I think everyone would have wanted this giant Switch TV setup as a kid
As a kid, I had a hand-me-down TV from an uncle that I gamed with for many years. I was grateful as hell for it because I was a kid with my own TV. But I think everyone can relate to wishes of a "dream setup" for gaming, and this one from Redditor and parent Pjmonday takes the cake.
Yep, it's an LED 4K Toshiba 75-inch TV mounted on a wall inside of a Nintendo Switch-like replica. They were able to get the Switch crafted due to a friend's print shop. The two decals on the wall (Mario and the Skylanders element logos) are due to the interests of his two kids.
The room is not finished, Pjmonday says, but the storage below the TV is for holding one of his kid's Skylanders figures. PjMonday also clarifies that the Mario bricks were modified from this IKEA Kallax unit, custom made with a printed vinyl decal.
The Switch TV is installed! [Reddit]
Resident Evil drives another hugely successful year for Capcom
Despite the tumultuous year that is 2020 causing multiple issues for companies and industries across the globe, it has also lead to a lot of at-home spending in the video game industry. We reported earlier today how PlayStation has seen a huge increase in year-on-year game sales in recent months, and it appears that the same can be said for long-time developer/publisher Capcom.
As reported by GamesIndustry.biz, the 2020 quarter ending June 30 has seen Capcom report net sales of around $223 million USD, an increase of 37% on the same quarter in 2019. This leads to a net profit of around $73.5 million which itself is a huge increase of 44% on 2019. These results are almost entirely centered around 2020 video game sales, with brands such as Resident Evil, Monster Hunter, and Street Fighter enjoying healthy sales numbers.
Indeed, April's Resident Evil 3 remake sold in the region of 2.7 million copies, raising lifetime Resident Evil franchise sales to over 103 million units. Capcom's best-selling game of all time, Monster Hunter: World, also continues to pull in new players, having shifted an incredible 16 million copies total on PS4, PC, and Xbox One.
Capcom expects 2020 to ultimately prove another record year, and already has big plans for 2021, spear-headed by the arrival of Resident Evil Village on PS5, PC, and Xbox Series X.
Capcom sees Q1 profits up, driven entirely by its game business [GamesIndustry.biz]
Another WipEout-looking futuristic racer is coming next month
It's been a while since we've heard about Pacer, but it seems like it's on track to release next month.
In case you missed the initial announcement, Pacer is one of a long line of futuristic racers that is carrying on the legacy of games like WipEout and F-Zero. Developed by R8 Games, Pacer will allow for solo play, as well as support online matches for up to 10 players.
It's set in 2075 where anti-gravity motorsports are king, and will feature tracks from CoLD SToRAGE as well as a number of other electronica artists. Five vehicles are in, with customization options for each, alongside of 14 tracks with classic variants like night, mirror and reverse tracks. It'll also boast eight modes, including a "battle royale inspired" gametype, as well as a campaign.
It all sounds good on paper! Hopefully the physics are on point and it's fun to play. Pacer is out on September 17 on PC, PS4 and Xbox One.
Gayming Magazine to host LGBTQ-focused Gayming Awards in 2021
British online media outlet Gayming Magazine has announced that it will be holding its first "Gayming Awards" ceremony in early 2021, offering recognition and plaudits to companies, communities, streamers and games that offer positive and inclusive support in their representation of the LGBTQ community.
An "esteemed global panel of over 20 LGBTQ judges" will shortlist nominees in multiple categories, focused on in-game narrative and characters, as well as general representation within the industry. The nominees will be announced later in 2020, with the winners to be revealed at a live London event in February 2021. The ceremony will be hosted by British comedian Suzi Ruffell.
The categories for the Gayming Awards 2021 are listed below. For more information on the awards and nominations, visit the official Gayming Magazine awards page.
Devolver has killed Carrion's suggestive Switch icon
Devolver is known for its (sometimes cloying) irreverence, but this time they took it too far according to a bunch of Switch users.
For those of you who aren't in the know, Switch icons are a big deal. At least, according to a subset of the Switch community. Fans have campaigned to get ugly icons "fixed" to newer, better ones for the past several years, but this case is by far the most entertaining in recent memory.
Carrion, the gross Mature-rated game about eating people and growing into an unstoppable organic killing machine, had an appropriately gross icon. But people weren't having it! So after roughly two weeks, Devolver acquiesced and changed it from amazing fake genitalia to the game's standard logo (which you can view below).
I'm kind of amazed Devolver was able to get away with it in the first place, but then again the eShop is getting eroge now, so times are changing!
Devolver Digital [Twitter]
Legendary Sega arcade in Akihabara to close later this month
One of the few remaining landmark arcade centres has announced that it will be closing its doors at the end of the month. Sega Building 2, located in Akihabara, Japan, will hit the lights for the last time on August 30, ending a 17-year run of public entertainment.
Based in the heart of the technology-loving Akihabara neighbourhood, Sega Building 2 opened in 2003 under the name "Akihabara Kigo" and immediately welcomed a slew of players with its wide variety of arcade games, pachinko machine and UFO grabbers. As captivating on the outside as it is on the inside, Sega Building 2 has for years caught the attention of passers-by with huge, colourful murals of popular anime and video game characters, as you can see in these photos from @kaztsu.
PS4 console sales continue to slow in anticipation of PS5 launch
The latest financial report from Sony shows that sales of its flagship console, PlayStation 4, continue to slow down as 2020 progresses, as the world awaits the launch of PlayStation 5, scheduled for release in the holiday season.
Sony has shipped 1.9 million PS4 units since June 30, 2020, which is less than the 3.2 million shipped during the same period in 2019. While COVID-19 could be considered a factor in the drop in sales - having resulted in high street closure - this pattern actually began back in the holiday season of 2019, which saw a year-on-year drop of around two million units.
The slowing down of sales in the PS4's twilight years was an obvious inevitability, and it's highly doubtful that Sony sees this as a concern. After all, the PS4 has sold an incredible 112.3 million consoles to date, a total that surpasses the lifetime hardware sales of the original PlayStation and the Nintendo Wii. It does seem, however, that the PS4 is unlikely to catch up with the greatest selling console of all time, PlayStation 2, which still holds fort with an amazing 155 million units. It was a solid effort, though.
In terms of growth, PlayStation software is up by an amazing 41 million units compared to the same time period in 2019. Again, the global pandemic and lockdown legislation will have a hand to play in this. Also on the rise are PlayStation Plus subscribers, with 44.9 million players signed up to the digital service. All-in, PlayStation continues to be a solid, reliable, and powerful brand - a strong position to be in as the curtain rises on a brand new generation.
PS4 worldwide shipments top 112.3 million [Gematsu]
Unlike Sony, Microsoft confirms that 'all' Xbox One controllers will work on Series X
Yesterday, we learned what we all assumed: that DualShock 4 remotes were not compatible with PlayStation 5 games, which were "designed to take advantage of the [new] DualSense" remote.
This week, Microsoft came crashing in with the news that "yeah, everything will work across generations." Microsoft is pretty emphatic with this message, stating that "Xbox Series X is compatible with ALL Xbox One controllers across ALL games." That includes official Xbox One remotes, the Xbox Adaptive Controller, the Xbox Elite and the "designed for Xbox third-party Xbox One controllers and headsets."
Even better, Microsoft also states that the Xbox Series X controller will work on "all Xbox One consoles, windows PCs, Android and iOS and Project xCloud." This morning the publisher confirmed that Razer, PowerA and 8BitDo were all working on officially licensed controllers for mobile devices.
That's....all kind of insanely awesome? Along with the Game Pass initiative and SmartDelivery, Microsoft is doing a great job of uniting generations to the point where it is partly ubiquitous. While this could change down the line as the company focuses on the Series X, the entry point into the new generation is as painless as it has ever been.
Also, given the creeping cost of controllers, this is amazing news in general. You can pop open your Xbox Series X box and jump into four-player Halo Infinite split-screen co-op without spending hundreds on remotes.
Xbox [Twitter]
Xbox Game Pass and Project xCloud merge on September 15
The two best Xbox services combine into one in mid-September. Xbox Game Pass is the best value in gaming. Project xCloud is an ambitious cloud streaming service that's absolutely eating Google Stadia's lunch right now. Soon enough, they'll be walking hand-in-hand.
Microsoft has added some specificity to what it had already announced: The Xbox Game Pass library is being introduced to Project xCloud on September 15. Or, if you prefer to look at it from the other angle, Game Pass titles will be available for streaming on Android devices on September 15. It's a big merger regardless of which way it's framed.
However, it's not all tiers of Game Pass that get xCloud functionality. It requires an Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription (which also includes access to Game Pass for PC) in order to unlock game streaming. Ultimate runs $15 per month after an initial $1-for-one-month promotion.
It's also worth noting that this doesn't seem to be a complete blending of Game Pass into xCloud. Microsoft mentions that more than 100 games will be included, but stops short of stating it's the whole library. There are likely licensing issues in place that prevent some Game Pass titles from being used on platforms other than Xbox One.
For what it's worth, Microsoft also has plans to bring Project xCloud to PC later this year, meaning you'll be able to stream Game Pass titles to your desktop or laptop. The complete full-circle Xbox ecosystem has nearly come to fruition.
We all know that a "'90s FPS 30 years later" isn't exactly a novel concept. And that's fine!
We have Ion Fury, Dusk, Immortal Redneck, Strafe, Prodeus, and countless others to keep us busy if we want to toil away our days reliving the glory days. Hellbound is another one to add to that pile, that does what it sets out to do and gets out, without leaving too fond of a lasting memory.
Contest: Win Crysis Remastered for Switch
In today's contest you can win Crysis Remastered for Switch!
I've never had a high-end PC, so Crysis was always something of a myth to me. Funny how far we've come, eh? Our handheld consoles can now play something that was highly known for its technical side!
Crysis Remastered seems to be a good fit for Switch, so if you're keen on checking it out, we've got copies to give away!
Pee War is pretty much what it sounds like
I don't know why I keep doing this to myself. I don't know why I keep doing this to you. I wish I could see something as massively stupid as Pee War and ignore it like everyone else on the internet.
...but I just can't. I can't sit here and not present Pee War to you. It is my sworn duty to find dumb games and make you pay attention to them. I'm so sorry, everyone.
Good luck! Fall Guys has a win-five-times-in-a-row trophy
Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout has devious trophies, but one, in particular, will always be elusive.
It's one thing to win – there are trophies for your first, seventh, and twentieth victories in Fall Guys – but winning "five episodes in a row" for the Infallible trophy? 0.1% completion rate, here we come!
The developers previously talked about a trophy that's "so insanely hard I don't think anyone will ever unlock it" during a Reddit AMA. Today, in a follow-up tweet, Mediatonic joked that "Every time someone says 'five wins in a row are too much for the platinum trophy' we increase the number of wins by one."
After spending around four hours with the Fall Guys beta last week, I only came close to the crown once, and even then I was the third-best player during the final round. There's relief knowing that I'll never earn the platinum trophy and shouldn't get my hopes up. That said, a few of 'em sound pretty fun:
- Flawless Victory: Qualify from a round without falling over even once
- Face First: Qualify from a racing round despite falling over more than 10 times
- Big Tease: Perform an emote just before coming first in a race round
- Fall Bae: Share a hug with a Fall Guy
- Big Air: Clock up one hour total time falling
- Style Points: Fall for at least three seconds before landing on your head
- Troublemaker: Bump into three people while rolling on the ground before getting up
- Fall Throttle: Reach terminal velocity
The race is on tomorrow, August 4, when Fall Guys launches on Steam and PlayStation 4.
Fall Guys Trophies [Exophase]
Nioh 2 has a funny reward for clearing Dream of the Demon
You might finish all of the Tengu's Disciple DLC missions in one go, but Nioh 2's newly-added Dream of the Demon mode is going to be a weeks-long time-sink for many of us. After hearing about the reward for full-clearing the base game on New Game++ difficulty, I'm committed: I've gotta see this through.
As posted by Reddit user Zippygup, the reward for clearing every main mission in Nioh 2 on Dream of the Demon difficulty (minus Online Missions) is the Smithing Text needed to craft the Scampuss Hat.
It's exactly what it sounds like: a cat hat!
Ladies and Gentlemen... the best piece of armor in the game: from r/Nioh
Another player, rileykard, says they got a Scampuss Hat from a Demon Parade Picture Scroll mission "where you get three Scampuss right at the start. After I completed the mission I could refashion into it."
I love the idea of showing up to a boss fight with a cat on my head and a few more rolling behind me.
As for Dream of the Demon, it's no walk in the park – at least not with my currently under-leveled build. The recommended player level for the first story mission, the Village of Cursed Blossoms, is 250. Funnily enough, I beat Gozuki and Mezuki no problem, but a random Gaki took me down. Savage.
Whether or not I ever hit 100% completion, I'm already stoked about my drops in DotD so far.
Take-Two CEO says Rockstar and 2K's games are good enough to justify a $70 price
NBA 2K21 will be priced at $70 on PS5 and Xbox Series X instead of the current $60 price tag that games have carried for 15 years. When that was revealed last month, it wasn't necessarily welcomed with open arms. Many saw it as the first domino to fall before the industry eventually embraces the $10 price hike. In other words, the hobby just got more expensive.
Whether or not that's true -- Ubisoft has already said it's not raising the price of its games (for now) -- Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick believes the quality of Rockstar and 2K's titles justify the extra $10. In an interview with GamesIndustry.biz, Zelnick says "The pricing has to reflect the quality of the experience, and we aim to provide the best experiences in the business. And from our point of view, it's an extremely modest price change given that prices haven't changed for a very long time."
Zelnick goes on to cite costlier development and the caliber of experience on next-generation consoles as two factors that informed Take-Two's decision to charge an extra $10. Judging by the language Zelnick uses during the interview, you get the impression that the $70 price tag isn't a one-off for NBA 2K21. Sales will have to really slump to keep this from becoming permanent for Take-Two.
Really, this isn't so much about the quality of the experience as it is the popularity of the experience. Franchises like Grand Theft Auto, Red Dead Redemption, NBA 2K, and (to a lesser extent) Borderlands absolutely print money. There are a handful of properties in all of video games that can charge a premium and get away with it, leaving consumers to grumble but stop short off missing out on the next big game. It just so happens that Take-Two is a holding company that owns a lot of those, putting it in prime position to lead the charge.
Take-Two: Next-gen software price hikes "reflect the quality of the experience" [GamesIndustry.biz]
Grounded needs an asymmetrical mode where you can play as a spider
There's no getting around it: Grounded is a hit. More than a million people have downloaded the game that is definitely-not-but-totally-is Honey, I Shrunk the Kids and according to Podtoid's Dan Roemer, it's one damn-fine survival game.
That's just one of the topics covered on this episode of Podtoid. Charlotte, Occams, CJ, Dan, and Chris break down why we need more playable spiders in games, dangerous toys for kids, Atelier Ryza, The Thing, Thing, and the Rambo film saga. All that, plus we answer listener questions, on Podtoid Episode 453.
As someone who played the hell out of Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles back in the day, it came as a shock that the upcoming remaster would not support local play. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized that this remaster could work perfectly well for a new generation; not to mention the fact that it deserves to be preserved.
I sat down with the game's director, Ryoma Araki, to find out how he got involved with the project and why local multiplayer was cut.
The new Xbox Store is twice as fast as the current one
One of the persistent items on Microsoft's to-do list over the entire lifespan of the Xbox One is to change the perception that the interface is slow and laggy. For the past seven years, the Xbox One dashboard and store have been constantly tweaked to incrementally improve performance.
That's why it's no surprise that Microsoft's unveiling of yet another Xbox Store leads with the revelation that it's twice as fast as the current store. The next iteration will launch in under two seconds and Microsoft says it's "faster than ever to load pages and find what you need."
It's not all about speed, though. There are a ton of other touches that make the store better. Among them: Inline trailers a la Netflix, better filters, a revamped wish list, a new shopping cart, functionality for buying Xbox 360 and original Xbox games without leaving the store, and new content filters that align with family safety settings.
This Xbox Store glow-up isn't quite yet ready for everybody. It's rolling out as part of the Xbox Insider program to some participants as early as Wednesday. It'll be publicly released this fall, and it's presumably the storefront that the Xbox Series X will launch with.
A New Microsoft Store Experience is Coming to Xbox Insiders [Xbox Wire]
Colourful Koopa Troopa variants coming to Mario Tennis Aces
It's been a minute since we heard any news regarding Mario Tennis Aces, but given the scorching weather we're experiencing right now, it seems fitting that Nintendo is hoping players will be getting back out on the digital courts this month.
Players participating in August's online tournament will automatically unlock a colourful selection of Koopa Troopas and Koopa Paratroopers. The unfortunately titled Yoshi's Ring-Shot challenge also returns for the summer, and will be offering up completion rewards in the form of blue, red, and yellow Yoshis. All of these characters have been rewards previously, but if you missed out first time around, here's a fresh opportunity.
Originally released in June 2018, Mario Tennis Aces sees a wide variety of characters from the Super Mario Bros. universe take to the court for entertaining - and somewhat silly - tennis matches. Hardly a professional simulation, Mario Tennis Aces is a fun and friendly arcade game that features a selection of physics-defying trick shots and racquet-destroying Specials.
Mario Tennis Aces is available now on Nintendo Switch.
Mario Tennis Aces adds Koopa Troopas [Japanese Nintendo]
It looks like you mocked the Xbox Series X badge so hard that Microsoft scrapped it altogether
Don't let anyone ever tell you that all your snark and cynicism is misdirected energy. Most of the time it only serves to bring down everyone's spirits, but sometimes it gets shit done.
Industry analyst Daniel Ahmad reveals that Microsoft has nixed the "Optimized for Xbox Series X" badge that was prominently placed on most every next-gen box cover. Here's what the change looks like:
Ghost of Tsushima celebrates third week on top of the UK Charts
Sucker Punch's PS4 smash hit Ghost of Tsushima has retained its place atop of the UK Charts, making it a third week at number one for the open-world samurai epic.
Ghost of Tsushima managed to hold off continued sales from Nintendo's Animal Crossing: New Horizons, as well as the launch of THQ Nordic's Destroy All Humans! with the sci-fi remaster debuting at number three. Also appearing in the Top Ten this week is Easy Day Studios' sandbox skating title Skater XL, which finally saw release on PC and consoles after spending an extended period of time in Early Access.
Elsewhere in the Top Ten, Koei Tecmo's anime RPG Fairy Tail debuted at number 15, while DotEmu's Streets of Rage 4 made its long-awaited physical release, landing one step ahead at number 14. The brawler sequel has been available to purchase digitally since its launch back in April, thus its physical numbers are understandably lower than expected.
Wonderful 101 Remastered just got a new patch that 'allows higher score totals'
The Wonderful 101 got a new lease on life this past May in remastered form, but it seems as if Platinum is still tweaking the game ever so slightly.
It's a blink and you'll miss it moment, but Platinum recently put up the patch notes for the remastered edition's 1.0.2 update, which brings a few welcome upgrades to the table. First up: the UI. Minigames have gotten a facelift, with better menus: likely now that Platinum has more time to sit back and tweak little quality of life things after doing the heavy lifting of moving the base game off of the Wii U.
But the best part of the update is easily the improvement to the scoring system, which now allows higher score totals for "certain stages." You mean my near-perfect rating wasn't already near-perfect?! You can find the full rundown of the brief patch notes below.
Thankfully Platinum shared this info openly: a lot of games obscure their patch notes so it's tough to figure out what was actually changed.
The Wonderful 101: Remastered Ver.1.0.2 Update [Platinum]
This past weekend's Japan Fighting Game Publisher Roundtable live stream saw almost every major player in the fighting game market gather together to discuss the genre, its most difficult year in recent memory, and several upcoming surprises for some of the biggest fighters in today's scene.
Over the course of the event we saw Bandai Namco announce new content for Tekken 7 and Soulcalibur VI, Arc System Works drop new character trailers for Guilty Gear Strive, SNK confirm a third season for Samurai Shodown, while Capcom continues to hold its cards to its chest, holding on for this week's Street Fighter V live stream.
But amidst all of this new content, arguably the most actually proactive, positive, and important announcement was made by Arika, concerning its ultra-niche fighter Fighting EX Layer. In an update that is live in-game right now, Arika has implemented the highly-vaunted rollback netcode to its one-on-one slugfest, hoping to improve online stability far beyond that of its AAA contemporaries.
There is a strange and sad irony behind Fighting EX Layer and its inability to "play among the big boys." Many people, myself included, complain about publisher behavior in regards to modern fighting games. More often than not, these gripes relate to expensive DLC, player-punishing mechanics, and sub-standard online gameplay.
Yet Fighting EX Layer, the quietest fighter, with the smallest budget, not only gave away a chunk of its DLC for free but - with this latest update - is now attempting to be the slickest example regarding stable gameplay. Arika has directly addressed common fighting game complaints and taken steps to rectify them. During the stream, as noted by EventHubs, Arika said it was also testing cross-play integration between PS4 and PC platforms, which would certainly help expand FEXL's admittedly modest player pool.
In a live stream which ultimately boiled down to "Here is the next run of DLC we're getting set to sell you," it's an almost melancholic irony that the smallest developer, with the smallest title, is the only party that directly addressed one of the genre's most dogged issues. Will rollback netcode and crossplay help grow the FEXL audience to a Tekken or a Street Fighter level? Probably not. But there's certainly lessons to be learned from the underdog here, one of prioritising your title's core issues before queuing up run after run of paid content. Whether this lesson was learned - or even acknowledged - remains to be seen.
Fighting EX Layer is available now on PS4 and PC.
Spider-Man is a PlayStation exclusive in Marvel's Avengers
In a ridiculous console exclusivity moment, Sony confirmed this morning that Spider-Man will be a PlayStation-exclusive character in Marvel's Avengers when he joins the playable cast in "early 2021."
We don't know what he'll look like – expect a "Crystal Dynamics take on Spider-Man" with classic inspirations – but he'll "debut with an in-game event that will introduce him to the wider world of Marvel's Avengers." As with other post-launch characters, Spider-Man will be a free download.
Wild news for a game that many of us are, at best, on the fence about. I'm glad there's a beta.
As for the wall-crawler himself, Insomniac's rendition of Spider-Man will be a tough act to follow, and I feel like Crystal Dynamics will be hesitant to show him in Avengers until it's feeling super confident.
"When he's arcing through the air on his web line, we want you to feel graceful and light, and be able to utilize a variety of web configurations and gadgets to enhance your traversal," according to lead combat designer Vince Napoli. They're aiming for a seamless transition "from navigation to combat."
I can't help but wonder what else Sony might be eyeing for PlayStation 5's first few months.
A friendly neighborhood Spider-Man lends a helping hand to Earth's Mightiest Heroes in 2021 [PlayStation Blog]
Review: Frog Fractions: Game of the Decade Edition: Hop's Iconic Hat
Frog Fractions has finally made its way to Steam after all these years, by way of its Game of the Decade Edition, and it's wonderful that it'll now live on past the imminent retirement of Flash support across web browsers. One thing that might have slipped by some of you, however, is that there's a new DLC for the game called Hop's Iconic Hat.
If you're already a fan of the original, I'd recommend going in completely blind for this new bit of DLC. I'll even go so far as to say I had a good time with it, in case you aren't sure about taking the plunge and just want a brief opinion. Everything I write after this paragraph will contain some mild spoilers. It's pretty much unavoidable when attempting to write about it, so consider yourself warned.
Street Fighter V opens up its entire roster for a two-week free trial
Street Fighter V has seriously grown in scope and scale since its somewhat bland launch back in February 2016, and with another season of content on the horizon, Capcom's flagship fighter isn't ready to go down for the count just yet. If you fancied seeing the state of play with Ryu and co. then the next fortnight will provide you with just such an opportunity.
Street Fighter V: Champion Edition will be receiving a two-week free trial from August 5, allowing all players access to the entire roster of all 40 fighters. No details have been revealed as to what modes will be available in the trial, but it stands to reason that practice and online play will be available. Full details will be revealed by Capcom during a special Street Fighter V live stream on August 5, wherein the developer/publisher will be announcing some of the new content headed to SFV's fifth - and seemingly final - season.
I make no bones about my up-and-down relationship with SFV. Specifically in regards to its controversies, penny-pinching, awful gacha-style mechanics, and bullshit advertising ideas, it's the most disappointing entry in the series. But when it comes to actually throwing hands and its expansive superstar roster, it's still a riot, and well worth checking out.
Street Fighter V: Champion Edition is available now on PS4 and PC.
Review: Crysis Remastered (Switch)
What can be said about Crysis that hasn't been repeated ad nauseam since 2007?
A decent amount, actually, if the game is running on a portable.
Magic: Arena just banned some very popular standard cards
As I was getting ready for my morning Magic: Arena "few game wind-down" break, I was immediately greeted with a pop-up: bam, four cards have been banned. Popular standard cards, mind!
Announced this morning and effective immediately, Cauldron Familiar, Growth Spiral, Teferi Time Raveler and Wilderness Reclamation are now out of Arena and paper Magic. Magic peddler Wizards of the Coast says they are "choosing to forgo..advanced notice and roll[ing] out these changes as soon as possible." While the latter three were set to cycle out in the fourth quarter of the year anyway, Cauldron Familiar wasn't scheduled to leave standard until the tail-end of 2021, so that's a big change.
I have played against and used every single one of these cards: and they all have their counters. A lot of the problem with everything but Growth Spiral, however, is how they work in Arena. Because Cauldron Familiar allows for triggers at nearly every step, it can be a pain to play against when you're facing down someone who isn't adept at piloting it: stopping every...few...moments, waiting for them to allow the game to continue.
Teferi, Time Raveler is the same way, as his passive power prevents players from casting instant-speed spells the moment he touches the table, preventing counterplay at a very early turn: as early as turn two if you can get some quick one-cost mana ramp out turn one. Wilderness Reclamation is one of my favorite cards, but is (you guessed it) a pain to play against in Arena because of how long it can take people to slowly plan out their end step. Wizards goes over their own reasons for the bans in detail here.
I'm torn on these changes as I actively used everything but Cauldron Familiar; but in the end, it's only a few cards. I have over 20 standard decks ready to go, and this ban list only eliminates around three of them. Embercleave will reign supreme again!
Inverter of Truth, Kethis, Walking Ballista and Underworld Breach are banned in Pioneer, Wilderness and Teferi Time Raveler are out of Historic and Teferi Time Raveler is gone from Brawl as of today as well. If you owned these cards in Arena, you will be granted wild cards to spend on other options upon logging in.
August 3 Banned and Restricted Announcement [Wizards of the Coast]
Nintendo tested out Zelda: Breath of the Wild with Japanese landmarks, here's what it looks like
The story of how The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild came to be continues to delight, as it seemed to be one of Nintendo's highest priority and meticulously designed projects in years.
For those of you who were unaware, Nintendo showcased early footage of Breath of the Wild back in 2017 during the CEDEC conference, which placed Link in various locales in Japan. While that presentation was not done publicly (and thus no record of it exists in video form), new details have surfaced recently by way of a tweet that show just how ambitious that demo footage really was.
While Nintendo originally stated that the tests were done using locales in Kyoto, Japan, a new image scrubbed from a new defunct source shows off Himeji Castle in Himeji, Japan. Another tweet shows off the early build's skydiving mechanic: taken wholesale from Skyward Sword and never implemented in Breath of the Wild proper.
Nintendo seems to have extensively tested the game's locomotion and exploration mechanics with a full map of Japan, which is something I'd definitely pay to see in full. Given how secretive Nintendo is, however, this may never see the light of day.
Pixelpar [Twitter]
Dynasty Warriors is 20 years old today, what are your memories of the franchise?
Amazingly, it's been 20 years since the debut of RPG-brawler series Dynasty Warriors. To celebrate two full decades of field-clearing brawls and 1 vs. 10,000 action, publisher Koei Tecmo has released a birthday video looking back at the franchise's storied history.
Frog Fractions is out now on Steam, and it's free
Frog Fractions: Game of the Decade Edition is available on Steam right now for the low price of zero dollars. If you've somehow managed to never get around to checking it out, especially if you still don't know what it actually is, I highly urge you to stop reading, put everything else in your life on hold, and play it immediately. Even if you end up regretting it, I can guarantee you've never played anything else quite like Frog Fractions. There's a reason people still talk about it to this day.
Just remember: if you're ever feeling frustrated and down while playing, especially near the beginning, there are always further depths in which you can sink. There's something really beautiful about the way Frog Fractions fully tackles and inhabits that mantra. It knows what it is and embraces it completely.
PlayStation's next State of Play stream to take place Thursday
Are you still hungry for live streams? Have you not eaten enough live streams this season? If not, then be sure to tune in Thursday, August 6, as PlayStation will be hosting its newest State of Play event, looking at some upcoming releases on the PS4 and PSVR platforms.
In a message recently posted on its official Twitter account, PlayStation announced that the stream will "focus on upcoming PS4 and PSVR games," as well as "quick check-ins on third-party and indie games from June's PS5 showcase." The tweet does specifically note, however, that there will be "No big PS5 announcements."
The State of Play stream goes live Thursday, August 6 at 13:00 PT / 16:00 ET / 21:00 BST. You can check out the stream over on the official PlayStation Twitch and YouTube channels. You can find the full announcement over on the PlayStation blog.
Sony clarifies which PS4 accessories will and will not work on PS5
Here we go ladies and gentlemen: the next generation! Ready? Wait, we don't have pricing and even date info yet? Not even a month-based window? Okay fine, here's some info on how accessories will work.
As detailed today on the PlayStation Blog, Sony is ready to talk about what hardware will transfer to the PlayStation 5. Let's start with what will work from PS4-to-PS5: Specialty peripherals, such as officially licensed racing wheels, arcade sticks, and flight stick, the Platinum and Gold wireless headsets, the PlayStation camera, PS Move and PS Aim Controllers (wow I'm surprised they acknowledged it exists!) and the DualShock 4 for supported PS4 games.
That last bit is very important. Although it seems like "speciality peripherals" are going to work with the new generation, the PS4 DualShock is a very special case. Sony clarifies that while the PS4 controller will technically work on the PS5 for "supported PS4 games," as a whole, it cannot be used on PS5 games, which are being built with the DualSense in mind.
As a bit of extra clarification, Sony says that "not all" peripherals will work (that much is obvious but may as well get it out of the way), and that the PlayStation Camera will be supported by way of a PlayStation Camera adapter, which "will be provided at no additional cost to PS VR users." That info is coming "at a later date."
Is that the same "later date" we're getting pricing and PS5 release info?
PlayStation 5: Answering your questions on compatible PS4 peripherals & accessories [PlayStation Blog]
343 acknowledges Halo Infinite's visual concerns, while Phil Spencer has fun with it
In case you missed it, the recent Xbox Games Showcase set the internet ablaze with questions about Halo Infinite. Microsoft finally showed it off, but all anyone could talk about was the visual style and Craig the Brute: the newly minted meme of the week.
Taking to Halo Waypoint, 343 Industries created a blog on the subject, gathering up all of the big-picture concerns about Infinite and putting them into one place. The most notable subsection is easily the visuals portion though, which 343 addresses plainly. The move, they say, is deliberate, as the company "decided to shift back towards the legacy aesthetics that defined the original trilogy."
Calling it a "classic" art style, they propose that the final game will have a more "vibrant palette," that will still be detailed. In regards to the actual quality of that style, 343 says "we do have work to do to address some of these areas and raise the level of fidelity and overall presentation for the final game." 343 also states that the build we saw was already outdated.
Individual snafus and memes aside, it's something I actually dug about the reveal: that Halo was going back to a more stylized look and not the ultra-realistic visuals of recent games. The environments seem expansive, and will probably be a lot of fun to explore.
In other news, Phil Spencer, Xbox boss, openly acknowledged the Craig meme with a playful tweet, noting: "Our new official Xbox mascot :-) love the community and their ability to just take something fun and run with it." It's an obvious attempt to be diplomatic, but Spencer (who is more open than any other executive in recent memory) is a nice change of pace from the usual stuffiness from major publishers.
Infinite Inquiries [Halo Waypoint]
Here's a new look at the Pokemon Unite MOBA, which might launch next spring
Just a few months ago, The Pokemon Company made a big deal about a special stream that would showcase an upcoming project, that a lot of people thought would involve the next generation of Pokemon or a remake of a beloved entry. Instead, it was the announcement of a Pokemon MOBA in collaboration with Tencent.
Yes, Pokemon Unite was one of the first big disappointments of the summer, a streak Nintendo would continue by hyping up a Bakugan Switch game from WayForward. But it is coming, and thanks to new images and info from Chinese social media (gathered by ResetEra), we may have our first real info dump since the May reveal.
In addition to several new screenshots (that showcase additional characters like Drednaw), evidently reports point to an internal test in August, with a lengthy development cycle that will continue throughout spring 2021: when the game will eventually be released. Details like a (no doubt heavily monetized) cosmetic system for your trainer have also leaked.
As a reminder, Pokemon Unite will arrive on Android, iOS and Switch at some point in the future.
Pokemon Unite [ResetEra]
No More Heroes for Switch pops up on Taiwanese ratings board
Everyone's favourite hot scoop news outlet, the Taiwan Digital Game Rating Committee, is at it again. The latest release to mysteriously appear on the governing body's website is none other than a Switch port of Suda 51's groundbreaking action-RPG No More Heroes.
Originally released for the Wii in 2007, No More Heroes shook up the action genre with its wild, highly stylised aesthetic, over-the-top action, and painfully cool/uncool characters. Eventually ported to PS3 and Xbox 360 as Heroes' Paradise, the series would receive a sequel - Desperate Struggle - in 2010 and a spin-off title - Travis Strikes Again - in 2019. A third mainline entry is currently in development.
This new rating seems to suggest that Travis Touchdown's original adventure will be headed to Switch at some point in the near future. Given that No More Heroes III has a tentative release date of 2020, it would be snug to assume that the original game will be arriving alongside this new sequel. We will update you should any new info be forthcoming.
No More Heroes rated for Switch in Taiwan [Gematsu]
Konami hilariously tweets about Silent Hill, then apologizes for riling people up
This is the sort of thing you can only imagine happening on the official Konami Twitter account. Amazingly, a saga unfolded this past weekend involving Silent Hill, and it happened in three acts.
Act one: Konami tweets an audio clip of Silent Hill 2's siren, telling people "close your eyes...always scary." In this era of constant summer announcements, folks understandably assumed that this was a tease for something Silent Hill related. But after a bevy of tweets from fans, the account quickly walked back any hope of a tease.
Act two: Konami tweets "easy there, internet." Evidently the social team was "watching streams of Dead by Daylight" and "thought [they] would share the noise and feel of being hunted." Doubling down, they tweeted out that they "won't take the tweet down and backpedal." Well, that solves that!
Act three: the account changes its tone and apologizes, saying they are "sorry [they] got people fired up." The tweet follows up by saying that "anything official would come from the Silent Hill Twitter or an event," rather than the official Konami Twitter account (what).
While stuff like this happens, whoever was in charge of the account at the time probably wasn't aware of the baggage that Konami is still carrying with P.T. and the unceremonious firing of Kojima. While expectations should always be kept in check, social media can be a testy place, especially right now!
Konami [Twitter]
Wargroove will get cross-play on PS4 after a year long public battle with Sony
For over a year now Wargroove has been lacking cross-play on PS4, but that's going to change this week. Chuckle Fish has confirmed to Destructoid that Wargroove's Double Trouble DLC will be coming to PS4 tomorrow, with cross-play.
Why is that last part such a big deal? Well, if you recall, Sony was the last major holdout for cross-platform play, as a Sony exec called "PlayStation the best place to play," implying that you didn't need cross-play. Ironically PS4 was the worst place to play Wargroove, as PC, Xbox One and even Switch owners could all enjoy the benefits of playing together and sharing maps as one giant community, while the PS4 edition was left out of the party for over a year now.
Strangely, by the time Wargroove launched on PS4 last July, Sony's PS4 cross-play program was in "beta," and the CEO of Chucklefish (Finn Brice) decided to call them out on it, saying that Sony was playing favorites with the program: prominently featuring games like Rocket League and Fortnite without focusing on indies.
Brice called them out publicly hard, saying that he made "many requests for cross-play," but Sony did not budge. Obviously it behooves Chucklefish to make that happen, and oddly, Sony was maintaining the stance that the program was available to anyone who wanted it. Where the truth lies is probably buried within heaps of NDAs somewhere, but the good news is that after being the last holdout, Sony is finally playing ball.
Let's hope cross-play and cross-buy are as prolific in the next generation as they are now. Microsoft seems committed to making that happen, at least.
It's always exciting to guess what Platinum is working on at any given moment, but for now, it seems like a sequel to Wonderful 101 is not in the cards. GameXplain had the chance to speak to Platinum head Atsushi Inaba and the infamous director/producer Hideki Kamiya on a few recent developments, as well as where the future is headed.
After clarifying that Platinum was "nervous that no one would show up" for the Wonderful 101 remaster Kickstarter, Inaba says that a sequel is constantly on his mind. The problem is that it would need to be "bigger and better," and that it would be a huge challenge if Platinum decided to go forward with it.
Clarifying further, Kamiya uses a "volume" analogy, saying that once he starts to create a game it begins at a "10," and then slowly goes up from there. With a Wonderful 101 sequel, he's afraid of how much he'd have to top himself and "pass that original hurdle" for the franchise.
To me, Bayonetta is a much harder hurdle to pass, but Platinum is going for it with Bayonetta 3. While we haven't heard much about it these past few years, Kamiya gave his standard answer of "fine," when asked about it again. You can tell he's kind of over being asked about it (and he clarified as much this past May), but one day we will get some sort of actual update on it: whether that's through a Nintendo Direct or Platinum directly.
GameXplain [YouTube]
Cblogs of 7/25 to 7/31/2020: Dark Souls, Virtua Fighter 5, and visual novels
Cblogs Recap: Week 31
-Toothpick2600 reports on Nintendo restocking their supply of NES Mini and SNES Mini consoles.
-Black Red Gaming reviews Destroy All Humans! on the PC.
-Dinoracha shares his thoughts on playing DOOM: Eternal.
-Rabid Walrus thinks we can learn much from even the worst Dark Souls boss.
-PocketCiabatta wonders what is the Tetris-like game in each genre.
-LaTerry responds to this month's Band of Bloggers prompt by looking at the water levels in Spyro.
-Virtua Kazuma discusses the legacy of Virtua Fighter 5: Final Showdown.
-Julc3 is thinking of getting the Xbox Series X in the coming round of console wars.
-Black Red Gaming shares his thoughts on his most anticipated games to be released in August 2020.
-Exber discusses how a game, Galerians, really got him into writing about games.
-EricWeichhart reveals some more community shirts that you can order.
A girl with fungus growing out of her face?
Let's hope she doesn't come across Ellie or Joel.
Review: Nioh 2: The Tengu's Disciple
After spending an absurd amount of time with Nioh 2 this year in pursuit of the platinum trophy, New Game+, and incrementally better character builds, I wasn't sure if I was ready to return so soon. It's a testament to this game – and Team Ninja's general update and DLC strategy – that I'm not burned out.
The Tengu's Disciple is the first of three story expansions, but it feels pretty self-contained. If you aren't holding out for the (hopefully inevitable) PC version of Nioh 2, it's time to travel back in time to 1185.
BurgerTime is this week's Arcade Archives release
After a string of intriguing and obscure shmups, Hamster has pulled out one of the all-time classics for this week's Arcade Archives release: Data East's BurgerTime, now available to download on Nintendo Switch.
Chances are if you're reading this here website, you probably don't need a heads-up on the legendary title. Released in arcades back in 1982, BurgerTime is a single-screen platformer which sees players in control of chef Peter Pepper, scurrying up and down ladders in an effort to complete an order of hamburgers which - for unexplained reasons - are three times the size of our protagonist. Attempting to hinder Peter's progress is a selection of living foodstuffs, such as sausages and eggs, which Peter can stun with a quick dash of pepper.
You can check out the culinary chaos in the video below, courtesy of World of Longplays.
All of my favorite survival games tend to have an unspeakable horror to keep me on my toes, and Grounded – a shrunken-down solo/co-op adventure from RPG powerhouse Obsidian – is no exception.
Even if you're the kind of person who refuses to squish spiders and goes out of their way to carefully capture and release them outdoors, you aren't ready for these towering eight-legged freaks.
Some of them hide in creepy tunnels. Others prowl in the open, bending tree-sized blades of grass off in the distance. They scurry. They can take you out in just a strike or two. And they must be stopped.
Obsidian included an Arachnophobia Safe Mode for a reason.
Dragon Ball FighterZ news coming in August live stream
Yesterday's Japan Fighting Game Publisher Roundtable stream might have offered fans new info pertaining to Tekken, Samurai Shodown, Guilty Gear, and Soulcalibur, but it was a little slim on reveals for great tag-team slugfest Dragon Ball FighterZ.
Never fear, Goku fans, as publisher Bandai Namco has announced that it does have plans for DBFZ, plans that will be revealed in a special live stream later this month. Unfortunately that's all the info you're getting for now - an announcement of an announcement - but at least fans can take heart knowing that their favourite fighter is likely to see support into the new year and beyond.
We will keep you informed as and when a date is announced for the live stream. Dragon Ball FighterZ is available now on PS4, PC, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.
I am, admittedly, a sucker for unique art styles. Sure, I enjoy lush graphics, beautiful pixel art, or stylish cel-shading, but they don't grab my attention in the same way as something that forges a path in a different direction. I get excited around the styles that Bernband, Burrito Galaxy, or even the simple papercraft worlds of Brendan Chung's Citizen Abel games pull off. Heck, I'll admit to being fascinated by Paper Mario.
That's what drew me into Hotel Sowls. I was instantly charmed by its blobby, lo-fi art style. It's something I haven't really seen before in a video game. It seems to wear its personality on its sleeve. That's only the start, though. Now it's time to get it up on the autopsy table, peel back its skin, and see if there's any of that personality seeped into the meat itself.
The Heart of Deimos is going to make for one hell of an introduction for players new to the Warframe experience, but for those who have been playing since the beginning, a new feature coming soon to your Orbiter may allow you to customize your playing experience even more. When Heart of Deimos launches at the end of August, your infirmary will have a new occupant. Say hello to Audrey II Helminth.
Gender-neutral Xaku is the 44th Warframe
Earlier this year, Digital Extremes asked Tenno around the world to submit their ideas for a new Warframe in the fantastically popular free-to-play looter shooter. Plenty of ideas were submitted, but the most popular entry by far was from a user named 'eaterofstorms" who pushed the idea of a Broken Warframe, one that is, "obviously not put together correctly and it's pretty much the epitome of making a bug a feature."
An absolutely dope idea that finally has a dope design. Say hello to Xaku, a gender-neutral Warframe coming to the game with the launch of the Heart of Deimos.
Warframe's Heart of Deimos is an infested open-world you can explore in a mech
Last year at TennoCon, Digital Extremes teased a new open-world area known as the Duviri Paradox. That update for Warframe is currently on hold. Instead, more than 50 million players around the world will get access to a new open-world later this month called the Heart of Deimos.
Deimos is the second moon of Mars that holds the origin to the Infested. As players complete quests across the satellite, they'll uncover the mysteries of the nauseating creatures and how they came to be. During a pre-TennoCon presentation, we were given a look at this fleshy world overrun with some of the most gruesome creatures Warframe has ever seen.
How well do you know the sexual side of Nintendo?
The Super Mario series turns 35 this September, so chances are that if you read this game blog, the franchise has been in your life for as long as you remember. I'm old enough to recall the first time I played the original game. I was 10 years old, and it was at a demo kiosk in Toys R Us. I'll forever associate the series with that point in my childhood.
Of course, I've grown up a lot since then, and so has Nintendo. When they first started releasing their own home consoles, their sole focus was catering to children, but now that many of those '80s kids have kids (or even grandkids) of their own, they've branched out to create games that appeal to all ages. That sometimes means throwing in a cheeky reference now and again, intended for adults to understand but kids to avoid or ignore.
There is just such a reference in a recently released Nintendo game, and the only thing I found surprising about it was fans' reactions. Specifically, a lot of fans denied that there was anything sexual about it, seemingly unwilling to admit to themselves that yes, sometimes Nintendo does dick jokes. I'm not going to spoil it here, because it's actually related to one of the quiz questions below, but please, if you were one of the folks who doesn't believe that Nintendo ever gets "inappropriate," you have a lot to learn. With any luck, this fun quiz will teach you a thing or two about the birdos and the bees.
