Sony CEO Still Sees Future For VR, But 'Meaningful Impact' Is Still A Ways Off
Of the three platform holders, it was Sony who went hard into the VR space. With the PSVR, they became one of the bigger providers of platform for the new tech. As Sony's PS5 is very close to release, we've not heard a peep officially about a new headset (though the PS5 is compatible with PSVR, though you'll need an adapter if you use the PS5 camera). It's hard to say where Sony lands on it nowadays, but the CEO at least sees VR's future, even if it's not going to be soon.
In an interview with The Washington Post, Jim Ryan spoke somewhat about the future of PSVR. He seemed enthusiastic that there is a future down the line for the VR tech to have meaningful impact on entertainment. However, he was also careful to say that future could be fairly far off, saying it'll probably be several years down the line before said impact is felt.
"I think we're more than a few minutes from the future of VR," Ryan said. "PlayStation believes in VR. Sony believes in VR, and we definitely believe at some point in the future, VR will represent a meaningful component of interactive entertainment.
"Will it be this year? No. Will it be next year? No. But will it come at some stage? We believe that. And we're very pleased with all the experience that we've gained with PlayStation VR, and we look forwarding to seeing where that takes us in the future."
As mentioned before, we know little about a PSVR 2, though there are rumors and patents floating around that point to what the device could look like. More companies have entered than the VR field, with Facebook being probably the biggest with their Oculus series. While there's clearly a push for the tech on some level, it doesn't seem to have caught on little some thought or hoped. It'll be interesting to see where it goes from here.
The Dark Pictures Anthology: Little Hope Receives Creepy Launch Trailer
The ambitious Dark Pictures Anthology continues on this month with Little Hope. Just in time for Halloween, Bandai Namco and Supermassive Games are releasing the second game in the series, this time following a new cast as they find themselves trapped in the strange town of Little Hope. Today we received a launcher trailer to celebrate the release.
The trailer, which you can check out below, shows some parts of the game, including the choice system that's helped define these titles. Something a little unique is they also highlight how the game can be played multiplayer with a pair of streamers as they argue about what to do as well as get shocked by events they trigger. Man of Medan, the first game in the franchise, managed to sell over 1 million copies with a lot of its appeal coming from its quasi-multiplayer and watching people react.
The Dark Pictures Anthology: Little Hope is available as of today for PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC.
Call of Duty: Warzone Downloaded 80 Million Times Since Launch
Call of Duty has seen its ups and downs throughout the years but there's denying its abject popularity. Call of Duty: Warzone is one such example. Speaking to VentureBeat, Activision CEO Bobby Kotick confirmed that the free to play battle royale shooter has been downloaded 80 million times.
As such, Warzone has been fairly substantial for Activision's monthly active player numbers with "free-to-play experiences" leading to over triple the number compared to last year. Kotick also added in the company's quarterly earnings call that the total number of hours played was seven times higher as well. The popularity of Warzone has also led to changes in how Activision markets its other titles, like the upcoming Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War.
"In August, millions of players gained access to the Black Ops Cold War reveal trailer by playing interactive content within Warzone, generating a true virtual watercooler moment, and driving substantial interest in the new release. Going direct to our network of player this way represents more effective marketing than any paid media network."
As for Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War, it's out on November 13th for Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PS4, PS5 and PC. The PC trailer and specifications were recently released with the installation size clocking in at 175 GB for all modes. Those looking to play at Ultra settings with 4K resolution and RTX enabled will need 250 GB in total.
DiRT 5 Launch Trailer Features High-Octane Racing
The era of next-gen gaming is nearly upon us but before that, Codemasters' DiRT 5 will be coming to current-gen consoles first. It's thus released a launch trailer which showcases all of the messy rally racing that players can get up to. Plus it has Troy Baker providing the voiceover. Check it out below.
DiRT 5 features much of the same mechanics as previous titles but offers a much bigger scope. The Career Mode is more story-heavy and focuses on the rivalry between Alex Janièek (voiced by Baker) and Bruno Durand (who Nolan North voices). There are over 130 events to partake in and multiple paths towards the finale.
Event types have been incredibly varied thus far, from ice drifting to excursions on rocky terrain. And if you master Career Mode, then there's Playgrounds for creating one's own tracks and sharing them online. DiRT 5 is out on November 6th for PS4, Xbox One and PC. It will launch on November 10th for Xbox Series X/S while the PS5 version arrives on November 12th. Current-gen owners can avail of free upgrades to the next-gen versions when they become available.
Borderlands 3 – Arms Race Takes Cues from The Division's Survival, Out November 10th
After promising it wouldn't be a battle royale mode, Gearbox Software has finally showcased just what Borderlands 3's upcoming Arms Race mode. Turns out it's more like The Division's Survival mode. Players drop in with nothing (not even any abilities), loot different items and have to fight for survival against enemies before extracting.
The key hook is that extracting allows you to keep whatever loot earned. Of course, dying means that all of that sweet loot is lost and you'll have to start over. Overall, it's an interesting twist on what The Division offered and should offer a nice replayable way to earn loot (though whether any new items will be added remains to be seen).
Borderlands 3's Arms Race mode is out on November 10th. It's included with the Designer's Cut and purchased with Season Pass 2, which also includes new Skill Trees for each of the Vault Hunters. That's only one part of the Season Pass though – more DLC is planned for next year so stay tuned.
Genshin Impact Guide – How to Enhance and Ascend Weapons
Settled into the Genshin Impact grind? Good, because rolling for the best characters, ascending them and unlocking all of their best talents is just the beginning. Now you have to focus on upgrading weapons. Along with netting the best weapons through some grace of RNG, you'll also need materials to enhance and ascend them.
Here are the basic materials you need for enhancing weapons:
- Fine Enhancement Ore – Drops as a reward from a random event.
- Mystic Enhancement Ore – Drops as a reward from a random event.
For ascending weapons, there are several different types of Ascension materials. These are necessary for fully maxing out your weapon. Here are the different kinds and what they can be used on, starting with Decarabian materials:
- Tile of Decarabian's Tower – Found in Cecilia Garden. Used for ascending Magic Guide, Dull Blade, Raven Bow and Sharpshooter's Oath.
- Debris of Decarabian's City – Can be used to ascend Favonius Sword, Cool Steel, The Stringless, Magic Guide and Sharpshooter's Oath.
- Fragment of Decarabian's Epic – Found in Cecilia Garden. Can be used to ascend Magic Guide, Silver Sword, The Bell and more.
- Scattered Piece of Decarabian's Dream – Located in Cecilia Garden. Used for Ascension of Magic Guide, The Stringless, The Viridescent Hunt and more.
Next up are the Guyun Materials along with what they can be used to ascend:
- Lustrous Stone from Guyun – Found in the Hidden Palace of Lianshan Formula. Used to ascend Blackcliff Warbow, Debate Club, Eye of Perception and White Tassel.
- Luminous Sands from Guyun – Found in the Hidden Palace of Lianshan Formula. Used to ascend Debate Club, Eye of Perception and White Tassel.
- Relic from Guyun – Also found in the Hidden Palace of Lianshan Formula. Can be used for ascending Debate Club, Eye of Perception and White Tassel.
- Divine Body from Guyun – Located in the Hidden Palace of Lianshan Formula. Used to ascend Debate Club and Eye of Perception.
Next up, here are the Boreal Wolf's materials and what they can be used to ascend.
- Boreal Wolf's Milk Tooth – Located in Cecilia Garden. Used to ascend Thrilling Tales of Dragon Slayers, Alley Hunter, Deathmatch, White Iron Greatsword and Wine and Song.
- Boreal Wolf's Cracked Tooth – Found in Cecilia Garden. Used to ascend Alley Hunter, Sacrificial Bow, Sacrificial Greatsword and Aquila Favonia.
- Boreal Wolf's Broken Fang – Located in Cecilia Garden and used to ascend The Wildsith, The Flute and Skyward Atlas.
- Boreal Wolf's Nostalgia – Found in Cecilia Garden. Used to ascend Skyward Blade, Skyward Harp, The Flute and more.
Here are the Aerosiderite materials, where to find them and what they can help ascend.
- Grain of Aerosiderite – Found in the Hidden Palace of Lianshan Formula. Can be used to ascend Iron Sting, Serpent Spine, Prototype Grudge and Skyrider Sword.
- Piece of Aerosiderite – Located in Hidden Palace of Lianshan Formula. Used to ascend Iron Sting, Prototype Animus, Compound Bow and Skyrider Sword.
- Bit of Aerosiderite – Located in the Hidden Palace of Lianshan Formula and used for ascending Compound Bow, Mappa Mare, Iron Sting and Skyrider Sword.
- Chunk of Aerosiderite – Found in the Hidden Palace of Lianshan Formula. Used to ascend Iron Sting, Prototype Grudge, Prototype Animus and Skyrider Sword.
Next up are the Gladiator materials. Here are their locations, along with what they can be used to ascend.
- Fetters of the Dandelion Gladiator – Found in Cecilia Garden. Used to ascend Amos' Bow, Lost Prayer to the Sacred Winds, Skyward Spine and more
- Chains of the Dandelion Gladiator – Located in Cecilia Garden. Used to ascend Wolf's Gravestone, Sacrificial Sword, Royal Greatsword and more.
- Shackles of the Dandelion Gladiator – Can be found in Cecilia Garden. Used in ascending Recurve Bow, Sacrificial Sword Sacrificial Fragments and Wolf's Gravestone.
- Dream of the Dandelion Gladiator – Found in Cecilia Garden and used for the ascension of Wolf's Gravestone, Amos' Bow, Sacrificial Sword and more.
Finally, there are Elixir materials. Here is where they are located and what they can be used to ascend.
- Mist Veiled Lead Elixir – Found in the Hidden Palace of Lianshan Formula. Used to ascend Rainslasher, Prototype Crescent, Eye of Perception and more.
- Mist Veiled Mercury Elixir – Located in the Hidden Palace of Lianshan Formula. Can also be used to ascend Prototype Rancour, Dragon's Bane, Eye of Perception, Prototype Malice and more.
- Mist Veiled Gold Elixir – Can be found in the Hidden Palace of Lianshan Formula. Also used to ascend Prototype Crescent, Dragon's Bane, Twin Nephrite and more.
- Mist Veiled Primo Elixir – Located in the Hidden Palace of Lianshan Formula. It's the last material that can be used to ascend Dragon's Bane, Prototype Descent, Rainslasher and more.
Cecilia Garden in Mondstadt and the Hidden Palace of Lianshan Formula are Domains of Forgery and can be farmed continuously for Ascension materials. The former requires you to complete a quest to unlock it so keep that in mind. Specific Ascension materials can only be acquired on certain days so make sure to keep checking back in both locations.
You can also trade Anemo Sigils in Mondstadt and Geo Sigils in Liyue for these materials. Just look for the respective Souvenir Shops.
PS5 – 15 PS3 Games That Need To Be Remastered For Sony's Next-Gen Console
There's been quite a lot of talk about backwards compatibility and remasters for the PS5. And while there are plenty of PS4 titles that could benefit from improved visuals and DualSense functionality, several PS3 titles deserve to be brought into the new generation as well. Let's take a look at 15 PS3 titles that need to be remastered for the PS5.
Killzone 2
While Guerrilla Games has become well-known for the Horizon series, remastering Killzone 2 for the PS5 seems a given. It's the game that put the company on the map and its excellent visual fidelity, attention to detail, fun gun play and solid multiplayer would make a smooth transition over to the console. If a new sequel on PS5 isn't coming any time soon, then it makes sense to revisit Killzone 2 in some capacity.
Ghost Of Tsushima Was A Bigger Critical And Commercial Hit Than Expected, Says PlayStation CEO
It is going to be quite the year for Sony's first party output when everything is said and done for 2020. Not only is the PS5 launching with several first party titles, earlier this year we had some for the PS4, including Ghost of Tsushima. The game took us to feudal Japan for a quasi-historical tale of a samurai going down a dark path for the greater good, and even got a neat multiplayer expansion post-launch. It seemed to resonate well with people, more than expected in fact.
In an interview with GamesIndustry, SIE CEO Jim Ryan spoke about some of their first party titles and studios. When talking Ghost, he revealed that the game has done quite well, in fact, better than was expected on both a commercial and critical level, praising it as building well upon Sucker Punch's previous titles.
"That is the fruit of not massive spending sprees, but of very, very steadily, carefully planned organic growth. Probably the best example I give… I could obviously talk about Naughty Dog, but they've always been making great games. But let's talk about Ghost of Tsushima, which has been a critical delight and certainly a commercial delight to an extent that we didn't think it would be. That speaks volumes to the work that Sucker Punch has done to build on their previous canon of work."
Unfortunately, Ryan gave no numbers, but we know that the game sold 2.4 million within its first three days alone, and I imagine it's climbed a good deal since then. Sucker Punch is also in the process of hiring a Narrative Writer for a new project, which could be a sequel to Ghost.
Ghost of Tsushima is available now for PlayStation 4. The game has been confirmed to be playable on the PS5 via backwards compatibility with 60 FPS capability, which you can read more about through here.
Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales Review Embargo Rumored To Lift November 6th
There are an array of titles that are coming next month for the launch of Sony's PS5, but I think it's fair to say at the top of the list will be Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales. The game is something of a sequel/standalone expansion to the incredibly well received and big seller 2018 title, it's also Spider-Man, and the cooler Spider-Man at that (with Spider-Cat). It also seems you'll be getting full impressions of it soon.
As spotted (or rather, heard) and translated by a Reddit user, an Estonian podcast in his local area mentioned that their embargo for Miles Morales will lift on November 6th, which is when their review will go live. They also stated that they thought the 11th would be the final embargo for all things PS5, but didn't seem sure about that or was unclear on what that meant.
"6th is when we can talk more in length about some things, for example you can read our Miles Morales review, and then 11th, I think, is the last bigger date, but I might be wrong, don't remember exactly. But yeah, first half of November when you can see and hear more."
We have to file this under rumor for now, because we haven't received our official word on Miles Morales or PS5 embargo info and no one else has confirmed this just yet. As you can tell, these guys don't seem too sure on that end, either, so it's best to take it with a grain of salt for the time being. The game launches on November 12th for PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4, so a week beforehand sounds about right to be plausible. We'll have our coverage and review of the game, of course, when we're able.
Everwild's Creative Director Has Left Rare
Rare's next title, now simply known as Everwild, has captured the imagination. Between a gorgeous art style, wild creature designs and some magical trailers, it certainly has managed to garner a lot of attention for itself. Unfortunately, it seems not all is well in paradise, as the game's Creative Director is no more.
As confirmed by VGC, Simon Woodroffe resigned from his position of Creative Director and the studio; he'd been with Rare since 2012. No reasons were given for the departure. Despite Woodroffe leaving, Studio Head Craig Duncan reassured that the development process on the title would continue without issues and be in good hands. As of now, no new Creative Director has been named.
The reality is, despite several teasers, we know very little about Everwild. While there's been some hints that it will be a live service game of some kind, probably in a similar vein to Rare's Sea of Thieves, nothing has been made official. Therefore it's hard to tell how much impact a Creative Director leaving has since one can't gauge the process of the game much. Either way, Mr. Woodroffe is no longer on the project.