Fortnite Chapter 2 – Season 4 Will Once Again Be Marvel-Themed
It's been quite the news week for Fortnite, the incredibly popular battle royale shooter from Epic Games, as they are feuding with both Apple and Google about how they operate their app stores, with the Apple feud especially seeming to escalate recently. But life, and Fortnite, goes on all the same and the next season is getting an infusion of Marvel it seems.
On the official Twitter, a very brief teaser was posted with a tease of Thor as well as the Marvel brand. Nothing else is shown, but there was a similar cross promotion when Avengers: Endgame was out in theaters. Fortnite has become something of a cultural melting pot, having tons of brands crossing over. It's not clear if this will be just Thor-focused or Marvel in general, but we'll probably find out more as we get closer to the season.
Fortnite is available now for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Switch and PC. The game is no longer available on iOS or Android. Chapter 2, Season 4 will launch on August 27th.
— Fortnite (@FortniteGame) August 21, 2020
NBA 2K21 MyTeam Will Allow Team Transfers From PS4/Xbox One To PS5/Xbox Series X
As usual, it's close to time for the next game in the annual basketball series, NBA 2K21. This year's edition, however, has seen some controversy surrounding its next generation console versions. Not only will the PS5 and Xbox Series X versions cost you $10 extra, the only upgrade path for those who buy on current systems is to buy the most expensive edition. However, at the very least, it seems one part of the game will allow you to transfer between the two.
As detailed in the latest Courtside Report, your MyTeam material can be transferred from current to next generation versions in the same console family. Meaning going from PS4 to PS5 and Xbox One and Xbox Series X. According to 2K, your entire collection can be brought over, though there's no specific details as of yet about how they'll go about that.
MyTeam will also see a few new things, such as new modes like MyTeam Limited, limited-time events where you can collect Championship Rings, as well as Ascension that allows you to customize cards. You can see a trailer detailing that below.
NBA 2K21 will release on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Switch, PC on September 4th and Stadia with PS5 and Xbox Series X versions set to come later.
Rocksteady Responds To Recent Allegations
Tomorrow will be a big day for Rocksteady Studios. They will unveil the first official look at their new game, Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League at the DC FanDome event. But something of a dark cloud came over the announcement as harassment allegations, which you can read more about through here. In fact, one of the writers on Suicide Squad publicly asked for her name to be taken off the project. Now, they have a response.
On their official Twitter, the studio published a letter. In it they acknowledge the 2018 letter that sparked these reports. They add that they did listen to their women employees, as well as saying there was action taken both in the past, as well as things planned for the future. The big thing is that they say they have allegedly brought in a third party for investigations into the matter, though no specific details are given. You can see the full letter below.
Rocksteady has been largely radio silent since the release of Arkham VR in 2016. Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League will be a first look at a project from them for nearly 5 years. With the response below, it's doubtful that any of this will be addressed at DC FanDome tomorrow when the game is revealed, but we'll see, and keep you updated on any new information that comes out.
Here is our statement: pic.twitter.com/ssyzNWfyhB
— Rocksteady Studios (@RocksteadyGames) August 21, 2020
WB Games Montreal Releases Final Brief Teaser Before Next Batman Game's Reveal
We are one day away from the DC FanDome event that will see announcements, panels, trailers and more regarding various adaptations of DC properties. It's there that we will finally see the next Batman game that has been teased for what feels like forever by WB Games Montreal. In the meantime, they have given a very small teaser to wet your appetite.
If you've been following, there's been something of a pseudo-ARG going on with the game, which internet detectives have been following, with one piece of information pointing to Batgirl as a potential character in the game. Now, the last teaser has been uncovered on the r3dak3d YouTube, which you can see below. It's only 16 seconds long and only shows a piece of what one assumes to be Gotham (the game in question is rumored to be subtitled Gotham Knights).
The game has long been teased by the company, which has also come after several projects the company was working on was seemingly scrapped. We'll see what this thing looks like tomorrow at DC FanDome.
Remnant: From The Ashes Claimed By Over 10 Million People During Epic Games Store Free Period
Remnant: From the Ashes came just over a year ago, and was largely well-received. The game was looked at as an interesting fusion of Souls-like gameplay mechanics and features with shooter and roguelike elements. The game seemed to be a success, having sold over 1 million copies as of October of 2019, but it seems a new and bigger audience got exposed to it last week.
Publisher Perfect World and Developer Gunfire Games announced that during the period when Remnant was part of the weekly free games promotion on the Epic Games Store, it was claimed over 10 million times. While that doesn't equate to sells, obviously, it's still a pretty large amount of people that could potentially play the game now, as well as buy DLC, the latest of which, Subject 2923, just released.
Remnant: From the Ashes is available now on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC. All of the game's DLC are also now available across all platforms.
Should You Buy PS5 or Xbox Series X? (Part 3- Features and Services)
In our recent deep dives into the PS5 and Xbox Series X and how the two consoles stack up against each other on multiple fronts, we've spoken about the specs and the controllers of both. This time, we're stepping away from hardware, as we compare the various services and features on offer with both consoles, from their backward compatibility capabilities, to their online offerings, to streaming, and more.
PLAYSTATION PLUS AND XBOX LIVE GOLD
Paid online has been a thing on PlayStation for a while, and even longer on Xbox, and it doesn't look like it's going to go away any time soon, sadly enough. There were some recent rumours that suggested that Xbox Live Gold would be discontinued, but Microsoft have since shut those rumours down. So yes, we will be paying for PlayStation Plus and Xbox Live Gold on next-gen consoles as well- but both also offer some neat perks as well.
The biggest perk is free games, with PlayStation Plus and Xbox Live Gold subscribers being offered a selection of free games every month. In this area, PlayStation has the clear edge. PS Plus consistently offers excellent free games- in 2020 itself, we've had the likes of Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection, Uncharted 4, Shadow of the Colossus, Call of Duty: WWII, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Campaign Remastered, Rise of the Tomb Raider, Fall Guys, Star Wars Battlefront 2 and many more offered for free. Xbox Live Gold, on the other hand, rarely has anything on that level to offer. Across the first eight months of 2020, other than a few games like Batman: The Telltale Series in January, Batman: The Enemy Within in March, and Project CARS 2 in April, it's hard to think many eye-catching names.
That's not to say Xbox Live doesn't have any advantages over PSN. For instance, while cloud saves are locked behind PS Plus subscriptions on PlayStation, Xbox makes cloud saves free to everyone, while storage space for cloud saves is also higher on Xbox. Then again, the PSN has the edge over Xbox Live in terms of free-to-play multiplayer games, which require an Xbox Live Gold subscription on Xbox, but are, you know, actually free on PlayStation and can be played online without PS Plus.
Another important thing that has to be considered is pricing. Until not that long ago, pricing for both PS Plus and Xbox Live Gold was more or less comparable. If you're only considering monthly subscriptions, both are still at the same level at $10 per month. Recently, however, Microsoft discontinued the option to purchase Xbox Live Gold on an annual basis, which was a real money saver. Of course, Xbox Live Gold is bundled with Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, but that doesn't offer annual subscriptions either- and at $15 a month, that comes to $180, which is far, far beyond the $60 annual subscription fee of PS Plus.
Thanks to its better pricing and its consistently compelling selection of monthly free games, we have to give this one to PlayStation Plus.
BACKWARD COMPATIBILITY
Microsoft have taken an admirable stance on backward compatibility these last few years, working overtime to get scores of Xbox 360 games and even several original Xbox releases working on the Xbox One- quite of few of which are also enhanced to leverage the Xbox One X's more powerful hardware. Meanwhile, though the PS4 is not backward compatible, the PS5 promises compatibility with its predecessor's library, which means competition between the two consoles in this area is fiercer this time around.
What's interesting with the backward compatibility features of both next-gen consoles is that they both will be able to natively upscale older games on a system level. PS5's lead system architect Mark Cerny has said that the console will be able to run PS4 games on "a boosted frequency". Meanwhile, the Xbox Series X will natively run select backward compatible games in higher resolutions, while it will even add HDR to select titles that didn't originally support it.
But to what extent are the PS5 and Xbox Series X going to be backward compatible? As per Sony, at launch, the PS5 will be able to play the vast majority of the PS4's library while more games will continue to be added over time. Meanwhile, the Xbox Series X will similarly be able to play the vast majority of the Xbox One's library, while all Xbox 360 and original Xbox games that are currently playable on Xbox One will also be playable on the Series X. We can also Microsoft to keep adding games from its legacy consoles to its backward compatibility program.
Both consoles have impressive things to offer as far as backward compatibility is concerned, especially with system-level upscaling, but with support for three past generations, the Xbox Series X wins through sheer brute force. Frankly, it's not even a competition.
SERVICES
Without the shadow of a doubt, Xbox Game Pass is perhaps the greatest idea Microsoft have had in the last decade, maybe even ever, and it's no surprise – given how popular it is and how successful it has been – that their entire strategy and business model going forward relies not on any single console on device, but a platform-agnostic ecosystem that revolves around Xbox Game Pass.
With literally hundreds of games on offer, the Xbox Game Pass library leaves little to be desired in terms of quantity, but even in terms of quality, it makes a solid case for itself. Major AAA third party releases can be found in the Game Pass catalog, often very close to their releases, while several major AA and indie games even join Game Pass at launch. And, of course, every single Microsoft first party release sees a day and date release on Game Pass as well- the fact that the likes of Fable, Avowed, Halo Infinite, Forza Motorsport, and many more will be available on Game Pass the same day they launch is a huge deal.
Sony does have something comparable to offer in terms of services. PlayStation Now has been around for a while, and though it doesn't make waves the way Xbox Game Pass does, it's a solid service as well. Even so, it lags behind Game Pass in more ways than one. For starters, its library isn't as compelling as Game Pass, nor does it have day and date releases. It's also a little costlier than Game Pass subscriptions- though it's worth noting that games played via PlayStation Now don't require PS Plus to be played online, while Xbox Live Gold is still required for multiplayer games played via Game Pass. Of course, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate bundles Game Pass with Xbox Live, which solves that problem, but it is also slightly costlier than a PS Now subscription at $15 a month as opposed to PS Now's $10 monthly fee (as well as the cheaper 3-month and 12-month alternatives).
All in all though, this one definitely goes to Xbox. Game Pass offers ridiculous value in so many ways- it's surprisingly cheap, it has a great library, it holds the promise of excellent exclusive content, and it gets so many day and date releases.
CONCLUSION
As far as online services and backward compatibility features go, the Xbox Series X is far ahead of the PS5. Sure, the primary concern for many will be actual next-gen games when deciding which of the two consoles to buy – and that's something we will eventually get to with a separate feature – but the Xbox Series X offers just so many incentives in the form of Xbox Game Pass and its immense backward compatibility library, that it's really hard to make a case for it not winning this face-off. This one, at least, is a clear win in its favor.
Marvel's Iron Man VR Update Adds New Game+, Ultimate Difficulty
Camouflaj has released a new update for Marvel's Iron Man VR, adding a number of new features and quality of life features. Along with New Game+, which lets players carry over their Research Points and unlocks, update 1.06 also brings Ultimate difficulty for those keen on the toughest of challenges. Four new weapons have also been added to the mix.
These include the Continuous Beam Repulsor that fires a beam for longer; the EM Charge Cannon that can unleash charged shots through shielded enemies; and the Micro Swarm which is good for crowd-control. Players can also unlock eight new Custom Armor Decos by completing challenges. One of these includes the Iron Patriot.
If that weren't enough, the update also provides shorter loading times for missions set in Shanghai. You can also skip cinematics when replaying missions and also have the option to skip two specific missions. Completing them is still required for their Trophies though.
Fall Guys Season 2 to be Revealed at Gamescom Opening Night Live
Mediatonic's bizarre battle royale collection of insane mini games and hilarious ragdoll physics – also known as Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout – has moved from strength to strength since its recent launch, and has been enjoying immense success on both PS4 and PC. But though the game is still rather fresh, it looks like it's already ready to take a big step forward.
As announced by Geoff Keighley on Twitter, Fall Guys: Season 2 will be unveiled at Gamescom Opening Night Live later this month on August 27. Keighley says it's going to be a sneak peak, so perhaps it won't be too extensive a look, but we're curious to see what it will entail. A release date will probably be announced, but can we expect new features, cosmetics, and games? Here's hoping.
Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout is available on PS4 and PC, but the developers have said that they would love to bring it to other platforms as well. You can read our review of the game through here.
Fall Guys is great and all….but what if I told you there is @FallGuysGame: Season 2!
Don't miss the world premiere sneak peek from @Mediatonic during @gamescom Opening Night Live.
Thursday, August 27 at 8 pm CEST / 2 pm ET / 11 am PT at https://t.co/AFycLZXKPd pic.twitter.com/WQB08qadhb
— Geoff Keighley (@geoffkeighley) August 21, 2020
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2 Gets a Launch Trailer Two Weeks Before Launch
Tony Hawk was once one of the biggest franchises in the games industry, and an entire generation of audiences have a fond memory of it. Soon, it will be returning, hopefully with a bang, thanks to Vicarious Visions' duo of remakes in Tony Haw's Pro Skater 1 + 2. And though the game is still a couple of weeks away from release, we already have a launch trailer for it. Take a look below.
Tony Hawk, the man himself, has had great things to say about the upcoming release, saying "hardcore fans of our original series are going to be satisfied and probably overwhelmed by how good this is." The game's nostalgic soundtrack has been revealed, but in addition to some returning favourites, several new tracks will also be joining the list. Meanwhile, in addition to all the skaters from the original games, some new faces will be showing up as well.
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2 launches for the PS4, Xbox One, and PC on September 4. The game will require roughly 60 GB of free storage space on your platform of choice.
Thanks to datamining of the game's recent demo, there's been some evidence to suggest that a Switch version might also be in the works, though Activision have made no official announcements yet.
Another recent datamine of the demo uncovered files mentioning possible hidden returning characters. Read more on that through here.
Destiny 2 Xur Exotics – Lord of Wolves, Astrocyte Verse, Eternal Warrior
Everyone's favorite/most hated Exotic vendor is back in Bungie's Destiny 2. This week, Xur is in the Winding Cove in the European Dead Zone. He'll be there until the weekly reset next Tuesday so make sure to browse his wares before then.
The Exotic weapon for the week is Lord of Wolves, a burst-fire shotgun that can unleash a longer burst when holding down the reload button. It costs 29 Legendary Shards but has seen a number of nerfs since its days of terrorizing the Crucible. Pick it up for fun in PvP and avoid it for PvE.
The Exotic gear this week includes Eternal Warrior (Titan helm), Astrocyte Verse (Warlock helm) and Young Ahamkara's Spine (Hunter gloves), each for 23 Legendary Shards. Astrocyte Verse allows for blinking further and more often while also readying weapons more quickly when exiting Blink. Young Ahamkara's Spine is perhaps the best choice since it increases the duration of Tripmine Grenades along with their blast radius. Ability damage will also provide grenade energy.