Street Fighter 5: Champion Edition Trailer Showcases Dan Hibiki
As Tokyo Game Show 2020 Online rolls on, Capcom's Street Fighter 5: Champion Edition has received a new trailer focusing on the next DLC character. It's the series' comic relief icon Dan Hibiki and the preview details the various moves that he's capable of. Check it out below.
As a training partner to Ryu and Ken, Dan is fairly over-confident in his own skills. Though he's capable of a variety of movies, like the rapid kicks following a knee strike, he can also unleash a Shoryuken. Of course, Dan can also unleash his trademark "taunt" complete with lots more rolling.
As part of the Season 5 Pass, Dan will be available this Winter. Other characters include Rose from the Street Fighter Alpha series; Oro from Street Fighter 3; and Akira Kazama from Rival Schools. An as-of-yet unrevealed character will also be releasing in Fall 2021 so stay tuned for more details in the coming year.
Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity Gameplay Footage Revealed, Young Impa Confirmed Playable
Koei Tecmo revealed some new gameplay footage of Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity during its Tokyo Game Show 2020 Online showcase. The gameplay will look very familiar to fans of Musou games and Breath of the Wild as Link engages with hordes of foes on the plains of Hyrule. Check it out below (from 1:23:51 onwards).
A new trailer was also released, offering a look at Impa at a younger age. As a Seeker, Impa serves as an aide to Hyrule Castle and is friends with Zelda. As a playable character, she relies on Sheikah techniques like explosive tags and temporary clones. It's a fairly interesting playstyle that will remind one of the Yiga Clan's troops.
Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity releases on November 20th for Nintendo Switch. It's set 100 years before the events of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild with Link, Zelda and the Champions battling against Calamity Ganon's forces. Stay tuned for more details en route to its release.
Super Mario 3D All-Stars Review – The Bare Minimum
Super Mario 3D All-Stars includes arguably some of the best games ever made, all put together in one $60 package. On the basis of that alone, it's worth buying. The chance to play stone cold classics such as Super Mario Galaxy, or games as important to the development of the medium as Super Mario 64, on a modern system, with no hassle, and on the go, is a fundamentally appetizing prospect. Inasmuch as you have any interest in platformers, Mario, or even just the evolution of video games as a medium, this collection is worth it.
Even if you're only interested in one of the three included games, I'd argue it's worth it to have a version of said game on a modern console; however, things get a bit tricky once you stop taking this package as a whole, and start to break it down into its individual constituents.
First off, let's talk about the quality of the games themselves, before anything else. It's astonishing how well they hold up. Super Mario 64 is obviously the most aged here, and has a lot of jank you will need to come to terms with at first. However, once you're past the initial hump, it's honestly astonishing how incredibly well it holds up today. Super Mario 64 is the direct forebear of just about every single 3D game on the market today – so the jank and roughness was expected, given that literally every game since has had a chance to build on it. What wasn't expected was just how delightfully well the core design of the game holds up. Nintendo has arguably the best game designers on the planet – and it should come as no surprise that they were as inventive or creative while literally pioneering an entire dimension as they were in Super Mario 64.
"Even if you're only interested in one of the three included games, I'd argue it's worth it to have a version of said game on a modern console; however, things get a bit tricky once you stop taking this package as a whole, and start to break it down into its individual constituents."
That roughness can make it tough for a newcomer to jump in, however. Super Mario 64's camera, in particular, is pretty bad, and the camera controls for the original game were mapped to the Nintendo 64's four C buttons – meaning it was controlled digitally. In this Switch version, those C button controls have been mapped to the right analog stick as is, meaning you're using an analog stick for digital camera control, which can cause a lot of frustration when things don't work the way you are naturally inclined to expect them to.
These camera issues only get in the way of what, as I have already explained, is a game that holds up marvelously well in just about every regard. From its level design to the actual movement controls for Mario, Super Mario 64 has aged far better than most games of its era – and honestly, far better than a lot of games of subsequent eras too.
Super Mario Sunshine is a controversial game; it has been that since its initial launch, and is now widely regarded as the lowest point of the 3D Mario series. There are very valid reasons to have issues with Mario Sunshine, from its frustratingly obtuse objectives (which stand in stark contrast to how effortlessly and intuitively the other games in the series communicate what they expect from the player) to some extremely fiddly platforming – platforming that, to be honest, is made a bit worse because of Nintendo having to map Sunshine's analog trigger controls to a console which lacks them entirely. So here we have those controls mapped to the right analog stick (again), with some complicated and contrived control schemes to achieve the varying levels of pressure you could achieve with Mario's water backpack FLUDD.
Gameplay aside, there are other problems with Sunshine that very clearly mark it as a product of a time when Nintendo was in an existential transition, and not yet sure what direction the company would take in the future. For instance, Super Mario Sunshine remains to date the only Mario game with full voice acting (and yes, it is every bit as unsettling as you would expect), which is no better today than it was in 2002.
"From its level design to the actual movement controls for Mario, Super Mario 64 has aged far better than most games of its era – and honestly, far better than a lot of games of subsequent eras too."
But for all its considerable shortcomings, Super Mario Sunshine has a lot of merits that shine brighter now with the benefit of hindsight – it has some of the sharpest platforming in the series (once you get used to the controls, at any rate), with FLUDD being an extremely versatile addition to Mario's repertoire of movies; it is the only Mario game to date to take place entirely in one location, and having a cohesive theme like that really adds to the game's sense of atmosphere and charm. Delfino Island's various locations make for some delightful sandboxes, and if and once you have made your peace with the controls, allow for some of the most expressive platforming in the series.
Sunshine, one way or the other, is definitely the weakest link of this package, however, at least in terms of the core game's quality. There are obviously fans, and I am sure they will be delighted by the ability to finally play it on a modern system (Sunshine had been stranded on the GameCube until this release), and I am glad this update exists for them, however, if nothing else.
Which brings us to Super Mario Galaxy.
Super Mario Galaxy is arguably the greatest game ever made. It was widely acclaimed as that when it first launched, it was reinforced as that when its sequel (mysteriously missing from this collection) launched, and it stands tall even today, 13 years after its initial release. Super Mario Galaxy can almost justify the $60 for this collection by itself. It's a remarkably special game, with impeccable controls and some of the best level design in the medium's history. Super Mario Galaxy has some of the most stirring vistas in any game ever, brought to life by an ageless art style that holds up incredibly well, and one of the all time great soundtracks . It's even the most story focused Mario game ever – and while obviously it's no The Last of Us, it has some genuinely moving story developments centered around the new character Rosalina, as well as some surprisingly dark developments later in the story.
In every way possible, Super Mario Galaxy holds up. It could be released as is today, and it would still be better than most games currently on the market, including most of Nintendo's own. It is a work of creative genius, put out by a development team at the peak of its powers, and it is absolutely unbelievable how incredibly well this game has held up, especially given how poorly most other games of that era aged. With Super Mario Galaxy, there are very few to no shortcomings I can nitpick at – it is an absolutely marvelous game.
"In every way possible, Super Mario Galaxy holds up. It could be released as is today, and it would still be better than most games currently on the market, including most of Nintendo's own."
Thankfully, it's the game that has gotten the most care in this package as well. Nintendo has updated the game's resolution, and it is now running at widescreen (while maintaining its original 60fps framerate). The game's pointer controls have been mapped to the Switch's gyro (in console mode) and touch screen (in handheld mode). Neither are, to be honest, optimal, but the pointer controls were deemphasized enough in the original game to never feel too obtrusive to begin with – so their implementation in this new package doesn't really detract from Galaxy's underlying brilliance in any way.
Super Mario Sunshine has also seen some work. It, too, has been updated to run in widescreen, with some upgraded textures, and as mentioned previously, the controls have been rethought (to mixed results). Unfortunately, the rest of the upgrades are minimal – Nintendo has not, for example, taken this chance to update the game's framerate to 60fps (the original infamously ran at 30fps, in spite of being marketed at 60fps all the way through to its release); however, even Sunshine's barebones updates feel far beyond what Super Mario 64 got, which feels like an almost a direct dump. It's not even running in widescreen, the updates to the textures and graphics are minimal to none, and like I mentioned earlier, even the camera controls haven't been reworked from their original digital implementation. Super Mario 64 is also the original, N64 version of the game, missing all the improvements and additions that Super Mario 64 DS brought to the table.
This shocking lack of effort is actually endemic to this whole collection – I've so far stuck to discussing the games themselves, and the games are amazing, but if we are to view this as a collection of remasters, released to celebrate a milestone anniversary for the single biggest and most important gaming franchise there is, it comes up horrifically short. You don't even need to view it as a celebratory collection, in fact – even compared to the recent Crash or Spyro releases, which remade the original games, gave them loving facelifts, and sold at $40, Super Mario 3D All Stars feels almost insultingly lacking in so many ways.
"I've so far stuck to discussing the games themselves, and the games are amazing, but if we are to view this as a collection of remasters, released to celebrate a milestone anniversary for the single biggest and most important gaming franchise there is, it comes up horrifically short."
Unlike many other legacy collections, there are very few to no extras here – you don't get any bonus features such as save states, you don't get any cool concept art, you don't get any special features or insights into development, there's really nothing other than the games themselves – and their respective soundtracks, which can be accessed directly from the main menu (and can even be played with your Switch in sleep mode, turning it into a makeshift portable music player. Nifty). And the soundtracks are amazing – you won't find me complaining about the ability to listen to Gusty Garden Galaxy on an infinite loop. But it's still disappointing that this is all we get – again, this is a full priced celebratory collection to commemorate a landmark milestone for the most important franchise in gaming. And this is what we get? Three games, two of which are barely touched up or updated, and no other content?
So this review is really a tale of two entirely opposing assessments – inasmuch as you just care about the core quality of the games, this is unbeatable value, because even without much in the way of updates, the games hold up, and are great to play through. If you look at it as a collection of re-releases, even without the whole anniversary celebration context, it comes up short, and looks positively offensive next to how great (and cheap) other similar releases have been.
Obviously, it's still worth buying – as I said, Galaxy alone justifies the price of admission, and throwing in 64 and Sunshine on top of that is just overkill. But if it is worth buying, it is no thanks to any merits of this collection in and of itself – Nintendo is, ultimately, coasting off of the back of some amazing work it did more than a decade ago to sell what is ultimately a disappointingly barebones, facile celebration of gaming's most important icon who truly deserves better.
This game was reviewed on Nintendo Switch.
While it's been a big week in general for the industry between the pre-orders going live for the Xbox Series S and X as well as the start of the Tokyo Game Show 2020, the biggest news kicked off the week with the announcement that Microsoft was purchasing third party publisher Bethesda alongside all of its studios and IPs. It was a head spinning piece of news, no doubt, and a lot of questions remain, with the biggest one being that of exclusivity: will Bethesda games remain multiplatform or will they be exclusive to the Xbox ecosystem? Well, Phil Spencer isn't saying for sure, but he's got some comments that you can take at least a few ways.
Talking with Yahoo Finance, Spencer was asked outright if Bethesda titles would be exclusives or if they would come to other platforms. He largely dodged the question, saying it would be a case-by-case basis, but did say that he saw the move as a huge get for Game Pass, which will see Bethesda titles on the service day 1 after the deal is finalized, and that the Xbox community should see it as an investment in their ecosystem, and that he wanted that ecosystem to be the absolutely best place to play those games (thanks to Twitter user GameRy for the full clip as seen below).
"But as the Xbox community, what they should feel is this is a huge investment in the experiences they are gonna have in the Xbox ecosystem. And we want the Xbox ecosystem to be absolutely the best place to play and we think game availability is absolutely part of that."
You can look at that statement several ways, but the part about the Xbox ecosystem seems to be pointing to the games being only in that ecosystem, though there are other ways it could be the 'absolute' best way to play from exclusive DLC to more technical aspects like resolution or graphical features. It was said that Bethesda will continue publishing games under their umbrella, but it remains unclear how much freedom that will actually equate to, though it did give some hope that the games could still release on Sony and Nintendo systems. While it still is up in the air, I wouldn't hold my breath about seeing the next Elder Scrolls or DOOM on a competitor's machine.
For anyone that missed Phil Spencer on Yahoo Finance yesterday talk about potential #Bethesda exclusives, here is the video clip:#Xbox pic.twitter.com/km3LNe2ZsV
— GameRy (@GameRy89) September 25, 2020
Resident Evil Village Gets Developer Insights Trailer Alongside New Art For Chris And Ethan
Next year will see the eighth mainline entry in the long running survival horror series, Resident Evil Village. The game will once again see you taking the first person perceptive as you find yourself in a dangerous European village filled with all kinds of creatures you'd come to expect from the series. On Sunday, September 27th, we'll see a large scale presentation for the game at TGS 2020, but ahead of that, we got a little taste.
Capcom released a new video called Developer Insights about the game's development. Most of it focused on how the team is taking a lot of elements from the previous title, Resident Evil 7, and expanding on them for the sequel. A lot of focus is on the main character as well, Ethan Winters, who is returning from 7, which matches up well with rumors that Ethan will have more of a personality and presence in this title. They also graced us with some nice new renders of Ethan and Christ. You can see all of this below.
Resident Evil Village will release sometime in 2021 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S and PC. Capcom has said they plan to look into also porting the title to PS4 and Xbox One, but as of now those versions have not been officially announced.
Xbox Series X, Series S Pre-orders Sold Out Quickly In Japan
The Xbox Series X and Series S are coming in November, but pre-orders went live earlier this week. Microsoft says there's been "record-breaking" demand, and it seems largely pre-orders have seen sell outs by and large. That even includes one region that some maybe wouldn't have expected to see an instant sell out.
As reported by VGC, major retailers in Japanese sold out of the Series X in roughly 20 minutes, with the Series S stock going quickly roughly an hour later. Of course, one might imagine that the actual stock being allocated to the region is pretty low due to the market share they have, and without solid numbers it's impossible to know what that was, but hey, it's not a bad start to sell out of your stock anyway you cut it. I personally like to imagine Xbox Japan's newest mascot inspired this surge, but that is just me.
Both the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S will launch on November 10th with pre-orders live now in all regions, if you can find them.
Monster Hunter Rise Gets New Gameplay Footage Via TGS 2020
Last week came quite the bombshell from Nintendo with a Direct announcing not one, but two, brand new Monster Hunter titles coming to the Switch. One was the more story-focused RPG Monster Hunter Stories 2 due out Summer 2021 with the other being the more classic looking Monster Hunter Rise. While both caught the eyes of fans, Rise especially did since it saw the return of what appears to be a more traditional Monster Hunter to the handheld space after World went to consoles. And now, we've got more footage to check out.
Capcom saw fit to release a new online trailer for the game during TGS 2020, which you can see below. The first part is reused footage from the reveal trailer, with new footage kicking in at about 1:40. Most of it is more highlighting of the wirebug feature that allows you to swing as well as the new Palamute companion. Check it out below.
Monster Hunter Rise will release on Nintendo Switch on March 26th, 2021. The game is also said to be running on Capcom's latest RE Engine, which you can read more about through here.
Mass Effect Trilogy Remaster Delayed To 2021 Due To More Work Being Done On First Game – Rumor
For months now, there have been rumors of an upcoming collection that sees remasters of the Mass Effect trilogy, BioWare's massive and acclaimed RPG series from last gen. Several retailer listings have been popping up recently, giving hope that the fabled remaster could be coming by year's end. Alas, if new rumors are to be believed, it is not to be.
As reported by Jeff Grubb at VentureBeat, the collection has been delayed until sometime next year. The main reason behind it is due to the team wanting to do more work on the first game. If you aren't too familiar with the series, the first game is quite different to its sequels mechanically, and Grubb says they don't want people to be disappointed in the collection as a whole based on the impression of that first game. He claims its an issue with both the graphics and the gameplay, seeming to imply they might do some rehauling to the latter. He also mentions that one aspect that will be dropped from the trilogy completely is the multiplayer aspect that came with Mass Effect 3.
Grubb has been the primary source of the Mass Effect rumor, even saying that its title will be the Legendary Edition, so as with all of these rumors, take it as it is. Fans have been waiting quite some time to revisit those classic titles, so they will have to wait just a tad longer if all is to be believed.
Destiny 2: Beyond Light Requires Re-Downloading Base Game
Bungie will be revamping Destiny 2 significantly when Beyond Light, its next big expansion, releases in November. Much of the past content, from entire destinations to DLC campaigns, will be going into the Destiny Content Vault. This approach was taken due to the base game becoming too bloated.
What improvements will Bungie have though? In its latest weekly blog, it noted that Destiny 2 would have to be re-downloaded. The overall install size will be reduced by 30 to 40 percent thanks to the Destiny Content Vault along with optimizations and removing unused content. Overall, the install size should be between 59 to 71 GB depending on one's platform.
Beyond Light will be available for pre-load on November 9th, allowing players with slower connections to have it ready by launch. Destiny 2: Beyond Light is out on November 10th for Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, PC, Google Stadia, PS4 and PS5. It will also be available for Xbox Game Pass subscribers (though they won't have access to any seasonal content).
Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time – Checkpoint Race and Crate Combo Revealed in New Video
After a recent leak, it's now confirmed that Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time will have local multiplayer modes. IGN released the first ever gameplay video showcasing competitive modes like Checkpoint Race and Crate Combo. We also get a look at Fake Crash and Fake Coco. Check 'em out below.
Multiplayer is divided into two categories – competitive and co-op. While the competitive modes see up to four players battling it out for the highest score, co-op via Pass N. Play mode works differently. Players will tackle the story levels, whether it's their regular or N. Verted versions, taking turns throughout. It's not quite the same as having multiple players on-screen at once but it's intriguing.
Gameplay footage for Pass N. Play should be revealed in the coming days so stay tuned. Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time releases on October 2nd for Xbox One and PS4. Though the website's code pointed towards a Nintendo Switch version, Activision has yet to announce the same.