Muv-Luv Next Event Set For October 24, New TDA04 Artwork

Muv-Luv TDA04 Marimo artwork

aNCHOR is currently holding the "Final Exam Muv-Luv" event from September 19 to 20th. You can find the YouTube streams of the September 19 part here and here. The event is accompanied with 2 hours long streams of the seiyuu Maria Noda and Chisato Konno live playing Muv-Luv Alternative. We've got a list of the announcements so far below.

Muv-Luv october 24 event

First off, the next big Muv-Luv event was announced, an online event titled the "aNCHOR Academy Web Student Meeting" (tentative title), held on October 24, 2020. It'll feature Yoshimune Kouki, and new information on games including Project Immortal and Project Mikhail. Live concerts will be held as well.

Muv-Luv world cosplay event

A Muv-Luv cosplay contest will be held through cosplaying site World Cosplay (Previously known as Cure WorldCosplay). This is in order to promote the Muv-Luv franchise and make it discovered by a bigger audience. Details on the contest will be revealed at the above-mentioned October 24 aNCHOR Academy Web Student Meeting event.

Muv-Luv TDA04 Marimo artwork Muv-Luv TDA04 maybe Yuuhi Meiya Takeru artwork

Two new artwork of Muv-Luv Unlimited: The Day After Episode 4 were revealed. The first one showcases Marimo Jinguuji  giving a speech. The second one features someone who look like Takeru being held at sword range by someone who looks like Yuuhi Koubuin or Meiya Mitsurugi.

As a reminder, Muv-Luv Unlimited: The Day After is a series of multiple games, included inside the Muv-Luv Alternative Chronicles releases since 2010. The latest game, Muv-Luv Unlimited: The Day After Episode 03, is included in Muv-Luv Alternative Chronicles Vol.4, released in 2013 in Japan. The next game, Muv-Luv Unlimited: The Day After Episode 04, is currently in development, and will launch in English at around the same time as in Japan.

An official site and Twitter account for the Muv-Luv Alternative The Animation anime adaptation have been opened. The site has a countdown towards October 24.

muv-luv marichi Maria Noda and Chisato Konno

An event is being held on September 21 with the seiyuu Maria Noda and Chisato Konno. A special edition of the age Archives～20th Box Edition～  released on March 27, 2020, will be sold there with special goods featuring the seiyuu's Marichi characters. Marichi is their live stream where they play Alternative. If you're curious, the box contains:

  • Kaseki no uta
  • Kimiga ita Kisetsu
  • âge maniax
  • Kimi ga nozomu eien
  • Muv-Luv
  • Muv-Luv Alternative
  • Muv-Luv Alternative Chronicles
  • The Day After
  • Duty Lost Arcadia
  • Bive-ru, Total Eclipse
  • Teito moyu
  • Schwarzesmarken

You can read more on Muv-Luv with our past coverage. We'll be covering the rest of the "Muv-Luv Final Exam" event tomorrow, September 20th.

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Poison Control Announcement Trailer Reveals Gameplay and 2021 Western Release

Madoka Hanagi, Manami Numakura, Mina Takagawa, Nippon Ichi Software, NIS, NISA, Poison Control, PS4, Shoujo Jigoku no Doku Musume, Shoujo Jigoku no Doku Musume gameplay, Shoujo Jigoku no Doku Musume screenshots, Switch, Yuki Kawakami

Poison Control, known as Shoujo Jigoku no Doku Musume in Japan, will be getting a western release for early 2021 thanks to NISA. The announcement trailer shows off gameplay as well as the English voicework, which is solid as always. The action RPG title was first revealed in March and will be coming out for both PS4 and Nintendo Switch. You can watch the trailer below, which shows off the third-person shooter mode:

Nippon Ichi Software previously revealed a bunch of new screenshots, info and a trailer for Poison Control, a new IP action RPG coming to PS4 and Switch. Long story short the game is about a male or female protagonist who ends up in hell and gets possessed by a cute girl named Doku Musume. Together, they infiltrate other hells created by various cute girls in order to purify poison swamps.

The battle system requires players to defeat enemies and purify poison swamps. You control Doku Musume and everything enclosed within her path will get purified, including enemies who will be destroyed. To do that, the protagonist needs to trace a trajectory to guide Doku Musume, and circle around the poison to purify it. Overall, the game flow of Poison Control is exploring hell, fighting monsters, having dialogues with Doku Musume and picking story changing meaningful dialogues choices, looking for poison swamps, and purifying them.

Enemies who get circled in Doku Musume's trajectory ends up being defeated, and they can turn into new weapons the protagonist can use. However, your character gradually loses HP themself when in a poison swamp. The protagonist can also get new weapons to fight, as well switch to third-person shooter mode with Doku Musume possessing their arm and changing into a gun.

The character designs are by Madoka Hanagi, who previously worked on games such as the Disgaea series, The Witch and the Hundred Knight 2, and The Princess Guide. Madoka Hanagi also illustrated many cards in Z/X — Zillions of enemy X-, the card game by Nippon Ichi Software and Broccoli.

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The World Ends With You – The Animation Gets New Trailer, Teases Anime's Opening

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A new trailer for the The World Ends With You – The Animation has been released, teasing the opening scene of the anime. We see Neku wake up in the middle of Shibuya's famous Scramble Crossing with no memories of how he arrived there. Even more worrisome is the fact that both pedestrians and vehicles phase right through him:

The World Ends With You – The Animation was revealed back in July during a panel at Anime Expo Lite. The panel included Producer Tomohiko Hirano, Director Tatsuya Kando, Character Designer Gen Kobayashi, and Composer Takeharu Ishimoto. Kando, Kobayashi, and Ishimoto are all returning to their original roles from the game for the anime. You can watch the full panel over on YouTube.

The official website for The World Ends With You – The Animation is live and features more information regarding the main cast of characters that the anime will focus on. The project is set to release worldwide in 2021. A portion of the original development team helped with the production team, namely Game Producer and Character Designer Tetsuya Nomura (primarily known as the creator of the Kingdom Hearts franchise) taking on the role of Creative Producer. The original Japanese voice cast will also be reprising their roles. The anime is being made in 3D by Domerica and Shin-Ei animation. It was confirmed that there will be changes to the story from the game, but there will also be new things to explore and more depth added to the characters.

For more information about The World Ends With You – The Animation, you can follow the official Twitter for updates. If you are interested in trying out The World Ends With You for the first time you can purchase the game for Nintendo DS or Nintendo Switch over on Amazon. You can also read our review of the Switch title here.

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The Witcher: Blood Origin Writer's Room Revealed; Featuring Swamp Thing, Iron Fist, Snowpiercer Veterans

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The Witcher: Blood Origin, the prequel series announced back in July, will be getting plenty more talent in their writer's room. The Redanian Intelligence: The Witcher Twitter account revealed the full writer's room today:

This group of writers are incredibly talented and are well known for wide range of works ranging from Swamp Thing, Carnival Row, Moon Knight, Snowpiercer, Mandy, Iron Fist, and more. And also very importantly, this writer's room is very diverse which will lend itself well to creativity and variety in ideas. If you want to read more information about each one, you can read up on Redanian Intelligence's blog post here.

The series follows the path of "The First Witcher" and is set 1200 years before the tale of Geralt of Rivia that we've all come to know and love. The series comes from Declan De Barra, who wrote an episode from Season One of The Witcher, alongside work on Marvel's The Iron Fist and Lauren Schmidt Hissrich, who has a very impressive list of credits, including work on The Witcher, The Umbrella Academy and Daredevil.

According to news site Redanian Intelligence, Netflix is looking to cast Aquaman and Game of Thrones star Jason Momoa as the lead character in The Witcher: Blood Origin. Netflix has officially announced that Kim Bodnia will be playing the role of Vesemir in the upcoming season 2 of The Witcher. This news comes after the reveal that the animated series The Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf will be starring the same character.

Netflix also revealed more of the season 2 cast, which was drawn from Game of Thrones and other shows. The Witcher in general is one of the most popular releases of 2019 and has garnered plenty of attention from fans, to the point of the show still being in high demand even now. Following the show's success, the book publisher has announced they'll be reprinting 500,000 copies of the original novel to meet demand. Henry Cavill, the actor who plays Geralt of Rivia, confirmed on his Instagram that season two will be in pre-production soon.

Showrunner Lauren S. Hissrich addressed some criticisms of The Witcher in an extensive and informative Twitter thread about the creative process and how certain decisions are made when adapting any sort of media. However, in a recent interview with TV Guide Hissrich stated that the multiple timelines of The Witcher's first season was "obviously one of the most controversial aspects of the show," and while she defended this approach to telling the story, she acknowledged that some audiences found this storytelling device to be confusing.

In that regard, Hissrich explained that Season 2 of the show "will be a lot easier to follow," and that the next season "aligns all of our characters on a similar timeline." While the show seemingly will still utilize a structure taking place over different periods of time, Hissrich stated that its approach will be done "in a different way" that should hopefully be more appealing to audiences.

It seems the series's launch has had a positive affect on the games, as it caused a large resurgence in The Witcher 3′s player count — which hit over 100,000 concurrent players on Steam, more players than during its launch. Be sure to check out our own review for the Netflix series The Witcher here.

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The Superior Version of Sword Art Online Is Finally Getting An Anime

Sword Art Online Progressive Anime feature

Aniplex announced the Sword Art Online Progressive light novel is getting an anime adaptation. The news was revealed after the final episode of the SAO Alicization anime aired on September 19, with a first key visual featuring Asuna and the floating castle of Aincrad. The key visual was drawn by original character designer and illustrator Abec (also known as Bunbun). An official site was opened but no further info was published for now. We don't know yet if it'll be a TV anime series or a movie project.

The Sword Art Online Progressive anime reveal trailer is right below.

Sword Art Online Progressive is an ongoing light novel by Reki Kawahara, started in October 2012. As you already know, the original SAO starts with the beginning of Aincrad and how the death game started. However, right from the first volume, a two years timeskip happens, with the action switching to Kirito and how he manages to unexpectedly clear the death game. This is what happens in the first SAO anime as well. In SAO Progressive however, this timeskip doesn't happen, and you get to see in detail the adventures of Asuna and Kirito as they first meet, decide to become a party and explore the first floors of Aincrad.

SAO Progressive is extremely slowly paced when it comes to floor progression to the point the story will probably never cover up to Floor 25, let alone Floor 74-75, when the first SAO volume takes place. However, it covers both brand new story elements added by Reki Kawahara, and events mentioned in SAO but that we never got to see.

It's also important to note that SAO up to Alicization arc included was originally a web novel, written in the early 2000s by a young and inexperienced Kawahara. While many elements were changed or improved in the Light Novel version, you can still clearly feel that even when watching the anime adaptations. You can easily tell how Kawahara improved over the years by reading Accel World. SAO Progressive also proves that, and is an awesome story you shouldn't miss.

Sword Art Online Progressive is especially good for Kirito x Asuna fans who prefer seeing the story focus on the couple. I personally always found it disappointing how SAO just keeps adding more girls to the Kirito harem, and then don't do much with each one of them past their respective arcs. SAO Progressive is also perfect for those who preferred Aincrad and Sword Art Online itself among all the VR games and worlds featured in the SAO novel. An anime adaptation of SAO Progressive is definitely promising.

Six light novel volumes of Sword Art Online Progressive have been released so far. Volume 6 released in May 2018, meaning we might get a new one soon too to ride the anime announcement hype. The series is published in the land of freedom and justice by Yen Press.

The SAO Anime official twitter also shared a new key visual celebrating the end of the Alicization anime adaptation:

SAO Editor Kazuma Miki also announced the launch of a Reki Kawahara Niconico channel:

Read more on SAO games with our past coverage.

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Octopath Traveler Champions of the Continent Release Date Set for Next Month

Octopath Traveler Champions of the Continent artwork feature

Earlier this week Square Enix announced that they would soon reveal the release date for Octopath Traveler: Champions of the Continent. And with a brand new trailer, not only are we treated to gameplay footage of the prequel but we also learn that the mobile title will release on October 28th:

The iOS and Android JRPG managed to top 500,000 per-registered accounts  and to celebrate, a new video showcasing the BGM theme of "The Playwright" Arguste (one of the antagonists) was released earlier this week. Yasunori Nishiki, who worked on the original game's OST, is also handling the OST of Octopath Traveler: Champions of the Continent.

Octopath Traveler: Champions of the Continent was first announced in March 2019. Back then, Square Enix and Octopath developing studio Acquire stated this is the game to play while you wait for a new Octopath console entry, which is also in development. They stressed out how it's an actual "single player RPG" — despite being on mobile — with an actual ending and how it takes around 60 hours to complete. Moreover, the game's story takes place before the events of the first Octopath Traveler. We detailed the story here if you're interested.

Initially slated to release by the end of 2019, Champions of the Continent was later delayed to 2020. And although the game was only announced in Japan, Square Enix also teased an English version.

With over 2 million copies shipped worldwide on Steam and Switch, Octopath Traveler is by far the biggest success of development studio Acquire, who is used to much more niche games. Like the recent Japanese versions of Wizardry, or Jinrui no Minasama e, a yuri adventure game developed for Nippon Ichi Software in 2019. The studio is also working on Gladiux, a gladiator action game coming to PC. Check out our glowing review for the original title here.

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Sword Art Online Alicization Lycoris Has a Secret Medina Ending Only One Player Managed to Find

Sword Art Online Alicization Lycoris Medina Secret Ending

Sword Art Online Alicization Lycoris had a new live stream on September 19 featuring Producer Yousuke Futami and official Medina cosplayer Sayuki. Producer Yousuke Futami most notably revealed Alicization Lycoris actually has a secret Medina route and "Lycoris ending", and how only one player in the world managed to unlock it. (They monitor players' data). The secret ending is actually in the game since release, and wasn't added via one of the numerous patches and updates. There were no direct hints to finding the route, so players needed to figure it out themselves.

Starting the newly recently patch, version 1.09, the hidden Medina route and Lycoris Ending is now easily obtainable by anyone.

The secret ending also features an English version of Scar/let, the Alicization Lycoris opening theme song by ReoNa. The English version is now officially available on stores starting September 19 too. ReoNa recorded a short video message for the occasion:

All the details regarding the Version 1.09 update of Sword Art Online Alicization Lycoris are in English on the game's Steam page. In particular, the update brings highly awaited improvements to the framerate, camera, and loading times. The whole game and the battle system have been re-balanced as well. The Integrity Knights battles in Chapter 1 have been nerfed. All Sword Skills for all weapon types got various changes and buffs.

SAOAL Wayfarer ReoNa Finish Arts

Unlockable character Wayfarer ReoNa also got her own Finish Arts now.

Last but not least, Lightplay Mode and Semi-auto mode were added. Lightplay Mode unlocks at the beginning of Chapter 2, and lets you cruise through the chapter. It's for those who already saw the SAO anime or read the novel and thus already know the story. That way you can reach the original story part faster.

Semi-auto mode is for those who want to focus on the story and get a simplified battle system.

A short gameplay trailer featuring all the changes that were added with version 1.09 was also shown on stream. You can find it at 30:51 the timestamp linked below:

Producer Yousuke Futami said while the game now is "enjoyable for everyone", further improvements are still planned, alongside new content update. There's also paid DLC content coming in the long run.

Read more on Sword Art Online Alicization Lycoris with our past coverage. I personally recommend our translation of the interview with Yousuke Futami and Kawahara Reki chatting about the game here and here. You can check out our review as well.

Tokyo Game Show 2020 will also feature an SAO event with Rina Hidaka (Silica) and Yoshitsugu Matsuoka (Kirito). Read more details here.

The post Sword Art Online Alicization Lycoris Has a Secret Medina Ending Only One Player Managed to Find by Iyane Agossah appeared first on DualShockers.

Elder Scrolls Online Interview – Rich Lambert Talks Markarth, Performance Improvements, and More

Elder Scrolls Online has been steadily growing in size over the past six years since its original launch. Now boasting over 15 DLC packs and four full-length expansions across 28 updates, the Tamriel that players experience today is much more developed than it's ever been before.

The world of Elder Scrolls Online is about to become a bit larger with the release of the upcoming 16th DLC pack, Elder Scrolls Online: Markarth. Announced on September 10, Markarth will conclude the year-long Dark Heart of Skyrim event that opened earlier in 2020. To commemorate the occasion, we sat down with Elder Scrolls Online Creative Director Rich Lambert for a chat about what ESO fans can look forward to in the coming months.

Gabriel Moss: How's it going, Rich?

Rich Lambert: Hello, does this thing work? It works.

GM: Oh, yeah, so just go ahead and just from the top, update me on how Markarth is coming along.

RL: So, we're really excited about this. Markarth is the next step I guess in what you'd call the culmination of this Dark Heart of Skyrim storyline that we have been telling over the course of this year. It is a story-based DLC. So what that means is, it is about 10 hours of new quest content that is centered in the Reach and Markarth. It is kind of the focal point there.

Markarth obviously was in Skyrim. Our timeline is 1000 years in the past, so it's going to feel a little bit different. It's going to look a little bit different, but it's still the same giant stone Dwemer fortress that's built into the side of a mountain. It's just the Reach people now that inhabit this area and control the city. And so it is, you know, in their kind of image, if you will.

GM: So do we see a lot of storylines from the perspective of the Reachmen?

RL: Yeah, so the main storyline is focused on this Dark Heart of Skyrim story but all of the side content in there is focused on the Reach and the people that live within there, which is really cool because up to this point in Elder Scrolls Online at least- and I'm pretty sure in most of TESO lore- the Reach people are always kind of portrayed as villains. And so we get to see a little bit about them, learn a little bit more about their culture and kind of who they are as a people which is really cool.

GM: So are there quest threads that are referred to in Skyrim that are going to be tapped on in Markarth?

RL: Um, not so much because we're 1000 years in the past, but there are definitely locations and slight nods to, you know, the goings-on in Skyrim.

GM: Okay, so for someone who's played Skyrim- like, what things are they going to notice right off the bat when they first enter Markarth the city?

RL: It's that same kind of crazy layout. You know, when you first walk in there where, you know, it's just, it's that same look and feel. But because of the Reachmen there, there's fetishes all over. There's you know, tusks and all these other wild things in there. So it feels very different.

And then as you kind of go around and explore the Reach outside, you're going to come across familiar places. Karthwasten is one of those examples. You're going to be able to go down into Blackreach and learn more about Blackreach and see what is being done under there, which is pretty cool. So it's gonna feel very familiar, but it's gonna be different.

GM: So exactly how much of the Reach is included in the greater zone that's going to be added?

RL: Uh, what's the best way to explain it? So I guess size-wise, it's equivalent to some of the other story DLCs that we've done. So, like Murkmire, Clockwork City. It's a pretty good chunk of that kind of, I guess it's the southwestern corner of Skyrim. It encompasses the majority of that chunk.

GM: Is [the Reach] as labyrinthine as it is in Skyrim?

RL: I will say yes. It's pretty cool. You know, Markarth, especially digging in into the city and going, you know, there's only a small part that's actually outside of the mountain and then there's a huge portion in the mountain as well.

GM: What're your favorite quests so far?

RL: I think Maelstrom Arena from Orsinium is my favorite piece of content we've ever done. I love the challenge. I love the constant kind of chase to improve my score and my times and whatnot. So there's a really cool new solo arena coming, and it is essentially a story about the Reach and this is where they go to test their warriors. And so you'll learn a little bit more about their warrior culture and whatnot, but you're also going through this really cool new interesting space where you have a lot of choices about how you tackle the various arenas.

There are three major wings and you choose the order that you go through them. There's a bunch of new secrets in there. Really cool new mechanics. And then once you complete the three wings, it opens up the fourth final boss wing, and it's just a bonkers boss battle at the end. So that's the thing that I'm most looking forward to. And the story is pretty cool as well. I love it.

GM: So besides the new zone, what new features will Markarth bring with it that you can talk about?

RL: Well, there's performance improvements. You know, that's one of the things we've constantly been working on. So there's some more of those. There are some small quality of life improvements in terms of the crafting UI and crafting writs. The big new feature is the item set collection system. And so I don't know if you're super familiar with ESO and how many item sets we have in-game?

GM: I have about 600 hours in, so I do!

RL: Oh, perfect. So you know, we have well over 500 item sets in the game, and it is almost impossible to collect them all. This new system that we're putting in there is essentially a sticker book of sorts for non-crafted item sets. Okay, so once you collect one of those, and you bind it to yourself, you can deconstruct it. And because of this new system, and the sticker book, you can go in there and you can essentially recraft that item.

GM: So you're saying if I get a dungeon set, I can basically break down that set improvement and then turn that into another crafted item.

RL: Well, basically what it'll do is once you've collected that set, or that item, you won't have to go back to that dungeon and regrind the dungeon and hope you get that drop because it's in your sticker book and you can just recraft it at that.

GM: So, you mentioned performance improvements. But I'm curious about, like, are you ever going to do multi-core CPU support as well? Or is it just going to be server-side improvements?

RL: That is one of the things that we've been working on. So the rendering engine, I think it was two updates ago now. We did some initial kind of multi-threaded stuff in there. We're still working on that. So yes, that stuff slowly coming in, as we kind of continue to chip away at performance.

GM: Is ESO gonna come to next-gen consoles as well?

RL: Yep, it is. What we've kind of announced up to this point is we are going to do a next-gen client. We're not quite ready to talk about it yet, but at the launch of the consoles, you'll be able to play Elder Scrolls Online in compat mode.

GM: Okay, very cool. Very cool. Is ESO ever going to have cross-play compatibility as well?

RL: We get that question a lot. And it is not an easy problem to solve. You know, we made some decisions 13 years ago now- 2007 when we started building the game- that aren't easily, you know, changeable at this point. And then also the game has been live for six years now. And each of the mega servers has its own unique community and more importantly, own unique economies. And so trying to merge all of those kind of into one thing is a huge challenge. So right now, it's kind of not in the cards for us.

GM: So now that you bring up the economy, are there plans to support a universal auction house or like something a bit more nuanced than just the guild traders?

RL: You know, we've had lots of back and forth internally about that. We really like the concept of, you know, individual trade hubs. And, you know, I think that the guild traders do that for us. You know, again, we keep kind of going back and forth and having those discussions right now, we're pretty set on the guild traders, but who knows?

GM: Okay, that's a good response. Now, do you have any plans to add places like Riverwood, or Whiterun after this? Or is it that you're done with Skyrim after Markarth?

RL: Oh, how do I answer that? You know, future stuff is I think, I guess the best way that I can kind of talk about that without spoiling things or anything is we've slowly been filling the world out over the last six years.

GM: Yeah, yeah.

RL: So there are places on the map we haven't gone to yet. There are still a few places that we can go to. We also have the nearly infinite realms of Oblivion to plan. Yes. So there are lots of places we could go. Certainly. I mean, that's one of them. Sure. But there are lots of places we could go. And so we have to- one of the things we try to do when figuring out where to go next is 'What haven't we done? What haven't we done in a while? How do we make the next thing feel different?' And so that plays a big part in kind of what we do and where we go next.

GM: That's fair. What else have you not talked about Markarth yet that you want to expound upon?

RL: I think I think we covered the big bits. I think the last thing that I don't think I touched on is the prologue quest. It officially goes on tomorrow [September 19], and that is the start of this kind of fourth-quarter storyline. And this prologue quest is pretty cool. It brings back a character from Rivenspire that you kind of had grown to admire if you'd done that storyline. And he comes back with a secret and the secret kind of flips hat you know about this person on its head.

GM: Is this the same character from Greymoor that I'm thinking of?

RL: No, this is I mean, we tell you who it is in when you watch the stream and whatnot, but it's Verandis Ravenwatch from Rivenspire. And so he's coming back. He's got a story and new secrets. And he basically is with you for the remainder of the year.

GM: Okay. Okay. Very cool. Alright.

GM: I think you've answered every question I had!

RL: Did I miss anything? I didn't talk about the events. So yeah, Lost Treasures of Skyrim. This is a new event that kicks off next week. It is centered on- we're focused on the Antiquity system. Which is something that we launched with Greymoor to a really overwhelming response, like we knew it was going to be something that players liked because it was focused on exploration and lore, which, you know, that's what every Elder Scrolls player loves.

GM: [The Antiquity system is] like Candy Crush!

RL: Right, exactly, but we didn't expect the reaction that we got, so we're doing an entire event based around this. And essentially what this is, is a community-focused event where the more participation and the more antiquities that are dug up during the course of this event, the more cool rewards players are going to get. Including if they hit all of the goals on a brand new house.

GM: So is this similar to the event that was during Summerset where people could earn the Grand Villa?

RL: Yep. Also, like the event that we did with Elsweyr.

GM: Yeah, that one too. Yep. Yep.

RL: And then, in addition to that event that we also have Witches Fest coming up and New Life [Festival] and a new Undaunted event coming up. So there are lots of things to keep players busy over the course of the last quarter in addition to the DLC.

GM: Okay, excellent! That's gonna be it for my questions. Thank you so much for your time!

RL: Thank you. Take care!

That's it for our interview with Rich! If you're interested in viewing the Dark Heart of Skyrim year-end preview event which is running right now, make sure to click the previous link or head directly over to the live Twitch stream. Elder Scrolls Online: Markarth is slated to launch on November 2 for Steam and Stadia users, and November 10 for Xbox One and PS4 users.

The post Elder Scrolls Online Interview – Rich Lambert Talks Markarth, Performance Improvements, and More by Gabriel Moss appeared first on DualShockers.

PS5 Preorder Panic Prompts PlayStation PR Penance

ps5 logo next gen generation ps4 playstation 5 4 nintendo switch exclusive games new cross gen xbox series x Preorder exclusive retailer

It seems like Sony is owning up to their failures — with a botched retailer launch of preorders for the PS5, there are many angry PlayStation stans waiting in the wings to get a Day 1 console. With many retailers opening the floodgates early — often without warning — the internet has gotten cutthroat with scalpers and bots claiming (and reselling) any console they can get their hands on. After a couple days of mulling it around, Sony has issued a public apology to its dedicated fanbase — noting more pre-orders will be coming soon and stock will hold strong through the end of the year.

In case you've missed the mass internet panic, the situation came hours after the official price and date reveal of the PS5 and the Playstation Games Showcase. In a launch marred with retailer tech problems (looking at you, Best Buy), instant stock problems, and Ebay resellers, things got ugly. Even Microsoft took some swings at the industry leader, noting how they let fans know weeks in advance when they can pre-order the Xbox Series S and Xbox Series X.

Earlier today, PlayStation tweeted a formal apology from their official account. Noting that things "could have been a lot smoother," the team apologized. Not only did they mention that more PS5s will be available through the end of the year, but they also noted that in the next few days they "will release more PS5 consoles for preorder." Retailers will once again be handling the roll out, so expect to keep an eye on those platforms:

I don't know about you, but I'm having flashbacks to the great amiibo wars of 2016. Regardless, glad to see that PlayStation is taking the criticism head-on, working with retailers, and looking to meet fan demand — especially if it curbs the scalping market. But be diligent — the team has already noted that retailers may not be able to satisfy all PS5 pre-orders.

PS5 will be available on November 12, 2020 — if you haven't secured your pre-order yet, keep an eye on Amazon when the hardware becomes available.

The post PS5 Preorder Panic Prompts PlayStation PR Penance by Lou Contaldi appeared first on DualShockers.

PS5 Is Not Being Held Back, PS4 Is Too Successful to Ignore

Since the PS5 Showcase aired, the PlayStation nation has been acting out. Upset over what's being described as deceptive marketing and outright lies on Sony's part, the PlayStation faithful took to social media to voice their concerns. With the news of games like Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales and Horizon Forbidden West also making their way to to the PS4, vocal PS5 early adopters are upset claiming that first-party exclusives are being held back on the new PS5 as development for both titles was completed with 7-year-old PS4 hardware as the baseline.

To add more salt to the wound, it doesn't help that both sides of the PlayStation and Xbox communities have engaged in heated dick-measuring competitions while rooting for their respective favorites. With Microsoft highlighting their next-generation console's ability to play four generations of Xbox games, PlayStation fans saw that as an opening to peacock and flex the upcoming PS5's superiority as it separates itself from the previous hardware according to marketing communication up until that point. This came to an abrupt end once it became clear that video games that were believed to be PS5 exclusive were also making their way to the PS4. For PlayStation fans: life comes at you fast.

This is not the first time that video games cross generations though, so why all the rage? Many are citing a specific interview in which PlayStation boss Jim Ryan lays claimed to believe in "generations." Alluding to the idea that jumping from PS3 to PS4 and now PS5, the experience and games should be unique and built primarily for such hardware and its feature set.

However, when we go back to that interview, and dig deeper to what was actually said, Ryan's quote might have been misinterpreted by everyone. Us included. Take a look for yourself.

"We believe that when you go to all the trouble of creating a next-gen console, that it should include features and benefits that the previous generation does not include. And that, in our view, people should make games that can make the most of those features."

Now, if we're looking at this for what it actually is (mostly marketing mumbo jumbo), Ryan could very well be referring to features and benefits like the adaptive triggers in the new DualSense controller and 3D audio. Both are features that (technically) change the experience and are not included in the previous gen. It may not be what early adopters want to hear, as we enter this cross-generation phase, but it could the real intention of the quote.

The reality here is that there are over 100 million PS4 consoles out in the world. This is a number that – from a business perspective – PlayStation (and Sony) simply cannot ignore. I know this is a hard pill to swallow but it's a very real one.

Over the last two generations, PlayStation has become the unofficial champion of the single-player story-driven exclusive video game. As titles like God of War, Uncharted 4, and The Last of Us Part II, get increasingly larger and more expensive to make (not to mention their four year development times), these kinds of games are still huge gambles for PlayStation in a video game climate still dominated by multiplayer online shooters and annual sports simulators.

In order for us to see more new single-player exclusives like Bloodborne, Ghost of Tsushima, and Horizon: Zero Dawn on our shiny new PS5, these titles can't just break even or bring in "OK" sales. They need to be absolute hits for PlayStation. As we enter cross-generation territory, PlayStation needs to put upcoming hits like Spider-Man: Miles Morales and the Horizon sequel on as many consoles as possible. The only way to do that is by including the existing PS4 base.

If you were planning to grab a PS5 day one, only to feel burned after the showcase or finally pre-ordering, you shouldn't. Especially if you own a PS4. You still have ample time to cancel your pre-order and hold out until "true" PS5 exclusives start arriving, hopefully with the next God of War in 2021. Avoid leaning into the narrative of deceptive marketing on PlayStation's part regarding the PS5: the PS4 and its huge user base is just too successful to ignore.

PS5 will be available on November 12, 2020 — if you haven't managed to grab your pre-order yet, keep an eye on Amazon to get the console.

The post PS5 Is Not Being Held Back, PS4 Is Too Successful to Ignore by Joel Taveras appeared first on DualShockers.