Jul 23, 12:00


Kotaku Saturday, July 23, 2022 9:00 AM
    

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PCGamesN Saturday, July 23, 2022 11:46 AM
     Genshin Impact Sumeru trailer explores floating desert ruins

A second Genshin Impact Sumeru video preview shows off the region's desert and some of the sacred ruins that can be found there, as well as teasing a group of forest spirits and several mysterious floating ruins that players will encounter while exploring the Genshin Impact 3.0 update's new location.

The teaser, titled 'Of Rain and Sand,' features some members of the anime game's art team talking about the diverse environment across Sumeru, which ranges from dense jungle to vast, rocky deserts. "Sumeru is rather different from the major areas we've seen in the past," says environment artist Jax Huang.

"The landscape of the rainforest gives the impression of endless mountains," Huang continues, while "The desert has desert storms, oases, and vegetation that needs water... Rocks eroded by the wind and sand, and sacred ruins with historical elements." We get to see some lovely wide shots of these incredible structures towering up between the arid rocks, before getting a glimpse of some stone architecture and statues built into a cave network.

RELATED LINKS: Genshin Impact 2.8 release date, Genshin Impact character tier list, Genshin Impact leveling guide

PCGamesN Saturday, July 23, 2022 10:37 AM
     This Doom mod is Pac-Man – meets Portal and Resident Evil?

There's a new Doom mod out that basically turns the iconic FPS game into the even-more iconic Pac-Man arcade game, complete with familiar trappings like pellets and mazes - but also Portal test chambers and a Resident Evil-like mansion, too? We love the Doom modding community.

One of the greatest things about the Doom community is when modders attempt to replicate other classic games within the archetypal FPS. In the past we've seen recreations of Wario Land, Golden Axe, and even Mortal Kombat.

Now it's the turn of Pac-Man. The latest update for the cunningly titled Pac-Man Doom mod is available now with a "myriad" of fixes, and it should be "the last version before the final update, which is projected for the end of August" according to modder Peccatum Mihzamiz. The update temporarily pushed Pac-Man Doom to the 50th most popular mod on ModDB this week, which is a huge achievement - it's out of around 50,000.

RELATED LINKS: Doom runs on Twitter, The best FPS games on PC, Doom is playing in this article

PCGamesN Saturday, July 23, 2022 9:53 AM
     Elden Ring players are in search of a new home for PvP

Elden Ring PvP players are seeking out a possible new location for their duels after growing tired of the RPG game's most popular hotspot. Player vs player battles have long been a cornerstone of FromSoftware games, and Elden Ring is no exception. With an almost endless array of possible Elden Ring builds to experiment with, there's no shortage of variety to be found.

While players can engage in PvP just about anywhere across the Lands Between, the community has settled on one particular location as its central hub for their competitions. The main Academy gate at Raya Lucaria is where you will see most player vs player showdowns taking place, and it's by far the easiest spot to find some action quickly without having to organise a meetup with your potential opponents.

The Raya Lucaria gate is popular for several reasons: it's relatively easy to reach even on a new character, it has a nice open space that's mostly flat, and there aren't any enemies nearby who might be accidentally pulled into the fight and disrupt the fairness of your competition.

RELATED LINKS: The best Elden Ring builds, Elden Ring bosses, The best Elden Ring classes

PCGamesN Saturday, July 23, 2022 9:47 AM
     Gotham Knights devs tease son of Batman Damian Wayne

New Gotham Knights interviews at SDCC 2022 with developers on the superhero game reveal possible major new characters from the Batman universe - and while fans shouldn't expect Batman himself, there could be a Gotham Knights Damian Wayne appearance for the temperamental son of Batman.

SDCC 2022 brings with it a new Gotham Knights Batgirl trailer and a number of interviews shedding light on different areas of the game, including characters that may or may not appear. A fan Q&A with creative director Patrick Redding confirms that The Joker won't be in Gotham Knights and probably not Riddler either, but he could "not confirm or deny" Harley Quinn.

In another interview with ComicBook, Redding again confirms that Batman is indeed dead in Gotham Knights - but seems to suggest that his son Damian Wayne might not be. Damian is the fourth Robin, and the former three are all playable in the game, but will Damian himself show up - especially given how his father isn't around anymore?

RELATED LINKS: The best superhero games on PC, The best RPGs on PC, What if Batman: Arkham Knight 2 had happened?

PCGamesN Saturday, July 23, 2022 7:33 AM
     WoW Dragonflight alpha adds notorious Hearthstone villain

It seems that one of the most notorious Hearthstone villains is making their way into World of Warcraft, courtesy of an appearance in the WoW Dragonflight alpha. While Hearthstone is based on the MMORPG's world, characters, and lore, it has introduced its own original heroes and villains over the course of its many expansions. Now, one of the card game's most popular antagonists, Rafaam, has seemingly taken it upon himself to leap across to the MMO.

Rafaam has reared his shadowy head in WoW Dragonflight alpha build 44649, Wowhead reports. The ethereal archaeologist first appeared in Hearthstone's 2015 League of Explorers adventure, where he is revealed to be the force behind the Staff of Origination artifact that the titular explorers are in search of.

After the staff is reconstructed over the course of the adventure, a curse placed upon it by Arch-Thief Rafaam allows him to break into the Hall of Explorers and attack the League, utilising the power of the staff to his advantage in the adventure's climactic boss fight.

RELATED LINKS: Best MMORPGs on PC, The best WoW addons, WoW Classic leveling guide

PCGamesN Saturday, July 23, 2022 6:54 AM
     Here's how to get Halo Infinite Steam Deck working

As great as it is, one of the biggest annoyances of Valve's Steam Deck console is how many major games are still unsupported, including the latest Halo game. Now it seems finally possible to get Halo Infinite Steam Deck playable at last, and here's how to do it.

At the current count, there are over 4,000 officially Verified or playable Steam Deck games right now, although there are still plenty of games left completely unplayable. While there are a load of Xbox games playable on the console, Halo Infinite isn't one of them.

That's set to change at last, thanks to a new Proton Experimental update (as spotted by Gaming on Linux). While still just in testing right now - and you'll need an extra application to install it - anyone with the update should be able to get Halo Infinite working on Steam Deck. Gaming on Linux notes that the multiplayer side is running but they haven't tested the campaign yet, but with any luck that will work too.

RELATED LINKS: Halo Infinite system requirements, Halo Infinite Bosses, Halo Infinite ranks

Twinfinite Saturday, July 23, 2022 11:06 AM
     Today Developer SimulaM released a new video of its upcoming Jesus simulator I am Jesus Christ ahead of its showing at Gamescom.

Twinfinite Saturday, July 23, 2022 10:41 AM
     The first look at Spider-Man: Freshman Year has left a lot of fans unsure about it's place in the MCU.

Twinfinite Saturday, July 23, 2022 8:12 AM
     Today, the TapTap presents showcase was hosted, providing new looks and reveals about plenty of upcoming and running games.

Siliconera Saturday, July 23, 2022 11:00 AM
    

Chocobo and the Airship

When you haven't had enough of Final Fantasy adventures in game form, consider the realm of books. Square Enix is publishing a new picture book adventure based on Final Fantasy. Title Chocobo and the Airship, the new book hits shelves on March 21, 2023. It's billed as a "heartwarming story" for Final Fantasy fans of all ages. The book is written by Kazuhiko Aoki, director of Chocobo's Dungeon 2, and illustrated by Toshiyuki Itahana, character designer for Chocobo's Dungeon.

Square Enix Manga and Books announced the publication on July 22, 2022, via its Twitter account.

https://twitter.com/SquareEnixBooks/status/1550466692228079621

The announcement also links the product page for Chocobo and the Airship on the Square Enix store. The page lists the book as a 40-page hardcover work. Its cover art, though not final, shows work-in-progress art with the Japanese title, Chocobo to Soratobu-bune ("Chocobo and the Flying Ship").

The page describes the story premise. Tireless inventor Cid and a brave little Chocobo must work together to build an airship. Their goal is to save their town, which is under threat from monsters. To get their ship into the air, though, they'll need a magical Flying Stone. They begin a "kwehst" to acquire the stone, meeting heroic adventurer allies and braving various dangers.

Chocobo and the Airship releases on March 21, 2023. It'll cost $17.99 USD.

The post Chocobo and the Airship is a Final Fantasy Picture Book appeared first on Siliconera.


Siliconera Saturday, July 23, 2022 10:00 AM
    

Street Fighter 6 Classic Costumes

Street Fighter 6 is coming with all-new fits for its , but some looks just don't die. That's why Capcom confirmed the existence of Street Fighter 6 classic costumes for series OGs Ryu, Chun-Li, and Guile. The costumes were first revealed at Capcom's SF6 panel at the ongoing San Diego Comic-Con 2022.

High-resolution screenshots of the Street Fighter 6 Classic Costumes were later uploaded to Capcom's official Twitter account. Check them out in the gallery below.

[gallery ids="932606,932607,932608,932609,932610,932611" link="file"]

The three costumes return Guile, Chun-Li, and Ryu to their appearances in Street Fighter II. Ryu once again wears his torn white gi, and is clean-shaven. Guile is back in his camouflage pants and olive-green tank top. Thanks to modern lighting and the game's aesthetic, though, the colors a bit closer to his Champion Edition look than Street Fighter I or II. Chun-Li wears her modified blue cheongsam, with the spiked bracelets, sheer tights, and white boots. The Street Fighter 6 Classic Costumes also enable Chun-Li to perform a new taunt animation, one that has its own hitbox.

The Classic Costumes will be available in-game as DLC. Capcom didn't confirm the timing of the DLC. It also didn't confirm if the DLC is free or costs money. Beyond just the classic costumes, it will, though, be adding other new looks. The SDCC panel highlighted a street wear costume for Luke, and another alternate costume for Jamie.

Street Fighter 6 launches on PS4, PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC in 2023. It will have rollback netcode, and potentially cross-platform play.

The post Street Fighter 6 Classic Costumes for Ryu, Chun-Li, Guile Revealed appeared first on Siliconera.


Siliconera Saturday, July 23, 2022 7:00 AM
    

FFVII Remake Revisited

Square Enix continued its series of blog posts revisiting the development of Final Fantasy VII Remake. The latest entries of FFVII Remake Revisited cover Chapter 5: Dogged Pursuit and Chapter 6: Light the Way. In doing so they reveal the origins of two common elements from the game. Those are Stamp, the dog-like Shinra company mascot, and the "Potion" benches, a common place to replenish lost HP and MP.

Check them out at these links. Note that they, and this article, contain some spoilers for Chapters 5 and 6 of Final Fantasy VII Remake.

Chapters 5 and 6 in Final Fantasy VII Remake cover Cloud and company's trip to Mako Reactor No. 5. They travel first via train, and then via the lighting infrastructure underneath Midgar's sector plates. The FFVII Remake Revisited blog brings insights into moments from the chapter, courtesy of members of the development team.

FFVII Remake revisited

For example, as the party tries to make it to their rendezvous with Biggs, they're forced to leave the train and hoof it through the tunnels. They're guided by graffiti marks of Stamp, the Shinra mascot. According to Battle Director Teruki Endo, Stamp was first designed as a PR exercise during the war between Shinra and Wutai. Allegedly, Stamp is based on a design doodled by Shinra executive Palmer, who heads the Space Exploration Division.

Other insights from the Chapter 5 FFVII Remake Revisited blog spoke about the challenges of making Tifa's combat style distinctive for Remake. Ultimately, the depth added came courtesy of the burst (a.k.a. stagger) system. Tifa's abilities are particularly suited to boosting her stagger damage.

The Chapter 6 blog entry held forth on the set pieces and environments Cloud and party encounter while traversing Midgar's underbelly. In one scene where the party must walk past a giant exhaust fan, the team programmed bespoke animations and physics movements to enhanced the dramatic effect of the wind blowing.

The team also held forth on the ubiquitous benches to be found throughout the game. Since Remake did away with save points, there had to be a way for players to rest and restore themselves. Game Design Co-Director Naoki Hamaguchi said he personally pushed to design these rest points like benches and "Potion"-branded vending machines. The benches had to stand out to be visible in FFVII Remake's complex environment, but not so abstract that they didn't feel unreal. Thus the benches went for a "subtle line of abstraction" to present a "warm and inviting" aura, emphasizing their use as rest stops.

Final Fantasy VII Remake is available on PC, PS4, and PS5. Check out some more trivia in the previous FFVII Remake Revisited blog, which covers Chapter 4.

The post FFVII Remake Revisited Shows Stamp's and Benches' Origins appeared first on Siliconera.


Pivotal Gamers Saturday, July 23, 2022 4:03 AM
     Hello fellow gamers. Giveaway Of The Day holds a new giveaway for Retro Car Driver. Their message follows. Retro Car Driver is available as a Giveaway of the day!You have limited time to download, install and register it. A few words about Retro Car Driver Exclusive offer from Giveaway of the Day and ToomkyGames! No third-party advertising and browser add-ons! Last minute notes Login with your Fac...