Greedfall will be releasing on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S, new expansion coming too

The fantasy colonial setting of Greedfall is going to be released on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S, Focus Home and NACON have confirmed in a joint statement. Greedfall has sold over a million copies. In addition, a brand new expansion will be released for Greedfall which will add more content to the island of Teer Fradee. Greedfall was released in late 2019 for PC, PS4, and Xbox One offering players a chance to explore a new land in the search for a cure of a plague that was ravaging their homeland. In Greedfall players have to navigate relationships between different political factions including colonising powers and the native inhabitants. There are no details on the expansion will include.

In our Greedfall review, Gareth wrote:

Greedfall has an ambitious story, but it's not backed up by the clearly repeated environments, simple combat and dull abilities that take ages to unlock. However, seasoned RPG players might well be able able to look past those flaws in favour of the interesting, well written stories about political manoeuvres and oppression that make up the bulk of the quests in this pretty dark, deep world.

Spiders, the developer of Greedfall, has not rested on its laurels. In July, the company revealed for PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. In Steelrising, you play as Aegis, the robotic bodyguard of Queen Marie-Antoinette, ordered to find your creator and put and end to the tyranny of King Louis XVI and the robot army he is using to crack down on the French Revolution. The Paris depicted in the game includes many monuments and famous locations, including those that no longer exist, including the Grand Chatelet and the Tour du Temple. Aegis has weapons built into her body, with items found while exploring letting you make her more powerful, more durable, or more mobile. There's seven families of weapons, which could be built into her arms, alchemical rifles for long range, or more powerful and forceful options as well.

A release date for Steelrising is yet to be confirmed.

Source: Press Release

Black Ops Cold War or Modern Warfare? Which Call of Duty is better?

With Call of Duty being the only non-sports AAA game series with a fresh instalment guaranteed to release every year, it's fair to say that not all of them have been bangers. Over the last console generation we also saw some factionalism as different segments of the Call of Duty community rallied around certain games and stuck with them, even after the next sequel had come around. The three development studios working on the franchise – Infinity Ward, Treyarch, and Sledgehammer – all had different approaches when it came to delivering that triple layer experience: a meaty multiplayer sandwiched between a cinematic singleplayer campaign and an ever-changing co-op component.

This year Treyarch had the unenviable job of following up Call of Duty: Modern Warfare. Although not everyone's favourite recent game in the series, for many others it marked a return to form and Warzone has cemented its place in the COD hall of fame.

However, that hasn't stopped Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War from trying to outdo its predecessor. Treyarch have made some bold choices with their fifth game in the popular sub-series, but is enough to contend with Modern Warfare?

Black Ops Cold War vs. Modern Warfare: Campaign

Firstly, there's the campaign. Black Ops III and its futuristic bending of reality proved more than a little divisive, thanks in part to Treyarch's insistence on making it a co-op focused experience, and then Black Ops 4 shelved its campaign entirely. With Cold War promising a return to the more traditional campaign format – dropping us in the 80s with a familiar cast of characters – there was definitely some promise there.

Where this campaign delivers is in the choices it presents. Most of them amount to next to nothing, though you're given more agency in Cold War than other Call of Duty campaigns before it, bar the superb Black Ops II. The skullduggery and mind games are more prevalent than ever here, one level showcasing this perfectly as you finally unravel one of the story's biggest twists. It's one that no one saw coming…

Where Modern Warfare was a punchy, incredibly well-placed thrillride, Black Ops Cold War wants its players to immerse themselves, reading through dossiers, and piecing together leads in your hunt for the big baddie. It works to an extent, but the overall story isn't quite as gripping and the characters far less engaging. Modern Warfare didn't have a flawless narrative, but it kept you charging from one story beat to the next.

Black Ops Cold War vs. Modern Warfare: Multiplayer

Next stop is multiplayer, where we'll also touch on the core gameplay. Modern Warfare made some notable changes to how Call of Duty's traditional running and gunning felt, creating a deeper sense of interactivity with the environments. Players could peak around corners, mount guns on surfaces, and even open/close doors.

Cold War inherits some of these changes – such as the in-depth Gunsmith weapon customisation – but overall it feels like a simplification. This less "realistic" strain of boots-on-the-ground action is one that I personally prefer, with a slightly longer time to kill and fewer opportunities for players to camp for entire matches.

The number of maps is fine and will no doubt expand with free additions just as Modern Warfare did. However, Treyarch's two big new modes – Fireteam's Dirty Bomb, and Combined Arms – don't really do it for me. Without any tutorials on hand to explain what's going on, those first few matches can be confusing, so even though they're more objective-based than Modern Warfare's 64-player Ground War, I found myself drifting more towards the traditional match playlists in Cold War.

It's still early doors, though. Even though Black Ops Cold War is out, Treyarch's first season for the game doesn't kick off until next month. Areas that have been looking a bit sparse (namely the amount of visual customisation available) are sure to be remedied, and Warzone is gearing up for the Cold War takeover.

Black Ops Cold War vs. Modern Warfare: Co-Op

Funnily enough, the original Black Ops was the last time I took the Zombies mode seriously. Call of Duty's carousel of co-op modes tend to be hit and miss though I've given each one a fair shake, hoping they'd draw me back in and then drifting away. Cold War's "Die Maschine" held my attention for a little longer than usual, deviously leaning on my nostalgia for that very first Call of Duty Zombies map, Nacht der Untoten.

Of course, there have been renovations since its debut in Call of Duty: World at War. The classic co-op mode has also been injected with some new and returning features without feeling like a total rehash. However, with only one map there isn't enough meat on the bone.

Still, it's way better than Modern Warfare's attempt at reviving Spec Ops. Infinity Ward could have made a truly class series of challenges, but instead opted for something multiplayer focused that just felt like a wasted opportunity.

Black Ops Cold War vs. Modern Warfare: The Verdict

Overall, if Treyarch delivered a campaign that had the same chops as Modern Warfare, Black Ops Cold War would be the hands down winner. They've played it safe with this year's multiplayer, but that's exactly what I wanted from them after years of either wall-running or hero-based shooting. Modern Warfare was definitely more revolutionary though the brutal time to kill made it a hard one to stick with.

The beauty of this series is that both games (and no doubt next year's entry) will all continue to support different factions of the Call of Duty fanbase.

Right now we're clueless as to what comes next. 2020 should have actually been Sledgehammer's turn to lead a Call of Duty sequel, but Treyarch were reportedly brought in to rescue a troubled development cycle, partnering with Raven Software. 2021 could see Sledgehammer returning to the spotlight, though a Modern Warfare sequel wouldn't be completely out of the question with enough manpower thrown at the problem by Activision.

Assassin's Creed: Valhalla update is great news for trophy hunters

In case you missed it, Ubisoft have roll out their latest update for Assassin's Creed: Valhalla, bringing the game to version 1.04 on PlayStation and Xbox consoles as well as PC.

With this patch came the option for players on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S to adjust the sequel's graphics settings, opting between Valhalla's 60 FPS performance mode or upping the visual fidelity instead.

The 1.04 update comes stuffed with loads of fixes and minor changes, many of which will slip under your radar (unless you ogle the patch notes here, of course). However, one big change that isn't listed in the change log on PS5 is a trophy fix fans had been hoping for.

If you were one of those Assassin's Creed: Valhalla players who bagged a copy of the game on PS4, then upgraded to PS5, you will have seen your trophy progress completely reset. Valhalla has two separate trophy lists for both versions of the game, even if it does allow a free cross-gen upgrade and cross-gen save transfer.

When we hopped on last night to raid a few villages we noticed that, after a few minutes, the PS5 trophies suddenly started popping. It seems as thought Assassin's Creed: Valhalla will read your cloud data, unlocking any trophies you may have already earned on PlayStation 4.

This is great news for a couple of reasons. Those trophy hunters who were unwilling to make the cross-gen leap can do so now, knowing their save progression and trophy data will seamlessly transition with them. I'm glad I won't have to fire up a new game save just to re-do those first few story-related trophies.

On top of that, those who already have the Assassin's Creed: Valhalla platinum on PS4 can quickly double their trophy count. Simply redeem your free next-gen upgrade on PS5, download Valhalla, and launch into a new game and watch those trophies come rolling in. Naughty.

Assassin's Creed: Valhalla guides & more from TheSixthAxis

Warframe PS5 version now available, file size revealed

Warframe, the highly popular multiplayer shooter/slasher, is now available to download on PlayStation 5.

Weighing in at just over 25GB you can dive straight into this slick sci-fi ninjafest with, the PS5 version of Warframe being completely free-to-play.

You'll be able to carry your PS4 progression forward, Warframe allowing for cross-gen play between both systems. This next-gen upgrade will also make use of the DualSense adaptive triggers.

Here's what Digital Extremes COO, Sheldon Carter, had to say about the new PS5 upgrade (via the PlayStation Blog):

For us, it means bringing nearly eight years of evolutionary content into the future for PS5. It means new players experiencing Warframe for free with a brand new graphics engine, up to 60fps and 4K from the very start. It means PS4 players transitioning seamlessly to an all new generation. And it means all the friends you've made sticking together, with PS4 and PS5 gamers playing together with cross-generational play — a first for Warframe.

Warframe was made available on PlayStation 4 the day the console launched back in November 2013. Having played a fair chunk back in its heyday, and now in 2020, the two versions of the game feel worlds apart. Over the past several years, the team at Digital Extremes have pumped Warframe with a ridiculous amount of free content while introducing completely new ways to play.

Railjacks added the ability to command ships in Warframe, exploring space and engaging in dogfights. Meanwhile, the Plains of Eidolon update brought with it a huge open world to explore, steering away from Warframe's previous focus on tight, dungeon-like levels.

Digital Extremes are hoping that Warframe's fluid combat, combined with visual enhancements and a "butter-smooth" framerate will bring even more Tenno on board. For those picking up a PlayStation 5, it's well worth a shot. Not everyone will gel with the grindy progression you'll need to initially wade through but it's easily one of PlayStation's best free-to-play offerings.

Star Wars: Squadrons update 3.0 deploys next-gen upgrade

Star Wars: Squadrons has been bolstered with a slew of upgrades as developers EA Motive roll out update 3.0 for their space dogfighting sim.

Update 3.0 is now live across all versions of Star Wars: Squadrons, bringing with it some next-gen upgrades on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S.

Those playing on Microsoft's latest console(s) can take advantage of 4K resolution with up to 120 FPS. Meanwhile, the PlayStation 5 version boasts "improved visual quality and lighting" which hopefully means a similar boost in resolution and image quality.

This new Star Wars: Squadrons update also crams in a new map, Fostar Haven, as well as new Starfighter components. You can catch the full patch notes below.

Star Wards: Squadrons Update 3.0 Patch Notes

General

Added Fostar Haven as a map to Dogfight and Fleet Battles (Solo/Co-Op vs AI and PvP)
Added next gen improvements
- The game now supports up to 120FPS and up to 4K on Xbox Series X|S
  - Added an option for players on the Xbox Series X|S to prioritize enhanced visuals or enhanced performance
- Improved visual quality and lighting on PS5
- Variable frame rate support added for TVs and monitors that allow it
Fixed an issue where the game could crash while changing loadouts
Improved support for matchmaking between players with highly divergent load times
- Players who are not finished loading when the match begins will now have an additional window of time to join the match-in-progress rather than timing out on start
Tweaked the brightness of light sources on PC so that they're no longer too bright in some instances
Fixed issue where the sky color of Esseles would appear to change when entering/exiting the station
Fixed an issue where the menu voice over accessibility feature could not play after entering a lobby
Fixed issue where Steam players could fail to log in if their screen name included certain unicode characters or emojis
Various stability improvements and minor bug fixes.

Controls

HOTAS support now allows for devices with up to 128 buttons (up from 40 buttons per device)
Fixed issue on the Xbox One where HOTAS controls would be disabled if the controller went to sleep
HOTAS devices that don't have an X and Y axis, such as the Virpil throttle, are now properly recognized by the game
Fixed issue on PC where a gamepad could become unresponsive if not paired as the primary controller when other input devices were plugged in.

Cosmetic Customization

Added two new starfighter paint jobs: Typhoon Squadron for the New Republic and Interstellar for the Empire, the latter of which is inspired by the classic Kenner Products toys
Added the Vandal TIE fighter paint job based on Sabine Wren's iconic "handiwork"
Added the Powerful Ally X-wing appearance based on Luke Skywalker's swamp-sunken X-wing from Dagobah
Added the Zeltron Pilot head (Imperial)
Added the Pantoran Pilot head (Imperial)
Added the Venture set (jacket, pants, gloves) for the New Republic
Added the Paladin set (flight suit, gloves, helmet) for the Empire
Added the Navigator set (flight suit, gloves, helmet) for the Empire
Marauder gloves will no longer cause the player's hands to disappear.

Dogfight

Fixed an issue where starfighters wouldn't appear in the end-of-round transition screen.

Fleet Battles

Reduced the Morale gain for AI kills while on defense from 4 to 3
Morale gains and losses are no longer scaled based on the number of players present on the team
Fixed an issue where match music would continue into the end-of-round screens after the match was over
Corvettes and Raiders now spawn on a random side of the battlefield rather than in a fixed pattern
Fixed an issue where the Nebulon-B could display the incorrect amount of shield strength it had in its objective UI.

Social

Made messaging clearer for Xbox players when trying to join a party that's full
Fixed issue where the social menu would lose functionality after exiting a PVP match as a spectator
Fixed an issue where muting multiple players at a time could incorrectly mute additional players as well
Fixed issue where laser sounds would fail to play when spectating a match in first-person
Fixed an issue where UI and menu elements could overlap.

Starfighters & Components

Added four new components:
- Boost Extension Kit has been added to the X-wing, Y-wing, TIE fighter, and TIE bomber
- Prototype Piercing Torpedoes have been added to the X-wing, Y-wing, TIE fighter, and TIE bomber
- Ion Rockets have been added to the X-wing, A-wing, TIE Fighter, and TIE Interceptor
- Anti-Material Rocket Turrets have been added to the U-wing and TIE reaper
Added 60% maneuverability (turn rate) reduction while firing the Rotary cannon and Auto-aim Rotary cannon
- Does not apply during the charging stage before firing
Using the Assault Shield component now reduces maneuverability to better balance its role as a capital ship assault or starfighter jousting tool rather than as an all-purpose component
Fixed an issue where the Proton Bomb counter could display incorrectly after use
Starfighters using the Overloaded Shield component now start will fully overcharged shields
Fixed issue where ships from the wrong faction could appear in the hangar
Increased audio volume for the player's Tractor Beam
Guided Burst Cannon damage reduced to 28% of the unguided variant (down from 35%)
Fixed issue where the Vanguard paint job for the A-wing could have an unintended New Republic decal appearing on it when inside the cockpit
Removed incorrectly assigned auto-aim symbol from the icon for the Composite Beam
Different torpedo types now have distinct names when targeted (Proton vs Ion vs Piercing)
Reduced A-wing shield regeneration rate by approximately 1/3
Fixed an issue where the Unstable Engine could deal no damage to nearby targets.

Story

Fixed an issue where the player could have a black screen after redeploying from the hangar
Fixed issue where Zerelda's voice over could start during the load screen before Mission 1, resulting in an animation desync
Fixed issue where the corvette could clip through the station in Mission 6
Fixed issue where the player couldn't complete the "Destroy Comm Array" objective if they died during the regroup-with-Gunny beat in Mission 6.

UI

Your current Skill Rating is now shown as its value instead of as a percentage of tier progress after playing a ranked Fleet Battle
UI message for being in the low priority matchmaking queue is now clearer on how to get out of the low priority status: by playing more matches
UI messaging around forfeiting while in the lobby is now clearer
Fixed an issue where squadmates icons would not turn green when readied up
Fixed an issue where the menu overlay could not appear in the redeploy screenProvided additional UI support for long names so that they display correctly
Fixed an issue where the player could be unable to open menu during a match if the match begin while they were in a customization menu
Fixed issue where the missile lock UI could stay on the screen briefly after switching targets
Fixed issue where text said "Examine your squadron" instead of "Examine enemy squadron" in Squad Loadout while hovering over "Add friend"
Fixed issue where ship marker UI could appear during outro cinematics while playing Fleet Battles vs AI
Fixed typo in the description of the Mythosaur decal
Fixed an issue where the daily challenge timer could start counting upward after reaching 0:00
Fixed issue where holding the button rather than tapping it would not open the scoreboard during the post-match sequence
Fixed an issue where starfighters could get greyed out if the player rapidly shuffled between them.

VR

Skyboxes now have increased resolution for high-rez VR headsets
Added an option for PC players to adjust their VR resolution scaling
- Players using high resolution headsets (such as the Valve Index) should be able to enjoy higher frame rates without requiring the most powerful GPUs
Forward rendering is now used, potentially improving their VR performance
The game now uses less intensive forward shading when using the "Low" lighting quality setting in the graphics options, allowing VR to be used on mid-tier and even some lower-tier PCs
Fixed an issue where black bars would appear when transitioning out of a PvP match if the player died at the same time.

In our review for Star Wars: Squadrons, Dom wrote:

Star Wars Squadrons has taken an impressive first step in revitalising the Star Wars fighter pilot game. With a tale that feels like a genuine part of the galaxy far, far away, and space combat that gives you the tools to be an X-Wing or TIE fighting ace. Whether you're on the light or the dark side of the Force, this is a game that Star Wars fans need to play.

You can read the full Star Wars: Squadrons review here.

If you plan on playing Squadrons on your PlayStation 5 using PSVR then you will need to get your hands on Sony's virtual reality adapter. Here's how to request one.

Source: EA

Kingdom Hearts: Melody of Memory Review

An outward observer of the Kingdom Hearts series might notice that the "third" entry in the series just came out last year, but while Kingdom Hearts III is the third mainline entry in the series, there are nearly 20 years of side-stories, remakes, and awkwardly-numbered prequels spanning a whole array of game consoles that make up the twisted tapestry of the Kingdom Hearts series.

Kingdom Hearts Melody of Memory is the latest part of the constantly evolving universe of this wild series. More importantly, though, it's a celebration and compilation of years of Kingdom Hearts history for diehard fans to dig into, and in that regard, the game delivers in spades.

This isn't developer Square Enix' first rodeo when it comes to rhythm game spinoffs from prestigious JRPG franchises. Theatrhythm Final Fantasy and the unlocalized Theatrhythm Dragon Quest were musical celebrations of each series that packed in as much music and as many cutesy chibi characters as possible, while also sprinkling in some light JRPG mechanics to encourage progression. Kingdom Hearts Melody of Memory borrows a bit from the DNA of those games, but while you'll see adorable little versions of your characters during loading screens, the game itself goes to great lengths to look and feel like the actual 3D Kingdom Hearts games that each song comes from.

You're hitting buttons in rhythm with the music, sure, but you're not just matching up with colored notes on a track highway. Sora, Donald, and Goofy automatically run down a vertical lane while enemies and items come towards you, and you'll need to hit buttons to smack enemies away, pick up lightning attacks, and soar through the air in time to the tunes. At first, it's a tricky sort of rhythm system to adjust to. Without direct and obvious incoming notes to react to, you're instead forced to learn the animations and placements of the various enemies to help you react in time. Once you get used to it this can be incredibly fun and rewarding, but a few elements like the jump-indicators for mid-air enemies still catch me out now and then.

The dedication to the aesthetic of the games runs deep, and it adds so much to the experience of the game. Each song you play comes from a specific world in a certain Kingdom Hearts game, and everything from the background environment to the enemies that appear on the stage will reflect that. New characters will even pop into your crew, including Disney guest characters when you're playing tracks from worlds like Aladdin or The Nightmare Before Christmas, for example. Being immersed in the sights that go alongside the sounds is great, but it also ends up highlighting the random pockets of missing musical history in the game. Kingdom Hearts III suffers the most, with barely any music featured from that game at all, and the most iconic tracks from a few side games have also gone missing.

You wouldn't discover this right away, though, as there isn't a traditional free-play mode with the entire tracklist to start with. Instead, you'll have to play through the World Tour campaign in order to unlock and experience each song in turn. This is also where the brand new story elements of the game live, but don't get your hopes too high about that. Despite trailers for Kingdom Hearts Melody of Memory teasing this as Kairi's big solo adventure, she is (as usual) barely a factor in the story. She simply narrates brief recaps of story scenes from the previous games in the series, so you won't even be playing as her throughout the entire campaign. Kairi still plays a key role in the new story content, which does a very exciting job of clearly setting up the next chapter of the Kingdom Hearts story, but this juicy lore only comes at the very end of the game, so you'll be playing through 5-10 hours of World Tour before seeing any new info.

At the very least, the World Tour is a fun time. You explore a huge and winding overworld map made up of countless themed mini-worlds where each song lives, and you're tasked with completing challenges in order to unlock gates to new worlds and even obtain collectible memento cards. Challenges give a decent incentive to give your all during songs, but they're usually simple and repetitive "complete the stage with X% of health" or "hit X number of flying enemies" challenges that won't pose much of a threat unless you're playing on Proud mode. Item crafting gets introduced at a certain point in the story, but with so many challenges tasking you with completing a song without using items, I was way more incentivised to ignore the system than I was to make use of it.

Metro Exodus is getting a free update for PS5 & Xbox Series X|S – 4A Games also announce sequel and… Metro multiplayer?

4A Games have announced that their hit first person shooter Metro Exodus will be getting a free upgrade for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S, taking advantage of the new hardware to feature higher frame rates, increased resolutions, reduced loading times, and bringing ray tracing effects across from the PC version of the game. They've also teased some elements of the series' future, including new generation exclusivity and… something multiplayer.

A release date has not been announced yet, but it will be a free upgrade to the game for owners on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One who are stepping up to the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S. Until then, you'll still be able to enjoy the game via backward compatibility, playing at a boosted version of the PS4 Pro and Xbox One X.

However, the enhanced game will be able to take advantage of new graphical features like ray tracing, which was exclusive to PC and Nvidia's RTX GPUs upon the game's original launch in 2019.

4A Games have also confirmed that the next Metro game is in development. The game will mean a complete overhaul of the game engine and renderer, which is being done with the new consoles in mind. In fact, the game is only coming to PC and "next generation consoles", which means PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S, so that they can more fully take advantage of the power, SSD storage and hardware ray tracing that these machines offer.

In a strange twist for the single-player, narrative focussed series, 4A Games will be teaming up with parent company Saber Interactive (itself a subsidiary of the vast gaming empire of Embracer Group) to develop a new multiplayer experience in the Metro universe. It's not clear if this will be a part of the next Metro game from 4A, or a separate game entirely, but it's an interesting prospect. Saber Interactive developed the popular zombie co-op shooter World War Z, after all.

The announcement is a part of the Metro 10th anniversary, with the company releasing an interactive timeline of the studio and series' history. You can explore that here.

Nicole played Metro Exodus for our review and she wrote:

Metro Exodus provides an immersive FPS experience that marks a new milestone for the franchise. Its survival-horror, sandbox and shooter elements are remarkably well balanced, constituting an engaging and thrilling game that'll leave you no stranger to a good jump scare. The once linear horror franchise has been reformed, introducing expansive environments to indulge in without derailing the narrative. Metro Exodus is a must play.

You can read the Metro Exodus review right here.

Source: press release via Gamasutra

Watch Dogs: Legion online multiplayer delayed as Ubisoft prioritise fixing bugs with update 2.20

Ubisoft have announced that the post-launch Online mode for Watch Dogs: Legion has been delayed, as the company instead focusses on patching the game and fixing the various bugs and issues that users have found over the last month.

Watch Dogs: Legion Online will now arrive in early 2021, which should go some way to ensure that the mode is more stable upon its release.

The company are also focussing on fixing the various issues players have encountered and this week will see the release of Update 2.20 across PC, PlayStation, Xbox and Stadia. This will make stability improvements for Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S and PlayStation 4, while also adding a manual Save Game button for PC. The equivalent PlayStation 5 update already launched on 19th November. Further optimisations on PC are also on the way with the target of making 60fps gameplay more consistent on higher end GPUs.

There's no word on if Ubisoft are getting close to resolving the free PS4-PS5 game upgrade issue that some users are still encountering.

Here's the patch notes for this week's title update.

Watch Dogs: Legion Title Update 2.20

Global

Fixed an issue that could cause longer load times when exiting to the main menu.
Fixed an issue that could cause save games to get corrupted.
Fixed an issue that could cause lost progress during Borough Uprising missions when loading back into the game.

Xbox One

Optimized game on Xbox One and Xbox One S to reduce instability during certain missions (among them "Justice for Claire") and the open world.
Fixed an issue that could cause the game to crash when scrolling through the Team tab.
Fixed an issue that could cause the Main Menu to become unresponsive when quitting the Single Player mode.
Fixed a crash that could occur while auto driving on the Tower bridge during the "Inside Albion" mission.
Further incremental optimizations made to improve game stability which improve performance and reduce crashes.

Xbox Series X/S

Fixed an issue that caused the game to crash when switching between users with non-English and English text versions.

PC

Added a manual save game button to the Pause Menu.
Fixed an issue that could cause a Borough to not be liberated despite the player having completed all necessary activities.
Fixed an issue that allowed players to load a save game over save file slot when playing with Permadeath enabled, resulting in an infinite loading screen.
Fixed an issue that could cause save games to get corrupted after a crash or freeze.
Fixed an issue that could cause the game to crash when one or all Operatives die.
Added CPU optimization that increases framerate on high end PCs in DirectX 12 mode.
Fixed an issue that caused the game's framerate to drop significantly when looking at water or reflective surfaces.
Fixed an issue that could cause Operatives to go missing after the game crashed.
Fixed an issue that caused the game to become pixelated with DLSS enabled and playing on the lowest available resolution.
Fixed an issue that caused Reflection, Ambient Occlusion and Subsurface Scattering to not save their value after changing the graphic quality from Custom to Low/Ultra and back.
Fixed an issue that could cause the game to crash under certain rendering conditions.
Fixed an issue where some players would see a "Dunia Demo" error message and be unable to launch the game.
Added further stability improvements and fixes to the game to prevent crashes.

PlayStation 4

Fixed an issue that could cause the game to crash if a character model was not loaded correctly.
Fixed an issue that could cause the game to crash when quitting to the Main Menu.
Added further stability improvements and fixes to the game to prevent crashes.

Stadia

Fixed an issue that allowed players to load a save game over save file slot when playing with Permadeath enabled, resulting in an infinite loading screen.

Ubisoft+

Fixed missing English localization for Russian users.

PlayStation 5

(Deployed on Thursday, November 19th, 2020)

Fixed an issue where the game would crash on game launch when the graphic settings (e.g. brightness) were changed.
Fixed an issue that could cause the game to crash when quitting to the Main Menu.
Fixed an issue that could cause a cloud save download to fail on first try.
Fixed a crash that could occur when entering the EPC area in "Lost in the Process" mission.
Fixed and issue that could cause longer save times.

Source: Ubisoft

Tenderfoot Tactics Review

There's an arresting tension at the heart of Tenderfoot Tactics. This is a game where you break from precise, deterministic turn-based combat to explore an overworld both immaterial and tangibly evocative, leading to a tension between touch and sense memory, between foggy truth and lucid dreams.

Between combat and exploration, you'll trade out the hard lines of movement grids and AOE markers for loose, impressionistic hand-drawn-maps. You'll break from non-random hit percentages and precise, immutable damage numbers to soak up cryptic hints and desperate, seeking tone poems opined by puppet-weaving spirits that tower above forest and town.

Sometimes, the combat's determinism becomes formulaic, and its frequency repetitious. That lack of direction might start to feel like hopelessness occasionally, but then the immaterial skyline will flutter, the archipelago will reveal another secret, and that hopelessness will start to feel like…not hope, exactly. It's more that sweet, stranded feeling that at least knows there's more sights worth seeing, if only you'll pace on into the fog.

Tenderfoot's atmosphere eludes easy comparison, but I do love a crutch, so here goes: Tenderfoot Tactics is Breath of the Wild meets Final Fantasy Tactics, with the terrain manipulation of Divinity Original Sin 2. This description is the roundest of pegs, awkwardly jammed into Tenderfoot's psychedelic-splat shaped hole, but it'll have to do.

You play as an entity controlling a gang of goblins. You'll walk, slide, jump and sail over the archipelago, uncovering the mysteries of each island. All enemy encounters can be seen on the overworld, giving you a chance to avoid them if you wish. There are also special encounters, which give you a choice whether to engage or not. Occasionally, you'll encounter a settlement, where you can trade the items you gather from combat, mix items, and chat to some of the townsfolk for tantalising fragments of lore.

You'll soon fill out your squad of six goblins, and the game then becomes about discovering new job classes, combining job classes, levelling up, and learning new abilities. They start off with simple classes like ranged and melee, then upgrade to knights, archers, and spellcasters, and onward to classes that require multiclass experience. To become a battlemage, a goblin will need to train in both knight and spellcaster classes. It's a varied, customisable system that finds various ways for later classes to use abilities from earlier ones, allowing for a huge amount of tinkering and tailoring to your liking.

Taking for granted that combat features genre staples like grid-based movement, movement and action allowances, and fixed turn order, what sets it apart? Firstly, the way you can mess with that turn order through affecting individual units' morale – either through the use of certain abilities, or attacking them from the side or back. Next, there's the environment. Most abilities feature some sort of elemental affinity, and this can morph the terrain in individual grid squares – from creating steep hills to hinder movement, to setting dry grass on fire.

There's no initiative system, as far as I can tell, which means the starting order is random. You move your goblins around before a match starts, though, adjusting both turn order and grid positions, though the actual turn sequence stays the same. The problem here is that you can just 'restart scum' until you get a turn order you're happy with, which is admittedly cheap, but can be hard to resist.

Also, you can sometimes insult other goblins to death, which is great.

In lieu of trying and failing to do Tenderfoot Tactics' OST justice with language – as fun as that might be – you can listen to it here on Bandcamp. It's a playful yet somber accompaniment to the way the game's environs ebb and flow in and out of reality. A good battle soundtrack should make fights feel significant – and these dynamic, reactive stems certainly do – but it also makes standing atop a hill staring at the horizon feel just as momentous. Regardless of context, 'Goblin Town: Stinkhorn Central' is a certified banger.

Black Ops Cold War Nuketown Easter Egg reveals secret mode

This week, Treyarch took Call of Duty fans on a trip down memory lane as players were unleashed upon the newly added Nuketown '84 map for Black Ops Cold War.

Naturally, as soon as this latest iteration of the popular multiplayer battleground dropped, Call of Duty die-hards have been mining it for secrets and hidden Easter eggs.

It didn't take the community long to discover a cool hidden quirk in Nuketown '84 which you can trigger by following the instructions outlined below (with a demonstration video from Call of Duty YouTuber, MrDalekJD).

So, what does this latest Nuketown Easter egg do, exactly? In a nutshell, it activates one of two 80s style visual render modes in green and purple/blue. These tie in with the Black Ops Cold War timeline as well as the game's multiple references to the arcade era.

In order to trigger this secret: you'll need to shoot the heads off every mannequin found in the Nuketown '84 map. What makes this Easter egg tricky is that you have only two minutes to shoot every target, the dummies appearing randomly each time you enter a match. Loading into Nuketown '84 via a private match seems to be the easiest way of achieving this.

To celebrate the return of Nuketown, Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War is hosting a 2XP event. Running through until November 30th, players will receive two times the amount of experience earned in matches with double weapon XP to boot. So if you're looking to max out your favourite guns, or perhaps grind out some levels with your most underused ones, you should definitely swing by for the Nuketown event.

Black Ops Cold War scored a 7 out of 10 in our review, not quite meeting the bar set by last year's Modern Warfare. Here's what Nick had to say:

Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War is a decent entry in the series, but it feels like it doesn't quite know what it wants to be. The campaign is full of underused ideas, while the multiplayer misses some of the magical charm of Modern Warfare, opting for faster paced aggressive battles which just don't feel as satisfying. While still enjoyable, Black Ops Cold War fails to recapture the magic of Black Ops 1 and 2.

Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War will be kicking off its first season next month so hopefully we'll have the details on potential new maps, modes, cosmetics, and Warzone content very soon.

FIFA 21 free next-gen upgrade detailed for PS5 and Xbox Series X|S

EA Sports have confirmed when footie fans will be able to download FIFA 21 on next-gen consoles. The release date for FIFA 21 on both PS5 and Xbox Series X|S has been confirmed for December 4th, the studio sharing some more details on what to expect from this upcoming version of their latest soccer sequel.

Up top, we have the game's visuals. FIFA 21 will be running at 60 FPS in 4K resolution on Sony and Microsoft's new hardware, EA have confirmed. The extra muscle packed into these machines means that player models, textures, and lighting will be the best the FIFA series has ever seen. Player haircuts, muscle definition, and ball compression have even been given an upgrade thanks to new engine tech. Other exclusive features include a new in-game camera angle and heavily revised animations both on and off the ball.

Anyone who currently owns a copy of FIFA 21 on PS4 and Xbox One will be able to upgrade for free, up until the release of FIFA 22. Something fans may want to consider is that there is no cross-gen online play, meaning PS5 users won't be matched against those running FIFA 21 on PS4. However, the FUT transfer market will allow cross-gen integration, with players also able to carry their FUT and Volta progress back and forth across generations if they so choose.

Some extra bonus features for those playing on PS5 include DualSense haptic feedback, making rumble more defined and context-aware. Activity cards are also enabled via the PS5 home menu, allowing you to dip into game modes without trawling through FIFA 21's start-up screens.

Aran reviewed FIFA 21 on PlayStation 4 back when it launched last month, scoring the game a solid 8 out of 10, praising its mix of game modes and attacking gameplay. Here are his closing thoughts:

On the pitch, FIFA 21 is an incremental improvement over FIFA 20, but doesn't address some of the biggest issues with defending and the high-scoring matches this leads to. With Volta still missing a certain spark and Ultimate Team not really changing much, it's the Football Manager-inspired Career mode that takes the biggest step forward. It's still a good football game, but it feels like the real focus is on next-gen.

Source: PlayStation Blog

No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle shreds louder than ever on Nintendo Switch

I'm a man of simple pleasures. I love No More Heroes, and I've wanted the series on Nintendo Switch ever since I got my hands on the hybrid-handheld console three years ago. I've been craving a proper sequel to the hyper-violent Suda 51 directed saga for even longer, and while a third mainline entry is coming next year, I've been itching for a more polished way to re-experience my favourite Nintendo Wii games.

Imagine my surprise when, on my birthday last month, Nintendo decides to stealth release HD ports of No More Heroes 1 and No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle onto the Nintendo Switch eShop. With zero build-up and hardly any fanfare, Nintendo casually dropped the best versions of these games onto their latest console for newcomers and Suda 51 die-hards alike to dig into.

The first No More Heroes was a whimsical, blood-soaked journey through the underbelly of the ranked assassin world, viewed through the lens of anime and wrestling fanboy Travis Touchdown. No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle picks up 3 years later, as our sleazy hero returns to the world of assassination after climbing to number 1 and promptly falling from grace. He's reluctant to fight his way to the top yet again, but when mysterious goons murder his best friend, Travis is fuelled by revenge to take down everyone standing between him and the man responsible for the murder. All of the campy carnage and tongue-in-cheek absurdity of the first game returns, but with Travis fuelled by revenge and Santa Destroy having been turned into a corporate-controlled commercial tourist trap, the journey is a shade darker than the previous game.

Despite a slightly darker story, this Nintendo Switch port of No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle is just as impressive as the port of the first game released alongside it. This new version of the game shoots for a sharp 720p resolution that easily outshines the visuals of the original Nintendo Wii version, and it also touts a solid 60fps. While the Switch port of the first game dips during crowded fights and open-world driving segments, the sequel is as smooth as butter. Big battles stay smooth, and since you navigate the game world through menus rather than clunky open-world exploration this time, there aren't any driving segments to compromise the framerate.

One of the best improvements with this port is the updated control options for the game. The original Nintendo Wii release of No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle employed a fusion of motion controls and button inputs as you hacked, slashed and suplexed your way through suited hitmen and wild ranked assassins. Those motion controls return on the Nintendo Switch, as the game lets you use dual Joy-Con inputs to play. Pressing buttons to attack and block while you wave your Joy-Con to switch sword stances, deal finishing blows, and recharge your beam katana with that all-too-iconic jerk-off motion is a delight.

That's not the only way to play, though.If you decide to disable motion-controls, you'll find that a lot of the combat systems feel a lot faster. You're able to chain together high and low katana attacks like you never could with motion controls, and recharging your beam katana by waggling the right-stick – while way less goofy, it's also way faster. Both control methods are viable, and both are fun as hell.

Much like the port of the first game, there aren't any extra features or major bonuses here aside from the resolution and framerate improvements. This is the only re-release of the sequel, so there isn't a PS3 port to pull bonuses or altered visuals from like there is for the first game. Still, No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle is hardly lacking in content. This remains a rich, raunchy, and utterly unforgettable action game that's stuffed to the gills with unlockables, mini-games, crazy fights, and insane humor that only Suda 51 could provide.

No Man's Sky update 3.12 makes some next-gen fixes

The developers at Hello Games have deployed their latest game update for No Man's Sky on consoles. Available to download now on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S, this 3.12 patch carries out some fixes following the game's recent next-gen update.

One issues players had been encountering on PS5 was an overly bright display image when playing with HDR enabled. This has now been remedied in No Man's Sky 3.12. For a longer list of changes, you can review the patch notes further down.

If you've been sitting on the fence waiting to play No Man's Sky or perhaps have a launch copy collecting dust, now's a great time to jump in. Over the years Hello Games have continued to pipe No Man's Sky with new content while vastly expanding what you can do within their spacefaring sandbox with several meaty multiplayer expansions.

Those wanting the best No Man's Sky experience can take advantage of the game's next-gen upgrades on both PS5 and Xbox Series X|S. You can bring your old save data over from last-gen consoles or start anew, this refined version of the game offering enhanced visuals, better stability, and quality of life features.

No Man's Sky Update 3.12 Patch Notes

Fixed an issue that caused HDR to be overly bright on PS5.
Fixed an issue that could cause texture artefacts in the terrain.
Fixed a number of issues that could cause base screenshots from being captured correctly on next-gen platforms.
Fixed an issue that prevented water droplets from being visible on Xbox Series X/S.
Fixed an issue that caused hitching on Xbox Series X/S.
Fixed an issue that caused props held by NPCs to appear glitchy on Xbox Series X/S.
Fixed a rare issue that prevented some PSN friends from being shown in the list of available games to join.
Fixed a memory-related crash on Xbox One.
Fixed an HDR-related crash on PS5.

Source: No Man's Sky

PAW Patrol: Mighty Pups Save Adventure Bay Review

Earlier this year, White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany suggested that PAW Patrol had been cancelled. "We saw a few weeks ago," Kayleigh said during a press conference, "that 'PAW Patrol', a cartoon show about cops, was cancelled." Concern was such that it prompted Nick Jnr, the creators of PAW Patrol, to respond with the following tweet "No need to worry. PAW Patrol is not cancelled". That tweet ratcheted up a stonking two hundred and eight thousand likes.

Is there a better example for the enduring popularity of PAW Patrol than that? Is there any another kids animated cartoon that would evoke such a frenzied level of concern about its possible cancellation? I don't think so. Stands to reason then, that publishers Outright Games would want to follow up 2018's PAW Patrol: On a Roll as soon as possible. And they have, this time with added super heroics, in PAW Patrol: Mighty Pups Save Adventure Bay.

Approaching this review sparked quite a conundrum: How was I, a jaded and nearly forty-year-old gamer, going to review a game so heavily aimed at young children? My opinion matters little at the best of times, even less so when critiquing a game that isn't remotely intended for someone of my age. I've been playing games since they came on cassette tapes, I am not going to have what it takes to approach a PAW Patrol game with an open mind and a fresh perspective. Then I had a eureka moment: why not play the game with my 4-year old son? I'll let him decide on the qualities of the game simply by how much he enjoys playing it. Let's hope I'm not inadvertently breaking any child labour laws.

PAW Patrol: Mighty Pups Save Adventure Bay is a game of two parts. One side is played from a top-down perspective and is effectively a simplified collectathon platformer. Playable via local co-op, you must guide your pup around the level to reach the end where you'll then have to do a spot of rescuing. There are no fail states and the only challenge comes from locating and collecting doggy biscuits and the occasional PAW Patrol badge.

At certain points, when a pup needs to use their abilities, a mini-game will be activated. These are basic and simple affairs with the player having to time a response; you'll wiggle a thumb stick or spam a button press to ensure Rubble drills through rocks, Marshall waters flowers or Everest scales a wall. Despite the promise of super hero shenanigans, the Mighty Pups actually have a disappointingly minimal role in proceedings. Changing costumes doesn't make them play any differently. Rocky may look like a budget-priced Green Lantern, but that doesn't mean he can fly around and create green things at will. Instead, he'll do all the exact same things he did before, just with slightly different mini-games.

The first thing that impressed we with PPMPSAB is that it's a fun acronym, the second is how this game has been extremely well calibrated for a young player. Ryder, the pups human leader, clearly and concisely explains all the gameplay at several points throughout a level. My son required very little assistance from me in order to navigate the environment and figure out how to solve the mini-games. He also found the game "very funny and silly", laughing hysterically every time he made Everest and her snow mobile crash into a rock or log during one snow mountain themed mini-game.

To an experienced player these mini-games can be seen as laughably simple and very cliched, but to a four year old they offered a decent challenge. There's definitely a gentle learning curve and a nice challenge to be had, but as my son's confidence confidence grew he even started skipping Ryder's briefings to get straight to the action, figuring out how to solve the mini-games on the fly.

Paw Patrol also delivers with its bright, bold visuals and the pups have plenty of character. My son was delighted by the inclusion of all their respective vehicles, as well as both the Paw Patroller and Air Patroller making an appearance. He did notice that the song "sounds weird", and despite this being a licensed title, it seems the developers decided not to go with the official music that plays when the pups slide down from the top of their base to reach their vehicles. This over-the-top track is one of the best bits of the TV show, so not featuring it in the game feels like it should be a crime.

PPMPSAB has a host of other problems as well, to the point that they are even obvious to a younger player. Invisible walls are everywhere. "Why can't I go this way Daddy?" my son asked as Chase once more bounced off a whole lot of nothing, "The game says no" I replied. "The game says no" became something of a mantra during our time with the pups. Why can't Skye jump up here? Why can't I walk this way? Perhaps most unforgivably, why can't I jump into the sea when at the beach? Developers Drakhar Studio haven't even bothered to hide these invisible walls, they're so plentiful and obvious that they'd have been better off surrounding a level with brick walls instead. A game that encourages you to explore and find all the pup treats whilst also preventing you from exploring is a frustrating contradiction for players of all ages.

Then there's the lack of a separate screens during local co-op. All too often one of the players can get stuck behind an item of scenery whilst the other is trying to move through the level. The screen ends up locked in place, trapping an innocent pup and forcing them to spend the rest of their days behind a big rock. Quite why the screen doesn't split or zoom out in these situations is beyond me. Loading times between levels are also butt-numbingly long on PS4, to the point that my son frequently declaring "It's broken" as the animation on the loading screen froze for the umpteenth time before gradually, painfully, lumbering back to life.

Assassin's Creed Valhalla update 1.0.4 is out, get the patch notes here

Ubisoft's Assassin's Creed Valhalla has a new patch and it's already out on Xbox consoles with PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5, Ubisoft Connect, Epic Games Store, Stadia, and Amazon Luna all being patched today. Highlights include improved fish-reeling behaviour, a reworked sliding mechanic, and improved reactions to whistling. Woohoo! Probably some other stuff as well, take a look.

Patch Sizes and Deployment Timing:

Xbox Series X|S: ~5.3 GB @ 1pm CET | 7am EDT | 4am PDT | 11pm AEDT
Xbox One: ~4.9 GB @ 1pm CET | 7am EDT | 4am PDT | 11pm AEDT
PlayStation 5: ~2.5 GB @ 1pm CET | 7am EDT | 4am PDT | 11pm AEDT
PlayStation 4: ~4.1 GB @ 1pm CET | 7am EDT | 4am PDT | 11pm AEDT
PC: ~4.3 GB @ 1pm CET | 7am EDT | 4am PDT | 11pm AEDT

Please note that these timings are estimates and subject to change.

Check out the most notable changes with 1.0.4 below.

CONTENT

Graphics/Performance Mode Introduction

Added an option to the game that allows players to choose between Performance or Visual Quality.

Feature breakdown:

This option is available for Xbox Series X|S & PlayStation5.
Choosing Performance allows the game to adapt the resolution and graphic settings to maintain 60 FPS.
Choosing Quality enables the game to run maximum resolution and graphic settings while maintaining 30 FPS.
Default values since the launch of the game are as follows:
Xbox Series X / PlayStation5: Performance
Xbox Series S: Quality

Miscellaneous

Added a new background image to the title screen.
Added various VFX to enhance visuals.
Added an option that will automatically assign all nodes on the path when acquiring a central skill.
Added rune categories to the rune menu. All runes are now categorized in Weapon & Armor runes.
Added a warning when switching from a language that supports TTS to one that doesn't.
Sliders can now be moved with left/right arrows on M&K and controllers.
Increased fabric limit to 82.
Added fabric to traders once the settlement has reached Level 6.
Added offering altar requirements to the world map.

Balancing

Updated gear quality and gear to their correct values.
Added Assassination damage stats on the character stats page.
Removed duplicate gear from inventory.
Heavy and light attack stats will now adjust correctly based on acquired skill nodes.
Heavy attack modifiers will no longer be applied to range attacks.

Game improvements

Performance and Stability

Improved stability and performance.
(Xbox Series) Improved experience on Xbox Series S | X consoles including screen tearing
(PC) Addressed a VRAM/RAM leakage issue when alt tabbing to desktop.

Save Games

Corrected some instances where Load Game would not display save games correctly.
Renamed Cloud saves to make them more distinguishable from regular saves.
- Previously the cloud save was only highlighted with a Cloud icon. Now they'll be called, for example, "Manual Save Cloud"
Removed Cloud saves from the Save menu. This will ensure that it cannot be overwritten unintentionally.
Added a notification when a cloud save retrieval has failed.

Graphics, Audio, Animation

Addressed various graphical issues across the board.
Addressed various FX issues.
Addressed various instances of clipping issues.
Addressed various visual issues with Eivor's cloak.
Addressed various instances of player or NPC animation issues.
Addressed various audio issues.
Addressed various lighting issues.
Shadow resolution on High will now use correct values.

World

Addressed various texture or object placement issues.
Addressed some instances where the player could become stuck in specific locations.
Fish in Norway will now spawn in bad weather. Yeah, we had to read this one twice too.
Crows will no longer randomly fall from the sky in Asgard. *Bad omens, huh?*

Gameplay, Combat, AI

Addressed various bow-aiming issues.
Improved NPC and Boss behavior across the board.
NPCs will now react to the player stealing…so think twice before stealing!
Addressed an issue where dogs would start levitating when Eivor starts to pet them.
Blocking Springald projectiles will now consume stamina, as intended.
Zealots that were hit with a sleep dart can now be stun attacked. Sleep tight.
Zealots will no longer heal themselves while in player vicinity.
Guards who clearly saw Eivor shoot their ally will now turn hostile. *presses emergency button*
Guards will now hear the impact of dead bodies dropping to the ground.
Improved guard reactions to whistling.
Improved disguise behavior in distrust zones.
Shooting bows from the Longship now consumes arrows.
Players will now be able to air-assassinate sleeping NPCs. *Savage…*
Improved fish-reeling behavior.
Addressed an issue where the horse wouldn't use the gallop animation in combat.
The crowd will now cheer during drinking games. *You better.*
Reworked sliding mechanic.

Quests, World Events, Side Activities

Addressed an issue where the assassination sequence wouldn't play for some targets.
Addressed various texture issues during cutscenes.
Addressed various issues with quests or world events that prevented players from completing them.
Players can no longer use the fishing tool or the horn during the drunk walk with Tewdr – *you're drunk, go home.*
Sub quests will now display the correct "Part of" parent quest.
The memory stream can now be chosen when starting a New Game if Hold Alternative option is set to ON.
Increased frequency of experienced travelers.

User Interface / HUD

Addressed various issues with the User Interface/HUD.
Addressed various localization issues.
Addressed various Mouse- and Keyboard-related input issues
Secrets will now be discovered when synchronizing a Viewpoint. (This does not apply to Pathfinder difficulty)
Experienced travelers are now highlighted on the world map and on the compass when in proximity.
Addressed an issue where the map wouldn't update once players got intel from an experienced traveler.
Increased Odin's Sight radius and enemies will now be highlighted for longer.
Improved radius in which Synin reveals keys.
Reduced Synin's view distance of materials.
Improved the objective beam behavior.
Settlement building beams can now be seen using Odin's Sight.
Improved enemy target-lock mechanic.
"Sell all trinkets" will now be greyed out after all trinkets were sold. *Cha-ching!*
Bosses' power levels will now be displayed on their health gauge. This does not apply to regular enemies.
Regular brightness settings will no longer apply to HDR exposure settings.
The Codex will no longer foreshadow or spoil some events.
(A11y) Desktop entries and content on Layla's laptop are now narrated when Menu Narration is ON.
(A11y) Colorblind filters are now applied correctly to mini-quest log and raid tutorial.

Abilities and Skills

Addressed an issue where players couldn't use any abilities anymore when the Dive of the Valkyries ability was interrupted.
Ally NPCs or horses can no longer trigger body traps. *Some people just want to see the world burn, huh?*
Addressed a display issue where the poisonous powder trap could become invisible after using Synin.
Adjusted chain-assassination behavior. Players will no longer be able to assassinate a target who was tackled to the ground.
The Secondary hand slot will no longer be available when a two-handed weapon is equipped (pre-heavy dual-wield skill).
Flaming powder traps will now explode when walking over the arrow.

Raids

"Force Open" will now be displayed correctly even if nearby allies are in combat.
Addressed an issue where allies would not help Eivor to open a door during Raids.
Allies will now return to the longship once a raid is complete.
Added a timer until players can restart a raid that was just completed.

Photo Mode

Effect values can now be adjusted with arrow keys or WASD.
The no-filter option will now work correctly.
The Territory panel is no longer displayed in Photo Mode.
Changing filters will now work as intended.
Addressed an issue where an Online Service Error could occur temporarily when looking at photos on the world map.
Snow FX will now center to the camera instead of the player in Photo Mode.

System

(PC) Updated readme files to show correct PC specifications.
Added additional checkpoints to some boss fights.
Addressed an issue that led controllers to vibrate constantly.
Addressed an issue where players could become stuck in a black screen after closing the menu with start.
(PC) Updated the autodetect config for Nvidia Geforce 1650 S.

Source: Ubisoft

Assassin's Creed: Valhalla guides & more from TheSixthAxis

Square Enix lost a huge amount of money on Marvel's Avengers

Years in development at some of Square Enix's biggest Western studios, Marvel's Avengers has been a huge flop for the company. In an earnings call, president and CEO Yosuke Matsuda admitted that Square Enix had to write down 11 billion yen in losses associated with Marvel's Avengers, both in terms of development and marketing.

That's around $105 million or £80 million.

It's fair to say that's a pretty huge blow to the company's finances. In fact, Matsuda-san goes on to say in the Q&A portion of the call that their sub-segment of 'HD Games' (which includes traditional console titles like Final Fantasy VII Remake) would have been profitable without Avengers' flop.

Absent factors associated with "Marvel's Avengers," the sub-segment would have been in the black. In addition to the amortization of that game's development costs, another significant factor associated with the title was the fact that we undertook a major advertising campaign at the time of its launch to make up for delays in our marketing efforts resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. There is a certain amount of development costs still to be amortized in 3Q, but we want to recoup it by growing our sales going forward.

Marvel's Avengers was originally planned for release back in May of this year, but was delayed back in January. When it eventually launched in September, it failed to set the critical or commercial worlds alight – here's our Marvel's Avengers review – no doubt leading to a little soul searching within the company.

Personally, I think a part of the reason is simply a lack of understanding over what Marvel's Avengers actually is, and a little confusion when you get into the game in how it's all put together. The game was revealed with the bombastic 'A-Day' events that set the game's story in motion, but this whole sequence is purely a tutorial for the game's basic controls. We were left asking what kind of game it wanted to be for almost a year after the E3 2019 gameplay reveal.

Not only that, but it focusses so heavily on the core Avengers characters , when the lead character through much of the story is actually Kamala Khan, AKA Ms. Marvel. While a Games as a Service title with many narrative drops, a lot of the game is focused around solo play as opposed to co-op multiplayer like Destiny and The Division. Oh, and then there was the fuss caused by Spider-Man being made a PlayStation exclusive character.

While the original delay to September cannot be attributed to the challenges of 2020, the subsequent delays can be. The first narrative episode featuring Hawkeye protege Kate Bishop was pushed back and will now launch in early December, and you have the delay of the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S enhanced versions of the game to 2021.

It is still a fun action brawler, there is a solid comic book story that it tells, and there's definitely been a lot of thought put into making sure there's regular content coming to the game, but it just never managed to capture the imagination of punters. The hope for Square Enix is that, as with Destiny and The Division, the game can turn a corner and get more people to invest in its ongoing story and gameplay.

Source: Square Enix via Twisted Voxel

PlayStation Plus free online multiplayer weekend will be held mid-December

Sony will be opening the gates to online multiplayer on PS4 and PS5 in the middle of December with a free online multiplayer weekend for non-PlayStation Plus subscribers.

It will run from midnight Saturday 19th December until 11:59PM on Sunday 20th December, both in local time.

That's pretty much all there is to say about it. Online multiplayer used to be free on PlayStation, back in the glory days of the PS2 and PS3, but Sony followed in Microsoft's footsteps at the start of the PS4 generation and locked it all behind an active PlayStation Plus subscription. Given how successful that's been in lining Sony's pockets with cash in the last seven years, I doubt we'll see multiplayer being made free again any time soon, outside of these fleeting moments of free online play.

The timing is a little funny in relation to Christmas. Sony are presumably hoping that enough people will be tempted to join their subscription service – especially with early adopting PS5 owners – but playing 4D business chess by holding the free weekend ahead of Christmas when there will no doubt be a big jump in service usage that could see PSN downtime. That wouldn't exactly be the best advert for a paid subscription…

While you can play online like a PlayStation Plus subscriber, you won't have any of the other perks, which for the month of December includes multiplayer games Worms Rumble and Rocket Arena alongside the single player chaos of Just Cause 4. If you're subscribed on PlayStation 5, then you get a ton of great games through the PlayStation Plus Collection.

So, with no sub, you'll have to bring your own games to the free multiplayer weekend, whether that's taking your FIFA 21 gaming online for the first time, diving back into your back catalogue for some GT Sport racing, or the perennial online shenanigans of GTA V.

Source: PS Blog

December's PlayStation Plus have been revealed!

UPDATE: My predictions were, once again, completely wrong. Rubbish. Anyway, for December you are getting not two, but three games! Worms Rumble, Just Cause 4 and Rocket Arena!

Worms Rumble is brand new and we rather liked it when we went for a hands on preview. Just Cause 4 had good reviews, 8/10 from us, and is lots of explosive fun, while Rocket Arena came out in July and has pretty good reviews, averaging at 71% on Metacritic. Here's some trailers for the games!

Original story below…

It's almost time for another batch of juicy free (ish) games to be dropped for PlayStation Plus subscribers to devour. The games should be announced around 4.30pm today and should go live on December 1st, usually around midday.

The games will be replacing Middle-earth: Shadow of War and Hollow Knight: Voidheart Edition, November's PlayStation Plus games, but PS5 exclusive Bugsnax will remain free until January 4th, 2021, so I doubt we will be getting another PS5 game this month. If you have yet to download this month's game you can use these handy links.

Bugsnax scored well in reviews including our own as we gave it a magnificent 9/10. "Bugsnax is a unique and wonderful experience, and a must-play for anyone who can get their hands on it," said Nic. "If you're lucky enough to have secured a PS5, make sure you make the most of PlayStation Plus and pick up your free copy while it lasts. If not, this game is still well worth your hard-earned cash."

You can read the full review of the game here.

So, on to the speculation, what are we getting this month. Well just for a change we have a couple of indicators that might tell us what Sony have in store. At present there is a Black Friday sale on the PlayStation Store and some big Sony games are conspicuously absent including Gran Turismo Sport, Horizon Zero Dawn, and Uncharted Lost Legacy. We also know the games in the PlayStation Plus Collection, twenty free PS4 titles that PS5 owners get for free and Gran Turismo Sport, Horizon Zero Dawn, and Uncharted Lost Legacy are not included.

Sony will want to pull out the big guns to keep PS5 owners happy, and any of those games, with an accompanying PS5 patch to make then a bit more shiny, seem a very good bet. Uncharted Lost Legacy seems the more obvious title as Sony may want to keep back Horizon until nearer the launch of the sequel.

Stay tuned for the official reveal!

Nintendo eShop Black Friday deals will save you 33% on Zelda, Xenoblade Chronicles, Fire Emblem & much more

Nintendo have announced that the Nintendo Switch eShop Black Friday sale, the Cyber Deals, will be getting underway tomorrow Thursday 26th November at 2PM GMT, also revealing some rare discounts for first party titles, including Zelda and Xenoblade.

More specifically, there's 33% off The Legend of Zelda; Link's Awakening, Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition and Xenoblade Chronicles 2, Fire Emblem Three Houses and more. However, there's bigger reductions on games outside Nintendo's first party line up. Get 50% off Dark Souls Remastered (£17.49) or Sid Meier's Civilization VI (£24.99), 60% off Mortal Kombat 11 (£15.99), and a whopping 84% off Dragon Ball FighterZ (£7.99).

The sale runs until the end of Thursday 3rd December local time.

here's all the discounts we currently know of, but there will be an awful lot more included when the sale goes live

Title	Publisher	Percentage Discount
The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening	Nintendo	33%
Xenoblade Chronicles Definitive Edition	Nintendo	33%
Xenoblade Chronicles 2	Nintendo	33%
Fire Emblem Three Houses	Nintendo	33%
Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze	Nintendo	33%
Astral Chain	Nintendo	33%
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim	Bethesda	50%
Dark Souls Remastered	Bandai Namco	50%
Dragon Ball FighterZ	Bandai Namco	84%
Tales of Vesperia: Definitive Edition	Bandai Namco	75%
The Outer Worlds	Private Division	50%
Borderlands Legendary Collection	2K Games	40%
BioShock: The Collection	2K Games	40%
Sid Meier's Civilization VI	2K Games	50%
Mortal Kombat 11	Warner Bros. Games	60%
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt — Complete Edition	CD Projekt Red	30%
Spyro Reignited Trilogy	Activision	49%
Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled	Activision	49%
Metro 2033 Redux	Koch media	50%
Diablo III: Eternal Collection	Blizzard	50%
Atelier Ryza: Ever Darkenss & the Secret Hideout	Tecmo Koei	30%
The Wonderful 101: Remastered	Platinum Games	32%

Source: press release

If Found… Review

If Found… follows two interconnected stories. The first is charting the impending disaster of a black hole that is threatening to destroy Earth and the attempt to stop it (obviously), told through dialogue between Control and the astronaut, Cassiopeia. The other branch of this story is set in Ireland in the 1990s and follows Kasio, a young person struggling with their identity and finding acceptance.

Finding themselves back in their hometown after university, having accepted during their time away that they are trans, Kasio struggles to relate with her religious and conservative family. This results in her finding solace with her friend, Colum and his boyfriend in an abandoned mansion. The player then follows their relationships, passions, and heartbreaks over a harsh Irish winter.

With this all taking place in a particular time and space, it adheres very strictly to this setting, using a lot of the vernacular and customs of Ireland. As these references might be lost on you, there's a comprehensive glossary of explanations at key points throughout the story that can be dropped into again at any time in their own menu.

So, no worries if you don't know your "craic" from your "gobsheen", the devs have you covered for those and a myriad of other things besides.

As If Found… is a graphic novel, there isn't much gameplay to speak of, aside from one huge narrative-leading device – the eraser. Throughout the story, the player will be erasing the scenes or words in front of them to progress, removing all history of what came before and even sometimes flooding the screen with colour or drowning it in darkness.

This is has the most emotional weight in the sections where you read the diary of Kasio, forcing the player to erase all of its contents and, in doing so, all memory of their life. Not only that, but before this you can erase scribbles and crosses to read things that had been previously crossed out. It's a tremendously cathartic act, but one that comes with a bit of a gut-punch at times.

However, this gameplay element does come with a considerable setback in terms of the often esoteric nature of progression. Sometimes it isn't clear what you need to erase next, or where you need to position your viewpoint to start the next story segment, leaving the player floundering as to how to progress. This could have been easily fixed with simple indicators, and this being missing feels really egregious.

Obviously though, the gameplay isn't the strongest aspect of a visual novel, which falls to (obviously) the visuals. There are two distinct styles used, depending on which of the two narratives you're currently experiencing, allowing the player to easy situate themselves in either 90s Ireland or with a space traveller, which is especially useful when these narratives intertwine.

During the story of Cassiopeia and Control in space, the palette is wild and psychedelic, with rough edges around dialogue and a distinctly more jarring score backing it. Whereas the story of Kasio has a more muted colour palette, with endearing hand-sketches of the characters and events from Kasio herself to tell her story, and music to match the situations.

If Found… is a short game, but what fills that time is a heart-wrenching story of trying to find your way through life and acceptance. Being LGBTQ myself, this is an important queer story, more so than the simple act of the representation it displays. This isn't to say that representation isn't important, but it needs to be authentic, and Kasio's journey – whether real or not – feels it.

Monster Hunter Movie event quest coming to MH: World Iceborne

It was inevitable, really. Say what you will about the upcoming Monster Hunter movie (planned for release in UK cinemas on December 4th) at least it's given players a reason to hop back into Monster Hunter: Iceborne before the end of 2020 with new content to discover.

Yes, there's a Monster Hunter movie crossover and with it comes two time limited event quests available from next week. Taking part will net you some bonus Iceborne goodies, including an Artemis armour set based on the film adaptation's hero.

Oh, you will also get to play as Milla Jovovich during the event, too! Both quests are singleplayer only, here are the full details:

Artemis "Monster Hunter" Movie Quest — Part 1

Availability:
- Starts: December 3, 2020 at 4:00 p.m. PT / 7:00 p.m. ET
- Ends: December 2, 2021 at 3:59 p.m. PT / 6:59 p.m. ET
Event Quest: "The New World"
Conditions: Master Rank 1 or above; single player only
Locale: Wildspire Waste
Objective: Slay a Black Diablos
New Equipment: Artemis α+ Armor Set

Artemis "Monster Hunter" Movie Quest — Part 2

Availability:
- Starts: December 3, 2020 at 4:00 p.m. PT / 7:00 p.m. ET
- Ends: December 2, 2021 at 3:59 p.m. PT / 6:59 p.m. ET
Event Quest: "To Our World"
Conditions: Master Rank 1 or above; single player only; must have completed "The New World" (Part 1)
Locale: Ancient Forest
Objective: Slay a Rathalos
New Equipment: Artemis Layered Armor Set

Artemis Monster Hunter Movie Quest Bonus Content

Complete the event quests to obtain a new guild card background, titles, and poses!

Guild Card Background: Cinematic World
Guild Card Poses: Courageous Hunter, Skilled Hunter
Guild Card Titles: Artemis, Devil's Teeth, Sky Tower, Ranger, Chocolate, Movie

Additional Notes

You must be Master Rnk 1 or higher to post the event quests from the Artemis Monster Hunter Movie Quest.
Purchase of the Monster Hunter World: Iceborne expansion is required for any content related to the Artemis Monster Hunter Movie Quest.
The Artemis Monster Hunter Movie Quest is only available for a limited time, listed above.

For more on Monster Hunter, you can read our review of Monster Hunter: Iceborne. We're hoping to bring you a review very soon.

Source: Gematsu

Fall Guys Season 3 teased with a massive Twitter jigsaw

Mediatonic have decided to reveal Fall Guys Season 3 in a completely new way. Instead of the usual teaser press release or video, they have enlisted the help of 300 of their Twitter followers. Each one of these has tweeted a small section of an image, and mad fools are now trying to paste together all the small pieces to reveal the full image, the #JigSawus

Here's what the have got so far on Twitter…

While over on Discord they have a clearer view…

That seems to show Season 3 will have a wintery theme, we can see a can clearly see a snowman character and there's also a big snowflake. There is more snow on the floor of the level, and brown Fall Guy seems to be slipping over, so we may be getting some ice levels.

Fall Guys is currently on sale on the PlayStation store and has 20% off the list price until November 30th.

ICYMI, here are details of the latest patch for the game.

NEW LEVEL – Big Fans!
NEW VARIATIONS throughout the game!
[PC] NEW name system!
Server Region Selector!
Featured Crown Costumes now available in regular store rotation
Show Selector now lets you queue for multiple shows at the same time
Improved stability when playing in parties!
New Language selection option in-game
Lowered chance of Medieval Rounds, Perfect Match, and Tail Tag
Fix: Falling through tiles on Hex-A-Gone
Fix: Losing jump inputs, especially on Jump Showdown
Fix: Grabbing the crown on Fall Mountain and hanging from it instead of winning
Fix: Infallible achievement sometimes not unlocking
Fix: Falling on flat surfaces

Fall Guys Seasons 2 easy XP and rewards guide

Source: Twitter

Demon's Souls update 1.003 out now for PS5 remaster

Even remakes need patching from time to time as PlayStation gamers will discover when they go to boot up Demon's Souls on PS5. There's a new update available and ready to download for the popular action RPG, bring it up to version 1.003.

It appears as though this is a very minor update, weighing in at just a couple hundred megabytes. The developers at Bluepoint Games haven't given any hints or published a changelog of patch notes. There's no detailed update information available through the PS5 UI, nor is there a in-game message to notify players of any changes.

Here's what Bluepoint have said about Demon's Souls update 1.003:

Earlier today we released a patch fixing a few stability issues. We are listening to the community and continuing to work on fixes such as the gold coin glitch and other improvements. Thank you for all of the love and support as we make Demon's Souls on PS5 an even better experience.

It's likely that Bluepoint have been making some simple post-launch tweaks, ironing out bugs and glitches the community have stumbled upon in the days following its release.

Currently, Demon's Souls stands out as the highest rated PS5 launch title among critics. The remake of FromSoftware's 2010 cult classic is sitting on a comfortable 92 average over on OpenCritic, making it one of the best reviewed video game launches of 2020.

In our review, we awarded Demon's Souls on PS5 a glorious 9 out of 10:

An unforgiving, unrelenting classic reborn for a new generation, Demon's Souls is no more accessible now than it was back in 2010 (though the frame rate is much better). If you've ever been the slightest bit curious about the Souls series then you can revisit ground zero in all its glory, making for one of the best PlayStation launch titles of all time.

Source: Twitter (@bluepointgames)

Godfall update 2.1.17 is chock full of fixes

The team over at Counterplay Games have released a new update for their next-gen looter slasher, Godfall. Patch 2.1.17 is now available to download on PS5 and PC – you'll need to install this update in order to play as Godfall requires an online connection.

There are no major highlights in version 2.1.17 though Counterplay are working to fix hefty list of issues flagged by the Godfall community in the days following its launch.

We recently reviewed Godfall for PS5, scoring the launch title an average 5 out of 10. There are some interesting combat mechanics at work though a scarcity of interesting content, strung together in such a repetitive manner.

The lack of multiplayer matchmaking doesn't help though hopefully Counterplay have plans to address this and other concerns in future. For now, here are the latest patch notes:

Godfall Update 2.1.17 Patch Notes

General – All Platforms

Solved various collision issues across the realms where players could get stuck or clip through the world.
Solved an issue with new accounts causing a hitch of VFX when displayed for the first time (stuttering).
Solved an issue with Surety (Augment) that caused it's damage to stack indefinitely with multiple Northern Techniques.
Solved an issue where Dreamstone Boons' values could change randomly while in the Holomap menu.
Solved an issue where some higher tier midbosses were not dropping the correct amount of loot.
Solved an issue where Foreboding Reach (Augment) displayed a +0% bonus to Rampage damage.
Improve stability issues with co-op games.
Solved an issue where low level flex missions would not scale appropriately with high level players.
Solved various ledge climbing issues in the Water Realm.
Solved a missing augment constellation connection on the Hinterclaw valorplate.
Solved an issue in the equipment menu preventing players from equipping items from the 16th item slot of the first page.
Solved an issue with the Skip button overlap and legibility.
Solved an issue where certain trees in Crimson Glade would suffer from LOD issues.
Players can no longer be interrupted by enemy AoEs when performing takedowns.
Solved an issue where Nyak Windcarver's electric orb was dealing more damage than intended
Solved an issue where post-mission free roam would incorrectly scale to the highest player level. Free roam after completing a mission will now retain the mission's original level scaling.
The Darkstar Crusher (Legendary Hammer) primary trait has been adjusted: It will no longer affect Bosses (this includes Midbosses). Duration is now set to 15 seconds (previously 20s). The Time Bubble will slow enemies by 50% (previously 70%). Trait text will match the effect (previously, displayed 30% even though it was slowing by 70%).
Solved an issue during the mission Tormentor's Asylum where enemies would spawn out of combat zones.
Solved an issue where players could be locked out of Light Attacks after performing certain Shield attacks.
Solved an issue with monster descriptions in our Japanese localization.
Solved an issue where players could crash when playing coop against Zamora.
Solved an issue with multiplayer Free Roam where activating multiple beacons at the same time would result in the final beacon giving an incorrect amount of rewards.
Solved an issue where God-Beast Ichor (Charm) would only spread poison to an enemy if it was their first time being poisoned.
Solved various issues with phase nodes not activating after completing a hunt mission.
Lock-on target icon will no longer display during cutscenes.
Solved an issue where Dual Blades Northern Technique was not scaling at stage 4.
Credits now properly display after finishing the campaign.
Solved an issue where certain Dreamstones would not have their third activity choice displayed.
Solved an issue where the Siphon Skill was not available if the player had not unlocked Weapon Techniques.
Solved an issue where the Rank 5 Breach Skill (bonus damage to the next Charged Heavy Attack) only applied to the first hit of a multi-strike attack.
Solved an issue where the Raider achievement was not unlocking properly.
Solved several localization overlap issues with "Skill Unlock" notifications.
Solved an issue in the Tower of Trials where the number of respawns could reset after completing a trial.
Solved an issue in multiplayer where players with high latency could get stuck on a Defeated screen, unable to respawn.
Solved an issue with Warhammers receiving less bonus damage from various sources (Rampage, Polarity Attacks, Timing Attacks and consuming Rampage).
Solved an issue where Boons that give Warhammer extra damage gave less than originally shown.
Solved an issue where tooltips for destroying portals in the mission Shrine of the Godsmiths may show up and never expire.
Solved a crash while fighting Bronze Animus at the end of the Soulshatter tutorial room.
Solved an issue where multiplayer guests could select "Invite a Friend" when searching for a server, delaying load-times and possibly resulting in an error.
Solved an issue where players quickly accessing a holomap after loading from an intel mission would interfere with boons.
Solved an issue where Dreamstone Solaris' Orb target players walking into the arena before they enter combat.
Solved an issue where Keyboard shortcuts in the Equipment menu could misplace UI.
Solved an issue where you could not dismiss the friends list using a controller.
Solved several issues where fighting Zamora for the first time in a session would cause hitches.
Solved an issue where skipping the final cutscene and credits would respawn the player in the boss arena.
Solved an issue after completing Shrine of the Godsmiths where the Twilight Beacon for ending the mission disappears and selects a new one ~1400m away.
Solved an issue where Valorplate names would not appear localized.
Solved an issue where the Spirit Crystal mini-game would be considered complete if all crystals entered their correct realm at least once.
Solved an issue where Treasure Hermits would lose their knockdown immunity upon getting hit while trying to teleport away.
Solved an issue in multiplayer where players who force close the game are not removed from the party nor show a disconnecting message.
Solved a crash that could occur during a three player coop game in Alluvial Plains.
Solved an issue where Takedown Skill Rank 1 & 3 were not functioning correctly against certain melee enemies.
Solved an issue where players were unable to navigate the equipment submenus with their gamepad controllers.
Solved an issue where players were unable to navigate their friends list with their gamepad controller.
Solved an issue where players were unable to navigate the cosmetics menu with their gamepad controller.
Solved an issue with Dreamstones where flex missions would advance to the next round if the timer ran out.
Solved a crash that could occur when opening a menu in Sanctum with raytracing enabled.
Solved several issues with codex entries that would not unlock or unlock at the wrong time.
Solved an issue where the player could get stuck in the Sanctum upon completing a Dreamstone.
Solved an issue where the Clear Skills button would at times not refund any skill points.
Added seven items missing from the loot pool. These should now drop appropriately, keep an eye out!
Solved an issue where players needed to wait for the Parry animation to finish before taking another action.
Solved an issue where the player could not start sprinting until they caught their shield from a throw.
Solved an issue where the level-up animation would interrupt camera close-ups during conversation cutscenes.

PC Only

Solved a crash when respawning after returning to the game from another window.
Solved an issue where upgrading an item without highlight a trait when using a mouse would cause the upgrade to fail and other issues.
Solved an issue where the Training Room icons would not swap to display the current input device.
Solved an issue where alternating between controller and M&KB would cause joysticks prompts to appear as debug text.
Improved Ultra-Wide resolution support.

PlayStation 5 Only

Solved an issue where pressing the F11 key on a plugged keyboard would cause the game to hang.
Solved an issue where changing a controls setting in a language other than English would change most text back to English.

Source: Official Gearbox Forums

Fallout 76: Steel Dawn update went live a week early – here's some chonky patch notes

Bethesda have released the Steel Dawn update for Fallout 76 earlier than planned, after a comedy of errors saw the update pushed out to Xbox users before it was meant to and the company deciding to just roll with it.

So Steel Dawn is now available on all platforms – PS4, Xbox One and PC – following several hours of maintenance that took place last night.

If you're not early, you're late!
Today we're releasing the Steel Dawn update for #Fallout76 ahead of schedule.
Read on for more information: https://t.co/eFzIlcSKab pic.twitter.com/TTaYcBBb2X

— Fallout (@Fallout) November 24, 2020

The Steel Dawn update was meant to go live on 1st December, but somehow was pushed to Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S players ahead of time. With this likely then meaning there was a content and versioning mismatch for the servers, it locked players out of the game.

In looking to resolve the issue, Bethesda Game Studios decided that the Steel Dawn content was actually all ready to go. So, instead of rolling back the update, they pushed it live to all platforms and got to work on the necessary server maintenance to get things going.

The Steel Dawn update brings with it the return of the Brotherhood of Steel, with a new questline to follow, CAMP Shelters, new locations, new weapons and more. Fallout 76 Season 3, which will feature the Scribe of Avalon Scoreboard, will get going on 15th December (unless some other bizarre nonsense makes that happen early as well!).

With every major update like this comes the fun of pouring over voluminous patch notes! Here's the patch notes for the Steel Dawn update.

Fallout 76: Steel Dawn patch notes

NEW STEEL DAWN QUESTLINE

The Brotherhood of Steel has returned to Appalachia on a mission to reclaim the region for humanity, to preserve any tech they can find, and to find out what befell Paladin Taggerdy and her crew. Starting today, you can begin your journey with the Brotherhood of Steel and work toward a brighter future for Appalachia in the all-new Steel Dawn questline.

Complete New Quests: Meet the new Brotherhood arrivals and begin your journey through the Steel Dawn questline by heading to Fort Atlas (formerly ATLAS Observatory) in the Savage Divide region of Appalachia.
- Your level 20+ characters can begin the Steel Dawn quests immediately, even if you haven't completed any prior Fallout 76 quest content.
- When you log in with an eligible character, a quest called "Welcome to the Neighborhood" will prompt you to visit Fort Atlas.
- Please note: You can now Fast Travel to Fort Atlas for free. However, if you had already discovered ATLAS Observatory before to today's update, its icon will no longer be visible on your Map. You will need to revisit the area to discover Fort Atlas, which will cause its Map marker to appear.
Meet New Faces: Get acquainted with new characters, like Paladin Rahmani, Knight Shin, Scribe Valdez, and many others who have arrived in Appalachia with the Steel Dawn Update.
Explore New locations: We've added several new locations and updated a number of existing ones that you'll delve into during your journey with the Brotherhood.
Gear Up with New Rewards: Progress through the Steel Dawn questline and complete Daily Ops to earn a host of cosmetic, C.A.M.P., and item rewards, including the following new weapons and armor straight from the Brotherhood arsenal:
- Crusader Pistol
- Plasma Cutter
- Hellstorm Missile Launcher
- Brotherhood Recon Armor
- You can purchase a variety of mods for these new items from Regs in Vault 79 using Gold Bullion, including mods that can alter each weapon to deal various types of elemental damage.
Main Menu Updates: The Brotherhood has taken over the game's Main Menu with an all-new background video and music.

C.A.M.P. SHELTERS

Head underground with C.A.M.P. Shelters, which are instanced interiors that you can add to your C.A.M.P. and customize to flex your creativity as a builder.

We've added a brief new quest, called "Home Expansion," to the game that all players must complete in order to gain access to the C.A.M.P. Shelters feature.
- Begin the "Home Expansion" quest by reading a Shelters Claim Center poster in Train Stations throughout Appalachia. Or, find your way inside the Claim Center by locating a key in the northern Forest region.
With today's update, we're introducing our first three C.A.M.P. Shelters, which each offer a different sized space to build in, and feature their own layouts and styles.
- Vault Utility Room: After completing the "Home Expansion" quest, all players can claim the Vault Utility Room for free in the Atomic Shop.
Please Note: Since we decided to release Steel Dawn early, only the Vault Utility Room will be available on November 24. The Vault Lobby and Atrium described below will arrive at a later date.
- Vault Lobby: Fallout 1st Members can claim this medium-sized Shelter this month in the Fallout 1st section of the Atomic Shop. In the future, it will be available to all players for Atoms.
- Vault Atrium: The largest of our first three Shelters, the Vault Atrium can be purchased using Atoms.
Once you've claimed a C.A.M.P. Shelter, you can access its interior by building the associated Shelter Entrance in your C.A.M.P.
- Your C.A.M.P. can contain one of each type of Shelter that you own, and you can build multiple Entrances to the same Shelter.
- Find your available Shelter Entrances by scrolling to the new "Shelters" category in the C.A.M.P. Build Menu. Select the Entrance you'd like to build, and then head inside.
Every Shelter has its own build budget that is separate from your main C.A.M.P., as well as any other Shelters you've built.
- Your Shelter interiors will be saved as you build, so you won't lose anything if you relocate your C.A.M.P., move your Shelter Entrances, or if your Entrances get destroyed.
- Since they are instanced, Shelters are able to offer sizable build budgets. Currently, each of our first three Shelters have larger budgets than your main C.A.M.P.
We've relaxed certain build restrictions inside Shelters by introducing a "Toggle Snapping" option that you can turn off to place objects anywhere you'd like, or turn on to snap objects to each other or the build grid.
- Additionally, use the Shelter Control Panel inside of each C.A.M.P. Shelter to quickly scrap or repair everything you've built so far.

DESIGN UPDATES

DYNAMIC BUNDLE PRICING

Please Note: Since we decided to release Steel Dawn early, Dynamic Bundles will not be available until our original patch date of December 1.
A common suggestion we've received from Atomic Shop aficionados has been to reduce bundle prices for players who already own some of the items they contain. With today's update, we've added pricing tech that will do just that.
- Going forward, if you own one or more items in a bundle, its Atom price will automatically reduce accordingly. The more items you already have, the lower your adjusted price.
- Bundles that have been adjusted this way will now display your price vs. the original price.
- Items you already own will be marked in each Bundle's description.
We've also added a new "Bundles" category to the left-hand side of the Atomic Shop menu so that you can more easily find all of the bundles that are currently available without having to hunt for them on multiple pages.

ADDITIONAL ATOMIC SHOP UPDATES

Backpack Flair: Add even more personality to your characters with Backpack Flair! We've added two Backpack Flair slots to the modify menu for Backpacks that you can use to add cosmetic Flair.
- Going forward, keep an eye out for different Backpack Flairs that you can unlock in the Atomic Shop, claim from Season Scoreboards, or earn as rewards in-game.
- Backpacks you crafted prior to the Steel Dawn Update will not have Backpack Flair mod slots. Craft new versions of your Backpacks to cause the Backpack Flair slots to appear.
- Please Note: While the Backpack Flair system is live as of November 24, Flairs themselves are not yet available. We will let you know as soon as we add them on a later date.
Fallout 1st: Items that have special discounts for Fallout 1st Members will now appear in the Fallout 1st section of the Atomic Shop while they are on sale.
- These items will now also display a Fallout 1st icon, both in the Fallout 1st category and in their appropriate sub categories in the Atomic Shop.
Lunchboxes: In addition to earning Lunchbox rewards from a Season Scoreboard, or buying them with Gold Bullion in-game, you can now purchase them for Atoms in the Atomic Shop.
- Please Note: Since we decided to release Steel Dawn early, Lunchboxes will not be available in the Shop until our original patch date of December 1.
- Lunchbox buff descriptions and the chances to receive each buff have been added to the "Lunchboxes" section of the Help Menu.

DAILY OPS

New Items: We've added a number of new rare rewards that you can earn by completing Daily Ops. They include Plans to craft Brotherhood Recon Armor, the Crusader Pistol, Plasma Cutter, and Hellstorm Missile Launcher.
Plan Rewards: Say goodbye to duplicate Plans! Non-tradeable item Plans that can be awarded by Daily Ops, like the War Glaive Plan, will no longer continue to drop as rewards after you've learned them.
Mutations and Enemies: To help keep Daily Ops feeling fresh each day, we've made an adjustment to prevent the same enemy mutation and faction from appearing two days in a row.

HUNGER AND THIRST UPDATES

We agree with feedback from the community that our hunger and thirst mechanics could feel a little too punishing. We've decided to remove the negative effects when you're hungry or thirsty, and buff up the bonuses you receive when you're fed and hydrated.
Going forward, your Action Points, Health, and Disease Resists will no longer be negatively affected when you haven't had anything to eat or drink recently.
Instead, you will receive buffs that increase depending on how full your hunger and thirst meters are:
- Hunger: Gain +15 Max HP when partially fed, up to +35 Max HP, +35% Disease Resist, and +1 Strength when fully fed.
- Thirst: Gain +15% AP Regeneration when partially hydrated, up to +35% AP Regeneration, +35% Disease Resist, and +1 Endurance when fully hydrated.

ITEMS

Holiday Gifts: Increased the weight of Holiday Gifts to 1 pound each, and made them untradeable.

PVP

Pacifist Mode: When Pacifist Mode becomes available to new characters at level 5, it will now be toggled on by default.

USER INTERFACE

Map: Added a Fast Travel point and Map marker for Vault 51.

BUG FIXES

ALLIES

Settler Forager: Players can once again receive Daily Quests from the Settler Forager Ally.

ART & GRAPHICS

Animations: Human NPCs that have both legs crippled no longer appear to fall down and then immediately stand back up. Instead, they will remain standing, but they will remain immobile until one leg is healed.
Power Armor:** Players' posteriors are now properly protected while wearing Enclave Power Armor.
Weapons: Turbo-Fert Fertilizer Grenades no longer appear to explode twice on detonation.
Weapons: Charging up the Gauss Pistol and then holstering it no longer causes a small portion of the weapon model to disappear.

C.A.M.P. AND WORKSHOPS

General: Grass and small plants are once again visually removed when placing Foundations and other large C.A.M.P. objects on top of them.
Brotherhood Field Station: Closed up a hole in the Field Station's ceiling.
Décor: Players can now build Powered Lawn Flamingos without having learned the base Lawn Flamingo Plan.
Encampment Bridge: Fixed an issue that could allow Encampment Bridge pieces to remain floating in mid-air after removing connecting pieces.
Encampment Fence: The Encampment Fence now spins at its center point when rotating the object in build mode, and its explosion visual effects also appear at its center point when the Fence is destroyed.
Exploit: Traps now have a minimum distance that they can be placed from other Traps. C.A.M.P.s and Blueprints containing Traps that are stacked on top of each other can no longer be placed.
Exploit: Addressed a C.A.M.P. budget exploit related to Wires.
Exploit: Addressed an item exploit related to Collectron Stations.
Rocket Rides: Can no longer be placed clipping into other objects.
Super Reactor: Now scraps into Aluminum, Copper, and Rubber, instead of just Rubber.

COMBAT

Explosion Damage: Fixed an issue that caused non-physical explosions from weapons, like Floater Grenades, to deal less damage than intended.
VATS: Greatly improved the accuracy of chance to hit percentages when using VATS.
VATS: Hits that successfully strike the target now deal damage correctly.
VATS: Fixed an issue that could cause VATS to close when line of sight to the targeted enemy became partially obstructed.
VATS: Continuing to fire a Flamer or Cryolator after closing VATS no longer stops those weapons from damaging enemies.
VATS: Corrected the damage dealt when firing the Tesla Rifle and uncharged Gauss Weapons in VATS.

DAILY OPS

Contextual Ammo: Enemies in Daily Ops now correctly drop Shotgun Shells when using the Fancy Shotgun.
Bosses: Daily Ops Bosses no longer sometimes swap their unique weapons for weapons from nearby creature corpses.
Bosses: The Super Mutant Daily Ops Boss is no longer disarmed after being staggered.
Operation Report: After achieving Paladin Tier or higher, the rewards list in the Operation Report now correctly includes both of the player's legendary item rewards.
Vault 94: Fixed an issue causing certain doors inside Vault 94 to display a button prompt without any text.

ENEMIES

Blood Eagles: Can no longer be turned into Scorched Blood Eagles by Scorchbeasts.
Earle Williams: Can no longer turn into an Ash Pile or a Goo Pile on death, nor dismembered by the Bloody Mess Perk.
Scorchbeast Queen: No longer clips into the terrain during her strafe attack.

ITEMS

Apparel: Fixed several instances where Enclave Underarmor could clip through different apparel, like the Bomber Jacket and the Pint-Sized Slasher Outift.
Armor: Sturdy and Heavy Metal Left Leg Armor can now drop as legendary items.
Armor: Players can now correctly remove Misc. Mods from Armor pieces.
Armor: Secret Service Armor with the Weightless legendary attribute no longer counteracts cloaking granted by the Chameleon Mutation.
Gamma Gun: Firing rapidly no longer sometimes causes the Gamma Gun to fire more rounds than the magazine contains.
Gauss Minigun: The crosshair no longer persists on top of the Gauss Minigun's sights while aiming after applying the Gunner Sights mod.
Gauss Shotgun: Can no longer spawn with the Explosive legendary effect.
Heavy Weapons: The Cryolator now correctly deals cryo damage, and the Flamer deals fire damage.
Mods: Weapons that have Heated Mods applied now correctly deal Fire damage.
Mods: The Refrigerated Backpack Mod now consistently reduces the food spoilage rate by 50%.
Mods: Weighted Armor Mods now ignore 5 points of enemy Damage Resist in addition to the 10% they ignored previously. This will improve situations where Weighted mods had very little effect on enemies who already had low Damage Resists.
Pump-Action Shotgun: Increased Pump-Action Shotgun Bash damage so that it is in line with Rifles and other Shotguns.
Recipes: The Radstag Redemption, Mirelurk Boil, and Headhunters Headcheese Recipe Notes now correctly unlock the ability to craft those items.
Thrown Weapons: The following weapons now deal the correct damage types, and they are properly enhanced by the Demolition Expert Perk Card.:
- Cryogenic Grenade
- Cryo Mine
- Floater Grenades
- Plasma Grenade
- Molotov Cocktail
War Glaive: Added Copper to the War Glaive's crafting requirements and removed the Plasma Core requirement.

MUTATIONS

Carnivore: The following items now count as meat when affected by the Carnivore Mutation:
- Canned Dog Food
- Deathclaw Eggs and Omelettes
- Frog Eggs
- Imitation Seafood
- Mirelurk Eggs and Omelettes
- Mothman Eggs
- Pork n' Beans
- Radscorpion Eggs and Omelettes
- Radtoad Eggs and Omelettes
- Radtoad Omelettes
- Salisbury Steak (Preserved)
- Yum Yum Deviled Eggs
Herbivore: The following items now count as plant-based food when affected by the Herbivore Mutation:
- Cajun Rice & Beans
- Firecap Tasty Souffle
- InstaMash
- Preserved InstaMash
- Vegetarian Ham

NPCS

Animations: Corrected a number of issues that could cause various world NPCs to play incorrect animations or temporarily stop animating.
Fisher: No longer plays an animation as though he is using a terminal when he is not near one.
The Overseer: No longer sometimes becomes stuck when heading to the presentation room during "Overseer, Overseen."
Whitespring Bots: Sentry Bots and Doorman Protectrons now respond properly when players interact with them.

PERFORMANCE AND STABILITY

Client Stability: Fixed an issue that could cause a client crash when loading into a world.
Server Performance: Players will no longer receive an error when joining a Daily Op while using furniture.
Server Stability: Addressed a server crash that could occur when loading into a world.
Performance: Addressed an issue that could result in a performance drop when viewing the Season Scoreboard.

PERKS

Animal Friend: Removed outdated level requirement wording from the Perk Card description.
Chem Fiend: Now correctly increases the duration of all effects granted by Berry Mentats.
Nerd Rage: Fixed an issue causing Nerd Rage to grant its damage bonus while above 20% health.
Wasteland Whisperer: Removed outdated level requirement wording from the Perk Card description.

QUESTS AND EVENTS

Ally: Thicker than Water: Watoga Underground is now properly instanced.
Defend: Billings Homestead: Enemies no longer get stuck or spawn in nearby water during Workshop events at Billings Homestead.
Free Range: Beefed up Brahmin health and resistances during the Free Range event.
Project Paradise: Friendly creatures that appear after completely filling the habitat troughs now have a consistent max level of 100.
Scorched Earth: Now correctly grants a 3-star legendary item reward on completion.

SOUND

Armor Ace Shooting Gallery: Joining a Daily Op while using the Armor Ace Shooting Gallery no longer causes its sound effects to play continuously.
Boney Death Tambo: Added unique sound effects to the Boney Death Tambo Skin.
Communist Bunker: Sound effects no longer continue to play after the door has finished opening or closing.
Encampment Fence: Corrected the sound effects that play when opening the Encampment Fence Gate.
Hounds Reclining Sofa Chairs: Now play sound effects when players sit in them.
Theremin: Now plays one of two different songs, depending on the in-game time of day.

USER INTERFACE

Map: Bloody Frank's is now labeled correctly on the Map.
Scoreboard: On PC, pressing the Spacebar while viewing the Scoreboard in-game no longer incorrectly opens the Challenge Menu.

WORLD

Pathing: Fixed a number of objects in the world that players could path through or clip into.
Pathing: Fixed several locations throughout the world where players could become stuck.

Source: Bethesda

Nintendo will turn off Super Mario Maker for Wii U course uploads in March 2021

Nintendo have announced that they will be deactivating the ability to upload courses in Super Mario Maker for Wii U on 31st March 2021. That's also the date that they're removing Super Mario Bros. 35 from Nintendo Switch Online and ending sales of Super Mario 3D All-Stars, meaning that this could be considered a bizarre twist to Nintendo's 35th anniversary celebrations for their iconic Italian plumber…

From 31/03, you will no longer be able to upload courses in #SuperMarioMaker for #WiiU. Thank you to all the players for supporting Super Mario Maker for Wii U since 2015!

Find out more:https://t.co/zNzrnXPKvZ

— Nintendo of Europe (@NintendoEurope) November 25, 2020

OK, so I suppose it could just be a coincidence based around the end of the financial year, but I like to think it's intentional.

Also being turned off is the Super Mario Maker Bookmark site, which will mean that the game's Course World system will no longer be able to update the ranking of liked courses and you'll no longer be able to look up your bookmarked courses.

Because of these fundamental changes, Nintendo will be removing Super Mario Maker for Wii U from sale on the Nintendo eShop on 13th January 2021. You will still be able to download the game if you already own it.

It's worth mentioning that none of this will affect the excellent sequel Super Mario Maker 2 for Nintendo Switch, and those who wish to play on Wii U will still be able to download courses, it will just effectively end whatever creative community still exists on the platform.

While the legacy continues with the Switch-based sequel, it's the start of the end for the original and the surprisingly freeing burst of creativity that Nintendo allowed for its fans. In our Super Mario Maker review, Blair wrote:

Super Mario Maker is a true celebration of gaming's most popular icon. It's Nintendo's love letter to the fans, not just giving them the tools to create and share Mario courses, but wrapping it up in a wonderfully presented package and teaching them everything they could possibly want to know. The beauty is that some fans will inevitably be able to go beyond that and pull off some tricks that Nintendo haven't even thought of yet.

Source: Nintendo

Warhammer: Odyssey devs talk launch date, endgame content, and more

There's a new Warhammer game coming (yes, another one!) and if, like us, you're particularly fond of the original fantasy tabletop game then this is one you'll want to keep your eye.

Warhammer: Odyssey is an upcoming MMORPG from developer Virtual Realms, whisking mobile players off to The Old World where they'll battle the forces of Chaos and other terrors plaguing the allied races.

From what we've seen of Warhammer: Odyssey, it's a fully fledged entry in the MMO genre and one that will have you exploring cities and other regions as you character gradually levels up. We reached out to Virtual Realms co-founder, James York, for more information.

TSA: What is it like working with Games Workshop? How much creative freedom is given when approaching Warhammer world/character designs and storytelling?

York: Games Workshop have been great to work with. We have good communication which is helped a lot by the fact we both care about this game feeling right for Warhammer. So whilst our number one priority is giving the players a world that is recognisably Warhammer to anyone who plays the tabletop game or reads Black Library novels it's not to say we don't have the opportunity to add our own little entry to the lore from time to time.

TSA: What PvP content will feature in Warhammer: Odyssey?

York: Our priority early on is to get the PvE side of the game feeling good, PvP isn't forgotten though and we have some ideas on how we're going to implement it in the future.

TSA: What iOS device versions will support Warhammer: Odyssey?

York: For iOS devices an iPhone 6s is the oldest device we would recommend, however for best performance and full visuals you'll want to play on a more recent device.

TSA: Do you have any history with the Warhammer Online MMO from 2008?

York: As developers no, as players yes. That said, Warhammer Odyssey is a very different game, more on the RPG end of the MMORPG spectrum.

TSA: What's the level cap at launch and what endgame activities can players expect?

York: At full global launch the level cap will be 50, although I guess that doesn't really tell you much, a level could take 10 minutes or 10 hours. In terms of end game content there will be dailies and open world boss encounters to take on for gear. Shortly after launch we intend to follow up with instanced dungeon and raid encounters. For us this is a multi year project that will grow and evolve over time, so expect lots of new content, systems and features that won't be included at launch.

TSA: Can we expect additional playable classes post-launch?

York: It's not out of the question but not scheduled, our priority is to continue developing the in game experience first, that said we do have some pretty cool concepts left over from our original player character pass that it would be a shame to let go to waste!

TSA: Do you have a launch date set?

We do but we're not quite ready to reveal it yet. We're hoping to have some news regarding both soft launch and full release date very soon, so be sure to keep track via our official website and Facebook page for more news about that!

Cyberpunk 2077 PS4 Pro and PS5 gameplay revealed

Not far behind the Xbox One and Xbox Series X gameplay reveal, CD Projekt Red have now dropped a video featuring gameplay captured on both PlayStation 4 Pro and PlayStation 5. Check it out.

As in the Xbox gameplay reveal, this video switches between PS4 Pro and playing on PS5 via backward compatibility, though the majority is spent on the older console before capping things off with the PS5 at the end. There's less of a direct side-by-side feeling to this video, though even if there was, it would be pretty damn tricky to tell if there's a significant difference when the video has been scrunched through YouTube's compression algorithms and you need a 4K display to really see what's changed.

Running in backward compatibility mode means that the absolute maximum fidelity ought to be identical to the lower powered console in terms of texture quality and asset detail, though developers can make their games aware of the newer consoles and pick different resolution and frame rate targets. The PlayStation 5 should be able to stabilise dynamic resolutions and any frame rate hiccups at the very least, but could have a higher resolution target programmed in.

That's still a far cry from native PS5 support, though. CDPR do plan to have bespoke support for the Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5, but those game updates won't come until some point in 2021. Until then, it might not be as fancy as on an ultra high-spec PC, but it still looks grand.

There are still some question marks over how the game will look on the base PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, though…

The game was delayed back at the end of October an additional three weeks, with company bosses Adam Badowski and Marcin Iwinski explaining, "The biggest challenge for us right now is shipping the game on current-gen, next-gen and PC at the same time, which requires us to prepare and test 9 versions of it (Xbox One/X, compatibility on Xbox Series S|X, PS4/Pro, compatibility on PS5, PC, Stadia)… while working from home."

So, Cyberpunk 2077 will be out for Xbox One, PS4 and PC on 10th December. It will be playable on Xbox Series X | S at that point – the consoles coming out on 10th November – and on PlayStation 5 on November 11th/19th, but again, full on next-gen enhancements will not be there on day one.

December's Xbox Games with Gold have been revealed

December's Games with Gold have been revealed for Xbox Live Gold and Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscribers, bundling together the usual set of two Xbox One games and two Xbox 360 or original Xbox backward compatible titles.

It's not the most exciting update, it's fair to say, though Stacking is a bonafide Double Fine classic from the 360 era, and we rated Bleed 2 rather highly in our review. Scroll on for links to store pages and some thoughts on each game.

The four games are:

The Raven Remastered – 1st to 30th December
Bleed 2 – 16th December to 15th January
Saints Row: Gat out of Hell (Xbox 360 BC) – 1st to 15th December
Stacking (Xbox 360 BC) – 16th to 31st December

The Raven Remastered takes you back to 1964 London, where a classic murder mystery will have you on the hunt of the legendary master thief, The Raven. Meanwhile, we gave Bleed 2 a glowing review in 2018, saying that "For fans of fast-paced, over the top twin stick action, complete with bullet time and a score system that awards perfection, Bleed 2 is excellent."

We were less enthusiastic in our Saints Row: Gat out of Hell review, which felt like a lesser game to Saints Row The Third and IV. In our review, Aran said, "it feels like Saints Row IV but with things stripped away instead of expanded on. […] Hell as a location feels a bit bland, and without the other Saints to bounce off Kinzie and Gat aren't that interesting or funny. Combine that with the lack of in-game music and customisation options and this entry is a step backwards for the series."

Sadly we didn't review Stacking back in the day, but it was a game that many of the TSA staff of the day played. The game's central idea was to stack matryoshka dolls inside each other to assimilate and utilise special abilities and it led to puzzles which had multiple approaches. It was a smart idea and, by most accounts, it was implemented well by Double Fine. Coming from that studio, of course, you can expect a sense of humour to be present and Stacking didn't disappoint on this front. It was written well, as you'd expect, with some amusing dialogue popping up throughout.

There's a few days left to snap up the games from November's Games with Gold, which currently gives you:

Aragami: Shadow Edition – until 30th November
Swimsanity! – until 15th December
Lego Indiana Jones (Xbox 360 BC) – until November

Source: Xbox

The Signifier Review

In these times of shiny new consoles and PC components, it can be easy to take technological development for granted. So desperate are we for the latest and most powerful piece of kit that we don't really think about the wider contexts of their manufacture and the effects that increased processing power have on our everyday lives. Technological philosophers have long debated the implications on our lives of new inventions (even writing and speech were at one point technological leaps forward) but the exponential speed at which computing has progressed over the last 50 years is unlike any earlier period of history.

Most famous of these philosophical ideas is the notion of the Singularity – the point at which technology will match and then outpace human intelligence. In popular media this had led to influential films like Terminator and the Matrix, but a very different strand of this debate has also been of continued interest. The idea of being able to upload one's consciousness has been the focus of both optimistic and dystopian narratives and The Signifier is the latest to follow this path, reminding me of both DontNod's oft overlooked Remember Me, and the cyberpunk worlds of William Gibson.

There is a really difficult tension at the heart of The Signifier that makes it difficult to summarise. On the one hand you have a fascinating and complex meditation on the interaction between the human and the machine that takes place through ingame resources such as magazines and podcasts, whilst on the other you have a regrettably rather clunky puzzle adventure that often veers too far towards the obscure. As a result, the story and ideas within The Signifier will live with me far longer than the gameplay.

Playing as an academic named Frederick Russell, a figure who has been making landmark progress in the field of digitising memories and identities, you are mandated to assist the state police force – the Technology Safety Bureau – to shed some light on the apparent suicide of a the vice-president of GO-AT, the largest tech company in the world. To do so you make use of your revolutionary Dreamwalker invention, a deep brain scanner that allows you to explore and unravel the memories and dreams of the deceased. Taking place across the three layers of reality, objective memories, and subjective dreamstates, you must piece together the clues and hints that you find in order to reveal the truth of what really happened.

I was especially struck at how deeply the game is influenced by philosophy, both technological and linguistic. Early in the narrative you find lengthy articles about the development of the titular term from De Saussure to Lacan and beyond, names that I'm far more familiar with in my day job as a university English Literature lecturer. This approach certainly won't appeal to all – to be honest it felt a little slow to start with even for me – but it thankfully doesn't talk down to the player and instead aims to introduce its central ideas through its influences. Later interludes included in-game podcast recordings that I was happy to stop actively playing to listen to. I've deliberately led with these discussions as I believe that they overshadow any of my concerns about the game itself. If what I've written here sounds appealing, then I'd recommend you give The Signifier a try.

As for the game itself, it is a visually disorientating experience. Reality as represented in the game is as you'd expect, a relatively high detailed first-person exploration of offices and corridors, but it is in the Dreamwalker's twinned states that things get interesting. The glitches and bugs that characterise the digital recreations of deep brain scans give everything a uniquely alien feel, and the game makes excellent use of perspective and space. Flat walls of textures reveal the constructed nature of your environment whilst new paths open up as you interact with your surroundings.

When within the memory states generated by the Dreamwalker, your main interactions take the form of Raw Data glitches that you can collect and use elsewhere (effectively puzzle items) and perspective puzzles similar to those found in the recent Superliminal. These make fantastic use of the uncanny environments and were particular highlights. There are also timewarps where you must freeze the action at specific points, and moments where you must possess an avatar to negotiate areas. These gameplay mechanics are nicely mixed up, but there are a few occasions where they can be quite fiddly, and I did encounter a couple of bugs that required a reload in order for events to trigger correctly.

Given how much dialogue and verbal exposition there is, it's fortunate that the voice acting is mostly very strong. Characters are well formed and distinctive, and the dialogue wheel is pretty intuitive – although it is worth pointing out that many options close off other paths, so be careful what you say. This approach opens up the potential for replaying the game to discover different endings, and makes for a much more involved experience than the common alternative of going through every conversation tree one after another.

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