Skull and Bones Leak Details Progression, Combat, Open World, and More

Skull and Bones' disastrous development cycle has been morbidly fascinating to witness. The game's been struck by everything from countless delays to multiple mid-production reboots to controversies with the studio's leadership to any number of other issues. Ubisoft, for some reason, seems unwilling to just let the project go, but according to a recent leak, Skull and Bones' core systems actually seem to be taking up solid shape.

In a series of tweets recently published by noted leaker Tom Henderson, potential details on Skull and Bones' open world, ships, progression, customization, and more have emerged. The game will apparently have five tiers (based on size) and three categories (Cargo, Combat, and Exploration) of ships, with each different ship being unlocked via blueprints, which can be purchased at various settlements, and then using collected resources to actually build the ship.

Each ship has unique advantages and disadvantages, like a smaller boat being more useful than, say, a war galley if you want to sail up a narrow stream or river. As Skull and Bones kicks off though, players won't have a ship of their own. You will start with a raft, eventually move up to a fishing boat, and after doing quests and building up your reputation as a pirate, finally get your hands on your own ship.

Each ship will apparently have various options where weaponry is concerned, with various ammo types, canons, mortar, flame throwers, and more being available as options. Other ship customizations include armour layers, additional storage, adding smelteries, and more. Meanwhile, your sails, wheels, sea shanties, and more can also be customized.

As far as progression is concerned, Henderson states that in its current form, Skull and Bones has various activities that contribute to progression, including raiding others ships and fortresses, doing cargo runs and jobs, plundering settlements, and more, with the money that you're making as a pirate being directly tied to how powerful you become.

Finally, there's the open world. Henderson says that the get is set in the Indian Ocean (the Coast of Azania in Mozambique is a location on the map), while your pirate hub will be located in Madagascar. Players will also be able to explore land on foot when not sailing, though according to Henderson, there will be no combat or stealth in these sections, and will instead be focused on seeking out and talking to NPCs.

These are all unverified details, of course, so for now, don't take these as official reveals of what to expect in the game, even if Henderson's track record with leaks has been largely solid. We'll keep an eye out for new details though, so stay tuned.

eFootball PC Requirements Revealed

At the end of this month, Konami will be reinventing its football sim series as eFootball, which is planned as an ongoing free-to-play live service model. And though at the very beginning it's looking like it's going to be quite light on content, there's still no shortage of people who're willing to see how the series' experiment works out. 

If you plan on giving the game a go when it launches and plan on doing so on PC, thankfully, you won't need a very demanding rig to do so. System requirements for the game's PC version have been made available via its Steam page, and they're quite modest.

On minimum settings, you'll need either an Intel Core i5-2300 or an AMD FX-4350, along with an 8 GB RAM, and either a GeForce GTX 660 Ti or a Radeon HD 7790. Meanwhile, on recommended settings, you'll need either an Intel Core i5-7600 or an AMD Ryzen 5 1600, along with an 8 GB RAM, and either a GeForce GTX 1060 or a Radeon RX 590.

eFootball launches for PC, PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PS4, and Xbox One on September 30, with iOS and Android versions coming later this year.

Hardware Minimum Requirements Recommended Requirements
Processor Intel Core i5-2300 / AMD FX-4350 Intel Core i5-7600 / AMD Ryzen 5 1600
Memory 8 GB RAM 8 GB RAM
Graphics GeForce GTX 660 Ti / Radeon HD 7790 GeForce GTX 1060 / Radeon RX 590
Storage 50 GB available space 50 GB available space

Death's Gambit: Afterlife Releases September 30th on PC and Switch

White Rabbit and Serenity Forge have announced that Death's Gambit: Afterlife will be releasing on September 30th for Nintendo Switch and PC. The massive free expansion for the 2D action platformer offers ten new levels to explore, several new weapons and six new bosses. Check out the latest trailer below.

While there's plenty of new content to jump into, various quality of life changes have also been made. You can now try out each class at the selection screen and along with a general talent tree, there's a separate tree for each. It will also be possible to multi-class in this game and mix-and-match skills.

Additional story content and multiple endings along with crafting and improved combat are also coming with the update. If you've ever wanted to revisit Death's Gambit, then Afterlife seems to offer plenty of reasons. Stay tuned for more details and in the meantime, check out our review of the base game here.

Rainbow Six Extraction Trailer Showcases Doc's Healing Abilities

Ubisoft has released a new trailer for Rainbow Six Extraction, continuing its series that highlights each Operator's capabilities. Next in line is Doc, a medic with a Stim Pistol that can heal teammates. This can also be used on downed allies to get them back up.

While not quite as wide-ranging in utility as Finka (whose nanobots can revive downed allies and also provide increased health and aim speed with reduced recoil for others), this is likely only scratching the surface. After all, in Siege, Doc's Stim Pistol can over-heal defenders and raise their max health. Shots also have no loss in accuracy over distance, which allows for healing from safety as long as there's line of sight.

Rainbow Six Extraction is out in January 2022 for Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PS4, PS5, PC and Google Stadia. For more details on the gameplay and premise, which sees REACT going up against the Archaeans, head here.

Sherlock Holmes: Chapter One Launches November 16th for Xbox Series X/S, PS5 and PC

Frogwares has confirmed that Sherlock Holmes: Chapter One will be releasing on November 16th for Xbox Series X/S, PS5 and PC. The Xbox One and PS4 versions, as earlier announced, will be releasing a few weeks afterwards. Along with a new release date trailer, there's a new gameplay deep dive available. Check it out below.

The deep dive provides a closer look at the game's investigative mechanics along with exploration and combat. As with previous games, depending on the evidence gathered, players can arrest certain NPCs or plead mercy if they seem innocent. Combat takes place from the third person and Sherlock can dodge-roll and slow down time to line up shots along with executing takedowns.

One neat aspect is using the environment against foes. Shooting a nearby vase causes its shards to fly into foes and you can even shoot armor off of them. Sherlock can also don various outfits and garner some extra protection for himself. Difficulty options are also included for both investigations and combat, and players can adjust different aspects as they see fit. Stay tuned for more details en route to release.

Valheim – Hearth and Home Update is Out Now, Trailer Teases New Threat

Valheim's long-awaited major update Hearth and Home is now available on PC. Along with adding new build pieces and furniture, new recipes, overhauled food mechanics and combat changes, it also seems to have a new threat. Check out the trailer below for a brief tease.

Hearth and Home features several features requested by fans including the ability to plant seeds for growing more trees, a new Obliterator that destroys unwanted items and sharing map data with other vikings using the Cartography Table. You can also name pets with the tamed Lox now having some purpose and there seems to be "something dark and mysterious that seems to spread across the plains…"

In terms of new items, there's a Butcher Knife, Thunder Stone, Crystal Battleaxe, Silver Knife, Bone Tower Shield and Iron Buckler. The Oven is now used for baking pies and bread while some types of meat now require the Iron Cooking Station. Stay tuned for more details on subsequent patches and improvements to Hearth and Home in the coming weeks.

Gran Turismo 7 Features Cross-Gen Multiplayer, in Development Since 2017

Along with confirming the online requirements for Gran Turismo 7 (which don't apply to Arcade Mode), creator Kazunori Yamauchi has also provided various other details in recent interviews. For instance, those who enjoyed the damage model from Gran Turismo Sport will be happy to know that it's "basically" the same in Gran Turismo 7. Speaking to Eurogamer, Yamauchi said, "Basically it's the same as in Gran Turismo Sport, except how it's expressed is a little bit more improved in comparison."

Yamauchi also confirmed feature parity between the PS4 and PS5 versions, which includes dynamic weather and time of day, though "the quality that you'll be seeing will be different." Those across both platforms can also play with each other, which is good news. Interestingly, regarding VR, Yamauchi said, "So regarding PlayStation VR, we're not at a state where we cannot talk about it yet." Perhaps there will be some future implementation with the next-gen version of the hardware? We'll have to wait and see.

As for how long the sequel has been in development, he said that, "It would be right after GT Sport was finished, around the end of 2017." Given that Yamauchi was discussing a future title in the series as early as January 2018 (Gran Turismo Sport launched in October 2017), it's not too surprising. Finally, regarding the DualSense's implementation, he said that, "Things like using the adaptive triggers for recreating the vibrations to the ABS when it's working – gimmicks like that is one thing.

"What's more important to me is the precision of the controls that the new controller allows. Before there were things that you could only really do with a steering wheel controller, but now you should be able to do everything that you can do on a steering wheel controller with a DualSense controller."

Gran Turismo 7 releases on March 4th 2022. For more details on the campaign, returning circuits, GT Cafe and so on, head here.

Gran Turismo 7 Online Requirement is to Prevent Cheating, Arcade Playable Offline

Following the latest trailer from the PlayStation Showcase, Gran Turismo 7 has been receiving several new details courtesy of creator Kazunori Yamauchi. Speaking to Eurogamer, Yamauchi offered some more details on the game's always online requirement for the single-player campaign. First, he noted that it's not just specific to GT Cafe, where players would acquire cars from the "past, present and future" that have a unique cultural meaning, but to prevent cheating in general.

"The requirement for the online connection isn't specific to the Cafe per se – it's just to prevent cheating overall from people trying to modify the save data, so that's the reason for the online connection. And just to update on the feature itself, there's two functions to it. One is to direct the user to the next objective meeting, and also to get them to get involved in collecting some of those cars.

"And the other is, when they come back with the cars they're asked to collect, it gives a little bit of background history for the culture, and the history behind these significant cars that they have added to their collection."

Yamauchi also confirmed that it would be possible for players to open up their garages and showcase their collections to others, which is made possible through the online requirement. But as for whether there would be any offline option for the campaign, he stated that an online connection is required. The only mode that doesn't need to be played online is Arcade Mode.

"Because that has no effect on the save data, so that's possible. But anything that has to do with the save data requires a connection. For example things like the livery data as well – that's something that is downloaded from the online server."

Gran Turismo 7 is currently in development for PS4 and PS5. It will be releasing on March 4th 2022 so stay tuned for even more details in the coming months.

WipEout Rush Announced for iOS and Android, Out in 2022

WipEout is one of many, many PlayStation dormant franchises that legions of fans have been hoping to see make a comeback in the not-too-distant future, and as 2017's WipEout Omega Collection proved all too well, this is a series that can deliver some of the best racing experiences when it's at its best. And it's been announced (via IGN) that WipeOut is coming back indeed- but as a mobile game.

Publisher Rogue Games has announced WipEout Rush for iOS and Android, a card-based racing game tailor-made specifically for mobile devices. Sporting a comic book-style aesthetic and storytelling style, the game will launch some time in 2022. It will have a single player campaign, 12 championship cup races across five distinct environments, and an original electronica soundtrack from Alastair Lyndsay.

Rogue Games CEO Matt Casamassina says that WipEout Rush is designed to be a unique experience to deliver something that fans of the series might not be familiar with. "If I want that visceral, immersive, intense racing experience, I'll find it waiting on PlayStation," he explains. "But at the same time, we're delighted that we could rethink WipEout for mobile with some fun new play mechanics and gorgeous visuals.

"We hope fans will come to it with an open mind because—although different—we're proud to bring the WipEout franchise back into focus with a fresh take on the formula. And we've poured a lot of love into the presentation, which includes loads of iconic ships and tracks, a new comic book-inspired narrative, a fitting electronica soundtrack, and gorgeous visuals that run at 60 frames per second on modern hardware."

Sony has said on multiple occasions in recent months that it intends to expand its focus on the mobile game space and have more of a presence there, primarily with some of the biggest PlayStation franchises getting their own mobile adaptations.

As for whether WipEout has a future beyond mobile games, a recent leak claimed that a new WipEout game is currently in development for PS5 and PSVR 2 as well. Read more on that through here.

Tales of Arise Tops Japanese Charts on Debut with Over 200,000 Units Sold

Famitsu has released the latest weekly charts for software and hardware sales in Japan, and last week saw quite a bit of activity on the software front in particular, thanks to a couple of major new releases. The biggest one was Tales of Arise, of course, which has sold over a million copies worldwide already- global success that, unsurprisingly, is reflected in its Japanese sales as well. The PS4 version of the game takes the top spot, selling over 151,000 units, while the PS5 version comes in at No. 3 with over 50,000 units sold.

Sandwiched between the two is WarioWare: Get it Together!, which has also enjoyed an impressive debut in its own right, selling over 72,000 copies. The Nintendo Switch version of Ys 9: Monstrum Nox also launched last week, and debuted in ninth place, selling over 7,000 copies.

Meanwhile, on the hardware front, the Nintendo Switch continues to be the top seller, with over 67,000 units sold last week. The PS5 is the second-best performer, though it trails the Switch by quite a margin, having moved over 16,000 units over the course of the week.

You can check out the full software and hardware charts for the week ending September 12 below.

Software sales (followed by lifetime sales):

  1. [PS4] Tales of Arise – 151,316 (New)
  2. [NSW] WarioWare: Get It Together! – 72,277 (New)
  3. [PS5] Tales of Arise – 50,482 (New)
  4. [NSW] Ring Fit Adventure – 14,628 (2,818,859)
  5. [NSW] Mario Kart 8 Deluxe – 13,863 (4,039,388)
  6. [NSW] Minecraft – 13,529 (2,180,811)
  7. [NSW] Momotaro Dentetsu: Showa, Heisei, Reiwa mo Teiban! – 8,749 (2,367,610)
  8. [NSW] Super Smash Bros. Ultimate – 8,428 (4,416,060)
  9. [NSW] Ys 9: Monstrum Nox – 7,324 (New)
  10. [NSW] Pokemon Sword / Shield – 7,012 (4,135,212)

Hardware sales (followed by last week's sales): 

Nintendo Switch – 67,114 (60,942)
PS5 – 16,975 (17,075)
Xbox Series X – 2,089 (2,605)
PS4 – 1,763 (1,431)
3DS – 789 (746)

[Via ResetEra]