First FIFA 21 Ones To Watch Squad is Full of Premier League Talent

FIFA 21, EA Sports

FIFA 21 hits its full launch tomorrow. Sure, people who ordered the more expensive versions have been playing for a while, but for most, October 9 is release day. Alongside that launch, EA is dropping a brand new version of their popular Ones To Watch promo. These cards are new versions of players who have transferred teams in the off-season. They start at the player's base rating but will grow in rating every time the player gets an Inform card. This makes them some of the more fun live cards in the game. EA revealed Team 1 today and it's full of the latest Premier League talent. Check it out.

Of the 11 players, seven are from top-flight English football. Which makes sense considering how many players have flocked to that league this year. If you're able to get one, I think most people would want either Timo Werner, Hakim Ziyech, or Alex Telles. Those three seem like the most likely to get upgrades given their position and talent. Thomas Partey, Gareth Bale, Allan, and Nathan Ake round out the Premier League members of the squad. It's hard to see someone like Ake getting enough Informs to become top-tier, but OTW is always such a crapshoot that it's impossible to predict. Just look at Joao Felix's card from last year to see how crazy the market can get.

Outside of the Prem, Luis Suarez and Martin Odegaard do their part to represent La Liga. Suarez is a particularly interesting look because he already has an Inform this season, so his OTW comes in already upgraded. Plus, now that he's playing for Atletico, I wouldn't be surprised to see his goal total go up. After all, he's no longer competing with the likes of Lionel Messi for shots.

The last two players come from the Italian Serie A with Achraf Hakimi and Victor Osimhen. I'm running a Serie A squad this year and already love Osimhen in my starter squad. So, I can't wait to see where this card settles. He might be an instant purchase for me to pair with the OTW Sandro Tonali EA put into SBCs a few days ago.

Of course, we'll still have another OTW team drop next Friday. Plus, there will likely be a few more you can earn via SBCs and Objectives. Hopefully, those releases give the Bundesliga and Ligue 1 some love. And, as an American, I would love to see Sergino Dest get one for his move to Barcelona. That said, it's certainly shaping up to be quite a good start for FUT in FIFA 21.

FIFA 21 is available now on PC, PS4, and Xbox One. The game hits PS5 and Xbox Series X once those systems launch.

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Xbox Series X New Commercial Set to Release Tomorrow

Inside Xbox

With the launch of both the Xbox Series X and the PS5 set to arrive in about five weeks (holy smokes that's wild) the marketing for each brand is starting to kick in to high gear. In the case of the team over at Microsoft, it looks as though they're preparing to release a major new ad for its next-gen platform in the near future.

Xbox announced over on social media today that it plans to release a new advert for the Xbox Series X tomorrow. The commercial will be much in line with the previous ads for the console which have featured the "Power Your Dreams" tagline. Xbox did also release a teaser GIF for the commercial itself and it looks as though it may tie-in to Ubisoft's Assassin's Creed Valhalla based on some Viking ships that are seen.

Honestly, ads like this don't mean a whole lot in the grand scheme of things, but I am always interested in seeing what Xbox and PlayStation can cook up when it comes to these kinds of trailers. PlayStation released a new video for the PS5 a few weeks back which featured music from The Who, so maybe Xbox will strike back with some iconic rock music of its own. Fingers crossed for some Led Zeppelin, perhaps?

Anyway, assuming the trailer is noteworthy, we'll end up sharing it here with you on DualShockers tomorrow once it is live.

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AMD's Ryzen 5000 CPUs Revealed, Will be Available November 5

Ryzen 5

Today's showcase from AMD CEO Dr. Lisa Su gave us a first look at the company's new line of Ryzen 5000 CPUs. They are the Ryzen 5 5600X, Ryzen 7 5800X, Ryzen 9 5900X and the Ryzen 9 5950X. These chips are being produced and marketed as a direct competitor to Intel's 10th Gen series of processors, which currently boast superior gaming performance over team red's Zen 2 architecture CPUs.

AMD's new flagship among these is its self-purported "best gaming CPU," the Ryzen 9 5950X. Sporting 16 cores and 32 threads, and the potential to boost to up to 4.9 GHz, this beast of a chip is AMD's direct competitor to Intel's flagship i9 10900K. Benchmarks of the 5950X from the show (which should always be taken with a grain of salt), tell a dominating story. According to AMD, this chip will outperform Intel's best consumer processor across the board, for both content creation and gaming. That extra boost in performance will come at a slight cost increase though – a whopping $799 USD against the i9 10900K's $750 price tag.

If you're not looking to break the bank but still want to upgrade your processor, the other options in AMD's Zen 3 lineup are equally attractive. Starting with the cheapest model we have the $299 5600X, a six-core 12 thread processor running at a base clock of 3.7 GHz with the potential to boost up to 4.6 GHz. Note that the base clock here is a mere .1 GHz higher than the Ryzen 5 3600's base, although it does boost .4 GHz higher than the chips 4.2 GHz. A beefier option is the Ryzen 7 5800X, an eight-core, 16 thread chip with a base clock at 3.8 GHz that can boost up to 4.7 GHz. Finally, if you want some real performance without emptying your wallet, the Ryzen 9 5900X is available. This 12-core, 24 thread CPU runs at a base speed of 3.7 GHz and boosts up to 4.8 GHz. The real kicker for this chip is in its massive 70MB cache, leaving this chip with a ton of memory at its immediate disposal.

The real kicker here though is the launch date for all of these processors. Here's hoping you haven't reached your computer part spending limit with Nvidia's 3000 series cards, because these CPUs are all releasing November 5.

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Nintendo Switch Eshop Introduces IARC Rating For Some Digital-Only Games

Nintendo Switch console feature IARC

Nintendo announced that some of the games released digitally only on Switch will now be rated by the IARC, the International Age Rating Coalition.

The IARC is an international rating organization with multiple implementations around the world. Since 2003, Nintendo has been releasing its games in Japan with ratings from CERO, the Computer Entertainment Rating Organization. However, Nintendo will now start using IARC as well, for some titles, including in Japan.

Nintendo Switch New Rating 1 Nintendo Switch New Rating 2 Nintendo Switch New Rating 3

Here's for comparison sake the Japanese CERO rating and the IARC rating. They're both the same, with the same age limits. Concretely, what this will change is that more digital-only games will be able to release in Japan on the Nintendo Eshop without having to go through CERO. For non-Japanese developers, getting an IARC rating for the Japanese release of their games will be much easier than getting a CERO rating. Especially if they don't have anyone who can handle Japanese communication on their team. In short, this is a very good thing, and more games will be able to release on the Switch Eshop in the future.

Note that there are tons of violent or suggestive games already being regularly released on Switch. Anyone still believing Nintendo is "family friendly only" should take a look at the billions of strip mahjong games or gravure idol themed games on the Japanese Switch Eshop. It's important to stress out Nintendo using IARC for some Switch games now won't change that. Again, what's important here is that non-Japanese, digital Switch games won't have to go through CERO to release in Japan anymore.

Nintendo will reportedly release a new Switch model in 2021 alongside major game releases. Personally speaking, the games I'm looking forward to the most on Switch right now are Rune Factory 5, Gerokasu, the Switch version of Genshin Impact, and the new Zelda BOTW games.

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Star Wars: Squadrons Isn't Planned to Receive Any Post-Launch Content

It's a rare occurrence when publisher Electronic Arts releases a game that it doesn't have plans for future updates or content with, but that seems to be exactly the route that it is opting to go down with the newly-launched Star Wars: Squadrons. 

Speaking to UploadVR, the game's creative director, Ian Frazier, has said that Squadrons currently has no plans to receive any future content. This would include not only DLC, but seemingly free updates that would roll out over time as well.

"Never say never, so to speak, but as far as our philosophy goes we're not trying to treat the game as a live service," Frazier explained. "We don't want to say, 'It's almost done!' and then dribble out more of it over time, which to be honest is how most games work these days. So we've tried to treat it in kind of an old-school approach saying, 'You've paid the $40, this is the game and it's entirely self-contained. We're not planning to add more content, this is the game, and we hope you understand the value proposition.'"

Frazier went one step further and also explained that no further ports of Star Wars: Squadrons are planned to come to other platforms. With the game boasting full VR-functionality, many wondered whether the title could one day come natively to a platform like Oculus Quest, but this doesn't sound like it will be a likelihood. "No plans at this time," Frazier said plainly.

While I'm sure those who are greatly enjoying Star Wars: Squadrons might be a bit disheartened to hear that it won't be getting any future content updates of note, considering so many games nowadays are live service, I'm going to guess that many others will be refreshed by this move. Given how EA opted to monetize Star Wars Battlefront II a few years back as well, I'm sure many will be perfectly fine with a self-contained game in this beloved universe.

Star Wars: Squadrons is available now on PS4, Xbox One, and PC.

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Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time Review — Back in the 90s

Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time

Back in the 90s, if you were talking about a platformer, you were probably talking about Sonic or Mario. These were the dominating forces, the games that would spawn massive franchises and launch their respective characters into the stratosphere with fame. And while it didn't receive that same attention, Crash Bandicoot was one of those greats of the era. Its new perspective, difficulty, and loveably wacky main character embedded Crash's world into the minds of millions of kids.

24 years have passed since the original release of Crash Bandicoot and its competitors haven't just succeeded, they've flourished. Mario is now a household name, with so many spin-off titles that you could play almost every genre of video game inside that one franchise. Sonic has had its speed bumps but managed to retain a massive following (and even put out a somewhat decent movie). So now, over two decades after its original release, what's new in the latest mainline Crash Bandicoot game?

Not all that much.

Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time knows its roots. It may not look like the older games, but it feels, sounds, and plays like one. That's where I have to give developer Toys for Bob major kudos. They've managed to capture that crass Crash charm that made me and so many others fall in love with the spinning orange marsupial and his chaotic world.

From its opening scenes, it's hard to ignore the similarities between Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time and its predecessors. The game even starts on a beach on N. Sanity Island, and echoes the first level of the original Crash Bandicoot. Crabs are the first enemy you face, the platforms leading up to the island's temple are extremely similar, and once again, Aku Aku is warning Crash of a threat to the world.

The first two levels of Crash 4 are a return to form — if you've only ever played mainline Crash titles, you know what's going on here. You're running, jumping over pits and traps, smashing crates, and grabbing Wumpa fruit. It's in the second world where things start to get spiced up and you begin to see the spin that Toys for Bob put on this Crash title.

Instead of collecting crystals or gems (although there are gems to collect), Crash, Coco, and Aku Aku are collecting different masks that, when equipped, radically change the way you play the game. These masks are only made available for segments of levels — you'll never play an entire level with a mask on — and even then, they can quickly be taken off and put back on with the press of a button.

Crash Bandicoot 4 it's about time review

These masks are the most meaningful change present in It's About Time. Each one adds a new mechanic; one phases objects in and out of existence, another slows time, and the final mask you find even reverses gravity. When they're employed in a level, these changes don't feel like a gimmick, but more like another mechanic layered onto the already great foundation of Crash's basic gameplay.

In later levels, as the difficulty drastically ramps up, players will also have to be more imaginative with how they use masks. One thing that Toys for Bob hasn't mastered in the Crash franchise is ramping up the difficulty in a satisfactory way. Folks that played the N. Sane Trilogy and lost their minds on that turtle bridge level know this problem very well, and it persists in Crash 4. Across the game, there are immense difficulty spikes, but it's towards the end that these spikes are at their worst. Crash 4 goes from justifiably hard for a platformer to demanding almost perfection. This is doubly true for one final mask segment that took me over half an hour and countless deaths to get through.

There is one more major addition to Crash 4, although its impact certainly isn't as noticeable. The crates full of Wumpa fruit have a couple of new family members; a fire crate that spouts flames every few seconds and timed crates that disappear after a short counter goes off. These two don't entirely mix up the game, but they do contribute to Crash 4's ultimate goal: keeping players on for as long as it can. Each also drastically slows down the pace of the game – especially fire crates. I would be having a frantic, fast-paced run through a level only to be completely held up by a flame crate that I would have to wait for. While timed crates don't put the breaks on the action, they do bring that difficulty back up. For folks looking to smash every crate in the game, timed crates will likely be your biggest challenge. They demand insane speeds, and I've often just gone past them rather than reset the level halfway through after one timed crate phased out.

Crash Bandicoot 4 It's About Time Review

Replayability is the name of Crash 4's game, and there is a ton of it. In each level, players can earn up to six gems; the first three for collecting Wumpa fruit, one for smashing every crate, another for not dying over three times in a level, and one final hidden gem. Once you beat a level, you also unlock its N. Verse version, which is a mirrored variant that comes with a unique filter and six more gems to collect. Getting enough of these gems unlocks a new skin for Crash or Coco, although they're hardly ever as good as their default looks.

Past that, players still have a bevy of content to dive into, even after finishing the game. Flashback tape levels have players control Crash as he goes through testing to be the general of Neo Cortex's army, and are particularly punishing. Levels starring Tawna, Cortex, or Dingodile also pad out the game, showing a different perspective on in-game events while offering up even more gems to collect.

Crash Bandicoot 4 It's About Time Review

There is a ton of content in Crash 4, and thankfully, it doesn't all blend together. The main credit for that goes to the game's gorgeous visuals. It plays like a classic Crash title but looks and sounds like a Pixar short film — full of character and pizazz. Each world has its own distinct style and sound, although the usual suspects from other Crash titles are all there. Your requisite ice, space, and jungle-themed worlds are also all included, but this time around, they're not just fun to jump through, they're a joy to look around in.

But a graphical facelift doesn't change what Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time really is. It's still a Crash game, just like ones you'd play in the 90s. You're still watching Crash run around mostly linear levels, jumping, spinning, making goofy faces, and doing all the stuff you'd expect him to do. Crash 4 is a great title for people that want to play more Crash, but it doesn't bring anything for folks that want to play something truly new.

Crash Bandicoot 4 It's About Time Review

Again, I have to give credit to Toys for Bob, as they've captured and emulated the key traits of a Crash game that make them so much fun to play. But instead of getting too experimental in its modernization of the game, Toys for Bob opted to add more collectibles, skins, and a ridiculous amount of replayability, which are some things that it just didn't need.

I enjoyed my time with Crash 4 and would easily recommend it to any like-minded fans of the series. Though there aren't many meaningful changes to how the game is played, it's still a fun jaunt, and what new content is here is mostly welcomed, despite some unnecessary modern additions. Crash games don't need a long list of skins or collectibles, but they do need to take a bigger step forward. In a sense, Crash needs to stop living in the 90s.

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Outriders Gets a February 2, 2021 Release Date

Outriders, People Can Fly, PC, PS4, Xbox One

Outriders is the latest game from People Can Fly. It's a co-op shooter that mixes cover-based gunplay and otherworldly powers. We've been seeing it in action quite a bit over the last year, but PCF has held the actual release date close to their chest. That all changed today as the studio announced the game is finally coming early next year. Give the announcement a watch below.

I've been fortunate enough to play Outriders a few times already in various states of pre-release and I'm happy to report that it's shaping up to be a solid game. Obviously, people are going to make comparisons to Destiny, but there's a big difference between the two. See, Destiny is a classic game as a service-style title. Outriders, on the other hand, is shipping as a fully complete game.

So, while the game does put a heavy focus on three-player co-op, you won't need to keep up with it after you finish the campaign. There is a start, middle, and finish. That's a welcome sight in this increasingly crowded space.

Plus, if you like Gears of War-style cover shooting, the combat is actually pretty fun. The basic gunplay is solid, and some of the powers you can unlock really take it over the top. If you're looking for something a little different from your next shooter, Outriders is definitely worth a look.

Outriders comes to PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X on February 2, 2021. It's worth noting that the game fully supports cross-play and will freely let you upgrade your current-gen copy to next-gen. Those are both awesome decisions, especially with it launching right at the generation switch.

The post Outriders Gets a February 2, 2021 Release Date by Ricky Frech appeared first on DualShockers.

Fall Guys Season 2 Is Out Now With New Levels and Welcome Updates

Fall Guys Season 2

Fall Guys Season 2 is finally here, folks. If you've taken a break to play Among Us (who hasn't?), it's time to dust off your wobbly thumbs and hop back in. Season 2 is all about taking the game back to medieval times for even more jelly bean action. Players now have access to four new levels, tons of fresh cosmetics, and a host of welcome new features. Check it out below.

Of course, the four new Fall Guys levels are the biggest part of the update. We've seen the new gauntlet in action and it looks terrifying. Mediatonic is calling it the "most challenging" one yet, and I have to agree. I'm also very intrigued by the level Wall Guys which looks like you need to pull blocks around to build a path over walls. I'm sure that won't get wild or anything. There are also two other team games that give some new flair to older levels.

However, there's some good news for players out there who don't like team modes. Mediatonic is adding a new Show Selector feature to the mix. These let you set some parameters for the levels you want to play. The one they showed off was Gauntlet Showdown, which takes everything that's not a race out of the hopper. I know there is a segment of players who hate the team games, so I'm sure they're loving this news.

And, as you'd expect, there are tons of new cosmetics on the Season 2 battle pass. It's worth noting that Mediatonic is making it easier to earn Crowns, so you'll have more access to the featured skins. It really does seem like the studio is doing a great job of listening to the community and implementing changes.

Fall Guys Season 2 is live now on PC and PS4.

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Official Fall Guys Merch is Finally Here

fall guys merch

Ever since becoming gaming's "next hottest thing" when it officially launched back in August, it feels like Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout was a money-printing machine for developer Mediatonic. Between game sales and the handful of buyable cosmetics, Fall Guys was almost guaranteed to rack in the cash, but now that it has merch, it's more viable than ever.

Announced today through the Fall Guys Twitter account, official merch is up for preorder. The merch selection includes four t-shirt designs, seven different pins, and two embroidered patch sets. Each design features different classic Fall Guys looks from season one and has the titular Fall Guys both in costume and out.

This announcement comes on a big day for the game as October 8 marks the end of season one and the beginning of the highly anticipated season two. By adding new levels and remixing the game, Mediatonic has already created a conversation surrounding the new season and at time of writing #FallGuysSeason2 is trending on Twitter. Right now is the perfect time to announce the merch line because everyone is talking about Fall Guys again.

The tweet is very transparent about the merch saying that it's up for preorder, but won't actually ship until December of this year, just in time for the holidays. This is another example of how well the team over at Mediatonic is at marketing their game. DualShockers' own Sam Woods wrote a thoughtful article on how well the game is marketed. You can check that out right here.

For more on Fall Guys season two, make sure to check out this article on the newest costumes revealed for the season as well as this video on what it means to be a Fall Guys bully. For all things Fall Guys you can see all of our articles on it right here.

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Mortal Kombat 11 Next DLC Fighters are Rambo, Rain, and Mileena; PS5 and XSX Upgrades Available for Free

Well, the rumors were true. Based on some previously discovered information that data miners unearthed, we had heard that Rain, Mileena, and John Rambo from the Rambo series of films were due to make their way to Mortal Kombat 11 and that has now been confirmed.

NetherRealm Studios today announced Kombat Pack 2 for Mortal Kombat 11 which will notably contain all three aforementioned fighters. The new trailer that was released to coincide with the reveal featured Mileena, Rain, and Rambo all squaring off with one another. Rambo, in particular, featured voiceover that has been confirmed to come from Sylvester Stallone himself, which is pretty dope.

While Kombat Pack 2 can be picked up on its own, NetherRealm and WB Games are also releasing it as part of a larger package that it is calling Mortal Kombat 11 Ultimate. This bundle will contain quite literally that has ever been released in association with MK11, including all of the fighters from Kombat Pack 1 and the Aftermath expansion.

For those looking to soon make the jump to next-gen, there is good news for you as well. Mortal Kombat 11 will indeed be available on both PS5 and Xbox Series X/S, and those who own the title already won't need to pay an extra dime to experience on the forthcoming platforms. MK11 will be a Smart Delivery title on Xbox and will also be available as a free upgrade on PS5.

Last, but surely not least, crossplay is also confirmed to be heading to Mortal Kombat 11 as well, including the new versions on PS5 and Xbox Series X. Crossplay will only be available across Xbox and PlayStation platforms and is only said to be available in "select modes" though, so the full multiplayer offering seemingly be playable between consoles. Regardless, this is a great addition to the game and is one that many players will surely appreciate.

Mortal Kombat 11 Ultimate is set to drop next month on November 17. This will also be the date in which the game's next-gen iterations are released in addition to the Kombat Pack 2 fighters.

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