This week in crowdfunded MMOs, our own Stick and Rudder columnist Chris got his paws all over Elite Dangerous' Odyssey alpha this week, finding the alpha label to be extremely accurate indeed, with plenty of rough edges, balance issues, and a weak test intro – but also one with enormous potential. "Odyssey is a new […]
Trust MMORPG players to poke around where developers wish they wouldn't, especially when it comes to prying all of the secrets out of upcoming patches. Thanks to time spent on Lord of the Rings Online's test server, online detectives uncovered a wealth of information about the upcoming Brawler class, even as it's still in development. […]
Pirates and curses just go together like peanut butter and chocolate, so it's not necessarily a surprise that the Cursed Captain is a thing. What might be a surprise is that the Cursed Captain is a new class that's coming to Torchlight III as part of the ARPG's next update, which is due to arrive […]
The EXO Salvage Initiative has returned to Astroneer, and Massively OP's MJ is ready to clean up the planets. What? The fact that there are cool new cosmetic rewards is merely a coincidence! Cleaning up is just a rewarding experience. And for any new folks, that includes nabbing last year's rewards on the way to […]
It was summer, 2001. EverQuest had just rolled out Sullon Zek, a no-rules "penal colony" server where the realm was as lawless as the PvP was ruthless. Ganking, PKing, and corpse camping were rampant, all the more so for anyone who dared roll on the "good" side, as "evil" players made up the vast majority […]
Whether you are a dinosaur tamer, a ruthless pirate, or a dashing superhero, you soon will have another platform to enjoy the antics of Trove. Gamigo parent company Media and Games Invest Group released a report, first noticed by Troveasaurus, that indicates the studio is bringing Trove to the Nintendo Switch some time this year. "We […]
What you'll need: A box of plastic disposable forks. Four bottles of foaming shaving cream. Rubber bands. Glitter. A Roomba. One full set of golf clubs. A car. Duct tape. Seven pairs of scissors. A complete lack of any sensible reactions to the things you're about to do. Construction paper. Personal injury insurance. How to […]
As a historian, game preservationist, and general MMORPG geek, it does my heart good to see players do their best to restore and operate titles that were kicked to the curb by studios years ago. There are so many rogue servers out there, from Star Wars Galaxies to Free Realms to The Sims Online to […]
In AQ3D, you have the big baddy Vain the Void King, who is the nemesis of the entire story. However, there are plenty of other villains to defeat on your way to vanquishing Vane. All those boss challenges had to come from somewhere, right? And sometimes, Massively OP's MJ just wants to spend a day […]
Ah, Pantheon, you're aiming high for your still-undated alpha test! That's a really good thing. It's why we're rooting for you as a scrappy underdog! Or it's why we were rooting for you before you started selling NFT artwork, thus turning yourself into a simultaneous villain for Batman and Captain Planet in one fell swoop. […]
Astellia Online, aka the version of the game that's not Astellia Royal, has recently gotten an update with a variety of new things to check out. At the heart of this update are several changes to the Miodan Mine zone, with nerfs to monsters, increases to daily rewards, the addition of new Miodan's upgrade treasures, […]
As fans of Aion often know, what arrives to the EU version of the game usually is a precursor for the NA version. With that in mind, players will want to note that update 7.9 is soon to arrive to Aion EU, bringing with it a few marquee features. First on the list is the […]
Remember back in February when the two devs working on Darkfall Rise of Agon announced they were making a huge move: partnering with an investor to bring the game to Asia and heavily expand the dev team? Not only is it still happening, but it's happening today. The game's new Chinese website says that the […]
As we've reported, this coming Thursday, April 8th, will have a new livestream for Path of Exile, which will showcase a new look at Path of Exile 2. If you've forgotten all about that game somehow, the devs at Grinding Gear Games have rather helpfully pulled together all of the reveals, videos, and details that […]
The month of April is going to see continued tweaks to weapons and equipment in MechWarrior Online. That in and of itself isn't too surprising if you've been paying attention, but the method in which these changes are coming is perhaps a bit different than expected. Essentially, the devs at Piranha Games were hoping to […]
It was the FOMO title of last fall, and now Genshin Impact is in your ears! On this episode of the Battle Bards, Syp, Steff, and the Other One explore the varied and delightfully cheerful soundtrack to this online RPG. Unless you have headphones made of live kittens, it'll be the most adorable thing you'll […]
It's time for an update of dour elves with the latest patch for Final Fantasy XI, bringing in the final part of the Voracious Resurgence storyline in San d'Oria. Of course, that's one of the biggest pieces of this particular update, which the developers already stated would be a bit smaller due to naturally less […]
Cryptic and Perfect World Entertainment are known for their love of lockboxes as a monetization strategy. Therefore it was not wholly surprising when Magic: Legends open beta launched with a whole character class exclusive to its paid, randomized "booster packs" (lockboxes by another name). What was surprising was that the pushback was so intense that […]
If this week's Elder Scrolls Online console and Blackwood reveals have you itching to play the game, well, ZeniMax's marketing team can congratulate itself on a job well done. But this post is about you and what you can get out of the game right now, and as it turns out, it's quite a bit. […]
So it looks like World of Warcraft's next patch is going up for testing on the week of April 12th. What the heck is happening? At best, this just explains that the reason for such a threadbare presentation during the whole BlizzConline event was because there was very little to actually reveal at that point, given that we're […]
The March newsletter for Dual Universe is out, containing a wrap-up of how this space sandbox fared over the course of the month. Update 0.24, with its better jetpacks and improved graphics, was the highlight, but there are a few other tidbits to sift through. In the newsletter, Nova Quark said that it's going to […]
Yep. This certainly was an alpha test. For those who are curious, yes, I bought my way in to the Elite Dangerous Odyssey alpha, as did my good friend Britarnya and my husband. The three of us were more than eager to make our first steps and have been excited for this first phase of testing […]
Players who were dipping in to the recently opened permadeath server of Dungeons and Dragons Online were likely expecting a challenge, but it appears that they got more than they bargained for this time around. Apparently the Mimic Hunt event, which makes every chest opened after level three a potentially hungry monster instead of a […]
The next patch for Final Fantasy XIV is not far off at this point, arriving on April 13th, and players can now feast their eyes on the trailer for the patch from today's Letter from the Producer LIVE. Producer and director Naoki Yoshida shared a number of details on the changes coming with the patch, […]
At this point, it's anyone's guess what's actually going on over with Chronicles of Elyria and its supposed single-player spin-off. But hey, the blog posts still talk a good talk, and this week Soulbound Studios CEO Jeromy Walsh is chatting up how gathering and resources are being designed for the franchise. As one of the […]
Playable Worlds' Raph Koster is back with another blog post that serves as a tip-off for what kind of MMORPG he and his team are building. And once again, if you've ever played a Koster MMO, you know what "E" word is going to be at the heart of it: economy. But Koster hammers over […]
I don't think it's possible to go a day on a City of Heroes server, back in the old days or now on the rogue servers, without seeing at least one fight in general chat about healers. CoH vets are proudly militant about the game's design, which makes things like damage mitigation and proactive defenses […]
Some say the stream will end in fire, Some say in ice. From what Massively OP's MJ does desire she holds with those who favor fire. But unless the party will perish thrice We think she knows enough of fate to say that for destruction ice Is also great and must suffice. (Or else we'll […]
MOP reader Randomness recently wrote to us about a Reddit discussion about games with exclusive item shops before the game comes out. The issue was two-fold: First, that an unreleased alpha game has a cash shop at all – in this case, one that's already sold more items than a comparable game that's been live […]
Moose! There are some big moose. There are moose in Albion Online now! You might get bitten by a moose, especially if you choose to fight the moose and then the moose fights back and it bites you. See, the newest patch adds in some moose for you to hunt for hides, but you might also […]
If you're still anxiously awaiting the arrival of Bespin in the Star Wars Galaxies Legends rogue server, you're going to want to peek into the player team's latest dispatch, as the team says it's "starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel" in regard to its development. "We'd like to tease our […]
Welcome back to our occasional roundup of what's going on in multiplayer games that aren't really MMORPGs! There's actually a ton of news this week, so we'll make 'em quick. First, a bit of sad news: PUBG Lite is sunsetting on May 29th. That was the low-spec version of the game for folks playing on […]
For those who aren't big fans of the fact that some DC Universe Online content is locked behind a paywall, this announcement will be welcome news indeed. The devs have confirmed that the World of Flasphoint, the game's 40th episode, will permanently become free for all players, whether they're Members or not. This change is […]
It was an illegal organization being taken down by the Chinese police force in a concentrated operation. It involved $76 million being made, with $46 million of assets seized by police including a number of luxury automobiles. It involved multiple arrests and an international scheme. It has everything you'd expect to see from some sort […]
Genshin Impact is an open world RPG. As in there's no loading from one area to another (for the most part). That kind of makes the game a shoe-in for a PlayStation 5 release considering one of the console's biggest selling points is its SSD-powered ability to swiftly load game assets. With that in mind, […]
With the alpha test of Elite: Dangerous Odyssey continuing to press forward, players of the expansion's test build have already provided a lot of similar feedback judging by a feedback response posted on the testing forums. In the post, Frontier Developments call out several pain points in the current alpha and outlines some promises to […]
Today is the day that Outriders, the multiplayer action shooter RPG from publisher Square Enix and developer People Can Fly, is officially a launch title. Not only that, it's an official launch title added to the Xbox Game Pass and Game Pass Ultimate right from the off, granting members of the service their chance to […]
When the next major patch for Final Fantasy XIV arrives on April 13th, the open beta for the PlayStation 5 version starts as well. If you've already got the console and you're playing away happily on the PS4 version, it's time to upgrade, since the beta is open for everyone playing on the console version. But […]
The other day, I was in the middle of a humanizing anecdote when something happened that was tangentially related to MMOs. This prompted me to start thinking about this particular tangential issue, by which I actually mean that this was a column I wanted to write for a while but finally had an excuse to […]
Love it or hate it, April Fools' day is a Thing, and MMO companies seldom miss an opportunity to get in on The Thing. Let's take a peek into what they've brought us for 2021, shall we? Have you ever wanted to date your ship in Star Trek Online? No? Well you can anyway. Star […]
Even though I've logged a total of 112 hours of Elite: Dangerous at the time of this writing, I'm still pretty much a noob in the grander scheme of things. I've only just recently gotten into core mining. I've slowly started to crawl up the Trader ranks towards Elite status. I still haven't really gotten […]
With the month of April just beginning, there's a lot to look back on in terms of development progress made in March for Camelot Unchained. First off, the latest Top-Tenish provides some updates on getting the alchemy system working in-game; some new movement updates that include increased movement speed, work on caravans, and promise of […]
I think I might have been the only person on the planet who noticed that March had slipped by without a monthly report on the relative earnings of the game industry from SuperData. As it turns out, it wasn't an error or a delay: It's because SuperData is being closed down. And that's not an […]
While the mere confirmation that Burning Crusade Classic will feature a level boost option, prompted a whole lot of debate in the community, another upcoming paid service seems to have escaped such controversy. Blizzard is going to be offering an option for player to shell out money to clone their characters so that they can […]
Cryptic Studios is listening to — and acting upon — player feedback regarding Magic Legends following its recent soft launch. In the ARPG's second State of the Game report, Executive Producer Steve Ricossa shared many of the big changes that are coming to the game in today's update and in the near future. The most […]
This year, we have elected not to do an April Fools' joke because we found ourselves with something more pressing to do. It turns out that copyright crackdowns in various places such as Twitch have become super aggressive, so from this point onward we'll be using gorgeous in-house artwork for our header images for all […]
Massively OP's Larry and MJ are closing in on the Shroud in SWTOR. Next up in the hunt: Nar Shaddaa, the big party planet (moon, whatever). It's certainly possible the duo will get sidetracked and start talking about favorite foods, funny foibles, and who knows what else while wandering among all the neon lights. Since […]
Runes of Magic seems to be one of those MMO titles that continually flies under the radar but keeps on truckin' despite that. Case in point, the title has been operating for 12 years and is eager to celebrate the milestone with its players. Between now and Thursday, April 22nd, players can follow a new […]
"Expeditions" turns out to be a pretty popular concept right about now, but New World's might be a bit different from what you're expecting, as that's Amazon Game Studios' term for basic three-to-five-person dungeons. The studio penned a dev blog today detailing what players can expect from the content, specifically from the Amrine Excavation and […]
Today's Pantheon: Rise of the Fallen news is all about the near future. As in the next couple of weeks or so. For those who are eager to kick the game's tires, the devs have put out an announcement that the game's next pre-alpha test will be running next weekend, Saturday, April 10th, and Sunday, […]
The hype surrounding Resident Evil Village is palpable, and it grows with every day. We've certainly been looking forward to it in giddy anticipation. As you may have noticed, we here at GamingBolt have taken every chance we get to talk about all things Resident Evil of late, but thankfully, there's still plenty left to talk about. With the clock ticking down to Resident Evil Village's launch, in this feature, we're going to go over a few more key details you should know about the survival horror megaton.
OPENING DETAILS
Resident Evil Village's story is looking very promising so far, and though Capcom are keeping things close to the vest (as they should), we do know plenty about how the game begins, thanks to an interview with the developers and Famitsu from last year. Following the apparent murder of Mia at Chris' hands, the rogue agent kidnaps Ethan's daughter Rose and heads to the game's titular village, forcing Ethan to give chase and head there as well. Upon arriving in the village, Ethan quickly realizes that something is wrong, with its denizens seemingly involved in a strange cult of some sorts. Meanwhile, several characters that we've seen a glimpse of but don't know much about – such as the old shaman lady with the skull staff – are apparently going to have a pretty important role to play.
STORY CONNECTIONS
Something that Capcom have mentioned a couple of times now is the fact that Resident Evil Village's story will be tying in quite a bit with the series' larger narrative. In a recent stream, the developers said that players will want to replay all the mainline entries in the series before heading into Village, since apparently there's a lot of narrative connections to older games in Village's story. Given the fact that Chris Redfield is playing a major role in the story, on top of other things like the Umbrella logo appearing in trailers, it does seem like the story is going to be more closely linked with the series' larger overarching narrative than Resident Evil 7 was.
CONSISTENCY WITH LORE
From werewolves and vampires to witches and giants with sledgehammers, we've seen a lot of different kinds of enemies in Resident Evil Village so far, and it's fair to say that they're fairly off-beat for a Resident Evil game. But according to producer Peter Fabiano, all of the enemies in the game are going to not only be rooted in science fiction rather than supernatural stuff the way RE monsters tend to be, they're all also going to be consistent with the series' lore. In an interview with the Official PlayStation Magazine, Fabiano said, "We don't want to spoil too much of the story but what I can say is that the creatures all fit within the context of Resident Evil's world. We can assure you that Resident Evil Village takes into account the overall world and history of the series."
MORE FOCUS ON ETHAN
Ethan Winters returning as the primary protagonist in RE Village is significant for a number of reasons. This is the first time ever that a protagonist is going to return in a direct sequel immediately after making their debut in the series, while the only other time we've seen a character being featured as a playable protagonist back-to-back was with Chris in Resident Evil 5 and 6. So why is Ethan, who was so unremarkable as a character in RE7, coming back? Well, clearly, Capcom didn't think he was unremarkable, and they want to expand upon his story. Something that they've made clear (and that rumours have doubled down on as well) is that Ethan is going to have a much larger presence in Village, so here's hoping he is a much stronger protagonist here than he was in his debut.
RE4 INSPIRATIONS
With things such as the briefcase inventory management, the merchant, and its whole aesthetic, it's been clear for a while now that Resident Evil Village is leaning heavily on the RE4 influences. And Capcom haven't shied away from that, clearly, and have even said as much in as many words. Speaking in an interview with the Official PlayStation Magazine, producer Peter Fabiano said, "You'll notice we took a lot of inspiration from Resident Evil 4. The team has put a ton of effort into creating a truly authentic feel. There are plenty of surprises to keep you on your toes; players will find a balance of combat, exploration, and puzzle solving."
INTENSE HORROR
Whether or not Resident Evil will go back to focusing more on action than horror is something that series fans are always concerned about. Village certainly does seem to be a lot more action-packed and explosive than RE7 was- but Capcom have promised that this is still very much a survival horror experience. In an interview with Edge, game director Morimasa Sato said that Village isn't going to de-emphasize horror elements, in case fans were worried. He said, "As you know, one of the central themes of the Resident Evil series is horror or fear, and I would just warn you not to take anything you've seen so far as an indication that you can relax in terms of horror content. There are plenty of intense and horrifying scenes in the game, but we've chosen to leave those for you to experience by yourself."
DIMITRESCU AND HER CASTLE
Lady Dimitrescu a.k.a. everyone's favourite Tall Vampire Lady has been the talk of the town for a while now, but though she clearly seems to be dominating most conversations about Resident Evil Village, the game itself is obviously going to have a lot more going on than her, her daughters, and her castle. According to the developers, she and her castle are just one section of a much larger game. Said art director Tomonori Takano in an interview with IGN, "What we've shown so far — Lady Dimitrescu, the village, and the castle — encompass just a section of Resident Evil Village."
LOCKPICKS
Conservation and smart usage of depletable resources such as ammo and health are obviously going to be crucial in Resident Evil Village, and apparently, there's going to be more similar things to worry over as well. For instance, it's been confirmed that lockpicks will be returning in Resident Evil Village. Lockpicks have been featured in RE titles as a limited and depletable resources, so it should be interesting to see how they're used in Village and how much of an emphasis the game will put on them.
THE MAP
It's been made abundantly clear by now that Resident Evil Village is going to be significantly larger than RE7, but exactly what do we know about its map? Thanks to a map of the game's setting that comes with the game's collector's edition, we know quite a bit. Castle Dimitrescu seems to take centerstage, and it's clear that it's going to be a pretty big location. The village itself is pretty large and spread out, and from a suspension bridge and mills to a sluice gate and windmills, there's quite a bit of landmarks here as well. Meanwhile, there are plenty of other locations that seem interesting that will likely play a part in the game, such as House Beneviento and Heisenberg's factory. Meanwhile, it also looks like there's a lake to the south of the castle, next to the factory, that's locked by the aforementioned sluice gate, and based on the map's artwork, seems to house a massive aquatic creature. Are we in for a boss fight that'll call back to the Del Lago encounter in RE4? It certainly seems that way.
CAPCOM'S HIGH EXPECTATIONS
Capcom have been quite bullish about how Resident Evil Village is turning out, and they've been all too happy to let that show. Whether it's in terms of the game's critical reception or how much they think it'll sell, they certainly seem to have high expectations. Producer Peter Fabiano said in an interview with the Official PlayStation Magazine, "Since we are constantly sharing information across Resident Evil teams, that really helped inform us in making what we consider the best survival horror game to date." Meanwhile, speaking to GamesIndustry, Capcom's EMEA and UK marketing director Antoine Molant said, "Our main ambition for this year, although there's so much going on at the same time, is to make sure Resident Evil Village will be the best-performing Resident Evil title, both in terms of quality as well as business."
SECOND DEMO
Resident Evil Village's Maiden demo has been available exclusively on PS5 for some time now, but as effective as it was at giving us a glimpse of the game's audio and visual capabilities, it was pretty light as far as gameplay was concerned. Thankfully, a second demo is coming as well, which will be releasing for every platform the game is coming to. The second demo, due out in the Spring, is going to be much meatier and will also include combat. In fact, Capcom have confirmed that this demo will include a section of the final game itself, so players will get a much better sense of what the final product is going to be like.
FILE SIZE
Resident Evil Village will be a cross-gen game, and while we don't know much about what its file size (or even its resolution and frame rate) will be on last-gen consoles, we do have those details for its PS5 and Xbox Series X/S versions. On Xbox Series X/S, the game will require 35 GB of free storage space, which will go up to 50 GB if you include Resident Evil Re:Verse. Meanwhile, the game's file size on PS5 is 27.3 GB, which can probably be attributed to the console's efficient compression tech. All of this, of course, doesn't take into account any updates and patches the game may receive on day 1.
PC REQUIREMENTS
What if you're planning on playing the game on PC though? Well, system requirements have also been revealed. At minimum settings for 1080p/60 FPS gameplay, you'll need either an Intel Core i5-7500 or an AMD Ryzen 3 1200, 8 GB RAM, and either a GeForce GTX 1050 Ti with 4GB VRAM or a Radeon RX 560 with 4GB VRAM. Recommended settings stipulate 16 GB RAM and either an Intel Core i7 8700 or an AMD Ryzen 5 3600, along with NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 or AMD Radeon RX 5700. If you want ray-tracing, you'll need either a GeForce RTX 2070 or a Radeon RX 6700 XT or a Radeon RX 6800 for 4K/45 FPS. For ray-tracing at 4K/60 FPS you'll need either a GeForce RTX 3070 or a Radeon RX 6900 XT.
EDITIONS
Resident Evil Village will also be launching with various special editions in addition to the standard one. The Deluxe Edition will include the game itself and the Trauma Pack DLC, which includes the Samurai Edge, an in-game "Found Footage" filter, safe room music from RE7, tape recorders as save points instead of typewriters, the Mr. Everywhere weapon charm, and the "Village of Shadows" difficulty. Also included is the "Tragedy of Ethan Winters" artwork. Then there's the Collector's Edition includes everything from the Deluxe Edition, in addition to a Chris Redfield figure, a 64-page hardcover artbook, a reversible microfiber cloth map, and a steelbook case, all of this will come in a suitably large box. Finally, there's also the Resident Evil Village and Resident Evil 7 Complete Bundle, which, as its name suggests, will include both games, as well as the Trauma Pack DLC.
STADIA
Resident Evil Village is going to be releasing for a ridiculous number of platforms right out the gate. In addition to PlayStation, Xbox, and PC, it's been confirmed that the game will also launch for Stadia on May 7, simultaneously with the other versions. Meanwhile, Resident Evil 7 will also have been available on Stadia for a while at that point, with a release date for the cloud service of April 1. Google may have abandoned any and all efforts of supporting Stadia with first party developed exclusive content, but hey- at least it's still getting some pretty major third party releases. That's something, right?
The Switch is now halfway into its life, and the hybrid is doing better than Nintendo could have imagined. Having already sold over 80 million units, thanks to its catalog of excellent exclusive releases, solid support from indies and third parties, and the sheer convenience of its very design, the Switch is continuing to sell gangbusters. And it doesn't look like that's going to stop any time soon. Even with the launch of the much more powerful PS5 and Xbox Series X/S, the Switch is showing no signs of slowing down, at least in terms of sales- but it does seem like Nintendo wants to close the gap between the Switch and the new 9th gen consoles at least to some extent.
Rumours of a more powerful hardware upgrade of the Switch – the Switch Pro, so to speak – have been around for well over a year at this point, but recently, those rumours and leaks have become much more prominent, with new potential details emerging what feels like every week. In this feature, we're going to parse that stuff and talk about a few of the rumours about the Switch Pro – or whatever else Nintendo chooses to call it – that might just be true.
4K
We're now at a point where 4K visuals are beginning to become the new standard for visuals for games on consoles. If not native 4K, developers at least try to target dynamic 4K, or, failing that, 1440p resolutions. And that push for 4K is only going to grow as the PS5 and Xbox Series X grow longer. For the Nintendo Switch, a console that caps out hard at 1080p and often doesn't even hit those numbers, that's not exactly an ideal situation.
With the Switch Pro, however, it seems Nintendo is looking to address exactly that issue. There have been multiple leaks and reports about the more powerful Switch variant over the last few months, and the one thing they all seem to agree on is the fact that when docked, the device will support 4K visuals, the lack of which in the regular Switch has been a long-standing issues with players and with developers. If this is indeed accurate – and it's looking like it probably is – then hopefully, we'll be seeing more third party support for the Switch down the line.
DLSS
That the Switch Pro will support DLSS is something else that we've heard more than a few times at this point. In fact, a Bloomberg report claimed as recently as a couple of weeks ago that the Switch Pro would have a new Nvidia chipset, and that it would support their Deep Learning Super Sampling (or DLSS) technology to be able to upscale visuals to 4K. Obviously, it's unlikely that DLSS will be applied retroactively to existing Switch games (though hopefully there will be at least a few cases where developers and publishers decide to go back and release visual upgrades for their titles), but it should help the hardware target 4K in console mode going forward.
OLED SCREEN
The Switch Pro is getting some obvious upgrades where its docked mode is concerned, if rumours are to be believed, but portable mode isn't getting left behind either. According to reports, that's getting its own enhancements as well. According to a Bloomberg report from early March, the Switch Pro will have a 7 inch screen, as opposed to the regular Switch's 6.2 inch screen (and the Switch Lite's 5.5 inches). The screen's resolution will be 720p, and on top of all that, Nintendo has also allegedly partnered with Samsung to replace the Switch's LED screens with new OLED panels, which will offer better contrast, better image quality, and consume less battery.
CPU AND MEMORY
An upgrade to portable mode, support for 4K, and DLSS have been the headline grabbing parts of most Switch Pro rumours of late, but the console is supposed to be getting other enhancements as well. As you'd expect, rumours have also said that the Switch Pro will have an improved processor and memory, and as we mentioned before, it is allegedly going to have a new Nvidia chipset. Exactly what those improvements are going to look like isn't something that any of the reports have gone into, but it should be interesting to see how much of an upgrade they will be over what the regular Switch already has- after all, most games will need to be able to run on the base Switch as well.
LAUNCH
Exactly when the Switch Pro will launch is a question that's been asked often over the last few months. All reports seem to indicate that it shouldn't be long. The Bloomberg report that talked about the device's OLED display mentioned that Nintendo would be beginning mass production as early as June, and that assembly will begin in July. Meanwhile, it's also been reported that Nintendo is expecting record software and hardware sales for the Switch in fiscal year 2021-22, which runs from April 2021 to March of 2022. All of that put together would suggest that Nintendo is targeting a late 2021 launch for the Switch Pro- possibly for the Holidays. Of course, in the absence of official word from Nintendo, all we can do is speculate right now, but a late 2021 launch for the Switch Pro does seem likely at this point.
2021 GAMES
More powerful hardware is all well and good- what about the games though? Well, it seems like Nintendo has big plans for that as well. As we just mentioned, Nintendo is expecting record software sales for the Switch in FY 2022, which would indicate that they have major releases planned. Interestingly enough, a Bloomberg report back in August 2020 mentioned that the Switch Pro's launch would be accompanied by a full slate of major new releases from first party studios and third party partners alike. Currently, we don't have exact release dates for a lot of major upcoming games for the Switch, with the exception of the likes of Pokemon Legends: Arceusand Splatoon 3, both of which are supposed to launch in 2022.
What we can do, however, is speculate. Could the sequel to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild be positioned as a flagship game for the Switch Pro in the console's launch window, for instance? Recent rumours have also spoken about Resident Evil Outrage, a new mainline title in the series that's being developed with the Switch as its lead platform, and is supposedly due out within a year of Resident Evil Village's launch. If those reports are accurate, it would be a perfect game to show off the Switch Pro's new capabilities, thanks to the excellent RE Engine's capabilities.
EXCLUSIVES
How developers choose to leverage the Switch Pro's more powerful hardware while ensuring that they maintain support for the base Switch will be interesting to see, but it seems like not all of them will choose to strike that balance. Insider NateDrake has said on ResetEra that the Switch Pro is likely going to have a few exclusive games, especially from third party developers, and that he knows of at least one of them (though he didn't mention what that is, obviously). It wouldn't be surprising if that were true. From the Game Boy Color to the DSi to the New 3DS, Nintendo has released its fair share of more powerful mid-generation hardware upgrades in the past, and all of them had at least a few exclusive releases that didn't support those systems' base versions.
PRICE
This isn't a rumour as much as it is a prediction. With more powerful hardware, the Switch Pro is obviously bound to be costlier than the regular Switch- but how much costlier? According to Bloomberg Intelligence's analyst Matthew Kanterman, Nintendo is likely to target a price in the range of $349 to $399. There are a few other questions that are worth asking though- once the Switch Pro launches, will Nintendo slash the prices on existing Switch models? Will the regular Switch and Switch Lite continue to be sold at $299 and $199 respectively, or will Nintendo choose to lower the price for one or both of them? That remains to be seen.
Next week we're be able to once again return to the enigmatic Oddworld with Soulstorm. The game looks to revisit the classic series, once again putting us in the footsteps of Abe as he must partake in a perilous journey. And he will do a lot, and there's no exaggeration. The game has tons to do, and today we got a look at the various activities our hero will have at his disposable.
The game's official YouTube released a ton of 'Quick Look' videos highlighting the many aspects of the game. Things like crafting, loot, sneaking and the general environments are all covered. You can check out all videos in full below. It seems to be a pretty comprehensive look at what you'll be doing within Abe's new quest.
It's hard to believe, but we're only about a month away from Resident Evil Village. It's the highly anticipated next mainline entry in the survival horror franchise, and one Capcom is putting some high hopes on. It's coming to a variety of platforms, from current gen to next gen, even to Google Stadia. We got our first current gen look at the game earlier with a look at the game running on the PS4 Pro, and it also seems that video may have confirmed something else.
The video was posted by IGN, and you can see it in full through here. One thing that is interesting, as noticed by the good folks at MP1st, is that there is one image that explicitly talks about a photo mode. There was no explicit mention of the mode in the video, but it had not been confirmed before hand. You can see it below.
Resident Evil Village will release on May 7th for PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, PC and Stadia. You can check out the game's PC requirements through here.
It's been an eventful day for Oddworld: Soulstorm. The game looks to revive the classic franchise centered around Abe and his odyssey against vile corporations and capitalism run amok. The game has gotten several details today, such as the upgrade options you have for PS4 to PS5, as well as PC requirements. Now we have something specifically about the PS5 version, and the help you can get with it.
As detailed in a press release from the PS5 version of the game will see use of the system's unique Activity Cards as well as Game Help. If you're unfamiliar, these are custom made to help you get through levels or get specific achievements with videos and tutorials, with as few spoilers as possible. You will need PlayStation Plus to access these features, do keep in mind.
"On PlayStation 5, Oddworld: Soulstorm players can get hints, tips, and walkthrough videos, without needing to leave the game. These hints can be accessed for the specific area of the game they are playing (using PlayStation 5's Activity Cards), so they don't have to spend time searching the internet or risk seeing spoilers. (Active PlayStation Plus membership required.)"
Oddworld: Soulstorm is set to release on PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4 and PC on April 6th. The PS5 version of the game will be available for no extra charge to those wo are subscribed to PS Plus.
Oddworld: Soulstormis launching as a cross-gen release, as most major games are right now, and like most major games (though sadly not all of them), it's going to offer a free upgrade path to players.
Oddworld Inhabitants has confirmed (via Gematsu) that Oddworld: Soulstorm will offer a free next-gen upgrade path, allowing those who purchase the game on PS4 to upgrade to its PS5 version for free. Of course, given the fact that the platformer is going to be available for free on PS5 for all PlayStation Plus subscribers throughout the month of April, its PS4 version is not going to be available for free for those who have the PS5 version.
Oddworld: Soulstorm launches on April 6 for PS5, PS4, and PC. On PS5, it's been confirmed to be running at 1440p and 60 FPS. Meanwhile, if you're planning on playing it on PC, make sure to check out its system requirements through here.
Given the fact that the PS5 version of Oddworld: Soulstormis going to be free for all PlayStation Plus subscribers up until the end of April, that's probably the platform where a large number of people will be playing the game (at least to begin with). If, however, you're planning on playing it on PC instead, the system requirements for the platformer have been released- and they're pretty modest.
On minimum settings, you'll need an Intel Quad Core 1.7 Ghz processor, along with an Nvidia GeForce GTX 760, and 8 GB RAM. Meanwhile, the recommended requirements are also very reasonably, stipulating a 16 GB RAM, an Intel Quad Core 2.3 Ghz processor, and an Nvidia GeForce GTX 970. All of which is to say, there's almost no way most gaming PCs aren't going to be able to run the game. Check out the full requirements below.
Oddworld: Soulstormlaunches in a couple of days on Aprl 6 for PS5, PS4, and PC. On PC, it will be available exclusively via the Epic Games Store. Stay tuned to GamingBolt for more coverage on the game.
Originally slated to release this Spring, Traveller's Tales Games' LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga has been delayed again. Though a new release window wasn't provided, the developer said on Twitter that it would update the launch timing "as soon as possible." It revealed that more time was needed in order to make the game "the biggest and best-ever LEGO game."
LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga is a pretty ambitious undertaking, packing all nine episodes from the Star Wars film saga into one title. Each episode consists of five missions and players can either go through them all in order or play each one individually. Classic locations like Tatooine, Coruscant, Jakku, Endor and many more will be available to explore.
There are also 300 different characters to play with, from Force users (who can now use light and heavy attacks in combos) to blasters that utilize a third person aiming system. LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker is in development for Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, PS4, PS5, Nintendo Switch and PC. Stay tuned for an update release date in the coming months.
While Capcom is prepping its next Resident Evil showcase, the first ever gameplay for Resident Evil Village running on previous gen consoles has been revealed (via IGN). The footage showcases the game running on PS4 Pro and actually looks pretty solid. Check it out below.
Initially announced for PS5, Xbox Series X/S and PC, Capcom would later confirm Xbox One and PS4 versions. Earlier reports by insider Dusk Golem indicated that the title had issues running on previous-gen hardware with the updated fidelity leading to pop-in and long loading times. Of course, that was when the game was still in progress so perhaps those issues have been circumvented.
Regardless, Resident Evil Village is slated to release on May 7th. Along with previous and current gen consoles, it will also be coming to Google Stadia with pre-orders receiving a free Stadia Premiere Edition with Chromecast Ultra and a Stadia Controller. The offer is valid until May 21st, 12 AM PT. Stay tuned for more details on the title and the upcoming beta for its multiplayer mode Resident Evil Re:Verse.
The very fact that MLB The Show 21 – a Sony first party developed series that has always been exclusive to PlayStation – was momentous enough in and of itself, but it seems the release is going to be even more reasons than expected.
Microsoft have announced that MLB The Show 21 will be available via Xbox Game Pass right at launch, on day 1. Both Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S versions will be available for Game Pass members (several enhancements and features, such as the Stadium Creator, are going to be exclusively available in the game's next-gen versions). Meanwhile, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscribers will also be able to play the game on Android devices via xCloud.
MLB The Show 21 is not the first major third party release on Xbox two be joining the Game Pass on day 1, with the recently released Outriders also having joined the service right at launch. Unlike Outriders, however, MLB The Show 21 is a Sony-published and Sony-developed game, which makes this a much more surprising turn of events.
MLB The Show 21is launching for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PS4, and Xbox One on April 20.