Free to play multiplayer shooter Spacelords will be available for PS5 and Xbox Series X|S at launch

Mercurysteam has revealed that its free to player shooter Spacelords will be available day one for PS5 and Xbox Series X|S, with this version of the game supporting native 4K and 60 fps. The cross compatibility system also means players that played the game on PS4 and Xbox One will be able to carry over their progress to the PS5 and Xbox Series X|S versions of the game. Spacelords was originally released in 2018 for PC and consoles.

Spacelords originally started life as Raiders of the Broken Planet, a game that received some average reviews. It was then transformed by Mercurysteam into the free to play title. At the time, Game Director Enric Álvarez said:

"When we launched Raiders September last year, we hoped its low price point of 9.99 per campaign- would open it up to a large number of users, but it didn't work as we planned. Our vision is to see our game enjoyed by millions of users for years to come and putting all of the game's rich content into their hands for free is the way to realize it. We've answered our community and hope this removal of any payment barriers will build our devoted community further."

The game has had a huge overhaul including a reworked progression system and four "lengthy" campaigns, giving players a flavour of the different characters.

Source: Press Release

Hellpoint is going to be released for PS5 and Xbox Series X|S in 2021

Cradle Games and tinybuild have confirmed that the sci-fi fantasy RPG Hellpoint will be released for PS5 and Xbox Series X|S in 2021, with the next gen release taking advantage of the power of the new consoles. The developers also confirmed that those who purchased the game for PS4 and Xbox One will get a free upgrade to the PS5 and Xbox Series X|S versions. The next gen version of Hellpoint will have two visual modes. The first is a performance mode with Dynamic 4K at 60FPS, and the second is called the quality which will be Native 4K at 30 FPS.

Hellpoint's blurb reads:

Hellpoint is a dark sci fi action RPG set in the aftermath of a massive quantum cataclysm. Every living being quickly lost their mind as their memories and bodies were merged with alternate versions of themselves from parallel universes. The accident also attracted entities of immense power that should have been left alone, in the depth of other dimensions.

You play as a mysterious nameless character whose intentions are entirely determined by your choices. You wake up in the derelict Irid Novo space station, in orbit around a super-massive black hole. In the game, the space station orbits in real time around the ominous black hole. Its position in the sky directly impacts the sanity of the inhabitants of the station. The singularity is doing more than simply distorting the fabric of space and time; based on the time of the orbit, enemies in the levels get crazier or struck by fear, unknown entities roam the corridors and dozens of other mysterious events can occur.

Hellpoint was first announced back in 2018 and was originally expected to release in 2019, but there were some delays.  Hellpoint was released on July 30th, 2020 for PS4, PC, Switch, and Xbox One.

Source: Press Release

Take-Two are in talks to acquire Codemasters

Take-Two are in talks with Codemasters over a potential buy out, which would see the UK based developer and publisher that's best known for its Dirt and F1 racing games joining the likes of 2K Games, Private Division and Rockstar under its banner.

Codemasters have received a conditional offer for the company that, if it becomes formal, the board would unanimously recommend to its shareholders that they accept.

Take-Two confirmed the offer to VGC with a statement that said it "believes that the combination of Take-Two and Codemasters would bring together two world-class interactive entertainment portfolios, with a highly complementary fit between 2K and Codemasters in the racing genre."

"Take-Two believes that it can bring benefits to Codemasters performance by leveraging Take-Two global distribution and 2K's core operating expertise in publishing, including, live operations, analytics, product development, and brand and performance marketing."

It would be a sizeable acquisition for Take-Two's portfolio, with Codemasters having expanded significantly over the last decade. Codemasters has really doubled down on its heritage for racing games (after some unsuccessful shooters blighted the middle of the PS3 and Xbox 360 generation) expanding by acquiring Slightly Mad Studios and Evolution Studios (now branded Codemasters Cheshire and on the cusp of releasing Dirt 5).

There's been some definite ups and downs for the company over the last few years. The notable critical successes of Dirt Rally and its sequel, as well as the continued strength of the F1 games have been paired with confused indifference at Onrush and middling critical opinion for the revived Grid franchise.

Even so, there's a bright looking future. The company also recently acquired the exclusive license to the World Rally Championship series, which will see them take on the WRC branding with a five year deal starting in 2023, and will go very nicely with the long-running F1 license that they hold.

Source: VGC

Warframe is heading to PS5 and Xbox Series X|S, see the next gen trailer here

Digital Extremes has confirmed that its free to play third person shooter Warframe will be making the leap to the next generation, releasing on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S. The PS5 release will happen soon while the Xbox Series X|S release will follow later this year. The earlier release news for PS5 has been coupled with a new trailer showing Warframe running on Sony's new console showing off graphical improvements and loading time reductions.

Both PS4 and PS5 players will be able to get an exclusive PlayStation Plus booster pack for no additional charge. This pack has been inspired by the DualSense containing a new Sedai Obsidian Syandana, an Experience Booster, in-game Currency Booster, Credits and Premium Credits. The PS5 version will also take advantage of the Activities tab showing how close players are to unlocking trophies and challenge activities, with the first challenge activity being a Sanctuary Onslaught Challenge. Warframe will feature cross generational play allowing PS4 and PS5 players to play together. Player progression will follow players from PS4 to PS5 so there is no worry of having to start over if you upgrade to the PS5 version of Warframe.

Warframe's last big update was the Heart of Deimos update. Heart of Deimos added a new way for Warframe players to explore with Deimos consisting of two major areas. The first is the surface of the smaller Martian moon. The surface has become an Infested hivemind landscape full of creatures that will pose a danger to anyone that ventures across it. The surface is littered with pods from which Infested infected Entrati NPCs emerge along with other Infested creatures. As players explore they will learn more about the Entrati family as well as how the Infested came to be, with the origin of the faction said to be pretty complex.  Players are now able to descend underground with these tunnels and spaces all being procedurally generated. The vast underground complexes of Deimos contain powerful Necramechs, some of which players can pilot themselves to help survive the terror underground. However, some of the Necramechs will pose a danger to players so be ready for a fight as you explore the places left behind the Entrati.

Source: Press Release

Outriders post campaign content is called Expeditions, will feature the toughest challenges

Square Enix has announced what players can expect when completing the campaign of Outriders, the co-op RPG shooter, and that post campaign content is called Expeditions. These Expeditions missions will be amongst the hardest missions that you will have the chance to conquer. You will need the best equipment available to you as well as some very good teamwork in order to take on the challenges that will be coming your way.

Bartek Kmita, Creative Director of Outriders at People Can Fly, said:

"Expeditions expand on the story of the Outriders campaign and features the toughest challenges in the game. They're meant to be played with a team of skilled and coordinated Outriders. Powerful equipment and efficient character builds, along with true skill and mastery over your class, are necessary to succeed and reach the highest levels of Expeditions."

Outriders will allow those who purchase the PS4 or Xbox One versions of the game to upgrade for free to the PS5 or Xbox Series X|S versions of the game. In addition, Square Enix also previously stated that there would be full cross platform play, including between generations, so players on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PC, and Stadia will all be able to play together. Stefan spoke to Bartek Kmita and Szymon Barchan earlier this year. From that interview, he wrote:

It would be easy to dismiss Outriders out of hand, but to do so would be to overlook the ways it stands out from its fellow looter shooters. The greater emphasis on the RPG side of the game, with character builds that are more than just what you happen to be wearing and holding in your hands, and just having a self-contained story all sounds rather appealing to me. Throw in People Can Fly's game-making history, and Outriders is definitely a game to keep an eye on for later this year.

Outriders will not be releasing in 2020 now but will be available on February 2nd, 2021 for PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. The Stadia version will be released later in 2021.
Source: Press Release

Sackboy: A Big Adventure online multiplayer will not be available at launch

Sumo Digital has confirmed that when Sackboy: A Big Adventure launches next week in some territories for PS5 and PS4 it will do so without online multiplayer. The developers have confirmed that local multiplayer will be in place, but online will be added at a later date. Sumo Digital has stated that instead online will be added before the end of 2020 through a patch, with the delay required to make sure the function is working properly.

The patch will also add:

  • Cross-generation multiplayer where PS4 and PS5 users can play together
  • Game save transfers from PS4 to PS5

However, game save transfers will be available to those who upgrade to the digital version of Sackboy: A Big Adventure on PS5. This can be done digitally from the PS4 version or by using the a PS4 disc of the game. Local multiplayer will allow 2-4 players to enjoy Sackboy: A Big Adventure but if you were hoping to play with others elsewhere you will have to wait. The statement from Sumo can be read below:

We've made the difficult decision to delay the full online multiplayer functionality within Sackboy: A Big Adventure. The team have been working hard to ensure that online is the very best experience it can be for players and we just need a little more time to get it right so you can enjoy it to the fullest with your friends and family. 

On launch day you'll still be able to enjoy Sackboy with your household in offline couch co-op party play. 2-4 player parties can play through the whole game including unmissable co-op only levels. 

We understand this will be disappointing for those of you hoping to take advantage of the online multiplayer functionality at launch and appreciate the patience. 

Thank you for your understanding and we look forward to celebrating the launch of Sackboy: A Big Adventure with you all next week! 

You can check out the trophies for Sackboy: A Big Adventure here.

Source: PS Blog

Godfall's launch trailer has landed, see some more gameplay here

The launch trailer for the PS5 console exclusive Godfall, which is also coming to PC via Epic, has landed showing some of the cinematic elements from the game as well as a whole load of fast paced combat. The trailer gives a brief look at the story which sees players look to overthrow the mad god Macros who has split his society between those that support him, and those who oppose him after feeling Macros' wrath during his rise to power. The footage shows fights against both lower tier enemies as well as brief looks at some of the bosses.

Epic Games and Counterplay Games have also confirmed that Godfall is now available to digitally pre-order Godfall for PS5 on the PlayStation Store. These editions are the same as the ones that appeared earlier on the Epic Games Store. Those three editions are the Standard Edition, the Digital Deluxe Edition, and the Ascended Edition. The link to pre-order Godfall on the PS Store is here, while the Epic Games Store link is here. The content and prices of the editions can be found below.

  • Godfall Standard Edition £69.99 – includes base game
  • Godfall Digital Deluxe Edition £89.99 – includes base game and first expansion
  • Godfall Ascended Edition £99.99 – includes base game, access to first expansion, gold themed goods including Gold Valorplate skins for Silvermane, Phoenix, and Greyhawk, 5x Gold weapon skins, Gold Shield skin, Gold Royal Banner skin, unique multiplayer lobby title, and Orange Valorplate skin for Vertigo.

Set in an high fantasy world, there are five realms of Apeiron to venture through in Godfall and, which have been split between Fire, Water, Air, Earth, and Spirit. Through the game, there's definitely been some influence and crossover from looter shooters and action RPGs, with a main goal being to find loot and continually upgrade your character build. However, that will not be the only factor in how well you do in battle. There's also plenty of Dark Souls to see in the combat, with tense battles that require positioning and timing to succeed, though it emphasises offence over defence. If you dominate the combat space, you'll be much more likely to succeed.

Godfall will be available on November 19th for PC and PS5.

Source: YouTube

Destiny 2: Beyond Light: How to pre-load and when maintenance begins

Destiny 2 is about to evolve, the biggest change to the game since it launched will begin on November 9th with an extended period of downtime and a completely new version of the game which everyone will have to download.

Let's start with the downtime, remember UTC is now the same as GMT so this actually starts on November 8th for those in the UK.

  • November 9, 3:30 PM PST (2330 UTC): Background maintenance for Update 3.0.0.1 will begin.
  • November 9, 4:00 PM PST (0000 UTC): In preparation for downtime, players will be removed from activities and will be required to download a small update before logging in again.
  • November 9, 6:50 PM PST (0250 UTC): Sign-on for Destiny 2 will be disabled.
  • November 9, 7:00 PM PST (0300 UTC): Destiny 2 will be brought offline for expected maintenance. Players will be removed from activities and won't be able to log back into Destiny 2 until 9 AM PST on November 10.
  • November 10, 9:00 AM PST (1700 UTC): Destiny 2 Update 3.0.0.1 will be available across all platforms and regions. Players will be able to log back into Destiny 2.
  • November 10 12:00 PM PDT (2000 UTC): Destiny 2 maintenance is expected to conclude.

Now to to preloads, including how much space you will need free on your hard drive. Please note Bungie's warning, do not delete your existing copy of Destiny 2 to make space for the new version!

BEYOND LIGHT PRE-LOAD
Pre-load for Update 3.0.0.1 will be available prior to the game's release. Below are pre-load timelines and instructions based on platform:
PlayStation
Beginning on November 8 after 8 PM PST (0400 UTC), users can start pre-downloading Update 3.0.0.1 by:
  • Navigating to Destiny 2
  • Pressing the "Options" button
  • And selecting "Check for Updates"
In an effort to decrease server load, some PlayStation Plus users may be able to pre-download Update 3.0.0.1 starting on November 7 after 8 PM PST (0400 UTC) if they have auto update/download enabled on their PlayStation 4. For instructions on how to setup auto update/download, please  click here.
PLEASE NOTE: BUNGIE RECOMMENDS THAT PLAYERS SHOULD NOT DELETE THEIR CURRENT VERSION OF DESTINY 2 ON THEIR PLAYSTATION CONSOLE TO SPEED UP THE PRE-DOWNLOAD PROCESS.
Xbox
Pre-load for Xbox will be available shortly after Destiny 2 is taken offline for expected maintenance at 7 PM PST (0300 UTC) on November 9. For instructions on how to setup auto update, please  click here.
PC
Pre-load for PC will be available shortly after Destiny 2 is taken offline for expected maintenance at 7 PM PST (0300 UTC) on November 9. Update 3.0.0.1 should automatically be put in the Steam download queue once it is available to pre-load. For more information on managing Steam downloads and updates, please  click here.
STORAGE REQUIREMENTS
Below are the updated storage requirements for Beyond Light:
Platform Destiny 2 Install Size Storage Space Needed for Installation
Xbox Series X|S 65.7 GB 65.7GB
PlayStation 5 70.78 GB 70.78 GB
PlayStation 4 70.78 GB 171.68 GB*
Xbox One 65.7 GB 65.7 GB
PC 69.7 GB** 186.2 GB***

* PlayStation 4: Includes current installed version of Destiny 2 (100.9 GB) + Update 3.0.0.1 pre-load (70.78 GB) = 171.68 GB
** PC: Destiny 2 Install Size may vary based on languages installed, size shown is maximum size possible 
 *** PC: Includes current installed version of Destiny 2 (up to 116.5 GB) + Update 3.0.0.1 pre-load (up to 69.7 GB) = 186.2 GB

Source: Bungie

Rogue Legacy 2 Tips and Tricks

Rogue Legacy 2 is finally here. Well, sort of. It's out in Early Access and even in this primordial form still shines as a shamelessly brutal roguelike that'll have you dying every couple of minutes if you're not careful.

Actually, it'll fairly regularly kill you off even if you are being cautious, so there's very little wriggle room here. Thankfully for you, we've got some Rogue Legacy 2 tips and tricks for you to dive into.

Rogue Legacy 2 tips and tricks

Rogue Legacy 2 is already shaping up to be an excellent sequel to an already great game. However, even if you loved the original, the chances are that it's been a while since you dove into it properly. Well, that's where we come in, so strap in and prepare to learn some quickfire lessons.

You're going to die so much

Seriously, roguelikes are well-known for their desire to kill you off constantly, but Rogue Legacy 2 takes it to an entirely new level. The first dozen runs or so will likely last under a couple of minutes. It can be frustrating, but the best way to look at it is that each one should lead you to a few more upgrades, and that'll help later on.

Pay attention to your children

You'll get a choice of three characters whenever you die. Each of these will have an array of abilities, classes, and traits. Pay attention to all of these to make sure you pick the one that suits you best. Sometimes the difference between two warriors is that one has absurd strength, and the other one can't see very well.

Pick new traits

On the subject of traits, it's a good idea to just choose any you haven't seen yet. Knowledge is power, and while the vast majority of the characteristics will end up harming your runs, it's still a great idea to know what you're going to be dealing with. Plus, it lets you know how hard the next run will be, and thanks to the whole socialism thing the game has going on, can lead to the next of our Rogue Legacy 2 tips.

Sometimes hunting for gold is the best you can do

Gold is important in Rogue Legacy 2. You need it to upgrade your castle, you need it to create new equipment for yourself, and you could always do with more of it. The best way to get a lot of money fast is to pick a character with a lot of negative traits; these tend to give you a huge boost to your gold, which makes them perfect for a quick run to grab a lot of cash.

You don't always have to fight

Finally, apart from bosses and a couple of challenges, you can actually just run past most enemies. In fact, it'll fairly regularly keep you alive a lot longer. Sure, sometimes enemies drop gold when they die, but most don't. That means you're better off learning to dodge attacks to the best of your ability. Both the Wind Shield and the Barbarian's Shout can help with projectiles too, so they're great if you can't be bothered to fight anymore.

Mortal Shell Tips and Tricks you need to know

Mortal Shell is one of the harder Soulslike games around. Due to the mix large enemy hordes and the absence of decent healing items in the early game, you're likely to find yourself dying a lot.

Well, in order to help you survive those early days in this bleak but beautiful world, we thought we'd put together some Mortal Shell tips and tricks.

But first, see our Mortal Shell review in which we scored the sinister action RPG a valiant 8 out of 10, concluding: "Mortal Shell is just an incredibly satisfying experience. It'll punish you constantly, but if you can master the mechanics it lays out in front of you then you'll have an incredible time of things. The lore is a little more obvious that in other soulslikes, and the story it tells and the world it puts you in are both rather enthralling. This is definitely a game that fans of dying a lot will enjoy, but it's probably not for everyone."

Mortal Shell Tips and Tricks

There are no specific boss strategies here, nor any locations to the collectables dotted around the world. Instead, each of these is a bit of advice we wish we'd had upon starting the game. Thankfully for all involved, you're not us, and that means you get the benefit of the many, many deaths we've already endured.

Become a master hardener

The Harden mechanic is basically what makes Mortal Shell tick. It allows you to instantly become invulnerable to most forms of damage, and you can do it whether you're standing still, running at an enemy, or about to attack. There are two main things to keep in mind when hardening (keep it clean people):

First of all, you really can do it whenever you want, just remember to actually hold the button until it's safe to move away or attack. Secondly, you can only do it when the meter is full. If you want to play it really safe, back away once you've attacked, harden to block, and dodged aside. That way you can wait until you can harden again and continue the slow cycle of killing the bosses.

You can get new weapons by examining books next to statues

Mortal Shell doesn't have many weapons. Thankfully, the weapons it does have are really quite good fun. The game doesn't make it clear how you can unlock these though, so that's where we come in. You can find new weapons by reaching one of the three smaller hub areas outside of the main hub. Each of these will have an anvil, one of the creepy ladies who acts as a bonfire, and a statue next to a book. Interacting with the book will end with you fighting a familiar face, and if you can beat them, you can then take the weapon from the statue next to it.

Find a weapon you like

On the subject of weapons, it's well worth finding the one that really works for you. Each of them has a unique style of attack, some special moves, and a unique rhythm. It's worth unlocking them all as soon as you can, and you can do this by exploring a lot, and fighting the boss that lets you wield them whenever you find them. It might seem counterintuitive to do so much backtracking, but well, you're going to be backtracking anyway, so you may as well make it worthwhile.

You don't always have to fight things

Also on the subject of weapons, sometimes your best weapon is running. There are an awful lot of enemies in Mortal Shell. Every single area is absolutely lousy with them. While fighting them is a good idea when you're looking to level up a shell, it can be a massive time sink otherwise. So, sometimes you're better off just running through. Just don't stop or look back or you might get taken by surprise.

Remember the name

As you discover new shells for you to slip into, you'll probably find one that fits your playstyle. Each of them has a different balance of health, stamina, and special abilities. It's worth recalling the name of each of them to check out their skill trees, that way you can choose your favourite. If you can match your favourite shell with your favourite weapon, then you're going to have a much easier time of things. Also, and this is a juicy bit of info, maxing out a shell will really help you, and we recommend you do so ASAP.

PlayStation 5 Review – A sensory revolution for next-gen gaming

We've seen countless images and videos by now, but it's still surprising just how big the PlayStation 5 is. This is a monument to your hobby, the biggest games console ever made and one that might be a little difficult to fit into your TV cabinet. Sony don't even vaguely try to hide the PS5 with a striking two tone design that's meant to stand out, its central glossy black core sandwiched between two flowing, swooping sheets of white plastic. It's a look that you'll either love or be a bit baffled by, but it's also a statement of intent, that this console offers something new and different.

The design is more than just looks, though. The plastic side panels are removable, hiding things like dust holes you can use a vacuum cleaner on, the spot where you can put an SSD expansion, and allowing the myriad of vents to feel like a flourish of style as opposed to a mere consequence of cooling. However, with no flat surface to speak of, it also means you need a stand for the console, regardless of if you want to have it upright or lie it flat.

You do get one in the box, and it has its own unique design quirks, with a moulded form to match the side of your console that rotates depending on how you want to place your console and features a secret slot that either hides a mounting screw or a screw hole cap – there's some impressive attention to detail there. When vertical, it's secured to the base with a screw, but when horizontal it clips onto the lower white sheet of plastic at a point marked with a cute strip of PlayStation symbols. It can flap around a bit if you need to move the console. Also, while it's a broad disc, putting pressure on the corners of the machine will cause it to wobble and bonk the table,  something that's especially easy at the front left. Cue the wobbly PlayStation 5 memes.

Does all of this size pay off? Is it silent? Well, no. There's a tone to the fan that just stands out a little for me, not too dissimilar to an idling PS4 but quieter, and as you launch a game there's a noticeable step up in fan speed and sound, though it stays pretty constant and never comes anywhere near to the jet engine sounds of the PS4. Still, you might pick it out during a particularly quiet moment of a game or when returning to the PlayStation 5 home screen. Compared to the Xbox Series X? The Xbox has a more neutral fan sound that's less noticeable in my estimation.

The new PlayStation system software feels like a blend of the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4 eras. The size of the icons is reminiscent of the XMB, shunted up to the top left hand corner of the screen, but the way it actually works is closer to the PS4, with a limited list of nine recent games before you have to delve into the full library – there's no folder support here. Select a game and you can scroll down to that game's area, looking up game streams, trophy progression and more.

Many of the system features that lived in the PS4's upper menu bar are now a part of the general quick menu, which overlays from the bottom of the screen when you tap the PS button. Your friends and all your communication with them live in the Game Base area, alongside other notifications, download progress, audio options and more. If you've spent years with the PS4, you'll have to adjust between pressing and holding the PS button to get to where you want.

Also in the quick menu are a set of cards, presenting you with a bunch of gaming opportunities. They could be news for the game you're playing, an open invitation to join friends in something else, your parties where you can chat, message and share clips. PS5 games are now much more linked to the system, and these cards can show you a Trophy you're about to reach, track collectible progression through a level, even offering up a mini walkthrough video to follow, or simply show the status of your most recent checkpoint. They also allow you to boot straight to that point in the game.

This is Sony's alternative to the Xbox Series X|S Quick Resume feature, but instead of suspending the game mid-race, mid-mission or whatever, it will load you in at a nearby checkpoint, level start, to the multiplayer menus, and so on. Of course, this will depend on the game developer for a robust implementation, and Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales shows off its flexibility pretty nicely, with granular loading points based around mid-mission checkpoints. It has the potential to be a much more universal system than Quick Resume, not that that's a slight on what the Xbox can do.

Once you're actually in-game, you're beholden to the wonderful effects that the DualSense can pull off. Catch our separate DualSense review here, but in short, there's a huge amount of nuanced directionality given through the Haptic LRA motors, which can enhance the kinds of feedback you're getting. That's nothing compared to the Adaptive Triggers that add texture to each trigger pull, resist, and can even send a violent rumble effect of their own. It's a shame that you only get basic and sometimes incongruent buzzing in backward compatible games.

Backward compatibility is a big deal on PlayStation 5. Having been poo-pooed by Sony in the past, it's now a core feature of the system, and pulls off some familiar tricks. The added power of the PS5 allows it to steady frame rates and resolutions at their maximum settings in many games, and the SSD allows them to load faster. In addition to just performing so much better, Shenmue 3's load time drops from 37 seconds on PS4 Pro to 22 seconds from the PS5's SSD. Horizon Zero Dawn fast travel drops from 64 seconds to 28 seconds, Crysis Remastered plummets from 47 seconds to just 19 seconds, and then GT Sport cuts from 36 seconds to 20 seconds. Similar to the Xbox Series X, games will need to be designed to really take advantage of the SSD, but it can dramatically reduce the waiting in older games as well.

Backward compatibility can be held back by the games your playing. Titles from the start of the PS4 era will be limited to 1080p and often have frame rate caps of 30fps, and once developers started to target the PS4 Pro, they started to impose resolution caps like 1440p (Uncharted 4) or a dynamic checkerboarded 1800p at 30fps (Horizon Zero Dawn). It leads to a curious case where the PS5 will be stronger than the Xbox Series X for early generation, but then the Series X can push to the typically higher resolution targets of the One X, while the PS5 is stuck in the middle ground. However, just as Microsoft have made waves with their own game updates, Sony are also selectively going back and updating games as well. Days Gone now runs 60fps on PS5 vs. 30fps on PS4 and PS4 Pro, and we awaiting an update for Ghost of Tsushima to go live that does the same. Hopefully they'll make similar updates for other games, especially those found in the PS+ Collection.

The feedback of the DualSense combines with the new 3D audio system, the Tempest Engine. Sony have talked up the potential here, and it is truly fantastic. Put on some headphones connected via USB or 3.5mm jack, and you'll be surrounded by sounds in a wonderfully immersive fashion, whether it's the cacophony of sounds in Astro's Playroom or the differently cacophonous streets of New York, all coming from different directions. I can't truly say that it's better than Dolby Atmos, but it's certainly up there as a rival.

Unfortunately, I also can't say if I'm using the correct audio HRTF profile for my particular ears. You'll find the profile test nestled away in the system settings with the 3D audio options, but this boils down to giving you five presets of different sounding babbling brooks to choose between. You're meant to find the one that lets you pick out five distinct layers, but it's like walking into a DFS and only getting to look at the sofas. They certainly do seem different, but I don't know what qualifies as the right one for me. So, default it is.

There are other quirks and minor annoyances that carry over from the PS4 as well. Honestly, game install management just needs to be dramatically more flexible and easy to access. As on PS4 you can only have one external expansion drive active at any one time (which I've always found to be a pain in the bum), you can only move game data, not copy it (another pain in the bum), and if you want to clear space, you are not able to archive a PS5 game install on an external drive to avoid having to redownload it later. When you only have 667.2GB of storage, it's pretty galling to discover that another chunk of that is taken up by "Other". I've got a dozen games installed taking up 512GB, but then there's 94GB of this apparently performance enhancing "Other". Affordable ultra-speedy NVME expansions can't come soon enough.

Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales Review

With Marvel's Spider-Man having just celebrated its second anniversary, a full-on sequel arriving in time for the PS5 launch was always out of the question for developer Insomniac Games. However, the recently-acquired Sony studio have still managed to create a worthy follow-up with Spider-Man: Miles Morales, feeling more like a standalone game in its own right rather than the expansion-sized release many were expecting. Sure, it reuses a lot of what made 2018's Spider-Man a power-selling juggernaut, yet it builds on that foundation with an advanced web of gameplay features and stunning visuals, veined with its own distinctive vibe.

Since his first appearance in the original game, we always knew that Miles Morales would one day be taking the reins from Peter Parker and that's exactly what happens here. As a snowy New York settles in for the holiday season, OG Spider-Man hopes on a plane to Europe, leaving the city in his protégé's capable hands. What could possibly go wrong?

What many loved about Marvel's Spider-Man was how it gave us a slightly older, more experienced version of the iconic character, completely skipping Peter's tragic origin story. Having been done to death so many times before, it let players hit the ground running while also leaving room for Miles to develop as a character. Finally allowed to take centre stage, there's something instantly likeable about Miles, too. He's younger and more naïve than his mentor while also flanked by a new, diverse cast of supporting characters. There's a refreshing change of pace to Spider-Man: Miles Morales and how it aims for a more intimate narrative instead of reaching for the usual supervillain crisis.

If you've only just watched the credits roll on Marvel's Spider-Man then, yeah, you may feel a sense of déjà vu as you come swinging into Miles Morales. Insomniac Games have repurposed their virtual rendition of New York City with new missions and side activities, but it's still the same urban playground we've already spent dozens of hours exploring. However, we'd be lying if we said this was a notable downside – during our time with Spider-Man: Miles Morales that familiarity was never an issue, perhaps thanks to Manhattan's wintery makeover.

Of course, Insomniac have reused more than just their open world from the original game. Spider-Man: Miles Morales is built around the same blend of fluid combat, stealth, and traversal gameplay, though they've layered Miles' own unique powers on top for some rewardingly in-depth new mechanics.

One thing you will have noticed from the box art and pre-release media is Miles's "Venom" bio-electric powers. They come in several supercharged flavours and help spice up combat encounters despite the limited variety of new enemies this game introduces. Pulling off those perfect cinematic combos feels endlessly rewarding with new skills keeping Spider-Man: Miles Morales feeling fresh throughout.

The main story should clock in at around 6 to 8 hours but that's only if you're deliberately ignoring most of the side content on offer. As in the original Spider-Man, you'll find yourself constantly distracted as you go between missions, exploring landmarks, responding to crimes, and helping civilians who reach out to Miles via the FNSM (Friendly Neighbourhood Spider-Man) app. Again, some of these side activities have been reskinned for this semi-sequel, though they never feel like needless filler. Completing them will grant useful resources while also unlocking new suits to try out, including one inspired by Spider-Man: Into the Spider-verse as well as the Bodega Cat suit.

If you're looking for a game to show off what your PlayStation 5 can do, then Spider-Man: Miles Morales is certainly up to the task. Insomniac's festive themed New York looks fantastically frosty to the point where you can almost feel the chilly weather while perched in front of your television, and the accurate ray traced reflections add a huge amount to the believability of the mirror-like windows that cover many of New York's skyscrapers. The enhanced detail on characters – from clothing and skin textures to facial animations – has also been dialled up. While some players will prefer cinematic, high fidelity visuals there's also the option there to a performance focused mode for a consistently silky 60 frames per second, though you lose out on the ray tracing in particular.

The Falconeer Review

The Falconeer is set in a beautiful world called The Great Ursee. It is, as you'd expect from that name, predominantly covered in water. It's also filled with impossible geography, with archipelagos, mountains, and huge chasms parting the sea itself littered all over the place. I'm thankful that you can, if you want to, just soar through the sky of this beautiful world and take your time to simply drink it all in.

Of course, The Falconeer isn't just a game about flying high above the world and casting your eyes over it. At its core, The Falconeer is an aerial combat game, one where dogfights are carried out with riders atop massive warbirds. You need to take on a variety of different missions to advance the story and discover more about they factions and everything that's going on.

Most of your time in The Falconeer will be spent flying around and getting in fights. Your bird controls like a plane would, which means that in fights you basically shoot in front of you, barrel roll, and whizz around trying to avoid incoming attacks. I'm being a little reductive here, but honestly, I very rarely found myself needing to do anything else. Most of the dogfights ended up playing out like a dog chasing its tail, except I was always hoping to be the head of the dog and never the tail.

It's fine for what it is, but I don't think this is the game to go for if you're looking for a game to sell you on the idea of aerial combat. Instead, this game is much more about the story it's telling and the world it's set in.

It's also a world where, at first, glance, you'd think the bond between human and warbird was integral to both of their survival, but it's not that straight-forward. You can upgrade both your weapons and your warbird if you earn enough money to be able to do so. The weapon upgrades amount to different weapons or more powerful versions of the ones you know and love. They're reloaded by flying through thunderstorms and collecting the electrical energy within them – for the record, that's one of my favourites aspects of this game.

Things get a little uncomfortable when you're looking at upgrading your trusty warbird though. You can use mutagens to enhance your warbird, which give you passive effects that will improve your bird's ability to fly around and do its job. One of these is called Vein Rider, which is a mutagen that coats the cardiovascular system of your warbird in a self-repairing mucus. Lovely. Others are rather dark and more twisted, like Sark Blood, which stimulates a bird's adrenal gland in such a way that your bird is put into a permanent state of fear. Given how mystical the opening of the game is, and hows its touted as such throughout, there's something deeply disturbing about little details like this.

I think this tonal disconnect resonated with me because it felt indicative of how I felt about the game as a whole. I don't dislike The Falconeer, but I'm also not particularly enamoured with it.

At its best, The Falconeer is a beautiful world that allows you to explore the airways above a beautiful and mysterious sea. It's one where the people within it feel as though they've got a thousand stories to tell you, and as you play with each of the factions, you'll discover that the politics of each group are just as complex as those in the greatest fantasy worlds.

However, at its worst, The Falconeer feels like a boring game of tag rather than an intense aerial dogfight. There's a chance that I simply came into this expecting something different from the combat, but even as I grew to adjust to the way my bird moved and how I could attack, it never felt all that satisfying to down an enemy.

Dead By Daylight teases visual upgrade with new map designs

Dead By Daylight developers Behaviour Interactive are teasing two upcoming map reworks for their horror multiplayer hit.

With new content being added on a regular basis alongside regular updates and gameplay balance patches, the studio have promised that a long overdue visual upgrade is coming too.

They recently uploaded four new pieces of concept art via Twitter while giving fans a progress update on two maps that will be receiving makeovers. These include the Autohaven Wrecks junkyard as well as the Mount Ormond Resort (introduced in Chapter X: Darkness Among Us with the Legion Killer).

In other Dead By Daylight news, you can find the latest patch notes for update 4.3.2 here.

Will Dead By Daylight get bots on PC & consoles?

Dead By Daylight recently entered it latest chapter "Descend Beyond" which introduced The Blight as a new playable killer. Looking further into the future, Behaviour have confirmed that players will get a free next-gen upgrade on both PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S.

We recently re-reviewed the game for 2020, bumping up its original score:

Dead By Daylight has evolved into somewhat of a phenomenon, proving that the often maligned games-as-a-service model produces more than just cookie cutter loot shooters. It's still an acquired taste and a bit rough around the edges though stands out as one of the most unique ongoing multiplayer games of the generation.

Since launch the game has steadily risen in popularity with the constant rollout of new content as well as several notable cameos from various horror icons. These include Halloween's Michael Myers, Leatherface, Freddy Krueger, and Ghost Face. Characters from Stranger Things have also made an appearance with a surprise sighting of Pyramid Head earlier this year, reigniting rumours that Konami may be gearing up to announce a new Silent Hill game.

Source: Twitter (@DeadByBHVR)

Control: Ultimate Edition PS5 & Xbox Series X|S release delayed to 2021

The next-gen upgrades coming to Remedy Entertainment's Control have been delayed until early 2021, with the team saying they need "a bit more time to work on it."

Already available for sale on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC, the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X versions were expected to release digitally at the end of 2020, before heading to retail for the start of 2021.

Control: Ultimate Edition is a compilation of the main game and its Expansion Pass, which includes The Foundation and AWE.

The release was announced back in August and immediately courted controversy as it was revealed that buying this new version of the game would be the only way to get an upgrade to the PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X. 505 Games came back and tried to explain why they had to create a new version and could not offer either free or paid upgrades, but this only really stirred up the hornets nest further.

Either way, the game is fantastic. In our Control review, Aran wrote:

Control is one of the best story-focused single player games in years. Its unique mix of surrealism, sci-fi and mystery draws you in, but doesn't give everything away, and the combat is fantastically varied and provides just enough challenge. A culmination of everything that went before, Control is Remedy's magnum opus.

Assassin's Creed Valhalla trophy list confirmed for PS4 & PS5

Ahead of its November 10th launch next week, we have the full trophy list for Assassin's Creed: Valhalla. Although mined from the PlayStation 4 version of the game, it's safe to assume that its next-gen PS5 counterpart will also have the same full suite of trophies.

As always, if you want to avoid story and gameplay spoilers then steer your longboat clear of this list. It makes reference to story events, locations, gameplay systems, and items you might not want revealed to you ahead of Valhalla's release date.

Overall, Assassin's Creed: Valhalla offers up a hearty trophy list that will no doubt expand following the launched of its post-launch expansions. There will be 51 trophies (including a platinum) that cover the campaign while also rewarding players for gameplay-specific feats as well as exploring the game's open world for collectibles and other points of interest.

You can review the Assassin's Creed: Valhalla trophy list below. How long do you think it will take to pillage that precious platinum?

Name Description Rarity
Viking Legend Win Every Trophy Platinum
The Sage Begins Complete the Prologue Bronze
To England! Leave Norway Bronze
Hard Choices Complete the Grantebridgescire Arc Bronze
The Order Is Revealed Complete the Lunden Arc Bronze
The Good Saxon Complete the East Anglia Arc Bronze
Take My Hand Complete the Cent Arc Bronze
Calling in a Favor Complete the Suthsexe Arc Bronze
The Enemy of My Enemy Complete the Wincestre Arc Bronze
In the Footsteps of the Gods Complete the Asgard and Jotunheim quests Silver
As It Was Foretold Complete "The Prophecy" storyline Silver
England Subdued Complete Hamtunscire Arc Silver
Disorder of the Ancients Eliminate all targets of the Order of Ancients Gold
Rampage Complete your first raid in England Bronze
It's Alive! Create a Jomsviking Bronze
Tranquility Complete a Standing Stone puzzle Bronze
Equilibrium Complete 3 Cairn challenges Bronze
Old School Treasure Hunt Collect 5 Treasure Hoard rewards Bronze
Skadi's Hobby Perform a 150m slide in the snow Bronze
Witch Hunter Defeat one Daughter of Lerion Bronze
Equine Attack Assassinate an enemy from your horse Bronze
Silent Viking Assassinate 10 enemies in a row without triggering a conflict Bronze
Everyday Life Complete 10 World Events Bronze
Overdesign II While on fire during a fight, kill 3 hard difficulty soldiers without breaking their shields Silver
Completionist All the Way! Complete all territories Silver
Row Rage Ram and destroy 5 boats in under 2 minutes with your longship Bronze
We're in the End Game Now Reach Power 280 Silver
Hidden Trophy Continue playing to unlock this trophy. Bronze
Builder Reach settlement level 3 Bronze
Home Sweet Home Reach settlement level 6 Silver
Pioneer Reach Vinland Bronze
Home Decor Place an item on each settlement cosmetic spot Bronze
Not the Norse You're Looking For Successfully pass close to a guard in a distrust area by blending with a group of monks Bronze
Face My Might! Equip 8 abilities Bronze
Ultimate Refinement Fully upgrade and enhance a piece of gear Silver
Flying Eivor Get thrown 30 meters away by a destroyer or a housecarl Bronze
Twinkle Twinkle Release a firefly in your settlement Bronze
Archaeologist Complete all Roman collector challenges Bronze
Orlog Champion Beat all the Orlog players Bronze
Good Catch! Catch a fish of each type using the fishing line Bronze
Full Mastery Spend your first Mastery point Silver
Is There Anybody Out There? Light the unlit braziers on Hadrian's Wall Bronze
Slam Master Complete all the flytings Silver
Caladfwlch Draw Excalibur from the Stone Silver
It's Not a Bug, It's a Feature Complete your first Animus Anomaly Bronze
Seahorse Swim a total of 3km with the horse Bronze
The Hidden Truth Obtain all video fragments and watch the hidden truth video Silver
Master Hunter Defeat all Alpha animals Silver
Dreamcatcher Destroy 10 Curse Symbols Bronze
Godly Reward Obtain Thor's Helmet Silver
Worthy Wield Mjolnir Bronze

Our review for Assassin's Creed: Valhalla will be going live next week ahead of launch. The sequel will be launching on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Google Stadia, and Microsoft Windows. Those who buy the game on PS4 or Xbox One can upgrade to a next-gen version for free with save data carried over via Ubisoft Connect.

Star Wars Squadrons is getting a next-gen upgrade with up to 120fps on Xbox Series X|S

Despite having seemingly made statements to the contrary in the run up to release, Star Wars Squadrons is being updated to take advantage of the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S, boosting resolutions, improving visual quality, and offering 120fps modes for those with compatible TVs and monitors.

They go into more detail over the Xbox Series X|S updates, with a choice of two visual modes. On Xbox Series X, it will have 2160p at 60fps, while Xbox Series S will have 1440p at 60fps. You'll have the option of toggling a performance mode which keeps the same resolution targets but doubles the frame rate to 120fps. Presumably they'll be dropping the visual quality to hit that target, but the game will also support Variable Refresh Rates to smooth out any performance dips that do occur.

Over on the PlayStation side of things, the PS5 will offer improved lighting, but will be stuck at the same resolution and frame rate as the PlayStation 4 Pro. There's no word on 120fps or VRR support here.

When asked if the games might be made forward compatible back in July, Star Wars: Squadrons Creative Director on Ian S. Frazier said, "We're not planning a separate version of the game for the next-gen consoles, but yes, the backwards compatibility should work." Clearly he wasn't fibbing too much, but playing coy as they presumably worked to nail down what they would end up doing.

EA also ran through their other titles, such as Need for Speed Hot Pursuit Remastered, The Sims 4, their various sports titles, all of which will see the Xbox Series X run like and Xbox One X, Xbox Series S like a Series S and PlayStation 5 like a PlayStation 4 Pro.

Apex Legends will see a more solid lock to 1440p with more meaningful updates in 2021, and there's the fully next-gen version of FIFA 21 and Madden NFL 21 coming out with free Dual Entitlement upgrades on 4th December.

Source: EA

Warhammer: Odyssey combat gameplay shown in new trailer

Developer Virtual Realms have released their newest trailer for upcoming MMORPG Warhammer: Odyssey, splicing some flashy cinematics with combat gameplay.

Warhammer: Odyssey is a mobile MMO that will be coming to both iOS and Android devices in the near future. Virtual Realms are now taking early registrations for those who want to be first in line for the game's beta.

Based on the popular Games Workshop license, this latest Warhammer game is set in their Fantasy universe which has since been discontinued as a tabletop strategy game. In 2015, GW shelved Warhammer Fantasy in favour of Warhammer: Age of Sigmar, though there's still a strong appetite for this much-loved setting and its characters.

Warhammer: Odyssey will have players exploring The Old World as one of several familiar classes at launch including the Warrior Priest, Engineer, Dwarf Slayer, Witch Hunter, Archmage, and more.

The game will be completely free to play with a subscriber option for those who want to unlock certain cosmetics and time-saver bonuses.

Here's a little more about the game setting and backstory:

Morrslieb the Chaos Moon grows in the skies above the Old World, under its wicked visage doomsayers take to the city streets and those creatures who would bring the walls of man crumbling down become ever more bold. However, all is not lost! Those that would stand against the darkness and Chaos that threatens civilization have come together once more, honoring ancient pacts as they did in times long past. Now is the time for heroes, now is the time to forge your Odyssey.

This isn't the first Warhammer Fantasy MMO we've seen. Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning was published by EA in 2008 during the MMO boom but officially closed its doors in 2013.

We're hoping to go hands on with Warhammer: Odyssey soon so should be able to report back with some gameplay impressions.

Source: Press Release

Fuser Review In Progress

Music games are few and far between these days. Gone are the times when your living room was cluttered with plastic drum kits and guitars, but Harmonix are still pumping them out and the latest, Fuser, is an evolution of their mobile musical card game Dropmix. It also shows the evolution of DJ'ing to no longer rely on two vinyl decks, but four digital decks, a rack of special effects and a selection of electronic instruments.

Through the campaign you play as an unnamed DJ on their way to superstardom, playing a number of sets at different times of day across six stages which have clearly been influenced by the Tomorrowland festival over in Europe. Each stage is home to a promoter who will line up your sets and tell you what to play and when, and as the campaign progresses you gradually unlock new features on your decks.

You have four decks – one each for drums, vocals, and two instrument tracks. To keep the crowd happy you must drop in the required tunes on the downbeat of the song or at a certain cue point: mess it up and the meter monitoring the crowd's reaction will go down and down until it's game over. As you progress you can start dropping multiples of the same track element, add in FX, faders, hot ejects, transitions, and play instruments using a DJ pad. The promoter will give you instructions while you are playing and you have a limited time to complete the actions, get it right and your score goes up as you earn XP and points to unlock new outfits and tunes.

It's impressive just how much control you have over the music. It's the closest thing to having a digital DJ set up I've seen in a game and you can get some really professional sounding mixes playing. It even includes pitch shifting, faders and the ability to shift the key of your mix. Equally impressive is the track listing with over 100 tunes to try out, although many of these are locked to begin with and you have to earn them through levelling up or buying them with the currency you win from playing.

However, there's a clear flaw to the campaign. When you have completed the tasks assigned to you by the promoter you get a little time to freestyle and get the crowd worked up. Performing any of the actions from dropping tunes to playing effects increases the crowd's appreciation, but there's nothing stopping you from doing the same thing over and over. I could drop the four elements from one track on the beat, move the cursor a few centimetres the other way, do the same, then move back and repeat the action and get maximum crowd appreciation almost every time. Activision's DJ Hero stopped you from repeating the same actions, so it's a shame this loop hole exists in Fuser.

Unlocks include new costumes for your character to wear including a range of deadmau5 style masks, and new visuals for your stage such as lighting and fireworks. I found the fireworks to be very distracting as they boomed in the middle of a mix, so I turned them off. It's a good idea to lower the crowd volume as well. Unfortunately you cannot customise your backing dancers, who bop and jig away at the same speed no matter if your playing a 90bpm RnB tune of 150bpm electronic track.

Technically it's a great game with some toe tapping tunes, amazing intuitive controls and a decent length campaign featuring an admirably diverse set characters. As a gamer, I enjoyed playing it…

But…

As a DJ who has a had number one mash up album, been a promoter of successful club for ten years, and most importantly, someone who loves music, this game made me scream. It is a crime against music. Fuser has  absolutely no concept of when tracks work together, so you can mash up Lady Gaga, Otis Reading, Rage Against The Machine and Benni Benassi at 140bpm and the crowd will go wild despite it sounding like a clanging mess. You should be booed you off on stage, but this audience laps it up. You have to play some truly horrific mixes during the campaign and there is no respect for the tunes – tracks are played much slower or faster than they ever should be, and then there's the Major/Minor switch.

Oh dear lord in heaven, have you ever heard a track when it's swapped from major to minor? Here's Aha's 'Take On Me', which is including in Fuser, swapped to a minor key. You can't do that to songs, it makes them sound horrible, but Fuser matches the key of any new track you add in your mix to the key you are playing in, resulting in Erasure's A Little Respect and many other songs being utterly murdered.

There are many other issues that will annoy anyone who has dabbled in DJing – for a start, this is clearly a big dance music festival, the promoters list techno and house as their musical styles, and yet they force you to play Ava Max and Dolly Parton. The visual cues for when to mix in are also backwards. In a 4×4 track you always mix in on the first beat, but for some reason it's represented as the last on screen, and another indicator showing the beat starts as a small line and then gets bigger, which threw me off, it should be a big line getting smaller to represent the thump of the downbeat. I know that's a very specific complaint, but it really threw me.

Also promoters don't have fans and no DJ would ever work with a promoter who tells them what to play. Ever. The promoters job is to promote the event, the DJ's job is to select the tunes, not the other way round. You also have to take requests. Requests! At a music festival with ten thousand people bopping about! And they ask for Country music in the middle of thumping set of 150bpm of electronica! Argh!

And breathe…

Thankfully the game also includes a freestyle mode in which you can mix and match tracks to your hearts content without having respond to requests from promoters or fans. With a little practise you can get some really good sets going if you stick to use a couple of tracks at a time, I particularly liked swapping between two vocal discs using the cue marks which indicate the exact spot where to switch, that works really well and sounds like a real mash up track.

The musical instruments are less of a success. You can choose a particular style such as strings of drums but you have no idea what they are going to sound like until you press one of the pads its hit and miss if they work with your current mix. Each instrument has 25 pads, each with two patterns, and there are 50 instruments so there is no way to remember what each pad does.

There are also multiplayer and co-op online modes as well as weekly challenges where you can share your mixes online. Although you still use the same set of tracks and instruments they are scored quite differently, but as the game has not yet launched I could not find anyone to play against, hence this is a review in progress. We will update this review with a score once I've had a good stab at the online modes, but for the moment, despite my DJ diva heckles being raised to the highest point, I can say it's pretty good.

Just don't mix Rick Astley, Evanescence and Tone Loc while I'm in the room please.

DualSense Review – Feeling the future of gaming

The humble game controller has changed an awful lot over the decades. From the blocky NES controller with just a D-pad and two buttons, they spouted prongs to grip onto (the N64, of course, mutated all the way to three), then ballooned in size with the Dreamcast and original Xbox until more sensible heads prevailed, while beginning to rumble, to waggle, and gaining analogue sticks and triggers instead of digital buttons. Now Sony are taking the bold next step with the DualSense, a controller that does all of the above and more.

The two tone design surely won't be to everyone's taste, but it matches the PlayStation 5 nicely and follows on from the design direction that the PlayStation VR first hinted at. It is nicely stylised though, giving the look of having white plastic plates bolted onto a smooth matte black core, and will surely lend itself to more custom colour pairings.

But this controller is about much more than looks. Simply put, the DualSense offers a huge leap forward in how much force feedback it gives you. In adopting Linear Resonant Actuator (LRA) vibration motors instead of the traditional rumble motors, it allows for more directional and targeted vibrations to better match the positional events occurring in game and not simply send rumbles through the entire body of the controller. Instead of being either on or off, these motors can vibrate at different strengths, letting the DualSense pull similar tricks to the Nintendo Switch Joy-Con, where tilting it can simulate multiple Astrobots bouncing around inside.

More revolutionary are the Adaptive Triggers, though, able to push back or add resistance as you try to pull them closed. It's remarkable. Genuinely. The internal gearing doesn't seem able to create a hard stop – at least not in the PS5 games that we've played – but can create the feel of second notch in the trigger as you pull back,  a light squeezing texture, or resist and then give in, only to keep the gears spinning to create the kind of violent rumble of the DualShock 4.

The technical gubbins needed to create these new effects have seemingly led to a bulkier form compared to the DualShock 4, and those with smaller hands might find it a touch more unwieldy. Conversely, those with larger hands might find it a bit more comfortable to hold. The triggers have a wider profile, the shoulder buttons are a bit fatter for a more certain press, and all of the face buttons and D-pad directions have the kind of feel as you depress them that you expect from a Sony gamepad. Maybe they're a shade tighter than the buttons found on the DualShock 4.

The DualSense also lifts a few ideas right out of Nintendo's playbook. The built in loudspeaker returns from the DualShock 4, seemingly with better audio quality, but it's now joined by a microphone as well. That's great for quick and easy voice input for when you're searching through the PlayStation Store or wanting to send a quick message, for example, but they also potentially have roles to play in game as well. Astro's Playroom can sometimes having you blowing into the microphone, and that gimmick is joined by Astro's footstep sounds being piped through the controller as well as through the TV. It can add more dimensionality to the sound, which Sony are pushing with the PS5, but it's an effect that could easily become obnoxious if overdone. I soon turned the volume down to around 40%.

All of these features are pretty punishing on the battery life. The DualSense sports a battery that's 1.5x the size of that found in the DualShock 4, but its features push that battery harder, leading to a battery life that's roughly equivalent. We clocked just over 9 hours of gaming before it died, playing a mix of PS5 and PS4 backward compatibility games.

The other weakness of the DualSense experience comes through playing backward compatibility games on PS5 and the way it translates the vibration patterns intended for the DualShock 4 to the new motors.

It seems to just take each burst of DualShock rumble and outputs it as a half strength buzz in the LRA motors. You get a directional left and right buzz in the grips, but not the nuance that developers learnt how to create for the DualShock 4, where rumble is generated through asymmetrical weights spinning and a single quick on-off pulse could create a gentle nudge compared to a full throttle rumble.

So, in GT Sport, where you're racing down the middle of the track, the DS4 will often send a light single rotation through one of the motors, which the DualSense then presents as an out of place phone-style buzz that's brief, but is the exact same strength as when you're riding the kerb. You have the same effect in a shooter like Apex Legends. The weight of a pistol shot is now the same as a machine gun, a jump feels the same as a heavy landing.

This could theoretically be modified in a system update by Sony, but it's a bit of a disappointment for those eager to revisit PS4 games on the new console, especially when titles like Days Gone and Ghost of Tsushima will now run at 60fps. It's also surprising when Astro's Playroom demonstrates the ability to create similar rumble effects through other means. Should Sony revisit this aspect, then great, but until then I'd suggest keeping a DualShock 4 around for your PS4 games.

Every Yakuza game ranked from worst to best

With its 15th anniversary fast approaching, Yakuza has been one of the biggest Japanese franchises in the past decade, even if it only finally found a wider audience in the West in recent years.

The release of Yakuza: Like a Dragon is an exciting new chapter to that saga, and hopefully will have more people digging into the series' rich history. But how do the games stack up against one another? Can Ichiban compare with the might of the legendary Dragon of Dojima?

Here's our definitive ranking of the series, what it includes, and what it doesn't. We're going to omit the first two PS2 entries and just use the Kiwami remakes since they're essentially still the same story (but with better extra content). This also includes some but not all spin-offs, basically the instalments that only received a Japanese release are out as is the Fist of the North Star game, but we'll include Judgment since that's still set in the Yakuza universe.

So without further ado, here's the Yakuza games ranked from worst to best.

11. Streets of Kamurocho

Bit of an unfair pick as it's just a free mini-game released on Steam as part of the Sega 60th anniversary. Given the debt Yakuza owes to Streets of Rage, reskinning the classic arcade brawler with Kiryu and Majima should've been a delight. Instead, it's hard not to feel that this was a wasted opportunity and just a bit phoned in.

10. Yakuza: Dead Souls

Compared to the Japanese period drama spin-offs, the zombie apocalypse setting of Dead Souls meant it had the right kind of western appeal. But really, there's something very un-Yakuza about going around the streets shooting things with guns. If you do want a decent shooter from the Yakuza team, you're better off with Binary Domain. The only frightening thing about Dead Souls was that it was almost the last Yakuza game the west ever got.

9. Yakuza 4

An interesting change of course for the series by introducing multiple protagonists. While having to start each character from scratch can be off-putting, it's hard not to warm to newcomers Akiyama and Saejima, the latter also giving us some meaty backstory for Majima. Sadly, police officer Tanimura feels a bit like dead weight (not to mention his original voice actor ended up being replaced in the remaster) while you can't even play as Kiryu until towards the end – he does however make one hell of a boss fight.

8. Yakuza 3

Definitely the one that shows its age the most technically, this is nonetheless one of the most memorable entries as Kiryu finally makes a new life running an orphanage and Okinawa is a refreshing change from the hustle and bustle of Kamurocho, before of course a number of plot devices, including the CIA and an assassin resembling Kiryu's late patriarch, pulls him back onto the streets of Kamurocho. Nonetheless before all this, it's just nice spending time with Kiryu doing his best to be a good father figure as well as making new surprising friends. And who can forget the rare moment when the Dragon of Dojima loses his composure. Rikiyaaaaa!

7. Yakuza Kiwami

A complete remake of the original game built using the Yakuza 5 engine, Kiwami's modernised mechanics including the fight style switches from Yakuza 0, makes it the best way to play through the first game's story of the Tojo Clan's internal power struggle and the MacGuffin of the missing 10 billion yen, while also providing a whole lot more new quirky side quests the newer games are known for. Even series favourite Majima features more prominently to help the just-out-of-prison Kiryu into fighting shape through some bizarre methods. Who knew the Mad Dog would look good in fishnets.

6. Judgment

The first post-Kiryu game in the Yakuza universe except with a bit of Phoenix Wright thrown in for good measure. You play disgraced lawyer turned private detective Takayuki Yagami finding himself pulled into a whodunnit murder mystery that forces him to confront the case that destroyed his career years before. Having a light bit of detective work and disguises helps change up the Yakuza formula, though Yagami also kicks ass with two different fighting styles.

It's hard not to feel it's got a dragon-shaped hole but there's nonetheless a great cast of characters, from ex-yakuza/everyone's wingman Kaito to deadpan law firm assistant Saori. While it's mechanically disappointing as a detective game (do we really need more tailing missions?), the story it takes you on remains riveting from beginning to end.

5. Yakuza Kiwami 2

Definitely the best of the remakes as Kiwami 2 uses Yakuza 6's Dragon Engine to recreate both Kamurocho and Sotenbori back to their prime. This is also the entry that introduces us to some of the series' most memorable characters, including the Tojo Clan's future Sixth Chairman Daigo Dojima, the Omi Alliance's Ryuji Goda, and Osakan detective Kaoru, the closest Kiryu's had to a love interest.

Compared to Kiwami, the stripped back combat is disappointing, but it's more than made up with some inspired mini-games including Sega's own interactive urinals and the return of the cabaret management game from Yakuza 0.

4. Yakuza 5

It may have taken longer to get localised, thanks in no small part to a vocal fanbase, but it was worth the wait, even though it's also flawed as one of the most sprawling entries with too many protagonists and a long running time. Nonetheless, the content here is golden, beginning with Kiryu working as a taxi driver in Fukuoka until he's eventually roped back into the latest Tojo conspiracy – but really, the taxi missions are genuinely brilliant.

What ultimately brings this up high in the list is that Haruka finally gets her time in the spotlight as a playable character. Some might consider her path towards pop stardom as filler, but this rhythm action aficionado disagrees – it's a refreshing counterpoint to the rest of the game's testosterone, and like all Yakuza games, it finds a way to become hugely significant to the story in the grand scheme of things.

3. Yakuza: Like a Dragon

Sure, there's some recency bias here, but make no mistake: Like a Dragon is more than a worthy new direction for the series with a brand new leading man that's hard not to love. Ichiban Kasuga is in many ways the opposite of Kiryu – loud, inexperienced, wearing his heart on his sleeve – but he also packs the same unwavering sense of justice and honour, wanting to see the good in others, even if it means punching it out of them. At his side is a formidable party of equally likable characters, including kick-ass bartender Saeko who more than holds her own with the lads.

While the dramatic change from traditional brawling to turn-based RPG battles might seem too weird, it works surprisingly well, bringing this close to Sega/Atlus' own Persona series. It's undoubtedly a great starting point for newcomers, but there's plenty of surprises that series fans will love too.

2. Yakuza 6: The Song of Life

Technically, this is one of the most polished Yakuza games thanks to the new Dragon Engine giving us open-world environments without loading screens and the first game in the series to be fully voiced. While Kamurocho and other series regulars get a bit short-changed, the setting of Onomichi is a refreshing setting for meeting a whole new cast of fantastic characters, including a standout performance from legendary actor Takeshi Kitano.

Yakuza 6 also has some of the best side quests and mini-games, from the introduction of mascot Ono Michio to becoming the most popular boozehound at a local pub, as well as the guilty pleasure of chatting to cam girls played by real-life Japanese adult performers. Ultimately, it provides a hugely emotional send-off for one of gaming's greatest protagonists. I'm not sure what it is about watching hard men struggling to keep it together, but Kiryu's reunion with Haruka never fails to turn me into a blubbering wreck.

1. Yakuza 0

As a prequel set in the 80s at the height of Japan's economic boom where the streets flow with yen, Yakuza 0 is a perfect entry point for newcomers without all the knowledge of the series history. Not counting his role in Dead Souls, it's also the first time that series favourite Majima gets a proper playable role as we learn how he came to be known as the Mad Dog of Shimano (he also has arguably the best character intro of all time).

It's terrific flipping between Kamurocho and Sotenbori as you play as both Kiryu and Majima across the game. The 80s setting was also perfect for Sega to bring out its greatest arcade hits from Out Run to Space Harrier, while Majima's cabaret management mini-game (recycled in Kiwami 2) remains one of the very best mini-games of the series.

Most importantly, as a prequel, this proved to be the perfect opportunity for Sega/Atlus to give the series a soft reboot, making this game instrumental in giving the series newfound acclaim and attention in the West. Just for this reason alone makes Yakuza 0 the best game of the series.

Demon's Souls character creation and photo mode for PS5 detailed

Sony has released the first look at the Demon's Souls character creation and photo mode on PS5, and it has a lot of detail. The shots show both the photo mode filters in action as well as different ways you will be able modify your character with. The new character creation has a lot more features than the PS3 version of Demon's Souls did. In fact, with this new character creator there are approximate 16 million variations for the way your character looks. You will probably be able to really make yourself to explore.

Demon's Souls was announced for PS5 back in June with Bluepoint Games and Japan Studio working on the remake, and it will feature all the content found in the original release. This version of Demon's Souls will be a PS5 exclusive.

Way back in 2010 when Demon's Souls released for PS3, DJ-Katy wrote the review and said:

Demon's Souls is a very good game. It's not a fabulous game. On the one hand, it's hard to recommend to anyone who isn't a hardcore RPG fan or who doesn't have a mountain of patience at their disposal. On the other hand, Demon's Souls rarely puts a foot wrong – the game mechanics are tough but fair. If you learn from your mistakes, you will progress. You don't die from random issues or problems with the game itself, only your own error as a rule. Really, all this means is that it's a return to the old days when dieing in a game meant losing all your stuff and having to start the level again. It's just that the levels are very, very long.

You can read the full classic Demon's Souls review here. Demon's Souls for PS5 will be out on 12th November in the US and select other regions, and 19th November in most other parts of the world, including the UK.

Source: PS Blog

First gameplay footage of Mileena in Mortal Kombat 11 released

NetherRealm has released the first gameplay footage of Mileena from Mortal Kombat 11, and it is as brutal as you would expect. Mileena has battles against Kitana, Dvorah, and Kotal Khan in this footage and she does not hold back at all. You can see both her fatal move and one of her fatalalties, and you might want to stop eating while you watch. Mileena is part of Kombat Pack 2 which also includes Rambo and Rain.

In case you missed it you can see Rain's fighting footage here, and Rambo's footage here. Anyone who purchases Mortal Kombat 11 Ultimate Edition or Kombat Pack 2 will get a Time Warriors skin pack. That pack will include "Dark Web" Noob Saibot, "HCF" (Halt and Catch Fire) Liu Kang and "Blood Moon" Skarlet. NetherRealm Studios has confirmed that Mortal Kombat 11 will have a free upgrade path from current gen to next gen, so PS4 players can upgrade to the PS5 version and Xbox One players can upgrade to the Xbox Series X|S version.

In our original review for Mortal Kombat 11, Miguel wrote:

This game is the pinnacle of Mortal Kombat action. Fights are fluid, weighty, and gorgeous to look at. Unfortunately, that tightly-designed gameplay is bogged down by a grindy system of loot and consumables that only serves to artificially extend your playtime in the most tedious ways imaginable. There is so much heart and care put into this game, from the combat to the gorgeous visuals and memorable story, but that effort feels nullified by the desperate attempt to twist an iconic video game franchise into just another endlessly online service game.

Meanwhile, in our review for Mortal Kombat 11: Aftermath, Nick wrote:

Weighing in at a hefty £34.99, Aftermath feels a bit pricey, despite how good the content is. The Friendships, the new stages and the balance update are all free downloads, so what you're really paying for is a very short campaign and three extra characters. It's going to be a very hard sell to casual fans of the series. The package which includes the base game definitely feels like the better deal weighing in around £49.99, but those that own it already might feel a little hard done by.

Still, die hard fans of MK should definitely consider picking Aftermath up. The campaign is short but sweet and the new characters are fun to experiment with. It really just depends on your wallet.

Mortal Kombat 11 Ultimate Edition will be released on November 17th for PS5, PS4, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PC, Switch and Stadia.

Source: YouTube

Destruction AllStars game modes detailed with new PS5 trailer

Lucid Games has released a brand new trailer for Destruction AllStars which gives a glimpse of the game modes that players will be able to take part in when the game releases on PS5. Those game modes include Mayhem, Carnado, Stockpile, and Gridfall. There will also be a training mode, a single player mode called the Challenge Series where players compete against the AI, and there will also be rewards too. Those rewards will include skins and designs.

Here are how the Destruction AllStars modes stack up:

  • Mayhem – This is the game's deathmatch mode in both through both solo and teams with the aim to cause as much damage as possible in the time limit.
  • Carnado – Again a solo and team mode similar to Mayhem. The twist is to earn gear by crashing into other players and driving into the carnado for points. You will then have to run around on foot to get a new vehicle through finding one or through theft.
  • Stockpile – A mode where players have to gather gears from other players and deposit them in banks around the arena to score points.
  • Gridfall – This is a free for all mode where 16 players start and only one can win. Aside from having to deal with other players there is the added risk of the ground gives way around you.

Last week, Destruction AllStars was delayed from being a launch title to a PS Plus title for February, A statement was released and that said:

Hi everyone – we wanted to share a quick update on our plans for Destruction AllStars. We've decided to move the game's release from November 2020 to February 2021, where it will be included for two months in PlayStation Plus at no additional cost.

Destruction AllStars is a multiplayer game that's at its best when you're competing with gamers online from all around the world. We want as many people as possible to experience the mayhem on PS5, and what better way to do that than to provide the game to our PlayStation Plus members?

Next week, we'll return with a brand-new trailer and more details on the game, so you'll know exactly what to expect when you download it in February.

This may be disappointing news for some of you who were looking to play the game at launch, but we hope you understand the decision. For those of you that have already pre-ordered the game, be it via PlayStation Store, PlayStation.com, or at retail, your purchase will be refunded.

Thank you for your continued support, we look forward to seeing you in the arena in February!

Source: PS Blog

Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order joins EA Play next week

EA has announced that Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order will be joining EA Play on November 10th, the same day as the launch of the Xbox Series X|S. That is not just some big coincidence as EA Play will be rolled into Xbox Game Pass partnership likely to be starting when the consoles launch, giving access to EA's library across the Xbox family of consoles. Of course, PS4, PS5, and PC EA Play subscribers will also get access to Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order.

Back in May, there was surprising update that added New Game Plus and brand new combat challenges. The sequel to Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order is likely to be released in 2022 too. In January, the game had hit over eight million copies sold. In our review for Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, Jim wrote:

Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order is exactly the kind of single player game we had originally hoped to see when EA and Disney joined forces. Even if you strip away the license, you're left with a super satisfying mix or combat, story, and exploration, deftly crafted by a studio best known for spearheading an entirely different genre.
You can read the full review for Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order here.
Source: EA

Sony warn that there will not be any PS5 consoles available to buy from physical retailers on launch day

Just in case you were hoping to pick up a PlayStation 5 console on launch day even though had not pre-ordered it ,we have news for you. Firstly, you are nutes, they sold out weeks ago, and secondly, Sony say there will be none available and you should avoid the nasty Covid and stay at home.

Here's the blog post from Sid Shuman, Senior Director, SIE Content Communications.

Hi all – the launch of the PlayStation 5 console on November 12 (or November 19, depending on your region) is almost upon us! In the interest of keeping our gamers, retailers, and staff safe amidst COVID-19, today we are confirming that all day-of launch sales will be conducted through the online stores of our retail partners.

No units will be available in-store for purchase on launch day (November 12 or November 19, depending on your region) – please don't plan on camping out or lining up at your local retailer on launch day in hopes of finding a PS5 console for purchase. Be safe, stay home, and place your order online.

Gamers who have pre-ordered for pick-up at their local retailer should still be able to do so at their designated appointment time, under the retailer's safety protocols. Please confirm the details with your local retailer.

A special thank you to our entire community for your continued support this year. Here's to the next generation of gaming!

Earlier today it was revealed that the PlayStation 5 does not support 1440p resolution so if you were planning to hook the console up to a PC monitor that has that spec then you are out of luck. The news was confirmed by IGN Italy. While this won't affect most gamers who have their console hooked up to a massive television those who use a 1440p monitor will be limited to a 1080p output from the console. Not ideal.

It has also been confirmed that the HDMI cable that comes with the console is Ultra High Speed ​​HDMI 2.1 which means it will handle 4k 120 fps, assuming your TV or monitor also supports that.

Source: PS Blog

Dauntless PS5 and Xbox Series X|S enhancements detailed

Like many online multiplayer games available for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, Dauntless is about to make the leap to the next generation, developer Phoenix Labs outlining their plans for PS5 and Xbox Series X|S support.

The studio have confirmed that Dauntless will be playable on all next-gen systems, complete with cross-play. For those keep track that's six platforms in total including PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, and PC, all syncing up seamlessly for online hunts.

This news was revealed in a letter to the Dauntless community by Phoenix Labs CEO and Co-Founder, Jesse Houston. However, he didn't specify whether this next-gen version will be its own separate client or simply available via backwards combability.

Long-time Slayers will be more interested to learn what's coming in December's Dauntless Reforged update. According to Houston, this will fundamentally change how the game treat's player progress while laying the foundation for future content and features to come. Here's a quick rundown:

  • New Hunt Type: Hunting Grounds
  • 17 Reworked Islands for Hunting Grounds
  • 1 Brand New Island for Hunting Grounds
  • Gliders
  • Island Events
  • Slayer's Path Progression System
  • Class XP System and Prestige Rework
  • Gear Leveling Rework

Dauntless Reforged will remove Patrols and Pursuits, completely changing the way you queue for hunts. More details are to follow though Phoenix Lab are teasing their new Hunting Grounds mode as a longer, more rewarding way to experience Dauntless and one that encourages you to "Stay and Slay" instead of diving in and out of hunts, cutting down on matchmaking times.

It's another exciting update for Dauntless, a game which continues to go from strength to strength. We recently posted our up to date 2020 review of the game, scoring the free-to-play Monster Hunter rival a stellar 8 out of 10:

Although hardly original in its premise, Dauntless offers an extremely fun and accessible take on the monster-hunting roleplaying game. It wastes no time in throwing you straight into the action and while easy to pick up there's plenty of depth there for fans of the genre. What's more Dauntless is completely free to play, gracefully sidestepping those annoying monetisation pitfalls we're so used to seeing.

We'll have more on Dauntless Reforged in the near future.

Source: Press Release

Xbox Series X Review – The continuity candidate for next-gen gaming

The Xbox Series X is all about continuity. It's a new generation of hardware, a huge leap forward in terms of raw power, but it builds on the strengths of the Xbox One X in the most logical ways. There's a continued drive for Xbox to have the most powerful console on the market, and it's led Microsoft down a particular design to accommodate that raw power. Is next gen really just about raw power, though?

The Xbox Series X form is one that follows its function. It's effectively a wind tunnel with a single large fan at the top able to draw enough air to cool the now much more powerful components, while remaining exceptionally quiet. Needing to capture video for this review, I've often sat within a meter of this thing while playing, and I sometimes have to lean in to hear that yes, the fan is quietly wooshing. It's also impressively compact for what it manages to do, thanks to the vapor chamber heatsink and split motherboard design. It's still big, it's still awkward to fit into many TV cabinets, and it is still worthy of all the fridge memes, and yet, put it next to a PS5 and it feels small.

Then again, it's not the most aesthetically pleasing design, the only real flourish comes from the concave fan grill at the top with a secretive green layer that gives a neat optical illusion. There's an unmistakeable awkwardness in how it accommodates upright and horizontal positions, with the circular rubberised stand on the base unable to be removed, and four little rubber feet on one side so it can be laid flat. It's a bit like trying to wear toeshoes to a cocktail party – actually, I've not tried that yet – but they remove some of the fuss of fitting the console into your TV set up. The whole 2001 A Space Odyssey monolith look can actually fade into the background over time, similar to a subwoofer or how you tuck bookshelf speakers away.

There's further continuity with the new Xbox controller, which we've got a separate review about. It subtly refines the existing Xbox One controller, making it slightly more compact, adding a new share button, and crafting a new D-pad disc that's based off the one found in the Xbox Elite controllers. I found the D-pad nice to use, but it is annoyingly clicky, making me very glad that you can continue to use older controllers. While it doesn't have any flashy new features like the PS5 DualSense's adaptive triggers, there are still the rumble triggers that debuted on Xbox One, and there's a hope that developers will start to use these more consistently, as they can still provide an impressive amount of immersion when used well.

The system software is, as we've known for a long time, shared with the Xbox One – it's identical aside from a handful of features. Honestly, the Xbox UX is in a fairly happy place right now. It's fast, it's responsive and very customisable, you can easily filter and group your games, and you can remove almost all the clutter that you don't want. It's actually kind of refreshing that Microsoft haven't reshuffled the layout, given how often they've done so through the Xbox One's lifetime – aside from the recent visual spruce up, it's been consistent through the last year or so. The one oddity is the Microsoft Store, which has its own bespoke layout and further elements from Microsoft's Fluent Design language, but it's still only one or two steps removed from the main system, and I can see more of that filtering through over time.

The headline new system feature is really Quick Resume, which allows you to hop back and forth between games as you wish. As we've been reviewing the console, Microsoft have been putting the finishing touches to this system, identifying the games that, for whatever reason, aren't working quite right. They're aiming to fix these issues by launch day. When its works, it works very well, allowing you to have a handful of games on the go at once and swapping back and forth between them pretty seamlessly – depending on the game, it takes between 5 and 15 seconds in our experience. You can have a run through the campaign of Gears Tactics ready and waiting for you to return while you join your friends for some Destiny 2 multiplayer. Of course, online games such as Destiny 2 will still kick you back to the main menu with an unseemly error message, just as they do when resuming on the current generation.

And so we come to the games and the paucity of real next-gen gaming that we've been able to experience so far. It's this factor that is the biggest reason why we will not be scoring this review, as we wait for the likes of Watch Dogs Legion, Dirt 5 and others to be declared ready for testing on Xbox Series X.

Sea of Thieves runs at 60fps on Series X|S.

In the meantime, we've largely been jumping back and forth between backwards compatible titles and those that have been updated for the Series X, like Forza Horizon 4 and Gears 5. Even here, the Xbox Series X can shine, its added power ironing out some of the kinks and limitations of the Xbox One and Xbox One X. Forza Horizon 4 is simply presented to you in 2160p and 60 frames per second; Gears 5 now delivers 60fps in the campaign and the option of 120fps in multiplayer if your screen supports it, all while also enhancing visual effects and using higher detail assets; Sea of Thieves? It's just 60fps. Series X just gets it done, thanks to these games having dedicated updates to recompile for Series X or, in Sea of Thieves' case, being made "aware" of the new console and presenting new frame rate and resolution targets.

We've tested 120fps modes thanks to the wonderful flexibility of the Xbox's software to easily accommodate all manner of TVs and screens that support high refresh rates. Asus have loaned us a VG279QM 1080p 280Hz screen so we dove into Gears 5 multiplayer, and yep, it sure is 120fps. It's truly remarkable to have this kind of capability on the new consoles, making the game's that much more fluid and adding to how responsive they feel.

Gears 5's next-gen update enables ultra-smooth 120fps multiplayer.

The SSD hasn't made loading screen vanish into nothingness for games such as this, but it can help dramatically reduce them. Taking 2016's Hitman as an example, and loading from an external hard drive into the Paris level takes between 50 and 65 seconds, depending on the console. There's already a bit of an uplift here as the Series X can power through asset decompression much quicker, but have the game on the SSD and that load plummets to just 20 seconds. It still feels like a loading screen, but it's barely time to pick up a phone and refresh Twitter.

Using the SSD in general does throw up a minor snag for me. All Series X|S optimised have to be run from the SSD, but should indie games like Gonner 2 or The Falconeer really require its use? I'd say not, and I'd even be happy to have the option of playing the Xbox One X version of a cross-gen title to save space on the internal SSD. Smart Delivery prevents you from doing that. At least you can copy or move Series X|S optimised titles to an external drive to clear space and then copy them back across if and when you next want to play them.

For most of the Xbox back catalogue, though, your experience will depends on what these games offer to Xbox One X. Some games have been made fantastically flexible, such as Hitman, which gives you independent options for prioritising frame rate or resolutions, and for unlocking the frame rate. The Series X lets you play in 4K with a pretty consistent 60fps, making it a no compromise experience similar to Forza Horizon 4. There's also quite a few games that shot for native 4K on One X at the cost of a slightly shaky frame rate. However, if you were to step back to something like Just Cause 3, the Series X's boost will be limited to steadying it at 900p and 30fps, as the game only ever had support for the base Xbox One and set its resolution targets lower in the name of performance.

The Series X can power through the most permissive of performance and frame rate modes from One X.

It's here that Microsoft's backward compatibility team can hopefully start to step in. At launch there's the implementation of Auto HDR which uses machine learning to augment the colour gamut and luminosity of games without HDR support and expand them to make use of your HDR TV. There's some games where it doesn't work quite so well – Microsoft have most notably disabled Auto HDR for GTA IV – but the rest of the time? It's another thing that the Xbox just does automatically, adds a light (heh) enhancement without intruding, but if it does? You can turn it off in the granular output settings. To be honest, I forgot that Fallout 4 doesn't natively support HDR until I loaded it up again on Xbox One X and realised my TV wasn't switching modes.

There's more to come from this team, though. A few weeks ago they used Fallout 4 as an example of their ability to double the frame rate cap of a game through backward compatibility. I was eager to try it, but 60fps Fallout 4 is not yet ready for me to test. It's an annoyance during this review process not to have that access, but an exciting prospect for us to visit in future. Hopefully Microsoft can spread such enhancements far and wide across the library of thousands of games.

Xbox Series X|S Controller Review – Back with a click

At a glance, you'd be forgiven for thinking nothing had changed about the Xbox controller for Xbox Series X|S. It's got a practically identical silhouette to the Xbox controllers that were shipped alongside the original Xbox One and then updated for the Xbox One S, it also feels instantly familiar as you pick it up, and yet, if you think about what you're actually holding the subtle differences become clear.

Microsoft's philosophy for their new controller has been one of refinement instead of revolution. The nips and tucks have been made millimetre by millimetre, ever-so-slightly adjusting the shape of the controller to make it just that bit more comfortable for a slightly broader range of people and hand sizes.

The upper shell has a softer type of plastic, the underside to the hand grips have a rougher texture, and there's a similarly dimpled texture on the now slightly stouter analogue triggers (still with the individual rumble motors built in to enhance haptic feedback), though they still have the same angle of travel. It feels good in the hand, and to me seems just that little bit more compact, more dense, somehow.

What isn't subtle, though, is the new D-pad. It adapts the concave design that first debuted on the original Xbox Elite Controller, raising the four primary directions of the D-pad to be more prominent to the touch. It's sure to be a divisive change, but it does straddle the happy middle ground between having the surety of the four directions of the previous Xbox controller D-pad and better catering to sweeping motions around the disc that will be great for fighting games.

But really, the lack of subtlety comes from just how loud and clackety it is. It's by far got the sharpest, highest-pitched click of any part of the controller, and brings back bad memories of the first generation Xbox One controller. I've no idea why it's so loud, but it's been enough to make me start using the analogue stick to navigate in-game menus, to hook up my Xbox One controllers for some peace and quiet.

The rest of the controller's external features are as unremarkable as it gets. Microsoft have stuck a USB-C port on the controller, though not one on the console itself, and they don't ship a charge cable with the console either. That's because they're sticking with AA batteries or supplementary battery packs to power the controller. Having picked up a decent set of rechargeable batteries, it's not something I've ever had an issue with, and I'm sure many gamers will be happy to carry on using their existing batteries and power packs from the Xbox One era. The battery life is as good as ever.

One of the biggest differences for the new controller is also going to be one of the most intangible. DLI, or Dynamic Latency Input, modifies how the controller transmits your inputs to the Xbox Series X|S. The older gamepads would transmit every 8ms, which in most circumstances is pretty damn fast compared to the 33.3ms of a 30fps game, but could lead to an input slipping to the next frame on Xbox One. In tandem with other improvements through the Xbox Series X|S, not to mention doubling frame rates, it's allowed The Coalition to halve the input latency in Gears 5, for example, and revisiting Forza Horizon 4 on an original Xbox One feels like you're trying to steer though marshy bog water.

It's difficult to shake the feeling that there's a lack of real innovation here, though. It's a pure buttons, sticks and triggers controller, with no motion control support and the traditional rumble motors, failing to match what Nintendo and Sony have adopted. Yet it's easy to forget that Microsoft took their step forward in haptics with the Xbox One, incorporating additional rumble motors into the triggers. It's a feature that's often been overlooked by developers over the last seven years, but should see wider adoption now that Sony have incorporated a similar idea with their DualSense gamepad. No, the triggers won't push back against your fingers, but load up Dirt 5 and get stuck into a race and the four rumble motors assault your fingers and palms with directional feedback as you crash and bash through the offroad racing.

PlayStation 5 does not support 1440p resolution monitors

The soon to be released PlayStation 5 does not support 1440p resolution so if you were planning to hook the console up to a PC monitor that has that spec then you are out of luck. The news was confirmed by IGN Italy. While this won't affect most gamers who have their console hooked up to a massive television those who use a 1440p monitor will be limited to a 1080p output from the console. Not ideal.

It has also been confirmed that the HDMI cable that comes with the console is Ultra High Speed ​​HDMI 2.1 which means it will handle 4k 120 fps, assuming your TV or monitor also supports that.

Sony have detailed the accessibility options that will be built into the PlayStation 5 system software at launch, taking the already broad options available for the PlayStation 4 and expanding them further.

Text to speech, inverting colours, custom button assignments and more are present, but the PS5 will also offer voice dictation through the DualSense controller or other connected microphone, a Screen Reader feature to speak on-screen text, and text to speech for party chats. There will also be colour correction to allow users to adjust colours on a system level, and the ability to set presets that supporting games can load up automatically as they launch.

Obviously, this also extends to the DualSense controller as well, with the PS5 letting you reduce or completely disable the haptic feedback and adaptive triggers built into the controller, just as you can turn the rumble feature off for the DualShock 4 on PS4.

Sony stated back in August that the DualShock 4 and other PlayStation 4 peripherals can all be used  with the PlayStation 5, they will only work for backward compatible titles. This cuts off not just the DualShock 4 from new games, but also all of the expensive licensed pro controllers that many users have bought to up their game in clutch multiplayer moments.

"We believe that PS5 games should take advantage of the new capabilities and features we're bringing to the platform, including the features of DualSense wireless controller," said Isabelle Tomatis, from PlayStation VR, Peripherals Marketing and Licensing in the August blog post. The question is, if you can turn off all those features, why can't you knowingly opt to use a DualShock 4 in those situations? It would certainly help lessen the sticker shock of needing to buy multiple controllers for local multiplayer games like Sackboy: A Big Adventure, Overcooked! All You Can Eat, or Dirt 5's split-screen.

PlayStation 5 buyers will potentially have to keep several PS4 era accessories hanging around for the next few years anyway. The new PS5 camera is seemingly not compatible with PS4 games that use a camera, meaning that you need the PlayStation Camera for PSVR to work, with games potentially relying on the DualShock 4's light bar for tracking, and in order to use Move controllers with Dreams when playing in PS5 backward compatibility. You'll need to apply for a free camera adapter, since the old PS4 camera used a proprietary connector.

Source: IGN Italy