Bravely Default 2 to Receive New Information Soon

Naoki Ikushima Bravely Default 2 Octopath Traveler feature

According to a brand new message from the official Bravely Default Twitter account, more information about Bravely Default 2 will be forthcoming in the near future. The account asks fans to wait for said information:

This is especially great news as recently it was revealed that the title has entered the final stages of its development, also according to the official Japanese Twitter account. However, there was some negative news that came with this as fans of the mobile entry of the series, Bravely Default Fairy's Effect, was told that service would end on August 31th of this year.

Franchise Producer Tomoya Asano and returning composer Revo previously delved into the latest installment in the series between Twitter and Nintendo's official Japanese site and how much they looked forward to said entry.

Famitsu published an interview with the Producers Tomoya Asano and Masashi Takahashi, a duo who previously worked together on the Bravely Series and on Octopath Traveler. The interview focuses on how past games of these series influenced its development. "Before explaining more about Bravely Default 2′s name in this interview, I'd like to apologize to the fans about Bravely Second. There were parts of that game that didn't meet the many expectations fans had. The development team deeply reflected on Bravely Second's problems and it showed in all our following projects. After that they explain how this influenced the development of Octopath Traveler, and then the success of Fairy's Effect gave the team the tailwind they needed to make an entirely new title.

You can read up on our impressions of the demo here. If you're curious to see how the previous games hold up, check out both my reviews of Bravely Default and Bravely Second: End Layer here and here. Bravely Default 2 will be coming to Nintendo Switch sometime in 2020.

The post Bravely Default 2 to Receive New Information Soon by Allisa James appeared first on DualShockers.

Crucible Permanently Shutters Only Five Months After Launch

Crucible

When the Crucible was delisted back to closed beta back in early July after its initial launch on May 20th, there seemed to be a chance of improvement as the devs collected and evaluated plenty of player feedback since. According to Relentless Studios, "One of the biggest changes you'll see is that we're going to schedule dedicated time each week when we as devs will be playing with the community and soliciting feedback." But a recent update for the game put a damper on things.

According to what is being called the final update by the development team: "…our next step was to evaluate the feedback we've heard from you, paired with the data we've collected, to determine our path forward. That evaluation led us to a difficult decision: we'll be discontinuing development on Crucible."

The reason for such a drastic decision? The team "didn't see a healthy, sustainable future ahead of Crucible" after all the data it gleaned from players during the closed beta period. So once the custom games feature is launched for current players, the devs will instead be putting their focus towards New World and other Amazon Games titles.

But the shutoff won't be as sudden as you think. Within the next few weeks, they'll host a final playtest and community celebration, both in-game and in the official Discord. After that point matchmaking will be disabled, although players can still play Crucible through the custom games feature until the shutdown date of November 9th at 12pm PT.

Crucible was developed by Relentless Studios, a Seattle-based development team of Amazon Games. The studio is led by Louis Castle, co-founder of Westwood Studios, and has plenty of industry veterans with previous experience at companies including Activision Blizzard, ArenaNet, Electronic Arts, and Xbox. Crucible was the first of two major titles from Amazon Games in 2020, followed by the launch of New World in August 2020.

Read up on our preview of the game here to see what it played like back when it first launched.

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Sega Anniversary Steam Sale Slashes Prices Up To 95 Percentage, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 Completely Free

Sega, Sonic Mania Plus SEGA

Sega announced a massive sale on Steam, offering up to 95 percent off for tons of Sega titles such as Sonic Mania, Sonic Adventure DX, Yakuza Kiwami 2, Persona 4 Golden, Catherine, Bayonetta, and tons more. The sale, as detailed in the official tweet below, is in celebration of the company's 60th anniversary:

https://twitter.com/SEGA/status/1314626686290407426?s=20

CEO Haruki Satomi announced at TGS 2020, at the Sega Fan Meet-up 2020, a new project titled Virtua Fighter x Esports Project. A teaser trailer was published and can be found below. In the reveal tweet, Sega mentions the Virtua Fighter series is coming back for the 60th anniversary of the company, meaning the "Virtua Fighter X Esports Project" will include at least a brand new Virtua Fighter game. Additional details will be coming at a later date.

Sega announced on September 27th, the last day of TGS 2020, that the Yakuza series will receive a Hollywood movie adaptation. The announcement was made by Toshihiro Nagoshi, during the SegaNama TGS 2020 special stream. Toshihiro Nagoshi said detailed information on the movie will be coming at a later date. However, Nagoshi stressed out "Since we're doing it, we might as well make it great. We wouldn't make it without ensuring we'll be satisfied with the result." This is what the "latest information on the Yakuza series" turned out to be. Previously Sega stated that they wouldn't reveal a new Yakuza game during the event.

In other news Kenji Hiruta, ex-developer on Skies of Arcadia at Sega, took to his official Twitter account for the game's 20th anniversary. There he most notably mentioned that either a sequel, HD remaster, or a new game project for Skies of Arcadia would depend on Sega. However, many fans were are also sharing their memories of Eternal Arcadia through fanmade content such like fanart and cosplay on Twitter via the hashtag #エターナルアルカディア20周年. An Eternal Arcadia 20th anniversary fan site has been set up as well.

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Guilty Gear Strive Release Date Set For April 9 On PS5, PS4, PC Via Steam

Guilty Gear Strive Release Date

ArcSystemWorks announced at the "Guilty Gear Strive Official Live Stream New Info Special" on October 11 the release date of Guilty Gear Strive, coming to PC via Steam, PS4 and PS5. The release date trailer is included below. Two Limited Edition for Guilty Gear Strive will be launching on April 6, 2021, and the Standard Edition will launch on April 9, 2021. A Season Pass 1 was announced well. The stream also revealed a brand new Guilty Gear Strive character, Giovanna. And Anji is back.

The first limited edition, the Deluxe Edition, includes a copy of Guilty Gear Strive, and the Season Pass 1. The bigger, pricier limited edition, the Ultimate Edition, includes the contents of the Deluxe Edition plus a digital artbook, a digital OST, and special colors for the characters.

Guilty Gear Strive Release Date Guilty Gear Strive Release Date 2 Guilty Gear Strive Release Date Guilty Gear Strive Release Date

The Standard Edition will be physical and digital, with a price of 8580 Yen (tax included). The Deluxe Edition is digital only, for 11,550 Yen (tax included). The Ultimate Edition is physical and digital, for 13, 750 Yen (tax included), and is only on PS4 and PS5, not on Steam.

Early players starting April 6 will only be able to play 13 characters, the offline modes, and the story mode's prologues. Starting April 9 when the game releases for everyone, everything will be available, with 15 characters in total: Anji and another character to be announced.

Contents of the Guilty Gear Strive Season Pass 1:

・ 5 additional playable characters
・ Additional battle stages (2 stages)
・ Additional color pack (5 colors for each character)
・ Another story (looks to be a new storymode chapter)

Additional details on the Guilty Gear Strive Season Pass 1 and the release date for each character will be announced later. Moreover, the name "Season Pass 1" means that another Season Pass will be coming in the future.

Preorders / first print copies will also include special colors for Sol and Ky. Each rival takes the color of the other, including the effects of their attacks. See for example two Sol fighting each other, one with Ky's colors:

Guilty Gear Strive Release Date 5 preorder bonus sol ky color swap

A new Beta Test will also be held in early 2021, and those who pre ordered the game digitally on PSN will get to play this test one day earlier. Specific dates will be announced at a later date.

The new trailer also reveals the story mode in Guilty Gear Strive is fully 3D animated.

Guilty Gear Strive Release Date Trailer:

A brand new Guilty Gear manga was announced as well. It's drawn by Sumeragi, who also did the BlazBlue manga with Mai Natsume: BlazBlue: Remix Heart, and its sequel Variable Heart.

Music Videos for new Guilty Gear Strive songs were published as well:

GUILTY GEAR -STRIVE- Smell of the Game:

What do you fight for:

In Japanese arcades, multiple Location Test for Guilty Gear Strive will be held as well.

Lastly, it was also confirmed the game's story will follow the Guilty Gear Xrd story. Those who enjoy the Guilty Gear story line can also now catch up on the Xrd story on YouTube, with all the cutscenes getting officially uploaded bit by bit.

New goods and collabs were announced, Guilty Gear Seiko watches, Guilty Gear perfume by Fairy Tail, and a Dizzy nendo by GoodSmile Company is coming:

The post Guilty Gear Strive Release Date Set For April 9 On PS5, PS4, PC Via Steam by Iyane Agossah appeared first on DualShockers.

Guilty Gear Strive Reveals Brand New Character Giovanna and Anji Comeback

Guilty Gear Strive Giovanna

On October 11, ArcSystemWorks, at the "Guilty Gear Latest Information Live Stream Special" revealed a brand new character for Guilty Gear Strive, Giovanna. Her trailer, included further below, also teases that another character, Anji Mito, is coming back. Anji is a classic Guilty Gear character who wasn't present in the previous iteration, Guilty Gear Xrd. It's his big comeback. The next trailer is scheduled for January 1, 2021.

Here's the official profile for Giovanna in Guilty Gear Strive:

Name: Giovana (voiced by: Mayumi Shintani)
Height: 170 cm
Weight: 62 kg
Blood type: O type
Date of Birth: November 6th
Birthplace: Brazil
Hobbies: Looking at the moon
What she treasures: REI (her wolf spirit companion), her professionalism
Dislikes: The smell of cigarettes and alcohol

Giovanna is the bodyguard of the President of the United States. Giovanna is always superficially polite but rude in intent. She's a good person in the inside though, and is always nice to children and animals. When fighting, she is possessed by her wolf spirit companion Rei, granting her inhuman strength and speed.

Guilty Gear Strive Giovanna Guilty Gear Strive Giovanna Guilty Gear Strive Giovanna Guilty Gear Strive Giovanna

13 characters have been revealed so far in Guilty Gear Strive, and the game will have 15 characters at launch. Another brand new character is Nagoriyuki, revealed in the previous trailer. On the new stream, it was revealed Nagoriyuki is voiced by Taiten Kusunoki. A short voice clip was played. Daisuke Ishiwatari and the ArcSystemWorks staff on stream said his voice was recorded only a week ago.

Recently, a Guilty Gear Xrd player made a pretty cool video using Rhythm Game mechanics to teach combos.

Guilty Gear Strive is coming to PC via Steam, PS4 and PS5, and has no specific release date yet besides early 2021. Stay tuned as the stream is still ongoing, with exhibition matches between Fenritti, GO1, and Dogura. Cosplayer Chloe Yuki is present as well and did a pretty cute Millia Rage cosplay.

The post Guilty Gear Strive Reveals Brand New Character Giovanna and Anji Comeback by Iyane Agossah appeared first on DualShockers.

Sega Dreamcast Mini, More Mini Consoles Teased In Famitsu Magazine, Next Mini Console Won't Release Before 2022

sega dreamcast mini story famitsu feature sakura taisen 3

This week's Famitsu magazine, released on October 8, and officially titled the Weekly Famitsu Magazine October 22, 2020, Issue, includes a special interview for the release of the Game Gear Micro, where the subject of a Dreamcast Mini was brought up.

The interview is with two key persons of the Game Gear Micro project: Classic Hardware Producer Yousuke Okunari, who also led the Mega Drive Mini project, and Products Sales Department Team Manager Aiko Matsuda, who most notably makes many Sega goods.

Throughout the four pages long interview, Yousuke Okunari and Aiko Matsuda explained the Mega Drive Mini was supposed to be the only project of this kind Sega wanted to finalize. But seeing the console's positive reception and achievements worldwide, Sega decided to let Okunari make more Mini projects. The Game Gear Micro project is the first step and the first challenge the team faces, and it needs to be a success for the project to continue and for Okunari to keep making Mini console proposals to the Sega higher-ups.

Yousuke Okunari is technically an outsider not from Sega. He most notably mentioned that the Astro City Mini, announced in July 2020 for a December release, was actually in planning phase inside Sega for far longer than the Mega Drive Mini. What pushed the Astro City Mini project forward was the success of the Mega Drive Mini.

In the interview, Yousuke Okunari explained every Sega hardware is under consideration for future Mini console plans. It doesn't necessarily mean every single console will get a Mini version, but everything is on the table:

Yousuke Okunari: "If you asked me "what are you planning to do now?", our project is just starting so I'd answer "we're in the planning stages, considering every console for possible Mini consoles". Sega fans are all imagining which Mini console we'll do next, but you should know that we're considering them all. Of course, It doesn't mean we'll actually make them all. But it also means we're considering things Sega fans wouldn't even imagine."

Yousuke Okunari also explained everything comes down to money, and that the next Mini console will be a bigger, worldwide project. As such, it will take longer to release. The next Mini console will not release around that time of the year in 2021. However, it will be announced in around a year, if everything goes well:

Yousuke Okunari: "In the Hardware business, a considerable amount of money moves when starting a project, so at first we'll proceed with the most realistic plan. Game Gear Micro is only sold domestically, so we were able to make it fast. I think our next project will be on a bigger, worldwide scale. So this means the next Mini won't release around that time in 2021, as in only two years after the Mega Drive Mini. We can't make it that fast (laughs). In any case, if everything goes well, we'll be able to make announcements around that time of year in 2021."

Then, Yousuke Okunari brought up a Dreamcast Mini. However, he stressed out it might not necessarily be the next Mini console Sega releases. They're literally considering everything:

Yousuke Okunari: "Probably, the new Mini console we'll make will be similar in concept to the Mega Drive Mini. Maybe it'll be the SG-1000 Mini, maybe it'll be the Dreamcast Mini…"

Famitsu Journalist: "Or maybe it'll be the R360 Mini".

Yousuke Okunari: "That's what I mean (laughs). Right now, maybe even an Inu no Osanpo Mini might be green lighted".

That's all the important bits from the interview.

Announced at the Sega Fes 2018 alongside the new PS4 Sakura Taisen game, the Mega Drive Mini released in September 2019 and was a worldwide success.

The Game Gear Micro (four different types with different games) was announced for the Sega 60th anniversary celebrations in June 2020, and was released exclusively in Japan on October 6.

The Dreamcast was the final console released by Sega in 1998, and was home to many incredible games such as Eternal Arcadia, which celebrated its 20th anniversary on October 5, 2020.

The R360 is a motion-based arcade cabinet released by Sega in Japan in 1990. It had two games, G-LOC: Air Battle, and Wing War. A new version of G-LOC: Air Battle was released on Switch in 2020 as part of Sega Ages.

Inu no Osanpo is a dog walking simulation released on Sega Naomi in 2001, exclusively in Japan. The Naomi is long story short the arcade version of the Dreamcast.

Lastly, it's important to note the Sega Saturn, the console preceding the Dreamcast, didn't get a Mini version yet. Okunari stressed out they'll go with the plan that will make the most money though, so they might not necessarily follow release order, and might go for Dreamcast Mini next. In any case, this is definitely exciting. If nothing goes wrong, in 2021 around that time of the year, Sega should announce the next Mini console. I'm looking forward to it.

The post Sega Dreamcast Mini, More Mini Consoles Teased In Famitsu Magazine, Next Mini Console Won't Release Before 2022 by Iyane Agossah appeared first on DualShockers.

Genshin Impact Community Team Puts Out Feedback Survey, Now You Can Complain About 5 Star Gacha Rates

Genshin Impact Cyno

The Genshin Impact community team has put out a nice feedback survey for fans, so now you can complain about how awful the five star pull rates are. Oh, and give the development team useful feedback on the game itself, I guess.

Most of the survey asks about the official fanpage on Facebook, about opinions on official images and keyart. There are also sections at the end that allow for additional comments, for if you have anything outside of those parameters to leave feedback on. You can fill out the full survey here if you're interested in giving feedback to the Genshin Impact team.

Soon after publishing the future update schedule for Genshin Impact, available now on PC, PS4, iOS, and Android, miHoYo in another post announced multiple upgrades are coming with Version 1.1. Said update will add an encyclopedia to tell you how to obtain certain items, future updates will add a shortcut to eat food, UI improvements, and more. This update is expected to release on November 11th.

App Annie reports that on mobile devices alone, Genshin Impact has already surpassed 17 million downloads in total. These numbers were taken through the game's first four days of availability as well, which means that the total has surely increased over the weekend. Under the assumption that downloads on mobile continued at a similar rate to the first four days, this likely means that Genshin Impact is somewhere around 20 million downloads solely on mobile.

Soon after its launch, multiple Japanese players claimed the game's anti cheat program mhyprot2 was spyware. miHoYo, however, published an official statement denying the allegations and explained where the bug stems from.

In order to learn more on Genshin Impact, DualShockers recently interviewed the development team at miHoYo. We most notably received details regarding miHoYo's creative process for the game, and hints for future updates. You can check out that interview here.

Genshin Impact launched on September 28th on iOS, Android, PC, and PS4. A Switch version is also in development. You can  with our past coverage. Most notably how while online coop is cross platform, only mobile and PC players can cross save. Meanwhile, PS4 accounts can only stay on PS4. The development team teased additional systems are coming, including Photo Mode.

The post Genshin Impact Community Team Puts Out Feedback Survey, Now You Can Complain About 5 Star Gacha Rates by Allisa James appeared first on DualShockers.

Guilty Gear Xrd Fan Creates Handy Rhythm Game Style Combo Tutorial Video

arc system works, Guilty Gear Xrd Rev 2, PS3, PS4

Many fighting game fans will tell you how much they often struggle with button combos, since at times the combo strings can be ridiculously complex and even harder to time properly. However, one Guilty Gear Xrd fan by the name of Starsky has opened our eyes to how these combos can be displayed to be far more intuitive. Check out the video below:

The full video can also be viewed here. And for those who want to make their own, Starsky offers tips on the process:

I truly hope that fighting game devs take note of the potential of this interface and how much it can aid players. Or at the very least hire this person to do it for them.

Recently Arc System Works confirmed that the title will feature rollback netcode after much fan request. Most recently during the Japan Fighting Game Publisher's Roundtable livestream fighters Leo Whitefang and Nagoriyuki were announced for the title. Two other trailers revealed Ramlethal Valentine as well as Millia Rage and Zato=1. So far we know that the previously announced characters are the protagonist Sol Badguy and Ky Kiske, Axl Low and May, and Chipp Zanuff and Potemkin.

During the stage event dedicated to Guilty Gear at Tokyo Game Show 2019, Daisuke Ishiwatari and Akira Katano explained how they particularly detailed the characters' facial animations and how it's basically "3D Sakuga." You can really see that with the tons of different expressions the characters emote during their attacks and supers. At that same event, they also mentioned that the stage change mechanic has actual gameplay mechanics embedded into it. We've translated the full event here if you want to read more.

Guilty Gear -STRIVE- was first teased during EVO 2019. Daisuke Ishiwatari, the General Director, stated how the new Guilty Gear game isn't an "evolution" of the series, nor a return to its roots," but instead a "complete rebuild of the franchise." Instead of adding or removing elements compared to the previous games, he described the development as completely breaking it down, picking up everything that made the series charming and unique, and rebuilding it with those components.

Ishiwatari then mentioned that this new Guilty Gear game is a "big challenge which will go head to head against the essence of fighting games." He added that going this route is a risky bet, but they're confident they can pull it off and bring out new possibilities, using all the experience and materials they've accumulated so far. He ended the message saying he believes games are bridges which can connect people, so he hopes this new Guilty Gear will reflect this idea.

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New Sackboy: A Big Adventure Trailer Details the Game's Story

Sackboy: A Big Adventure, PS4, PS5, Sumo Digital

With only a month to go before release, PlayStation has released a new trailer for Sackboy: A Big Adventure which gives us more details on its story.

The story follows Sackboy facing off against Vex, the main antagonist of the game who kidnaps Sackboy's friends. Along the way, Sackboy goes to different parts of Craftworld and faces off against other villains. The trailer shows off a wide variety of areas you'll explore alongside different platforming sections. As it's been shown off in other trailers, you'll get a chance to use several power-ups as you visit different areas. Additionally, the trailer shows off a bit of co-op gameplay, which can be done both offline and online with a PlayStation Plus account. You can watch the full trailer below.

Sackboy: A Big Adventure was announced back in June during PlayStation's Future of Gaming showcase. It was announced alongside other major PlayStation titles like Spider-Man: Miles Morales, Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart, and Horizon Forbidden West. Fast forward to September, PlayStation announced that the PlayStation 5 will launch on November 12 for $499.99, alongside a digital-only version for $399.99.

More recently, PlayStation has released another trailer for Sackboy: A Big Adventure which features developer Sumo Digital giving players a rundown of what the game is. In this trailer, it was also confirmed that there will be a special edition of the game which comes with exclusive costumes, an artbook, a Sackboy plushie, and more. Like other PS5 games such as Spider-Man: Miles Morales and Horizon Forbidden West, Sackboy: A Big Adventure will also release on the PS4. With those titles, the PS4 versions will let you upgrade to the PS5 version at no extra cost.

Sackboy: A Big Adventure launches on November 12 as a PS5 launch title, along with PS4. As more news comes out about the PS5, we'll be sure to let you know.

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505 Games Says Indivisible Future Content Has Been Canceled Following Lab Zero Games Closing

Indivisible

It has been a tumultuous past few months for Lab Zero Games and its former employees. Following the decision by multiple developers to leave the studio earlier this summer as a form of protest against owner Mike Zaimont and his alleged history of sexual harassment, the company was soon after dissolved entirely with all remaining employees being laid off. The move was one that left the developer's future and current projects in question, and as of now, we know what the status is with at least one of them.

Publisher 505 Games released a statement today confirming what was already expected by many in the case of Indivisible, the action-RPG that Lab Zero released a year ago. While the game was slated to receive future content in the form of guest characters (which included the likes of Shantae, Shovel Knight, and many others) this will no longer be possible. Additionally, characters that were created by those who backed the game won't be coming either.

505 did clarify, however, that there is still some content in the submission process that will still be coming to Indivisible. Of those new add-ons, one such update for the game's Switch iteration will bring a number of new challenges, co-op, and New Game+. "At this stage, apart from content that is already in submission, there will unfortunately be no more production on the game," 505 wrote.

This whole situation is definitely a bummer all around. I especially feel for those who backed the game on Indiegogo and won't be able to see their contributions result in the in-game content that they paid for. Then again, considering the way in which Lab Zero closed, it's not like you can be mad at the studio itself or 505 Games for this situation coming about.

Even though is the end of Indivisible itself, the game remains one of the more highly-scored games from us here at DualShockers last year and is one that we would absolutely recommend picking up even without these planned future content updates.

The post 505 Games Says Indivisible Future Content Has Been Canceled Following Lab Zero Games Closing by Logan Moore appeared first on DualShockers.