS; uncapped framerate planned in the coming days.
  • Menus
    • Fixed an issue causing a UI error to appear when right-clicking characters in the Personalization menu.
    • Fixed an issue that caused UI elements to persist on screen when opening the Player menu at the same time as a match starting.
    • Fixed an issue causing the Social and Settings menus to be inaccessible when spectating in Blackout.

And of course, there are many other improvements in the works based on reporting from the community. Here are just a handful of the big topics that we’re working on for future updates:

  • We’re aware that players have been able to use Gestures (often referred to by the community as “Emotes”) to peek around corners in modes where that can create an unfair advantage. We’re currently working on an update that creates two systems for Gestures – the default system that is in the game now, and a competitive version that disables free look and applies different camera settings to prevent using it to see around corners. The default system will be used in parts of the game where corner peeking won’t affect gameplay balance (like the staging area of Blackout), and the competitive version will be used in modes where a more restrictive camera system is needed. We want players to always have fun with Gestures as intended, but never at the expense of fair gameplay!
  • There have been reports of sub-optimal spawning in Domination. We’re aware and working to improve that immediately.
  • Razor Wire should never trigger “team kill” detection in Hardcore modes. This is unintentional and will be fixed.

These and many other improvements are in progress, so stay tuned to this subreddit for future updates. This post is just the first of many. Remember to tag your craziest clips with #CODTopPlays on Twitter, stay hydrated out there, and enjoy everything all three modes have to offer! We’ll see you online.

-Treyarch

Fallout 76: State of West Virginia partners with Bethesda

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Fallout 76: State of West Virginia partners with Bethesda 28

Fallout 76 takes place in post-apocalyptic West Virginia. And the state of West Virginia is doing something to benefit from all this new exposure for their homeland.

Specifically, the state has partnered with Bethesda to promote the new Fallout 76 game by releasing new information on promo events and tours that they’ll have around the state. But the most awesome part is that they’ll have “Vault Boy sightings” as noted from the West Virginia Tourism Office.

Governor, Jim Justice, commented on this newfound partnership between the state and game company:

“It’s finally time the rest of the world sees what a gem West Virginia is. For years, I’ve been saying we have it all: beautiful scenery, the best people you could ask for and more. And now, we get to share a piece of that with people all over the world through the unique lens of this video game.”

News like this is always cool and interesting to see. A budding partnership up until the game’s release between the state and Bethesda will create increased resident happiness as they can appreciate the scenery and what their state has to offer. Prideful residents will be able to show off their homeland in Fallout 76. Pretty awesome to have your state featured in a video game. California next time? Anyone?

The game is coming out next month on the 14th for PS4, Xbox One, and PC. The game is available for pre-order.

Ninja plays Fortnite with Ellen on The Ellen Degeneres Show

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Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins, 27, the most popular Fortnite streamer on Twitch, said he wouldn’t be streaming yesterday as he’s flying over to California. What’s he doing there? He’s a guest on the popular daytime talk show: The Ellen Degeneres Show.

The Fortnite streamer with 3.4M Twitter and 11M Twitch followers made a surprise appearance on the show. Well, actually, it was super undercover as his wife Jessica ‘JGhosty’ Blevins posted a picture on her Instagram that sort of gave the fans the heads up. She posted multiple selfies of her and Ninja on a private jet to California with only the caption that they were “filming something awesome.”

Of course, this rustled up his fanbase (and the internet). It really pays off to be good at something, doesn’t it?

Fans waited a few hours until she posted a photo that showed Ninja’s name on a special dressing room backstage at the show. And then a day later, Ellen had done the interview with Ninja- complete with a video of Ninja playing Fortnite on The Ellen Degeneres Show. They talked about his job briefly. Then the pair sat down for around of Fortnite, with Ellen not getting any kills.

Ninja has also been featured on the cover of ESPN and even played a match of Fortnite with the popular Canadian rapper Drake.

CoD: Black Ops 4’s split screen mode is awesome; Works for Blackout and Zombies

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CoD: Black Ops 4's split screen mode is awesome; Works for Blackout and Zombies 30

Split screen mode has long been a lost art ever since the good old days of N64 gaming with 4 players on a single TV. Most games nowadays don’t have split screen support and require that you and your friend both have their own copy of the game, a TV, and a console.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 has split screen, and players are excited over this feature. It’s like a blast from the past. To play with a friend on the same console is awesome. And to play the new CoD is even better.

You’ll both need a PSN or Xbox Gold subscription. You’ll have to log in to each one after selecting the split screen option from the menus. Then you both need to log in to the same lobby together and bam- you’re playing CoD: Black Ops 4 in split screen.

This feature is obviously well-appreciated, as a post on Reddit garnered more than 2K upvotes just talking about how awesome to see something like this in a modern game should be done a lot more often.

Blackout allows split screen multiplayer and is the first ever battle royale game to offer this feature. Zombies also supports split-screen multiplayer also, which is a nice return as it wasn’t available on the Xbox 360 or PS3.

Split screen is available for both Xbox One and PS4, but not on PC yet, which makes sense. If you’re going to play together, you do it on a couch. On a TV. Split screen PC is a whole ‘nother world that’s just not as popular as getting together on a console.

Image: Reddit

Xbox One October 2018 update; New Avatars, Dolby Vision, Alexa support

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The latest update for Xbox One is a huge one. Microsoft’s latest October 2018 update for the Xbox One is headlined by the return of Xbox Avatars with a new look and style.

The update went live today and introduces the “new Xbox Avatars.” This update was supposed to be launched last year since it’s been in development ever since the reveal at last year’s E3 conference. Microsoft has delayed the release and started a beta program with Xbox Insiders this June. Now, the update is live and ready to deploy.

So, let’s get to the details.

Players can now easily customize themselves with an expanded take on personalization. Your new Avatar will show up on your profile pages, feed, community posts, and pretty much anywhere you can make yourself show up. You can also switch back to the original Avatars if you don’t like the new ones- AKA Xbox 360 Avatars.

The new Avatars offer plenty of customizations such as a variety of body types, clothing, and gender-neutral selections. People with disabilities can also represent themselves with the use of prosthetics and such. Naturally, skin hair, clothing, and accessories can all be customized indivually to the player’s choice- all the way down to the color of the object. Players can also buy themed merchandise from popular games like Halo in the Avatar Store.

Besides Avatars, the new update also adds support for both Cortana and Alexa for voice control. This means you can ask Amazon’s Alexa to launch a game or shut down the Xbox. Players who use Amazon devices can now integrate it with their Xbox if they’d rather use Alexa over Microsoft’s Cortana.

Another feature is the awesome support for Dolby Vision. The update can be used for Xbox One X and S, but only for streaming apps, not 4K Blu-Rays. Right now, you can test out Dolby Vision in video apps like Netflix (if you have the right 4K HD plan). However, other apps will soon support the same update.

Lastly, there will be a special offer for players interested in Xbox- Microsoft will give a free Amazon Echo for players who buy select Xbox One S or X bundles at Amazon. This offer is limited to US residents only.

This is a huge update and adds a lot of improvement to the overall capabilities of Xbox’s online service and gives it the boot over Sony’s limited feature set. PS4 can only support HDR to HDR10 standards. Though, Sony has been making headlines recently with the ability to finally change PSN usernames and backward compatibility for the PS5.

Source: Polygon