PCGamesN Sunday, July 31, 2022 1:53 PM  A new Elden Ring mod completely overhauls melee combat in the RPG game with a whole range of new systems including deflections, sword clashing, step dodges, and perilous attacks that are inspired by both Sekiro and Bloodborne. The mod also includes several reworks to major Elden Ring bosses designed to make them better suit the new combat. The Sword Mastery total combat overhaul mod by creator AntiSteak is an incredible feat of modding, with a full kit of reworks and new systems. Many of the game's melee weapons have seen their movesets dramatically altered, with a range of new attacks and combos. Some moves will allow you to initiate a combo branch, which can lead to follow through attacks, guard frames, parry frames, charge moves, or delayed attacks. The deflection system is described as a much more dramatic rebuild from an initial prototype which adopted Sekiro's deflects into the open-world game. Upon deflecting successive attacks, you gain a period of improved stamina regeneration. AntiSteak explains that this provides ample reward, but prevents trivialising encounters as players cannot simply knock away a series of very heavy attacks in quick succession. An icon is displayed to show your deflect window, allowing users to easily see how the mechanic works. RELATED LINKS: The best Elden Ring builds, Elden Ring bosses, The best Elden Ring classes |
PCGamesN Sunday, July 31, 2022 1:12 PM  The Final Fantasy XIV 6.2 update, Buried Memory, is creeping ever closer and now Live Letter 72 has been set for August 12, giving players of the critically acclaimed MMORPG a pretty good idea of when the next patch release date is likely to fall. In addition, the update's special site has been launched, leading to much speculation about what the new story content will entail. Square Enix has announced that Letter from the Producer Live LXXII will be taking place on Friday, August 12 at 4am PT / 7am ET / 12pm BST / 9pm AEST. The show will be going over more detailed notes on the upcoming FFXIV patch 6.2, Buried Memory. Among the features we know about are the continuation of Tataru's Grand Adventure, which is expected to feature the return of the sky pirates from Heavensward's Shadow of Mhach alliance raid. If you haven't yet completed that raid series, you'll need to do so before continuing Tataru's story, so now is the perfect time to jump in. RELATED LINKS: The best MMOs on PC, FFXIV Reaper job guide, FFXIV Sage job guide |
PCGamesN Sunday, July 31, 2022 11:59 AM |
PCGamesN Sunday, July 31, 2022 11:21 AM  A new Truck Simulator 1.45 update is here with improved multiplayer mod support for the games on both sides of the pond. Both Euro Truck Sim 2 and American Truck Simulator have been updated to version 1.45, and among the highlights is a fix to allow players to join a convoy in the multiplayer games without being required to download all of the mods the host player is using. Developer SCS Software says the team has implemented "a solution to allow you to join convoy sessions without the need to have all of the required modifications of the host's session." It notes that in most cases, you will simply not see the modifications that are missing in your game, but for certain things which are required (such as a player driving a modified vehicle model) you will see a coloured placeholder box. Also included in the update are several extra realism-focused tweaks, including a rain sensor that can automatically adapt your wiper speed on the fly in reaction and an option to hide the red 'X' barriers that appear to indicate an undriveable section of road or turnoff. SCS does add that "we urge players to take care and follow the correct route, as the invisible barriers will still exist and appear for a short time if you hit them!" |
PCGamesN Sunday, July 31, 2022 10:58 AM  After the ruckus around Diablo Immortal microtransactions, you'd hope that Activision Blizzard would calm down with pricing on its next game, but it's possible Overwatch 2 skins could individually cost as much as $45 - according to a new survey. Among the many Overwatch 2 changes coming to the multiplayer game sequel, Blizzard previously confirmed that it was doing away with loot boxes in favour of battle passes and direct purchases - much like other online games such as Fortnite. However, Blizzard hasn't yet spelled out how Overwatch 2 microtransactions and the store prices will work. According to a new survey reportedly sent out (as spotted by @Portergauge on Twitter), Blizzard seems to be gauging prices for skins, bundles, and weapon charms. While these are by no means the final prices, the survey asks if players are prepared to pay $44.99 for a single Mythic skin, $24.99 for a Legendary skin, $29.99 for a Legendary bundle, or $9.99 for a weapon charm. RELATED LINKS: Overwatch 2 heroes, Overwatch 2 release date, Overwatch 2 tier list |
PCGamesN Sunday, July 31, 2022 9:22 AM  Back in 2019, with Among Us player counts going down, developer Innersloth nearly cancelled the social deduction game - according to the studio's co-founder in a new interview. Furthermore, with Among Us players returning, the team nearly went with Among Us 2 instead. In 2020, developer Innersloth acknowledged the surge in popularity of Among Us by deciding to cancel Among Us 2 and put all the team's focus "into improving the original." However, according to a new interview between Innersloth co-founder Marcus Bromander on the Visionaries podcast, the studio nearly gave up on Among Us entirely. "We were basically done with (Among Us) at the start of 2019," explains Bromander. Following the game's third map and a round of bug fixes, the team decided "that's it, no more, time to work on something else." While Marcus himself continued on his Henry Stickmin series, the other developers began "prototyping some other game ideas that got pretty far." RELATED LINKS: The best games like Among Us, Among Us maps guide, The best Among Us mods |
PCGamesN Sunday, July 31, 2022 8:18 AM  August is set to begin with a Steam survival game festival aiming to highlight a range of current and upcoming survival-themed PC games on the storefront. Valve says it plans to feature a range of games that fit into the survival genre, including survival horror games as well as open-world survival crafting games. The Steam Survival Fest is scheduled to run from August 1 - 8 at 10am PT / 1pm ET / 6pm BST. Valve says that "participating games must have survival as the primary game mechanic." It emphasises a "focus on using defensive tactics to stay in the game against destructive forces including nature or supernatural beings." Games included will be promoted on the Steam homepage, much as with other similar events such as Steam Next Fest. Games do not have to offer a discount to be included in the festival, although Valve says that "the Steam Survival Fest page will prominently feature discounted games." Demos of upcoming games are also encouraged. RELATED LINKS: Steam FAQ, Steam family sharing, Steam in-home streaming |
PCGamesN Sunday, July 31, 2022 6:30 AM  A load of new Multiversus leaks points to multiple upcoming fighters, including the Smash Bros style fighting game's first non-Warner Bros crossover - a Multiversus Stranger Things fighter collab. How was this leaked? Thanks to another leak, in fact. Now that the game is actually, out Multiversus leaks pointing to skins such as LeBron James Robin and a Wonder Woman movie skin have already been datamined - but more exciting are the potential new fighters. According to leakers such as Mvsleaks, files mention fighters such as Raven and Robin proper from Teen Titans, Scooby-Doo (of course), Gizmo and Stripe from Gremlins, Daenerys from Game of Thrones, Beetlejuice, and more. However, the most intriguing listed is Eleven from Stranger Things, which - if accurate - would be the first non-Warner Bros property to appear in Multiversus, since the show is owned by Netflix. There's even a datamined voice line from Raven, which definitely seems to be the DC hero's usual actor Tara Strong (who also voices Harley Quinn in the game), which directly mentions fighting with Eleven. RELATED LINKS: Multiversus impressions, Multiversus tier list, The best Multiversus mods |
PCGamesN Sunday, July 31, 2022 6:19 AM  Nefarious players are employing a game-breaking Destiny 2 bug that allows them to crash another player's game by sending them a malicious message in the FPS game's text chat. Bungie has now disabled the game's text chat functionality temporarily across all platforms while they investigate the issue and prepare a fix. The text chat bug was initially reported on both the Destiny 2 forums and the game's subreddit. Players noted that a particular text string being posted into the chat window would cause anyone who saw it to face an instant game crash, booting them out and returning the Weasel error message. In particular, this began to affect the game's PvP - rather than posting the message to a wide chat, some dastardly Destiny deviants decided to whisper the text string to their opponents, causing the other players' games to crash and securing themselves an easy victory. Some players reported that even disabling your chat doesn't resolve the issue, as the messages are still sent to your character, just not displayed to you. RELATED LINKS: Destiny 2 classes, Destiny 2 exotics, Destiny 2 builds |
PCGamesN Sunday, July 31, 2022 6:31 AM  New regulations see multiple large gaming services including Steam blocked in Indonesia after the companies failed to meet a deadline to comply with changes to registration requirements in the Southeast Asian country. Other game industry services affected include the likes of Epic Games, CS: GO, Origin, and Dota 2, along with the likes of PayPal and Yahoo. The blocks are not permanent, but are set to remain in place until the companies agree to comply with the newly implemented regulations. As reported by Niko Partners, new regulations put in place by Kominfo, the Indonesian ministry of communication and information technology, required companies operating in Indonesia to register with Kominfo by July 29 or face "a formal warning, a monetary fine, and access termination." Now that the deadline has passed, it appears that multiple major IPs in the country have implemented blocks to those companies which have not met the requirements. Among the names listed as registered on the Kominfo site are Google, YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, Apple, Netflix, Discord, and Riot Games. It was initially reported that both Microsoft Bing and Blizzard's Battle.net were not registered, but it appears that both companies have been added to the list as of July 29, and some users in the country have reported that the services are still working for them. RELATED LINKS: Steam FAQ, Steam family sharing, Steam in-home streaming |
Siliconera Sunday, July 31, 2022 1:00 PM 
ININ Games revealed that it will release RayStorm x RayCrisis HD Collection in physical and digital formats. Additionally, it will also handle the digital release of the Ray'z Arcade Chronology in the West. Both compilations of Taito's classic shmup games will come to PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch. The publisher made the announcement on its Twitter account. You can read the full tweet right below: RayStorm and RayCrisis are the second and third entries in Taito's Ray series of shmup games released first on arcades in 1996 and 1998, respectively. In 2010, Taito's parent company Square Enix released an HD version of RayStorm for the PS3 and Xbox 360. The first entry in the series, RayForce, will appear in Ray'z Arcade Chronology. Taito will self-publish the Ray trilogy compilation both physically and digitally in Japan on March 9, 2023. Meanwhile, Strictly Limited Games will sell physical editions of the compilation worldwide in limited amounts. RayStorm x RayCrisis HD Collection and Ray'z Arcade Chronology will both be available on PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch. The post Global PS4 and Switch Releases of RayStorm and RayCrisis Confirmed appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Sunday, July 31, 2022 12:00 PM 
Type-Moon Studio BB delivered a new trailer for Fate/Extra Record, a remake of 2010's Fate/Extra. The new video is the first trailer and update on the state of the game since late 2020. It shows off some more of the graphical updates the game's received in the interim. There are also clips from different Servants' Noble Phantasms and from in-game story sequences. Check out the trailer below. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HiWfzmCuiI4 The 2022 Fate/Extra Record trailer features narration from the character Twice H. Pieceman, as well as from Saber, Rin, Julius, and Rider. Other characters from the game like Taiga, Leo, Rani, and Shinji make their first updated appearances here, too. Environments and exploration gameplay is shown, as are cutscenes of Servant fights with Dan Blackmore's Archer and Lancer. It ends on shots of Rider's Noble Phantasm, and on Saber summoning her Aestus Domus Aurea. Fate/Extra first debuted in 2010 on the PSP. A spin-off of Fate/Stay Night, it told an original story of the "Moon Holy Grail War", between Masters summoned to a virtual environment managed by the Moon Cell, a supercomputer powerful enough to alter reality. It received a Japan-exclusive sequel, Fate/Extra CCC, and later was adapted into action games Fate/Extella and Fate/Extella Link. Fate/Extra introduced a number of Servants that would later become mainstay characters in the wider Fate franchise, particularly the stories of Fate/Grand Order. Servants Nero Claudius, Francis Drake, Tamamo-no-Mae, Sessyoin Kiara, Robin Hood, and more popular Servants are all rooted in Fate/Extra or its related media. Despite the appearance of a new trailer, Fate/Extra Record does not yet have a release window or confirmed international release plans. It was first announced in July 2020, alongside an in-progress video of gameplay. In December 2020, Type-Moon Studio BB debuted another trailer focusing on Caster. Fate/Extra Record is in development. It does not have target platforms or a release window specified as of this time. The post Fate/Extra Record Trailer Shows Off Noble Phantasms appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Sunday, July 31, 2022 11:00 AM 
PSO2: New Genesis will have new crossover content from Melty Blood: Type Lumina. Type-Moon made the announcement on the second day of Fate/Grand Order 7th Anniversary Festival, where it also published new information about its other games. Type-Moon did not specify what kind of Melty Blood content will appear in Sega's PSO2: New Genesis. But when crossover content from other franchises appears in the latter MMORPG, it usually consists of avatar parts and accessories that let players replicate characters from the former. The items will be available in the gacha-like Scratch Ticket that usually runs for four weeks after launch. Melty Blood: Type Lumina will be the second external franchise to bring crossover content into PSO2: New Genesis. Sega previously announced that it will release the first crossover avatar parts modeled after Hololive Production VTubers on August 24, 2022. In its roadmap for late 2022, Sega revealed plans to release more crossover Scratches with an external game title—which fits the description for Melty Blood—in October 2022, and an anime show in November 2022. The fighting game Melty Blood: Type Lumina is available on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC. While Phantasy Star Online 2: New Genesis is also available on the same platforms, only the PC version is universally available worldwide. The Nintendo Switch cloud version only appears in Japan, while the Xbox One and Xbox Series X versions appear elsewhere worldwide. Sega will launch the global PS4 version of the MMORPG on August 31, 2022. The post Melty Blood: Type Lumina Content Will Appear in PSO2 New Genesis appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Sunday, July 31, 2022 10:00 AM 
It has happened. Fate/Grand Order has added a new and iconic character from Tsukihime to its playable roster. The new Servant is known as Archetype Earth, the first FGO character based on a major Tsukihime cast member. She joins the roster as part of the game's ongoing 7th Anniversary celebration in Japan. FGO and Tsukihime aren't exactly strangers to each other - both franchises share a conceptual framework and many world-building elements. Until recently, though, Lasengle opted to keep Tsukihime more at arm's length, making only indirect references to its characters. For example, the FGO NPC Sion Eltnam Sokaris is based on the Melty Blood alum Sion Eltnam Atlasia. The playable character Ryougi Shiki is from The Garden of Sinners, a precursor work to Tsukihime. That changes now, as Archetype Earth is based on Tsukime's most iconic heroine: Arcueid Brunestud. The famed poster girl of Type-Moon's breakout work joins the roster as a 5-Star MoonCancer-class Servant. The name "Archetype Earth" is the formal name of Arcueid as Princess of the True Ancestors. She's more regal and distant, in contrast to the down-to-earth manner of "regular" Arcueid and the malevolence of "Red Arcueid". First appearing in Melty Blood Actress Again, Archetype Earth emerges from Arcueid's subconscious during her story route. In FGO, her Noble Phantasm recalls Arcueid's ultimate weapon: Marble Phantasm. She connects her will to the world itself, and uses it to manifest her home, the Millennium Castle Brunestud. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=op-nsZn7ijE Though Archetype Earth is a first for FGO, it isn't the first time a Tsukihime character has appeared in a Fate franchise game. Arcueid appeared as a Berserker-class Servant in Fate/Extra. Archetype Earth is available in the Japanese edition of FGO. Tsukihime - A Piece of Blue Glass Moon - is a remake of the original, and is available on PS4 and Nintendo Switch in Japan. The English edition of FGO celebrated its 5th Anniversary this year with the addition of Caster Altria. FGO heroine Mash Kyrielight is also set to join Melty Blood Type Lumina. The post FGO Gets Tsukihime Alum Archetype Earth for 7th Anniversary appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Sunday, July 31, 2022 9:00 AM 
Project Lumina has announced that Neco-Arc and Mash will join the roster of playable characters as DLC in Melty Blood: Type Lumina. They will be available for free in the summer. Project Lumina will reveal the concrete date that players can get Neco-Arc and Mash in the near future. [Thanks, Famitsu!] These characters were first teased in June 2022. As a reminder, the first two DLC characters (Neco-Arc and Mash) will appear in Summer 2022, and two more will appear in Winter 2022. All four DLC characters will be free. Neco-Arc is a recurring joke character from Tsukihime. Her identity as an official meme will actually play into her fighting style. She has a lot of moves that can cause random effects, which means players who main her will need to rely on luck and fast thinking. [gallery columns="1" ids="932930" link="file"] Mash is the deuteragonist and heroine of Fate/Grand Order, and she is a close-range fighter with her shield. According to the article, she is a beginner-friendly character. Mash can also use her shield to guard herself as she rushes towards the enemy. [gallery columns="1" ids="932931" link="file"] Aside from the new DLC characters, there will be an update to the story mode. Aside from new scenarios that will let players experience a 'boss rush,' Project Lumina powered up the story sequences. There will be 2D pixel art characters moving on the screen to act out what is happening in the story. Melty Blood: Type Lumina is available on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Windows PC. It is unknown exactly when the Mash and Neco-Arc DLC, as well as the story mode update, will appear in Melty Blood: Type Lumina. The post Mash, Neco-Arc Will Be Free DLC in Melty Blood Type Lumina appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Sunday, July 31, 2022 8:00 AM 
During the July 31, 2022 live-stream to commemorate the 7th anniversary of FGO, Lasengle revealed some upcoming updates to the Japanese version of the game. These updates include new missions, a change to the battle system, an update to the animations, and a free 5-star Craft Essence. For the Craft Essence, you can able to choose one from seven. Kaleidoscope will be one of the choices. [Thanks, Famitsu!] One of the major changes to the battle system is a buff to the Quick cards. Choosing a Quick card first in a Chain will buff every card's Critical Star generation, as opposed to the first one. Quick Chains also now give 20 Critical Stars. For reference, Quick Chains used to grant 10 critical stars. As well, if you form a Chain with a card from each type, it will cause a Mighty Chain. If you form a Quick, Buster, and Arts Chain with the same Servant, it will cause a Mighty Brave Chain. These Chains increase the performance of your cards. A final change to the battle system is that you will be able to use a support Servant's Noble Phantasm even if you are not friends with that person. This makes it easier for newer players that might have an unappealing Servant lineup to take advantage of fellow players' Servants to get through difficult content. Additionally, maxing out ascensions for your Servants will grant you Crystallized Lore. Crystallized Lore is required to upgrade Servants' skills to the highest level, and is usually only available as a reward from events and challenge quests. During the FGO 7th Anniversary stream, Lasengle also teased the new swimsuit Servants for 2022. The SSR will be Lady Avalon, or Proto Merlin. Gareth will also appear as an SR Servant. It is unclear what classes Lady Avalon and Gareth will be in their swimsuit versions. As for the male Servants, you will be able to unlock swimsuit outfits for Asclepius, Yan Qing, and Ashiya Doman. Archetype Earth (Arcueid) and Xu Fu will also be the 7th Anniversary commemoration Servants. Fate/Grand Order is available worldwide on mobile devices. The English version of the game is running the Servant Summer Camp event, which will end on August 1, 2022. The post FGO Announces Changes to Battle System at 7th Anniversary appeared first on Siliconera. |
Google has denied rumors that it will be shutting down Google Stadia. The rumor started when the Twitter account Killed by Google posted a tweet about Stadia's future. The tweet states that a regional manager for Google had tipped them off that Google is "beginning their exit plan". It also claims that Google would warn users 30-60 days before the service was discontinued sometime this Summer. However, it looks as though the source for this rumor was not reliable. The official Stadia Twitter account replied to a user asking if Stadia is going to close down soon. Google's response was "Stadia is not shutting down. Rest assured we're always working on bringing more great games to the platform". And with that, the short-lived rumor comes to an end. Given the questionable source and lack of proof, the claim of Stadia closing was always dubious. Even so, it was convincing enough that some Stadia users were concerned about the future of the pl... 
After failing to comply with new privacy regulations, Indonesia has banned/blocked multiple digital platforms from the country, including Steam. As reported by Reuters, the list of digital platforms blocked include Epic Games Store, Steam, PayPal, and others. This legislation, introduced in November of 2020, gives authorities the ability to take down content, as well as platforms that do not disclose certain user data to the government. It is unknown if the companies were aware of the law before the ban, or if a moral stance against the laws was taken. Before this, Amazon, Google, and Facebook all met the deadline (July 20) for registering their licensing rules. Indonesia has recently come under fire for these rules in its own country. As Reuters reported, many view this as targeting certain criticisms against the government — and highly intrusive. There is also no guarantee that Indonesian law enforcement would not be able to access user info for use against citizens. Ind... 
