Move Aside Master Chief, Craig Is the New "Official" Xbox Mascot
You read the headline — move aside Master Chief, Xbox is rolling out the red carpet for Craig. Following the Xbox Games Showcase and the reveal of Halo Infinite, it's been hard to keep that monke meme out of our heads, for better and for worse. And while we have already known that 343 Industries is whole-heartedly embracing the meme, we now got word from the one and only Phil Spencer that the Xbox brand is adopting him at large.
The news comes by way of Twitter when Xbox influencer asked Phil Spencer what his opinion on the meme is. Always the optimist, Spencer discussed the Xbox brand embracing the meme — specifically how the community took it, made something fun with it, and ran with it:
Our new official Xbox mascot
love the community and their ability to just take something fun and run with it.
— Phil Spencer (@XboxP3) July 31, 2020
And while he undoubtedly doesn't mean we should be expecting to see a new Craig game pop up, perhaps we mght start seeing some Craig merch for the dedicated Xbox crowd? At the very least, maybe next E3 we see Phil Spencer wearing a Craig tee shirt.
And honestly, this shouldn't be any major surprise — to a degree, Craig has probably helped mitigate some of the bad press that Halo Infinite's hyped expectations brought. Meanwhile, it seems like 343 Industries is heading back to the drawing boards to tweak and perfect some of the janky lighting solutions that have been pinpointed by experts. With the game's multiplayer going free-to-play, it's hard to imagine that the game won't have legs on the collection of Xbox consoles and PC.
In any case, Halo Infinite is planning to launch on PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X sometime in Holiday 2020. If you are planning on jumping into the new release, you might want to get caught up on the series at large. You can grab Halo: The Master Chief Collection physically over on Amazon to help support DualShockers.
The post Move Aside Master Chief, Craig Is the New "Official" Xbox Mascot by Lou Contaldi appeared first on DualShockers.
Here Are the Top 10 Funniest Fall Guys Moments This Week
This week has been dominated by Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout — the latest Devolver Digital hit that has launched to the top of Steam charts and gaming conversations. Even better, the game is loaded with janky controls, wonky physics, and just enough bugs to keep everything hysterical. Propelled to the front line with being one of the PlayStation Plus free games this month, there have been tons of great moments for fans of the game.
And we are here to highlight some of those funny videos — here are our picks for the Top 10 best moments in Fall Guys this week:
1. Top 10 Devastating Anime Deaths
Shared by Redditor Edgargle, we see the absolute nightmare that is the See Saw level. When the Fall Guy nearly makes the jump to the final platform they miss, and a benevolent Slurpee comes to the rescue. Unfortunately, there is no saving him from the sweet embrace of death.
2. Never Celebrate Early in Fall Guys
Pro tip: Never Woo Woo in the fruit level from r/FallGuysGame
Redditor BarneBundle learned the hard way that you should never gloat on Fruit Chute; being trucked with a cinnamon stick is the ultimate payment.
3. Become the Jump Club
Lifehack: instead of jumping over the green club, just adhere to it and become part of the problem. That's exactly what YouTuber MagKrava did to (surprising success).
4. Hex-a-Goner
Sometime luck just isn't in your favor. Especially if you happen to be streamer Krayola, who really got the short end of the stick when it comes to landing through holes.
5. Fall Guys Karma is Very Real
This video is a quick lesson on why you don't try to jerk people around! Fruit Chute is perilous enough without bad actor's coming in to add more mayhem — and you may quickly become part of the problem.
6. Ragdoll Qualification
I believe this might be the worst qualification from r/FallGuysGame
Nothing is worse than getting endlessly knocked around, and this is without a doubt one of the most painstaking and brutal qualifications we've seen this week. Kudos to Redditor callmeill, we hate this.
7. Baka Mitai [Fall Guys Cover]
unbelievable pic.twitter.com/lur90GVLxR
— glauber kotaki (@unseven) August 6, 2020
This one is absolutely heartbreaking, just like the Yakuza anthem of 2020.
8. Where Did I Go Wrong?
'I think I'm in a good position to win this' from r/FallGuysGame
Another instance of some Hex-a-Gone mayhem — Redditor Chxnk182 can give a Masters-level dissertation in disappointment as they plunge to their disqualification.
9. Perfect Match to Fall Guys Tragedy
Some matches are easy come and easy go — YouTuber Detrio lost his friend in a moment's notice for seemingly no reason. RIP to a fallen hero.
10. Goodbye, Roosterman
I'm sorry from r/FallGuysGame
Some people just want to watch the world burn, and that includes Redditor absoluteacehole. Narrowly making it to qualification himself, he makes sure to brutally throw off another competitor to a Rick and Morty classic.
Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout is available now, exclusively on PC and PS4; there are no current plans to bring the game to Nintendo Switch and Xbox One. Check out our review of the game, where we awarded it a 9.5 out of 10 noting Fall Guys "is the most fun [we've] had playing video games in 2020″
The post Here Are the Top 10 Funniest Fall Guys Moments This Week by Lou Contaldi appeared first on DualShockers.
Street Fighter Producer Yoshinori Ono Is Leaving Capcom
Yoshinori Ono will be leaving Capcom after nearly three decades with the company.
The longtime producer, and public face of the Street Fighter games, announced his impending departure on Sunday in a statement he released through Twitter.
"I've been with the Street Fighter brand for a long time, experiencing good times, bad times, and even non-existent times," Ono wrote. "My heart is filled with appreciation to those players who've been giving warm and kind support on the brand especially little over the past decade or so as all the activities on the Street Fighter brand regained sunshine and grew liveliness.
"And now, after serving almost 30 years at Capcom, I am leaving the company in this summer. This means that I will resign my position as the brand manager for Capcom's various titles including Street Fighter."
— Yoshinori Ono (@Yoshi_OnoChin) August 9, 2020
Ono joined Capcom's audio team in the 90s, directing the sound for Street Fighter III: Alpha (1998) and Street Fighter III: Third Strike (1999) before eventually stepping into the producer and executive producer roles for a number of the company's titles, mostly for its fighting games.
He was the producer for Street Fighter IV, the game that both revived the franchise and revitalized the fighting game genre in 2008 after a nearly decade-long lull. Ono then returned to executive produce Street Fighter V, a game that has its fair share of issues (netcode chief among them), but has been well supported since its initial release in 2016 to become a staple of the FGC.
Ono's run hasn't been perfect. Again, Street Fighter V has its problems — Ono's statement started with acknowledging the criticisms that came with taking the Capcom Pro Tour online due to the coronavirus pandemic — and there have been a few notable titles that, for a variety of reasons, completely missed the mark (like Street Fighter X Tekken and Marvel Vs. Capcom: Infinite). Then, of course, there's the infamous Deep Down saga.
Still, Ono made a remarkable impact, playing a big part in the FGC's continuing growth.
"Capcom staff in the new generation will continue taking care of the Street Fighter brand and leading the World Warriors," Ono wrote. "And, I do believe that they will continue making Street Fighter extraordinary. I will look forward to seeing the new Street Fighter brand and how it's going to be expanded, as just one of the regular gamers this time around."
Thank you @Yoshi_OnoChin for helping build up the CPT. Your vision will be missed. We'll try and do you proud in the years to come. https://t.co/WbRU4RH0VV pic.twitter.com/xqbILsUazh
— Capcom Fighters (@CapcomFighters) August 9, 2020
With the current generation winding down, Capcom is extending support for Street Fighter V with a fifth season that will add Dan, Rose, Oro, Akira (of Rival Schools fame), and an unannounced character to the roster over the course of the next year.
The outline for the new season ran parallel with a rumor of internal conflict between Ono and Capcom on the direction of Street Fighter VI, which hasn't been officially announced yet.
The post Street Fighter Producer Yoshinori Ono Is Leaving Capcom by Nick Tricome appeared first on DualShockers.
Xbox Fans Are Retaliating Against Apple Blocking xCloud on iOS Devices
Just last week, Apple officially announced that the company would not be allowing xCloud, Microsoft's new game streaming service provided through Xbox Game Pass, on the app store. Understandably, many Xbox gamers who own iOS devices are upset and are making formal complaints to Apple directly so that they would try to reconsider the decision.
Over on the Xbox One subreddit, u/AvengedFADE voiced their displeasure with the company and provided a link that sends suggestions directly to Apple and also links to Change.org, Better Business Bureau Apple California, and the FTC. Below the links, they went on to explain how ass-backward this decision was and how a gigantic portion of mobile users will not be able to use this feature that Game Pass users all have. You can view the post at the bottom of this article.
The reasoning behind the decision from Apple is almost downright laughable. Their reasoning is that the App offers apps that Apple can't review individually. Here is Apple's official response provided by The Verge: "The App Store was created to be a safe and trusted place for customers to discover and download apps, and a great business opportunity for all developers. Before they go on our store, all apps are reviewed against the same set of guidelines that are intended to protect customers and provide a fair and level playing field to developers. Our customers enjoy great apps and games from millions of developers, and gaming services can absolutely launch on the App Store as long as they follow the same set of guidelines applicable to all developers, including submitting games individually for review, and appearing in charts and search. In addition to the App Store, developers can choose to reach all iPhone and iPad users over the web through Safari and other browsers on the App Store."
Google Stadia and Geforce Now have yet to come to iOS devices because of the strict guidelines of the App Store. Which do not make much sense in the first place because, by that logic, Apple would need to be able to review every movie or TV show that is shown on any of the numbers of streaming services like Netflix or Hulu. What makes the decision even more mind-boggling is that there is already a rating process that every video game must go through with the ESRB and PEGI. Finally, on top of all of that, Apple doesn't even follow their own reasoning because the App Store is flooded with blatant rip-offs, cheap cash grabs, and utter trash. Hopefully, the company reconsiders the decision to block acces to xCloud. However, I doubt that will happen anytime soon.
Upset about Apple blocking XCloud. Make a formal complaint here. from r/xboxone
The post Xbox Fans Are Retaliating Against Apple Blocking xCloud on iOS Devices by Grant Huff appeared first on DualShockers.
Nintendo Reported a 428% Increase in First-Quarter Profit
While the global pandemic has been detrimental for many companies, it looks like Nintendo is doing just fine. In fact, they are doing more than just fine. During its first quarter, the video game company reported an increase in profit of 428%.
The operating profit for April-June was 144.7 billion yen.
Animal Crossing: New Horizons went on to become the game for everyone to pick up during the pandemic as it sold 10.6 million copies during the first quarter. That number brought its total sales to 22.4 million. Making it the second-highest selling Nintendo Switch title.
Finally, Nintendo reported that it sold 5.7 million Switch consoles during the first quarter. 3 million of those being the regular portable/home console while about 2.6 million of those were the Switch Lite version. Nintendo stated that it maintained its sales forecast of 19 million Switch consoles in the current financial unit.
Although the company has a downright hit with the Nintendo Switch. They have not released a major title since Animal Crossing and there is no word on major titles releasing anytime soon. Sure, we might have a port of Pikmin 3 coming pretty soon. However, that will not sell the number of units that a new Mario or Zelda title would. Hell, it definitely won't sell the number of units Animal Crossing: New Horizons sold, which I guess is Nintendo's next biggest series now right under Mario Kart.
Maybe the appeal of the Switch hybrid console is just so intense that it might not matter if there is a dip in the number of games releasing for some time. One thing that is for sure though is that these things are flying off the shelves willy nilly. I have even been wanting to pick a Switch Lite up to take with me on longer trips where I would only be playing portably.
The post Nintendo Reported a 428% Increase in First-Quarter Profit by Grant Huff appeared first on DualShockers.
Granblue Fantasy Versus received two new trailers, one for the latest update and the other a character trailer for one of two upcoming new fighters making their debut.
The 1.40 update includes a new "Boss Battle Time Attack," in which players compete against each other to see who can take down bosses faster, and a "GBVS: Blitz" game mode which includes a limited time Ranked Battle event. There's also new RPG mode episodes. Players will earn a code for 1,000 crystals after clearing episode 45 of the main quest. Start dates for the Boss Battle Time Attack and GBVS: Blitz modes will be announced in-game.
You can check out the trailer for that content below:
Arc System Works also premiered a brand new trailer revealing the popular Granblue Fantasy villain Belial. According to the official description, he may fool some players with his deceptively standard moveset, but his unique abilities and tricky neutral fighting style will take down unsuspecting challengers:
Cagliostro will join the Season 2 roster in October, with additional details to follow. The Japanese voice actors for Belial and Cagliostro are Yoshimasa Hosoya and Sakura Tange. English language voiceovers, however, will be delayed and won't be included when the characters release due to issues related to COVID-19.
XSEED Games also revealed their partnership with Arc System Works for "ARCREVO America Online 2020," an online tournament which will feature Granblue Fantasy: Versus and BlazBlue: Cross Tag Battle. Kicking off October 2020, the top two players in Granblue Fantasy: Versus and BlazBlue: Cross Tag Battle from each region will be invited to take part in a special America VS Japan exhibition match planned for Spring 2021.
Producer Yuito Kimura and Director Tetsuya Fukuhara chatted about how they'd like to make more Granblue games. However, they stated they can't work on too many projects simultaneously and first need to finish PS4 action RPG Granblue Fantasy Relink. The game might get ports to other platforms like Stadia, PC and PS5 too once the PS4 version is done.
Granblue Fantasy Versus is available on PS4 and PC. You can read our review and our beginners' guide.
The post Granblue Fantasy Versus 1.40 Update Launches With Trailer, DLC Characters Belial and Cagliostro Revealed by Allisa James appeared first on DualShockers.
Pokemon the Movie – Coco Gets New Trailer Featuring Story and Pokemon Zarude
Pokemon the Movie — Coco has received a brand new trailer showcasing Coco, the child raised by Pokemon, as he interacts and bonds with Ash after their first meeting. Coco is also seen extensively with his companion Zarude, including during a battle with Team Rocket:
Below is the translated summary for the upcoming Pokemon film, which will premiere on December 25th:
This is a story of a slightly unusual parent-child relationship involving one Pokémon and one human. In the depths of a jungle in the middle of nowhere, we find Okoya Forest, a Pokémon paradise operating with strict laws. The stubborn and obstinate Zarude lived there with his kin, but one day he discovered a human baby by the riverside.
"Human, this is…"
Zarude could not allow himself to abandon it, so he decided to disobey the law of the forest, leave his tribe behind, and live alone with the child, whom he named Coco. It has been 10 years since this Pokémon first started to raise this human. Coco meets Ash and Pikachu as they visit Okoya Forest. This is the first "Human friend" he has ever made. And little by little, questions start to sprout deep in the mind of a boy who had been fully convinced he was a Pokémon.
"Father, am I a human?" Am I a Pokémon? Or am I a human? As Coco ponders this, one days sees the sound of uninvited human footsteps approach Okoya Forest, signalizing a drastic change to the peaceful days it has thus far been enjoying.
Two new expansion packs for the mainline games, called Isle of Armor and the Crown Tundra, were announced with plenty of details. The former launced in June 2020 and the latter will launch sometime in Fall 2020. A remake of Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Rescue Team DX for Nintendo Switch released in March — you can read our review here. Finally the new Pokemon Home service dropped in February and is available for both the Switch and mobile devices with a variety of plans.
According to Nintendo's recent financial results, Pokemon Sword and Shield are now the third best selling Pokemon games of all time. The pair have now sold 18.22 million copies in just nine months and sit just behind Gold and Silver in the lifetime sales chart. And if you're one of those buyers, reading up on our guide on how to train Pokemon EVs and breed perfect IVs for competitive play is a great way to learn how to strengthen your team.
From Nintendo's nine-month earnings report, it was revealed that Sword and Shield has sold more than 16 million copies since its November release, becoming the biggest highlight in an already strong fiscal year for the company. The latest NPD data, the latest installment in the long running series has the highest launch month dollar sales in Pokemon franchise history. And for the month of November, Sword was the third best selling game, the double pack including both titles ranking at fourth place, and Shield being in fifth place. However, if you combined those sales then total it would bring them to the number two spot.
Pokemon Sword and Shield released for Nintendo Switch on November 15th, 2019. Meanwhile check out our in-depth review for the game here, in which the News Editor states that "Sword and Shield are a lot of fun, even if the series is experiencing growing pains with the transition to home consoles." You can purchase Sword here and Shield here.
The post Pokemon the Movie – Coco Gets New Trailer Featuring Story and Pokemon Zarude by Allisa James appeared first on DualShockers.
PS5 Reportedly Investing Heavily In Third-Party Exclusive Content
Are you looking forward to PlayStation exclusive content coming to Marvel's Avengers? Get ready to be more hyped. According to industry insider Imran Kahn, Sony has actively approached all major third-party developers and publishers to poach exclusive games, in-game content, or both for PS5. According to Kahn, PlayStation Advantage will have long legs through the next generation as Sony looks to maintain market dominance.
News comes by way of Resetera, where notable leaker and insider "Matt" noted that there "is a lot of [third PS5 party exclusive content] coming and the scale will be shocking." In support of that statement, Kahn backed up Matt by going further into depth into the workings of Sony. According to Kakn, PlayStation has been pitching to all major third-party studios with high-figure amounts to create exclusive content:
Echoing what Matt said. There isn't a major third party out there Sony failed to approach asking what kind of deals they could work out. Some had content, some had games, some had content and games. It is not like Microsoft was not willing to offer, they just didn't want to pay the asking price, because Sony approached with pretty high numbers in the first place.
In summary, Kahn opined that the terms "PlayStation Advantage" and "Console Exclusive" are going to become ever more prevalent in the next generation.
To a degree, this shouldn't be surprising — most developers typically enter contracts with developers and publishers during the early lifecycle of a console to shore up exclusivity deals. However, there is undoubtedly a different dynamic this generation — Xbox has been pushing for a more inclusive gaming space, which would include not leaving old generations in the dark. In turn, they seem to invest money in building in services, infrastructure, and studio acquisitions.
Meanwhile, PlayStation seems to be quietly taking a PS5 consumer-oriented approach, seeking to quietly add as much value to its ecosystem as possible. We have to imagine we will begin to hear more news about these deals soon. And while this makes sense given some of the latest moves by PlayStation, make sure to keep this — like all rumors — with a grain of salt.
PS5 is set to launch in Holiday 2020, though no price or specific launch date is known. Keep an eye on DualShockers for more upcoming news.
The post PS5 Reportedly Investing Heavily In Third-Party Exclusive Content by Lou Contaldi appeared first on DualShockers.
Xbox Boss Phil Spencer is Getting Interviewed on Animal Crossing Talk Show
Here's some unexpected and fun crossplay: the head of Microsoft's Xbox division Phil Spencer will be making his (virtual) appearance on the surprisingly popular Animal Crossing talk show Animal Talking on Wednesday, August 12th at 7pm PT / 10pm ET. It's a smart move on both Spencer and Whitta's part, as the Xbox Series X is fast approaching its Holiday 2020 launch and this move is sure to put plenty of eyes on the show and the upcoming console.
The virtual show was created by Rogue One: A Star Wars Story writer Gary Whitta and has featured high-profile celebrities including Elijah Wood, Brie Larson, and Selena Gomez and is formatted after popular late-night talk shows.
During the first of two Animal Crossing: New Horizons Summer update videos we were treated to a couple of new activities, including swimming and diving, plus a range of new DIY recipes before being teased with a second update. The official Animal Crossing Twitter account also shared what was in store as part of that second update, which dropped on July 30th.
The previous free update for Animal Crossing: New Horizons was back in April and it brought a host of changes such as new villagers to the island, added some fun seasonal events, and opened up a new wing in the museum. Animal Crossing: New Horizons was recently featured in the Financial Times, an actual real life publication, after some severe in-game interest rate cuts from Tom Nook.
Nintendo recently released its financial results for Q1 of the fiscal year ending March 2021. And through those results it has been revealed that Animal Crossing: New Horizons now sold over 22 million copies and is second place in the all-time best selling Nintendo Switch software chart. In Japan alone Animal Crossing on Switch previously sold more than 1.88 million copies as of March 23th. The title released worldwide on March 20th, which means it managed to sell 1.88 million physical copies in Japan in only three days. And overall the game's Nintendo Switch debut sold 11.77 million units between its March 20th launch and the March 31st, placing it seventh among the console's highest-selling titles.
Check out our glowing review of the game here for a more in-depth breakdown.
The post Xbox Boss Phil Spencer is Getting Interviewed on Animal Crossing Talk Show by Allisa James appeared first on DualShockers.
Spider-Man Being a PlayStation Exclusive Character for Marvel's Avengers Sucks
Here's a hot take for you: Spider-Man Being a PlayStation exclusive character for Marvel's Avengers sucks. And while this is an opinion being passed around by stalwarts in the Xbox community, a few members of our team (who are primarily PlayStation gamers) share the same opinion. Specifically, that console-locked in-game content is a bad practice that ruins the broader gaming space.
In the video below, DualShockers' Managing Editor (Logan Moore) and Video Manager (Mario Rivera) give their hot take about the business decision by Square Enix. Specifically, they look to see if Marvel's Avengers content could be better implemented to promote PS4 and PS5 products, and why even PlayStation fans should seem bummed by it.
You can catch the full discussion, below:
And hey, if you disagree with our opinions, let us know why in the comment section below (or on YouTube).
If you totally missed the news, it was revealed (originally by leak) that Square Enix's Marvel's Avengers would be adding Spider-Man as a PS4 exclusive. This was later confirmed as the only platform-exclusive character in a follow-up interview with the development team. Understandably, this came with a significant PR blowback from many in the Xbox community that tried to boycott the game (though, in turn, drove it to the #1 pre-order spot on Amazon for all consoles).
All in all, we really liked our hands-on preview with Marvel's Avengers; in our most recent write-up, we noticed that the game has some similar vibes as vanilla Destiny. In other words, the gameplay fell somewhere in the middle of "not bad but not blowing us away" — definitely not something that will stand head-to-head against Insomniac Games' Marvel's Spider-Man.
Marvel's Avengers is set to be released on Google Stadia, PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X; if you are looking to pre-order the PS4 version (to get Spider-Man, obviously), you can grab the game physically from Amazon to help support DualShockers.
The post Spider-Man Being a PlayStation Exclusive Character for Marvel's Avengers Sucks by Lou Contaldi appeared first on DualShockers.