Within the last few years, video game industry layoffs have unfortunately become more commonplace. In 2023, we saw near-weekly layoffs across the entire industry. When the dust had settled, at least 6,000 jobs across publishers, developers, and other video game-related companies had happened. Sadly, it appears 2024…
Fortnite has exploded in popularity—growing larger than ever—thanks in large part to the well-received OG Season and recent updates that added games like Lego Fortnite into Epic's free-to-play shooter. Now data shows players on Xbox and PlayStation have spent more hours in Fortnite than Grand Theft Auto V, Roblox, EA…
Starfield, Bethesda's enormous, 1,000-planet wide space RPG, arrived on September 6, 2023. After years of considerable hype, the game has had somewhat of a rocky first year. That said, Bethesda has promised new features, critical bug fixes, and more in 2024 and it's opening the door for Steam users to beta test those n…
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III's Season 1 Reloaded goes live on Wednesday, January 17. As is customary for CoD's Reloaded remix, the game will see a bunch of new guns, a new map, some new modes, and so much more. Here's what you can look forward to when it all arrives next week.
Peter Griffin, from the animated Fox show Family Guy, was added to Fortnite recently. But he wasn't the same rotund father fans known from the series. Instead, he was turned into a strange buff version of Peter Griffin. And now, series creator and Griffin voice actor Seth MacFarlane has seemingly revealed why the…
When Sony launched its the PS portal, it's portable PS5 streaming device, on November 15, 2023,it swiftly sold out. With the ability to stream your favorite PS5 games to a handheld device anywhere you can get a decent internet connection, it's no surprise that the Portal has been so popular with PS5 owners.
Take a breather, support players, Overwatch 2 is about to roll out an update that will make your job much easier. It looks like every character will get the self-healing passive ability once reserved for support players in the hero shooter's ninth season. It's certainly an interesting choice.
How does Palworld cooking work? In any game with a hunger meter in the user interface, there's always a big question about where that food comes from. In Palworld, you can capture or kill Pals for food. Sometimes, they drop meat, which you can cook, but other times, you may need to get a bit more creative. Then, there's the other principal question: do I have to eat my Pals?
Of course, if you put your mind to it, you can eat anything once, but Palworld has some creatures that we've already seen as edible out of the 100 Palworld Pals in the early access build. Since this is an open-world game where gadgets are vital to your progress, there are ways to make food and prepare it for consumption. So before the Palworld release date drops, here's everything we know about Palworld cooking.
Half-Life 2 never seems to leave the limelight, standing the test of time as one of the most iconic PC games ever. The 2004 sci-fi shooter sequel is still one of Steam's most top-rated entries, and its creative community of modders isn't showing any signs of slowing down either. One creator took it upon himself to craft a new Resident Evil 2 remake using Valve's Source engine, producing a standalone mod for HL2 that's almost too good to believe.
Cocoon is stunning, standing as one of last year's most genre-defining indie games. Geometric Interactive and Annapurna Interactive's little puzzle adventure is not only aesthetically pleasing, but it's also a good blend of challenging mysteries to solve and exploration-based gameplay. If you haven't experienced its whimsical worlds, you can give the Limbo and Inside developer's game a go now for cheap during its limited-time Steam sale.
Where are the Prince of Persia The Lost Crown Spirited Sand Jars? These esoteric sand vials contain fragments of a mysterious prophecy, and breaking them open is essential if you want to assemble the fresco in the Lower City and complete the 'Three Princes Prophecy' side quest.
There are 30 PoP The Lost Crown Spirited Sand Jars scattered throughout Mount Qaf in total, and many are tucked away behind hidden walls and tricky platform game puzzles. Thankfully, we've scoured each biome in Prince of Persia The Lost Crown to locate them all, so you can complete the prophecy and collect your rewards – from rare PoP The Lost Crown amulets to essential weapon upgrades.
Dark and Darker is the bearer of frequent updates, and its latest one is no small news. Ironmace Games' new patch brings back a much-missed feature, the spectator mode, while also changing up drop rates and stats across the board. Hotfix 28 is quite an important one, with adjustments to the recently added map rotation system as well as much more. If you haven't been in-game for a while, this may be your call to dive back into its dark, fantastical depths.
Where are the Prince of Persia The Lost Crown Mystery Chests? These secret treasure chests are hidden in each biome of Mount Qaf, and can only be identified by the black plinth marking their location. Each Mystery Chest requires you to complete an environmental puzzle to reveal them and retrieve the loot within. While some Mystery Chest puzzles are relatively straightforward, others can be real headscratchers.
There are nine PoP The Lost Crown Mystery Chests, and their rewards can range from health and weapon upgrades to rare Prince of Persia The Lost Crown amulets. Aside from the loot inside, the PoP The Lost Crown Mystery chest puzzle solutions are also required to complete 'The Architect', one of the many PoP The Lost Crown side quests. Thankfully, we've tracked down every Mystery Chest and solved each environmental puzzle, so you can retrieve their rewards as you explore the platform game's expansive map. Here's every Mystery Chest in Prince of Persia The Lost Crown and how to open them.
11-year-old game Resident Evil Revelations recently released an update that apparently introduced DRM, only to swiftly roll back the patch after complaints from players that it reportedly caused performance issues. Capcom aren't giving up that easily on their vow to crack down on mods, though.
Bandai Namco revealed that the Sand Land game will release on consoles on April 26, 2024. Alongside the reveal of the release date, Bandai Namco also released a brand new trailer for the Sand Land game showing off the vehicles that can be used while playing.
The Sand Land game is based on the original manga created by Akira Toriyama and ran in Weekly Shonen Jump. The game will focus on the storyline of the manga, but features a brand new story elements and characters. The trailer shows off a new character named Ann who joins Beelzebub on his journey in search of the Legendary Spring and works as a mechanic.
The Sand Land game release date trailer shows off the different vehicles that can be used to travel and fight enemies in the desert. Some of the vehicles includes a hovercar, hovertank, off-road vehicles, and giant robots. The hovercar can be used to travel across the wetlands and rough terrain. Hovertanks can be used to battle against enemies and can be equipped with long-range weapons. Vehicles can be customized with different parts and weapons which are obtained while exploring dungeons and finding treasure chests. Visual customizations can be made on vehicles using skins and decals. Skins and decals can be purchased from the paint shop in-game.
The brand new trailer announcing the release date for the game can be viewed below:
Universal Studios Japan and Nintendo announced that people will be able to get an early look at the new Donkey Kong Country expansion of the Super Nintendo World area of USJ. The Play Wild challenge event will allow participants to experience some of the features and activities that will appear at the theme park.
While there is not much information on what the Play Wild challenge will consist of, we know that part of the challenge will involve hitting question mark blocks and congas in real life. The Play Wild challenge event will be held on February 15-16 in Tokyo, February 22-23 in Nagoya, and March 7-8, 2024 in Fukuoka. Reservations are now open until January 24, 2023.
Approximately 3,000 people will be able to participate in the challenge. In addition, participants who share images and videos of the Play Wild event on X (formerly Twitter) will enter a lottery with the chance of winning special advance tickets to the Donkey Kong Country area.
Nintendo originally announced their intention to add a Donkey Kong area to Super Nintendo World USJ back in September 2021. It was recently confirmed that the new expansion would appear in Spring 2024, and USJ also teased one of its upcoming attractions.
The new Donkey Kong Country zone will be available at the Super Nintendo World area of Universal Studios Japan in Spring 2024.
I hope you enjoy doing nothing because today you will do just that. Or don't, I mean… Oh well, here goes "Nothing". Why play something when you can play Nothing? Have you ever been playing a game so much that you are so connected with it that when a loved one comes and asks you "What are you playing" and you respond "Nothing"? Well, you are in luck, because you can quite literally play Nothing and save yourself a heated discussion on why you are spending some much time in front of the screen! On January 10, 2024, Pixelatto, an independent game creator, released "Nothing", a free "psychological horror" game on Steam in which you do absolutely nothing. Well, this piece is about to get confusing. Image: PC Invasion You see, while many are trying to complete soulslike games with a Guitar Hero guitar or a Dance Dance Revolution mat, or big AAA companies aim and struggle to come up w...
PC Invasion - FeedDDD Friday, January 12, 2024 6:27 PM
The game is over! Well, not quite, there are still some things to do. Here is everything you can do after completing the Pokémon Scarlet and Violet epilogue. Pokémon Scarlet and Violet: What to do after completing the epilogue Usually, when you finish a Pokémon game's story, the amount of content that is left to experience and complete is massive. Some would say that the real Pokémon game starts after finishing the main storyline. Well, both Pokémon Scarlet and Violet and its DLCs fit the bill perfectly, but the epilogue – taking into account its epilogue nature – has less content than its predecessors. However, there are still a bunch of things you can do before you can get that 100% completion. Here is everything you can do after completing the Pokémon Scarlet and Violet epilogue. Face Arven, Penny, and Nemona, again Image: Game Freak If you have played a bunch of Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, you know that you can battl...
PC Invasion - FeedDDD Friday, January 12, 2024 3:13 PM
Yes, there are as many Nemona battles as stars in the sky, but at least this one is "special." Get it? No? I see myself out. Here is how to beat the Nemona Special Coach battle in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. Pokémon Scarlet and Violet: How to beat Nemona Special Coach battle To face Nemona in a Special Coach battle, you will first have to complete the base game's story as well as both The Teal Mask and The Indigo Disk story. Not only that, but you need to beat the Academy Ace Tournament at least once. Once you do that, you will unlock the epilogue, which you need to complete as well. After all of that, and hopefully, before hell freezes over, you will be able to initiate this battle by visiting the Loyalty Plaza. Be sure to level up your Pokémon beyond level 90 because her Pokémon will cap at level 86. Image: Game Freak Nemona Special Coach battle Pokémon (If you chose Sprigatito) Nemona PokémonTypeLevelAbilityMovesetWeak...
Gaming Instincts – Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism Friday, January 12, 2024 3:11 PM
The team at Vanillaware at Atlus West have released a new trailer for their upcoming tactical RPG Unicorn Overlord that highlights the exploration elements of the title.
Take a breather, support players, Overwatch 2 is about to roll out an update that will make your job much easier. It looks like every character will get the self-healing passive ability once reserved for support players in the hero shooter's ninth season. It's certainly an interesting choice.
Sonic the Hedgehog fans should be wary of spoilers making their way online, as storyboards allegedly from the upcoming Sonic the Hedgehog 3 live-action movie and the upcoming Paramount+ series Knuckles have leaked on social media.
Suicide Squad devs have confirmed that gear score, one of the more controversial elements of Rocksteady's upcoming co-op shooter, has been entirely removed from the game. However, the game is still very much a looter-shooter.
An adaptation of Akira Toriyama's desert-themed, post-war manga, Sand Land arrives as an open-world action RPG on April 25, 2024. If you're a fan of Toriyama's other work, such as Dragon Ball, you'll want to keep an eye on Sand Landas we get closer to the release date. And as it seems to offer a story laden with…
Late last night, in one of my typical TikTok fugue states in which my eyes and ears are bombarded by Doja Cat songs and Twitch clips and Real Housewives fancams until my crippling anxiety evaporates, I stumbled upon something curious. It looked innocent enough—just some concert footage from DJ Fred Again's November…
Confession time: When I need a break from video games, my go-to comfort food is the trashiest reality TV possible. My knowledge of Real Housewives and Vanderpump Rules lore may go even deeper than that of Final Fantasy or Yakuza. So you can only imagine my delight when I found out that one of the newest cast members…
We don't have a release date for the next season of Netflix's live-action adaption of The Witcher yet, we do have an official piece of casting news. Legendary actor Laurence Fishburne, best known as The Matrix's Redpill Resistance operative Morpheus, will join the fantasy drama series as the vampiric barber-surgeon…
Sony's PlayStation 5 is selling pretty dang well in Japan, according to new data that shows it was the second best-selling console in the country last year, behind only Nintendo's Switch. Even more impressive, the PS5 sold better than any PlayStation console has ever sold since the PS2 in 2004. That's also an…
After announcing it in late December 2023, Italian luxury fashion house Fendi has dropped its three-way collaboration with Japanese streetwear icon Hiroshi Fujiwara and The Pokémon Company (TPC). The crossover is expensive as hell, but that's not all that surprising since this is Fendi, a high-end designer with nearly…
After playing through Pokémon Scarlet and Violet's epilogue I can definitively say I was mostly let down by the Hidden Treasure of Area Zero DLC. Don't get me wrong, the "Mochi Mayhem" episode is an hour of silly fun alongside some of the best characters to grace the games' Paldea region, but it is just that—silly,…
Reviews for Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown are popping up ahead of the game's official launch on January 18. With 14 hours under my belt, I can tell you that it's great, as evidenced by the myriad positive scores on aggregators Metacritic and OpenCritic. But during previews something puzzling was uncovered: One of…
Hey, it's a three-day weekend here in the States. That means more time for gaming. This weekend we're taking a look at some shooters, both of the traditional "Boomer Shooter," and team-based variety. But that's not all. Ahead of Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth's release on January 26, now's a good time to visit an…
Cherry Xtrfy just launched a range of new gaming peripherals at CES 2024, including keyboards and microphones, but the most striking is the addition of new 8KHz wireless gaming mice that have the lowest latency yet of any gaming mouse. The Cherry Xtrfy M64 Pro and M68 Pro are the rodents in question and as well as having stunning performance we can attest to their comfortable shapes and incredibly low weight too, as we got a chance to try them.
Overwatch 2 is at the heart of its eighth season, Call of the Hunt, which features new tank hero Mauga, the return of the popular prop hunt game mode, and soon, the 2024 return of the shooter's annual Lunar New Year event. Blizzard is now making an experimental change to its quick play mode for a limited time only amid the season's chaos, hoping to "learn what changes to Overwatch 2 you enjoy the most." Get ready to witness an even flashier flashpoint and more this weekend.
Starfield had a massive launch, but its player numbers have recently been dwindling on Steam as fans await new content and improvements. Bethesda gave us a brief glimpse of its future plans for the interstellar RPG a little while back, and we can now expect to see one of the planned patches come to fruition soon in what the developer says is Starfield's "biggest update yet."
It's a good time to be a Warhammer 40k fan, with grimdark co-op FPS Darktide seeing a resurgence in popularity and the upcoming Space Marine 2 looking rather excellent. But 2023's best Warhammer game, for my money, is Warhammer 40k Boltgun, a romping boomer shooter packed with pixel-art Chaos Marines and daemons galore. The Doom-style FPS captures the pulse-pounding speed and weight of the franchise perfectly, and it's yours at a sizable saving on Steam right now.
Looking at the virtual reality gaming landscape right now, it's hard not to be excited about what the future holds. We're long past the point of it being just a gimmick thanks to multiple triple-A releases, and the Pimax Crystal is a product that is only for that hardcore VR crowd who will want to play every experience using the best equipment possible. If you can look past a nauseating price point, the quality it has is unmatched by any VR experience you can buy right now.
I don't mean to highlight its price as a negative, because the Pimax Crystal is a premium piece of hardware that was made without compromises to reduce its price or target a wider audience. Simply put, the Pimax Crystal is one of the best VR headsets you can buy right now and has the most stunning display, with no one else coming close. I would just be cautious in recommending it to anyone who isn't familiar with the hobby and wants to exercise caution over the cash they're willing to spend.
What are the available Palworld jobs? While we have incredible animals like giraffes and elephants roaming around doing absolutely nothing, it's fair to say they could contribute something to society. In Palworld, Pals are used to benefit local communities by generating electricity or mining ore, doing things that need to be done. No matter how big or small the Pal is, if there's something that needs doing, you can be sure the best creature is on the job.
In this utopian Palworld society, Pals have more work to do than most humans. Remember, some of the creatures in the Palworld Paldeck are capable of breathing fire, creating electricity, and spitting huge amounts of water, they're beasts capable of performing miracles. Don't feel too bad putting your Pals to work, there are much worse alternatives in this open-world game like being turned into food.
January 12, 2024: We've added three new codes to our list of free dice links.
How can I get Monopoly Go free dice links? The classic board game has made its way to a free-to-play format, and you'll be doing laps of the board collecting houses and hotels and completing a variety of multiplayer minigames along the way.
You can't get far in Monopoly Go without dice rolls, which you'll have a limited amount of, to begin with. To earn more dice rolls, you'll need to log in daily to collect bonuses, invite your friends to the game, or progress further. If you don't want to spend your hard-earned money on more dice, you can use dice links for the board game instead. Now, let's run down all the currently active Monopoly Go free dice links for today.
In the battle between the MOBAs, there's one god-like battle arena game that continues to contend for its seat on the MOBA throne. The mythological queen to League of Legends' fantasy king, as it were, Smite has earned its place on the dais. Now, a decade on from the original Smite release date, Smite 2 has been announced.
It's been a great week for gaming laptop deals, and the hits just keep coming with the Acer Nitro 5, currently at its lowest-ever price on Amazon - just $949.99 - meaning you're saving over $350.
Some of the best gaming laptops on the market right now are priced well over the $1,000 mark, and it can often be difficult to find any good specs for less than this. That's why it's important to keep an eye on deals, and the underrated Acer Nitro 5 is a steal for under $1,000.
Final Fantasy 16 producer and FF14 director Naoki Yoshida says he thinks a younger generation of developers should make the next Final Fantasy game, rather than it being left in the hands of "the same old guys." The beloved game developer spoke to PlayStation's Shuhei Yoshida for the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences, where he discussed the future of the legendary Japanese RPG series and what it might look like.
Combining the best of the entire RTS game genre, including Command and Conquer, StarCraft 2, Warcraft 3, and more, Stormgate, the debut work from Frost Giant Studios, finally has its first open beta on the way. Founded by former Blizzard developers, who also worked in conjunction with Chris Metzen before his return to World of Warcraft, Frost Giant successfully funded Stormgate after a hugely popular Kickstarter campaign. Now, the classic-style strategy game will be playable for the first time during Steam Next Fest.
When is the Monster Hunter Wilds release date? With the recent resurgence of Monster Hunter World and Rise in late 2023, there's naturally a bit of a buzz regarding the first sixth-generation Monster Hunter. The first trailer had a hunter riding his bird friend as they desperately tried to escape a horde of armored beasts like Simba weaving between the stampeding wildebeest in The Lion King.
However, this tease is all we're getting for now, and we will be waiting a long time to play Monster Hunter Wilds. That said, we're already seeing some big changes to the RPG game series, not least of which is the sheer level of mobility the mount offers. With the power offered by new-generation consoles, perhaps this will be the first in the series to properly embrace a fully open-world game concept. We can all but estimate here, but here is everything we currently know about the Monster Hunter Wilds release date, and all the game features shown off so far.
What are the Palworld map locations? Pocketpair's peculiar Poké-like takes place on Palpagos Island, a tropical paradise full of critters just waiting to be caught and put to work. If you're looking to survive the wilds, then you need a strong sense of direction – or a good map of all the locations and areas in the region. Thankfully, we can help you with the latter.
Pocketpair has confirmed the Palworld map size is approximately 16 square kilometers, and we may well see Palpagos Island expand further as more content is added to the open-world game. Our quest to catch all 100 Palworld Pals is set to take us through active volcanoes, mystical ice caves, and expansive woodland areas. Here are all the map locations in Palworld we know of so far, with more to follow once the Palworld release date arrives.
With The Sims 4 nearly a decade old and Project Rene still deep in development, Paralives is one of the most exciting games like the Sims that we've got our eyes on. Its gorgeous art style and relatable representation of its Parafolk have me eager to see the life simulation game finally arrive in our hands, and as it gears up for a big 2024, developer Alex Massé and Paralives Studio showcase the hundreds of new items the art team has crafted over the past twelve months.
What is the best PC controller? These gamepads push our buttons - in a good way – as they each offer a great alternative to the classic clicking and clacking of the mouse and keyboard. We at PCGamesN spent hours testing all these buttons, triggers, pedals, and more, to ensure we're giving you the best advice on which controller to use for your PC games.
Keyboard and mouse purists may scoff at the notion that a controller should be part of any gaming PC setup, but it's hard to deny the convenience and ergonomic benefits these perky pads offer. In this list, we've included options for the best PC steering wheels, the best PC joysticks, and much more, covering every type of controller for every type of gamer.
It's not usually easy to get excited about a PSU cable, but the simple design of this new be quiet! right-angled GPU cable at CES 2024 looks like it could solve several problems in one fell swoop. At the top of the list is, of course, reducing the risk of your new Nvidia graphics card melting with its adherence to the new 12V-6x6, but we also like the individually sleeved cables.
It's been a whirlwind week for the MSI Claw A1M. It leaked before an official reveal at CES, is has since gone through a round of testing at the hands of the press at the Las Vegas show. We know its price and specs, but we now also know new models are already being worked on.
We were lucky enough to go hands-on with the device for our MSI Claw preview, live at CES 2024. We're impressed by MSI's tech - especially as a comparison to the ROG Ally - but it falls short of being a true Steam Deck competitor.
11-year-old game Resident Evil Revelations recently released an update that apparently introduced DRM, only to swiftly roll back the patch after complaints from players that it reportedly caused performance issues. Capcom aren't giving up that easily on their vow to crack down on mods, though.
It's been almost seven years since Danganronpa V3 brought a close to the trilogy of gloriously twisted murder-mystery visual novels. With several of the series' biggest names going on to release their next game as an exclusive for the Nintendo Switch, there's room for a properly good successor on PC. Or why not successors? Last year's exceptional Paranormasight is definitely in the running, and 2024 is already looking promising thanks to the reveal of Kumitantei: Old-School Slaughter.
A fan-made remake of Team Fortress 2 in the Source 2 engine has been cancelled after the ambitious project, three years in the making, ran into a double-whammy of recent development issues and a legal takedown from Valve.
The two best parts of a Choose Your Own Adventure book are when you initially feel out the shape and paths at the start, and then when you grow tired of dead-ends and faff and just start cheating. The same seems true for Reigns: Three Kingdoms, the latest in the decision-making story series, which arrived on PC (and Switch) yesterday after a year exclusive to Netflix's inexplicable library of mobile games. Once again, you will decide the fate of a kingdom (this time, China) by swiping left or right on binary decisions. Unfortunately, you cannot cheatily flick through to interesting parts nor use your finger as a bookmark. Not even if you jam it into a USB port. I did try.
God-battling free-to-play MOBA Smite is getting a full sequel, with an alpha test due to kick off this spring. The revamped rebuild will overhaul the decade-old game with fresh visuals and gameplay changes, but developers Titan Forge promise it won't replace the original game.
Crystal Story: Dawn of Dusk is a combination of words that screams "predatory mobile fantasy RPG" but that's very much not my takeaway from the game's demo. Out tomorrow on Steam for free, this first instalment in the Crystal Story series blends the cuddly feel of a 16-bit Zelda with the dream logic of a Yume Nikki. There's a splash of Undertale's crackpot experimentalism to the writing and certain battles, as well.
Those are big comparisons to invoke, and I don't expect Crystal Story to measure up to them. But it's a lot better than I was expecting from a game whose title had me picturing microtransaction-sodden levelling systems and a pouty elf in a bikini.
Readers, I have good news and bad news. Good news. My mum got me an incredible hot chocolate maker for Christmas this year, as well as a jumbo-sized box of grated chocolate sachets to use with it. It is, quite honestly, one of the best presents she's ever given me, and it now means I can have perfect hot chocolate, practically on tap, in as little as three minutes. Hotel Chocolat's Velvetiser, you're an absolute beauty. Honestly, it is so much better than anything I could make, or have made, myself. It's fast, easy, wonderfully smooth and properly delicious hot chocolate. Crucially, the machine itself is also dead simple to clean. Gone are the days I have to worry about washing up a pan of semi-encrusted milk afterwards, or faffing about with how many teaspoons of hot chocolate powder to plonk in because I accidentally coughed and sent half of it flying all over the counter.
Bad news. This recent revelation of such effortless, technological ease has instantly kneecapped any excitement or desire I might have had for Kitfox Games' new tea brewing sim they announced at the tail end of last year, or indeed any other kind of drink-based simulation game (of which there seem to be an increasing number of these days). Whereas before I might have revelled in the step-by-step process of making a perfect hot drink, I have now been fully converted to the ways of instant button pressing and time-saving efficiency. After all, why dwell on the manual minutiae when machinery is king?
Kainga Colon Seeds of Civilization is one of many, many games that I didn't get on with for some reason or other in early access, and has subsequently sat in my pile long past a 1.0 release, neglected and generating a vague guilt. It's come some way since, but its edges are still a little rough, with (usually) minor bugs and limited feedback wrapped up in a design that's influenced, of course, by that vague shimmering ghost of Rogue (and thus is innately bad and you're all just wrong). So yeah, it kinda has problems.
The latest IAS Game Maker's Notebook Podcast (embedded in the full article below) is a chat between Sony's head of independent development Shuhei Yoshida and Square Enix producer, designer and director Naoki Yoshida, one of the big fish behind Final Fantasy 14 and Final Fantasy 16. In a lengthy discussion of the latter game, the two Yoshidas chew over the familiar topic of where Final Fantasy should go next. According to Naoki Yoshida, it might be time for an injection of new blood.
CES 2024 is drawing to a close, and honestly, I'm not especially sad to see it go. While the Las Vegas tech megashow is probably the closest thing PC gaming hardware has to an E3 (and in some ways surpasses it, given CES still exists), this year's event has been characterised by an all-too-credulous obsession with AI nonsense. Not the fun/useful DLSS kind that makes your games run faster – more the kind that replaces actual creative work with dubiously-sourced robot media. Icky stuff, even by Vegas standards.
Mercifully, not everyone was there to flog Stable Diffusion boxes and imaginary ChatGPT friends, so there is actually some interesting new kit to look forward to in 2024. I've rounded up the highlights here, along with some of the more questionable AI-based showings – because they may well merit discussion, even if that discussion amounts to "Is this a good idea?" followed by "No."
In addition to resolutions, new years are always good times to start thinking about the futureeeee, with or without a wibbly oooOOOoooOoooOh intonation. Predictions about what's going to happen over the next 12 months abound, some of which are more spurious (and light-hearted) than others. But such near-sightedness is not what we're concerning ourselves with today in this latest edition of Ask RPS. We're looking much further ahead, thanks to this excellent question from MiniMatt.
They ask: "Dearest RPS, This being your 150th year in PC gaming [Ed: this question was submitted in 2023], please tell us what the next 150 years hold? Will VR become universal? Will the desktop PC box survive or will we all move over to laptops & steam decks? Will industry continue to consolidate or fragment? Get yer nostradamus on and tell us Peter Molyneux's future.
Indeed, a lot has changed in the world of PC gaming since our esteemed founding in 1873, so come and find out our best guesses for what the future holds below.
KEMCO RPGs can get a bad rap sometimes, due to things like how often they come up, how some look like they're made with RPG Maker software, and a few being titles that rely heavily on JRPG tropes. Metro Quester, a KEMCO title developed by Thousand Games, is something rather unique, and it's one of the most special games from the company I've played.
Going into Metro Quester, it's important to note that it isn't a typical "save the world" JRPG. It isn't bright and colorful, filled with NPCs and towns. It's a far more streamlined and driven experience. The world basically ended, with people heading into the ruins of Tokyo to search for food and resources as long as the Purification Fuel will allow them to explore down in this new "dungeon" with the monsters. You'll go in knowing you need to get 100 fuel each week to keep going, checking established food cites and moving to discovered campsites in places like Otemachi and Ginza, and surviving monster encounters until you're forced to return to camp, regroup, and try again.
Screenshot by Siliconera
To help enforce the fact that circumstances are dire, the only color comes from the characters themselves. Each one is based on art from Bastard creator Kazushi Hagiwara. Their equipment and role determines their skills. The action points for each action determine which can be used in battle, since you can only set up to five points worth of actions and each ability can only be used once. You can only level up when at an established camp after having earned enough experience during a run and if you have enough resources.
The Action Points and battle system is fascinating. So say my Mobile Police Gotz could use the Stronghold ability for two points to raise everyone's defense by one, his Kicking Mitt shield has a one point Iron Wall action to raise his defense by two, and I could have him use Vanguard for one AP to draw enemies' Hate and be more likely targeted that round. That accounts for all his actions one turn. You set all actions before any turn begins, which means you could essentially set an auto-battle for an entire fight. Once everyone's up-to-three actions are locked in, you start the round and watch as it all plays out without further input. Since some people, like the Professor with bombs that require energy loading, batteries, and explosives, and the Buddhist that needs medicines for the three-action-point healing prayer, require adjusted actions each turn, it does become about strategy and choosing when to act.
Every adventure starts in Tokyo, with the mandate that you need to get 100 food within seven days to keep going. You then explore a completely uncharted dungeon, with areas revealing themselves as you walk up to them. Some are dirt-covered patches, which you can dig through. You may find ruins with food or monster nests with food, items, or additional monsters. Keys can come up as you explore, allowing you to open doors to new parts of ruins. Happening upon campgrounds allows you to sacrifice some food to move your base camp hub, so you can start from that spot next time to reach new areas. Fighting monsters drops food, and getting to new locations may mean extra resources.
It means that every time you head into Metro Quester, you're making the sorts of decisions you might not normally encounter in KEMCO RPGs or JRPGs. Do you go to established spots where you found food before or chart new areas? That enemy icon is red, showing it's a stronger and more dangerous one than a blue one. Do you approach it? Do you go to a different camp or stay where you are? If you happened to find new weapons, do you equip them or use them to modify some other piece of equipment you're using because you appreciate its skills? I constantly asked myself exactly how comfortable I was pushing my limits each time.
Screenshot by Siliconera
Also, there's a satisfying challenge in Metro Quester that isn't present in some of the other KEMCO RPGs I've played. It gives me the same sense of satisfaction as Dungeon Encountersand Etrian Odyssey Origins Collection, two other "demanding" Switch games I love. Especially since the game auto-saves. You can't undo your decisions. You have to live with your choices and hope you made the right ones that won't result in you eventually failing because you weren't properly managing your resources, equipment, and time.
If someone does like other KEMCO RPGs and JRPGs that are more story-focused though, Metro Quester probably won't be a good fit. You aren't getting to really know your party of characters and dealing with established individuals as you go through a rich story. This is about survival. It's about making your party and characters your own as you determine which equipment makes them most effective, who will be the most useful on your runs, and decide which people need to be with you or left behind.
Screenshot by Siliconera
If someone were to ask me which KEMCO games to play, Metro Quester would not just be on that list. It would absolutely be somewhere near the top of it. While the nature of it means it isn't going to be for everyone who typically goes for every KEMCO RPG, it's a really special and challenging experience that makes you think about all your actions.
Metro Quester is available on the Nintendo Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X. Quester is available on the PC via Steam.
Atlus shared a new Persona 3 Reload trailer that focuses on some of the locations and activities that players can explore on Tatsumi Port Island. Players can buy useful items and equipment, work part time, spend time with Social Link characters, or hang out to improve their social skills at various locations.
Paulownia Mall is home to Karaoke Mandragora and a game center, where players can go to raise social stats. The mall also houses the Club Escapade. The trailer shows the main character talking to a Fortune Teller new to Persona 3 Reload. There seem to be three different types of fortunes that players can request to have read, and one of them has the effect of increasing the chance of encountering rare enemies when exploring Tartarus.
The Aohige Pharmacy and Police Station allow players to purchase recovery items and equipment respectively. Shinshoudo Antiques has been renamed to Mayoido Antiques. At the antique shop, players can transform Personas into powerful equipment, and exchange materials found on Tartarus for useful items or skill cards. Be Blue V allows players to reorganize party members Persona skills. In Persona 3 and P3FES, Be Blue V was an accessory store, and a healing store that improve character conditions from tired to great in P3P.
The trailer also features the Iwatodai Station food court, where players can participate in eating challenges at Wild-Duck Burger, or enjoy ramen at the Hagakure restaurant. Players can also hang out with Social Link characters at various Paulownia Mall and Iwatodai food court locations to progress in their stories.
You can check out the new Persona 3 Reload trailer focused on different locations in the game here:
Nintendo announced that the Golden Sun games will be coming to Nintendo Switch Online. Both of the GBA games will be added as part of the Expansion Pack tier on January 17, 2024.
Golden Sun originally released for the Game Boy Advance in 2001. It was developed by Camelot Software Planning, best known for their work on Mario Golf and Mario Tennis, as well as developing the Shining Force series with Sega. Golden Sun featured a group of teenagers with magical powers known as Adepts. Its sequel, Golden Sun: The Lost Age was released in 2002 in Japan and 2003 in North America and Europe. It featured the antagonists of the first game as its protagonists.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SgrL9deh8yk
The Golden Sun series is highly praised, considered by many to be some of the best RPGs ever made. As well as their original release, both games have previously appeared on the Virtual Console for the Wii U eShop. The first game's protagonist, Isaac, also made an appearance in the Super Smash Bros series as an Assist Trophy. A third game in the series, Golden Sun: Dark Dawn, released for the DS in 2010. This game has not been re-released on any other Nintendo system.
Like other GBA games, the Golden Sun games will be releasing as part of the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack service. Other GBA games released for the service so far have included the Super Mario Advanceseries and Fire Emblem: The Blazing Blade.
Both Golden Sun GBA games will be released for Nintendo Switch Online on January 17, 2024.
Yakuza: Like a Dragon has gone the way of the RPG, adding in a new leveling system that works in tandem with jobs that can be assigned to individual characters. Naturally, some characters excel in areas where others do not. That is why I've broken down what are the best jobs in Yakuza: Like a Dragon for each character are. This will include the secret character that can only be obtained through the Ichiban Confectionary business management minigame and party members found at the end. Please keep in mind there will be some major spoilers going forward.
Best Jobs For Your Party Members in Yakuza: Like a Dragon
Best Jobs for Ichiban Kasuga
The protagonist and hero of the story, Ichiban is arguably at his best when using the Hero job. It is unlocked through basic story progression, and you'll know once you've unlocked it since Ichiban will be carrying around his signature bat from them on. What makes the Hero job so great for Ichiban? Well, the best weapon for this class adds additional hits onto Ichiban's normal attacks. Reserving MP can really make a difference in specific boss fights, so allowing Ichiban to get in those extra hits without any MP cost makes it invaluable.
The Hero Job also has the Hero's Vigor skill, which can potentially revive a fallen ally and is unlocked at level 8. This, combined with other healing skills that are unlocked as you level up this job, make him a great supporter.
However, if you want to mix it up, Ichiban also makes a great Breaker. The Breaker provides a great lineup of buffs that will affect your entire team, which makes it quicker to deal out or mitigate damage. In addition, Essence of the Rolling Mixer has a chance to remove all debuffs applied to Ichiban and Essence of Breaknight Dance has the chance to restore all of a party member's HP.
It is not advised that you assign any kind of "tanking" role, like the Enforcer, to Ichiban, since you never want him to be taking the brunt of enemy attacks. Why is that? Well, when Ichiban goes down, you immediately fail an encounter. This means that your total yen will be halved or you'll need to start a dungeon over if you're not willing to fork over enough cash to respawn.
Best Jobs for Nanba
Nanba will shine as a "black mage" or offensive caster. The Fortuneteller and Host Jobs work great with Nanba's high magic stat. Both the Fortuneteller and Host can apply debuffs to enemies while dealing devastating area of effect damage with their respective Essence skills. So even when you take him into combat against enemies that resist debuffs like Cold, Charm, or Burned, you can still rely on him to dish out some decent damage.
An ideal support class for Nanba is the Musician, which is a hybrid offensive and healing Job. The Musician can heal over time and deal both physical and magical damage with specific skills. It is great for boss fights that deal loads of damage and, combined with Nanba's Character Level skills like Healing Powder and Healing Bolus, it makes up for the raw healing power the Musician lacks.
Best Jobs for Koichi Adachi
Adachi's best job, hands down, is the Enforcer. Combined with his Slick Tongue skills, Adachi can draw the attention of enemies away from more vulnerable party members. The Enforcer specializes in defense, with most of the passive stat boosts the Job gains from leveling up allotted to either defense or HP. Adachi can be assigned other jobs, but they don't really stand out when compared to how effective the Enforcer is. Even if you can't draw the attention away from enemies (as some bosses are immune to the Enrage status effect), skills like Paralysis Prongs can stun an enemy, giving you enough time to recover if the status ends up sticking.
Best Jobs for Saeko Mukoda
Unfortunately, the best job for Saeko in Yakuza: Like a Dragon is the Idol. While you can assign her other jobs like Night Queen or even the Matriarch if you've purchased the DLC, her natural healing stat is the best in the game. You can't get very far in Yakuza: Like a Dragon without a proficient healer and, while you could argue that Nanba can make up for the difference with his Character Level skills, Saeko can really make or break fights. It can be devastating when she goes down, so make sure to protect her so she can keep your party topped off.
Best Jobs for Joon-gi Han
Joon-gi starts with arguably one of the best jobs in Yakuza: Like a Dragon. Hitman does an amazing job of dealing damage, and I suggest just keeping him in that role once he joins your party. You can absolutely cheese some fights with this job, since his skills can hit more than one enemy at a time and deal loads of damage. This is great for boss fights in the late game and in the Underground Arena. In addition, his skills can exploit enemies' weaknesses, so all in all he's probably one of the best damage dealers in the game. You'll want to swap out Nanba for him if you're struggling in a fight.
You can also assign him the Enforcer job, if you'd rather have him taking hits for your party instead of Adachi, but again, he really works best as a damage dealer. However, he can shoulder this role too if you just want him around and aren't really interested in swapping to Adachi in battles.
Best Jobs for Tianyou Zhao
Another incredible damage dealer, Tianyou Zhao shines as a Gangster. Tianyou starts with this job and excels at it. He has one of the highest attack stats in the game, so keeping him on the offensive is the best course of action. His Essence skills will also hit all enemies on the field, dealing an absurdly large amount of damage. It can make some group encounters quick work.
However, similar to Joon-gi, you will get him extremely late in the game. Which is a shame, since he quickly becomes an invaluable member of your party. So much so that I had difficulties deciding on who I wanted to take with me into combat immediately. Thankfully, you don't really have to choose, since you can swap party members freely during combat.
Like Ichiban, you can assign Tianyou the Breaker job if you're not interested in keeping him as a Gangster. Due to his high attack stat he can dish out damage quickly and efficiently as a Breaker and provide a bit of support to your team. Paired with his high attack stat and the agility of the Breaker, Tianyou can usually attack faster than the enemy. This makes random encounters quicker even with auto-battle on.
Best Jobs for Eri Kamataki
The secret party member, Eri Kamataki, unlike Saeko in that she excels in dealing damage. You can assign her the Idol job too, but her natural healing stat isn't as high as Saeko's. Similar to Tianyou and Joon-gi, one of her best jobs in Yakuza: Like a Dragon is the one she starts with: the Clerk. The Clerk deals great slashing damage and the best weapon for it allows her to ignore the opponent's defense. If you're looking for an offense-based female party member, Eri will fill that role nicely.
She also deals some great damage with the Night Queen job. The Night Queen specializes in single-target attacks, but she can provide some support with the Essence of Titillating Claws that can restore an ally's HP. Similar to the Musician, the Night Queen is more of a hybrid class that can deal physical and magic damage. Assigning this Job to Eri will put her in more of a supportive role.
Best Job Combinations in Yakuza: Like a Dragon
Certain jobs are most certainly better than others in Yakuza: Like a Dragon, with some party members able to carry you well into the late hours of the game. Below we've listed some of the best job combinations. Keep in mind there will be some mainstays here just because of how strong they are.
This is arguably one of the best job combinations in the game once you get Zhao and Joon-gi as party members. Ichiban has a heal skill as Hero which means he can get Zhao and Joon-gi through the worst of it while Adachi tanks.
Enforcer (Ichiban), Gangster (Zhao), Hitman (Joon-gi), Night Queen (Saeko) or Matriarch (Saeko, DLC)
Another great job combination that relies on Joon-gi and Zhao, and with Saeko added to the mix this combination is pure DPS. It's risky, but worth it for sweeping through enemies with ease.
Hero (Ichiban), Enforcer (Adachi), Chef (Nanba), Idol (Saeko)
This is arguably the best job combination for the early game, since you will have all of these characters within the first few hours, along with their jobs. Saeko can provide some great support while Nanba acts as the party mage.
An all-rounder combination. With Saeko or Eri healing, Ichiban tanking and Nanba and Joon-gi dealing damage, your party will be durable enough to withstand the most challenging fights. Even if it isn't the most DPS heavy.
Yakuza: Like a Dragon is immediately available on Xbox One, Xbox Series X, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5 and PC. You can check out our review of Yakuza: Like a Dragonhere.
Atlus and Vanillaware's latest Unicorn Overlord gameplay trailer focuses on going over how liberating regions by exploring them will work. It's framed as an information lecture by former Kingdom of Cornia Holy Knight Josef for former Cornian Prince Alain.
The main focus is overworld exploration with the Liberation Army. During the game, players will go to different areas in Fevrith, dealing with enemies, improving their army, and preparing to face the Empire of Zenoira. Quests involve helping people in the area to gradually liberate it and take part in battle stages for rewards. There will also be Settlements that can be freed by taking part in battles. When you do this, you can then gain the help of those people and visit their stores. It's also possible to invest in the towns and forts to improve them.
Here's the "Josef's Guide to Exploration" Unicorn Overlord trailer showing off gameplay and what it's like to explore and liberate regions.
We've seen lots of Unicorn Overlord screenshots ahead of the game's debut too. Some of them showed off the different allies we'll encounter, as well as story segments and fights with them. Others went over the relationship-building elements, as players will build up a rapport with the members of their army and see how working together will improve different people's performance.
Kadokawa Game Linkage released the Game Sword Art Online 10th Anniversary Official Design Works book. It marks the tenth anniversary of the video game series based on Reki Kawahara's light novel, which started with the Japan-exclusive PSP entry Infinity Moment in March 2013.
Despite the title, this book only covers games that were released between 2018 and 2023. This is because Kadokawa had already published the 5th Anniversary Official Design Works book in March 2018, which covered titles released in the first five years.
The 10th-anniversary book contains key visuals of the games and artwork of game-original characters. It features titles from all kinds of platforms ranging from consoles and mobile to arcades. The console games featured here are Fatal Bullet, Alicization Lycoris, and Last Recollection. It also includes the arcade game Deep Explorer, which ran from 2019 to 2023. Kadokawa completes the list with mobile games like Memory Defrag, Integral Factor, Unleash Blading, and Variant Showdown.
The 456-page book also includes special interviews in Japanese. Other than a single interview with the series author Reki Kawahara, there is also a three-way discussion between Bandai Namco's game producer Yousuke Futami, Aniplex's anime producer Masami Niwa, and the editor Kazuma Miki. Each interview is six pages long.
This book is available for purchase physically and digitally. But while the digital version is available via BookWalker, only people who are physically residing in Japan are able to purchase it. People living outside Japan can instead buy the physical book via Amazon Japan at ¥4,950 (~$34) while its stocks last.
The Game Sword Art Online 10th Anniversary Official Design Works book is now available for purchase.
Bandai Namco released the latest Tekken 8 character trailer, this time focused on Alisa Bosconovitch. The company showed off the android girl's fighting style ahead of the game's release on January 26, 2024.
The trailer features Alisa facing off against Lars Alexandersson, referencing her debut as his sidekick in the Scenario Campaign of Tekken 6. She shows off her trademark chainsaw arms and explosive punches.
The second part of the Alisa character trailer features a special intro with Jack-8, the other robot on the Tekken 8 roster. The fight that follows shows of more of Alisa's Heat moves, including her hitting an opponent with her head as a Heat Engager. Her Rage Art is also shown, where she kicks her head at her opponent, which then explodes. The fight takes place on a new stage too, set on an asteroid in orbit around Earth.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ND8nZ0NSt00
While the entire base roster for Tekken 8 has been revealed, each character will still be receiving an individual trailer showing off their moveset. Lee Chaolan, Zafina and Devil Jin are the only characters left to receive trailers.
Here is a full list of every other trailer released so far:
HoYoVerse released a trailer for Honkai: Star Rail titled "Supreme Idiocy" that stars Dr Ratio. He will be a new addition to the cast in the second phase of Version 1.6, with his banner appearing on January 17, 2024, and every player will get him for free..
The trailer features narration from Dr Ratio talking about wanting to cure ignorance and tackle the "symptoms of dullness." Meanwhile, the footage shows him using his Mold of Idolatry Technique, summoning statue versions of himself to distract the Infernal Fire. This references the "Mundane Troubles" Trailblaze Continuance from Honkai: Star Rail Version 1.6, which features Dr Ratio as a prominent character. The trailer ends with him using his Ultimate on a group of enemies before walking off.
Here is the full trailer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-UZ0n2Tqiyw
Dr Ratio was announced to be part of Honkai: Star Rail Version 1.6, releasing as part of phase two. He is an Imaginary element character on the Path of The Hunt, attacking with a thick book and a series of complex calculations. His banner, Panta Rhei, will also feature the four-star characters Sushang, Natasha and Hook. In addition to appearing on this banner, Dr Ratio will also temporarily be released for free to every player. He will be given out via the in-game mail system, provided you've hit a certain point in the story.
Honkai: Star Rail is out now for the PC, PS5 and mobile devices. Dr Ratio will be making his debut on January 17, 2024.
FREEing started accepting pre-orders for its upcoming 1/4 scale figure of the Hololive VTuber Usada Pekora. The large figure will cost ¥44,000 / $290.99. People residing outside Japan can also place orders on web stores that support international shipping, such as AmiAmi and Good Smile Company Online Shop.
The large scaled figure will have an overall height of around 460mm (~18.11 inches), measured from the pedestal to the rabbit ears. The company will base the figure on an image by Pekora's official illustrator Hagure Yuuki. The pre-painted PVC figure will also accurately depict Pekora's outfit, which includes realistic net tights on her legs.
Here are some of the sample images for the 1/4 scale figure of Usada Pekora:
Image via FREEing
Image via FREEing
Image via FREEing
Image via FREEing
Image via FREEing
Image via FREEing
Image via FREEing
Image via FREEing
Usada Pekora is a VTuber who made her debut in July 2019. As of January 12, 2024, she is the third most-followed Hololive VTuber after Gawr Gura and Houshou Marine at around 2.41 million subscribers.
In late December 2023, Pekora notably won a ¥500,000 (~$3,500) bet for the final race of her favorite horse Titleholder. She received a payout of more than three times worth the bet at ¥1,650,000 (~$11,600) as a result.
FREEing will officially release its 1/4 scale figure of Usada Pekora in March 2024. Good Smile Company and AmiAmi will ship the figure internationally in August 2024.
HoYoVerse announced the release date for the Honkai Impact 3rd 7.2 update that brings the Fu Hua battlesuit and more events. It will launch on January 18, 2024.
We already knew about the Fenghuang of Vicissitude battlesuit for Fu Hua. A past trailer showed some cinematic and gameplay footage of the S-rank suit. The latest reveal during the update showcase noted it is also a BIO type that deals Fire DMG to opponents when in its two different stances.
While there's no story update here, as it is preparing more for Part 2 in February 2024, there are some events on the way. One is Wild Phoenix Chase with Fu Hua and Senti, which includes a Reverist Calico Pardofelis costume. Another is the interlude The Star Which the Moon Gazes Upon. That's paving the way to 7.3 and part 2. It will star newcomers Coralie and Helia. However, we'll also see Bronya, Durandal, and Kiana during it as they teach them.
Here's the new 7.2 The Wings to Mars Honkai Impact 3rd update trailer showing off the battlesuit and going over the new activities coming in this patch. At the 1:38 mark we get to see the Tonight's My Time costume for Shigure Kira's Sugary Starburst battlesuit. Things close out at 1:43 with a tease of things to come in 7.3 following the interlude with Coralie and Helia.
Sega announced the release dates for the Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth original soundtrack. It will be available both physically and digitally, but each version will have a different release date. The digital version will appear on music streaming platforms first on the same day as the full game's release. Wave Master will handle the physical album, which will be released on March 6, 2024.
The Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth original soundtrack will contain over 130 tracks. The physical album will have six CDs with a total cost of 7,700 yen (~$53). The album will also come with a booklet containing liner notes from the game's production staff members.
Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth will appear as the series' eighth mainline game. It is known in Japan as Ryu Ga Gotoku 8, but the development studio's director Masayoshi Yokoyama noted that the team changed the English title to follow up with Ryu Ga Gotoku 7 getting localized into Yakuza: Like a Dragon.
Infinite Wealth will take place in Hawaii, and the Western release will come with Japanese and English voice options. The game will also feature Kei, a character modeled after the YouTuber kson. The latter will also provide voiceovers for the characters in both Japanese and English.
The digital soundtrack for Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth will be available on the same day Sega releases the game for PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X, Xbox One, and PC on January 26, 2024. Wave Master will release the original soundtrack's physical album later on March 6, 2024.
Square Enix announced a new FFXIV Meister Quality Hydaelyn and Zodiark figure, which will include a Sundering Emote when it launches on March 20, 2024. It costs 39,600円 (~$273) in the Japanese e-Store, and pre-orders will open in the US store at 8am PT/11am ET on January 12, 2024.
This figure depicts the two Primals together. The two are perched alongside each other on a decorative stand. It will stand at nine inches tall, and be over a foot wide. It is also expected to weigh over three pounds. As usual, it's a PVC figure.
Here's the first set of four photos of the upcoming figure Square Enix shared with us:
Image via Square Enix
Image via Square Enix
Image via Square Enix
Image via Square Enix
As for the included emote, people get Sundering in FFXIV via the Ballroom Etiquette - Apocalyptic Charades purchase bonus. Here's the trailer showing how that will look in game.
This is not the first Meister Quality figure for the game. There was also one for Omega too. It stood at about six inches tall and showed its alternate form displaying two beings. That showed up back in January 2021. Like this one of the two Primals, it also included an emote.
Final Fantasy XIV is available for the PS4, PS5, and PC. It is also headed to the Xbox Series X in Spring 2024. The Dawntrail expansion is in development for a Summer 2024 release. ThisMeister Quality Hydaelyn and Zodiark figure will release on March 20, 2024.
Bushiroad announced that the third part of the second Hololive collaboration in BanG Dream! Girls Band Party will launch on January 13, 2024. This crossover will feature the Japanese VTubers Houshou Marine, Yukihana Lamy, and Shishiro Botan.
Here is a general summary of the new content featuring the Hololive VTubers:
Houshou Marine - Crossover gacha character illustration with Ran Mitake and performance of "Ahoy!! We Are the Houshou Pirates" with Afterglow
Yukihana Lamy - Crossover gacha character illustration with Mashiro Kurata and performance of "Fleur" with Morfonica
Shishiro Botan - Crossover gacha character illustration with Tomori Takamatsu and performance of "Lioness' Pride" with MyGO!!!!!
And heres a gallery of all the images so far shared with us:
Image via Bushiroad
Image via Bushiroad
Image via Bushiroad
All players who log into the game during the collaboration period will obtain 500 stars and special crossover stamps. However, the stamps featuring the original Hololive VTubers are only usable during the period. Only the stamps of BanG Dream characters cosplaying as the VTubers will remain available permanently.
Image via Bushiroad
The three Hololive VTubers will also hold a live stream dedicated to BanG Dream! Girls Band Party on their respective YouTube channels. Houshou Marine's stream will appear first on Saturday, January 13, 2024. Yukihana Lamy will be the second one on Sunday, January 14, 2024. The third and final stream by Shishiro Botan will launch on Monday, January 15, 2024. All streams on each day will go live at 7 PM JST / 5 AM ET.
This batch will be the last of the three-part collaboration that Bushiroad revealed in December 2023. The first part, which featured Minato Aqua, Tokino Sora, and Shirakami Fubuki, ran from December 6, 2023, to January 8, 2024. The second part starring Hoshimachi Suisei and Sakamata Chloe launched on December 23, 2023, and is still available until January 22, 2024.
It is yet to be known whether the new crossover content will also be available on the global English server or not. The latest Hololive collaboration featured on the English website appeared in April 2023. That was the month when Hololive English's IRyS made an appearance with her song "See the World."
BanG Dream! Girls Band Party is available worldwide on Android and iOS mobile devices. Bushiroad is now the sole maintainer of the mobile game after the development studio Craft Egg announced its withdrawal. The third part of the second Hololive collaboration event will be available on the Japanese server from January 13, 2024, to February 12, 2024.
Yes, there are as many Nemona battles as stars in the sky, but at least this one is "special." Get it? No? I see myself out. Here is how to beat the Nemona Special Coach battle in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. Pokémon Scarlet and Violet: How to beat Nemona Special Coach battle To face Nemona in a Special Coach battle, you will first have to complete the base game's story as well as both The Teal Mask and The Indigo Disk story. Not only that, but you need to beat the Academy Ace Tournament at least once. Once you do that, you will unlock the epilogue, which you need to complete as well. After all of that, and hopefully, before hell freezes over, you will be able to initiate this battle by visiting the Loyalty Plaza. Be sure to level up your Pokémon beyond level 90 because her Pokémon will cap at level 86. Image: Game Freak Nemona Special Coach battle Pokémon (If you chose Sprigatito) Nemona PokémonTypeLevelAbilityMovesetWeak...
PC Invasion - FeedDDD Friday, January 12, 2024 2:40 PM
The hunt for the perfectly rolled weapon in Destiny 2 can be wrought with frustration and tedium. Fortunately, weapon shaping allows you to create the guns of your dreams, but where do you start with over 100 to choose from? These are the best craftable weapons in Destiny 2. Related: How to get the Navigator in Destiny 2 How to craft weapons in Destiny 2 Image: PC Invasion Just so we're all on the same page, let me quickly explain how to craft before I start recommending specific weapons. Players gain the Deepsight ability during the introductory missions in the Witch Queen DLC. Deepsight is required for weapon shaping and is available to all players. Once Deepsight is earned, you can visit the Enclave on Savathun's Throne World. You typically need 5 of the same Weapon Patterns to craft a gun. You've probably noticed you have some weapons with a red border around them, and you can collect the patterns from these. ...
PC Invasion - FeedDDD Friday, January 12, 2024 2:30 PM
Godhuman in Blox Fruits is one of the greatest Fighting Styles out there. Although it's insanely difficult to get, it'll be worth the hassle as you devastate your foes. Godhuman requirements in Blox Fruits Before you can acquire Godhuman from the Ancient Monk in Blox Fruits, you have to prove that you are worthy of it. To unlock the ability to purchase Godhuman, you must first acquire 400 mastery on the following Fighting Styles: Superhuman Death Step Electric Claw Sharkman Karate Dragon Talon Screenshot: PC Invasion There is no simple way to put it, this is a hard task that requires a lot of grinding. You'll have to earn these Fighting Styles and continually use them to level up their mastery (their level). Once you have achieved this feat, you can find the Ancient Monk to purchase this fighting style. Related: How to get and use the Fist of Darkness in Blox Fruits Getting Godhuman in Blox ...
PC Invasion - FeedDDD Friday, January 12, 2024 2:25 PM
It's been 10 years since SMITE 1 came out in March 2014, and now, in 2024, we're getting SMITE 2. In hopes that this isn't an Overwatch 2 situation, I'm going to detail all the differences between SMITE 1 and SMITE 2 that warrant the sequel. What are all the SMITE 2 changes? SMITE 2 takes the beloved action MOBA formula forged in SMITE 1 to the next level. For those that want the TL;DR, here are the main bullet point changes that SMITE 2 brings: Related: How to sign up for Smite 2 Alpha playtest General Camera movement improvements Ability animation improvements Revamped visual FX for every ability Snappier character animations Redesigned UI Unreal Engine 5 DualSense integration Gameplay Gods aren't classified as physical or magical. All Gods can purchase Strength or Intelligence items to customize their playstyle. Active Abilities, or Relics, are becoming items. Any God can buy an Item to ...
PC Invasion - FeedDDD Friday, January 12, 2024 2:15 PM
Since Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown is almost ready to be released in the wild, you can get ahead of everyone else by playing it before it launches. If you don't have access to the Sands of Time and can't fast-forward till January 18, this guide will show you how to play Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown early. Prince of Persia The Lost Crown: How to play it early Often developers have their games released in portions. For example, if you got the premium edition of Diablo 4, you could play it sooner than someone who didn't get that version. For Ubisoft's 2.5 D platformer, it's a little different. Rather than pre-ordering a certain version, you must subscribe to Ubisoft Plus, this will give you access to the game on January 15. This is the developer's answer to Microsoft's Game Pass. However, if you are a PlayStation or Nintendo Switch owner, this option isn't available to you as Ubisoft Plus is only on PC and Xbo...
Gaming Instincts – Next-Generation of Video Game Journalism Friday, January 12, 2024 3:11 PM
What's up all? Giveaway.su holds a new giveaway for Brick Exorcist. Let's hear them out. Restock! We have added 3000 new Steam keys for "Brick Exorcist" game to the giveaway on our website for users who had not received it before! We hope you will grab a key today. Steam level 5 is required to get the key from this giveaway. A few words about Brick Exorcist "Brick Exo...
I hope you enjoy doing nothing because today you will do just that. Or don't, I mean… Oh well, here goes "Nothing". Why play something when you can play Nothing? Have you ever been playing a game so much that you are so connected with it that when a loved one comes and asks you "What are you playing" and you respond "Nothing"? Well, you are in luck, because you can quite literally play Nothing and save yourself a heated discussion on why you are spending some much time in front of the screen! On January 10, 2024, Pixelatto, an independent game creator, released "Nothing", a free "psychological horror" game on Steam in which you do absolutely nothing. Well, this piece is about to get confusing. Image: PC Invasion You see, while many are trying to complete soulslike games with a Guitar Hero guitar or a Dance Dance Revolution mat, or big AAA companies aim and struggle to come up w... 
The game is over! Well, not quite, there are still some things to do. Here is everything you can do after completing the Pokémon Scarlet and Violet epilogue. Pokémon Scarlet and Violet: What to do after completing the epilogue Usually, when you finish a Pokémon game's story, the amount of content that is left to experience and complete is massive. Some would say that the real Pokémon game starts after finishing the main storyline. Well, both Pokémon Scarlet and Violet and its DLCs fit the bill perfectly, but the epilogue – taking into account its epilogue nature – has less content than its predecessors. However, there are still a bunch of things you can do before you can get that 100% completion. Here is everything you can do after completing the Pokémon Scarlet and Violet epilogue. Face Arven, Penny, and Nemona, again Image: Game Freak If you have played a bunch of Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, you know that you can battl... 
Yes, there are as many Nemona battles as stars in the sky, but at least this one is "special." Get it? No? I see myself out. Here is how to beat the Nemona Special Coach battle in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. Pokémon Scarlet and Violet: How to beat Nemona Special Coach battle To face Nemona in a Special Coach battle, you will first have to complete the base game's story as well as both The Teal Mask and The Indigo Disk story. Not only that, but you need to beat the Academy Ace Tournament at least once. Once you do that, you will unlock the epilogue, which you need to complete as well. After all of that, and hopefully, before hell freezes over, you will be able to initiate this battle by visiting the Loyalty Plaza. Be sure to level up your Pokémon beyond level 90 because her Pokémon will cap at level 86. Image: Game Freak Nemona Special Coach battle Pokémon (If you chose Sprigatito) Nemona PokémonTypeLevelAbilityMovesetWeak... 
The hunt for the perfectly rolled weapon in Destiny 2 can be wrought with frustration and tedium. Fortunately, weapon shaping allows you to create the guns of your dreams, but where do you start with over 100 to choose from? These are the best craftable weapons in Destiny 2. Related: How to get the Navigator in Destiny 2 How to craft weapons in Destiny 2 Image: PC Invasion Just so we're all on the same page, let me quickly explain how to craft before I start recommending specific weapons. Players gain the Deepsight ability during the introductory missions in the Witch Queen DLC. Deepsight is required for weapon shaping and is available to all players. Once Deepsight is earned, you can visit the Enclave on Savathun's Throne World. You typically need 5 of the same Weapon Patterns to craft a gun. You've probably noticed you have some weapons with a red border around them, and you can collect the patterns from these. ... 
Godhuman in Blox Fruits is one of the greatest Fighting Styles out there. Although it's insanely difficult to get, it'll be worth the hassle as you devastate your foes. Godhuman requirements in Blox Fruits Before you can acquire Godhuman from the Ancient Monk in Blox Fruits, you have to prove that you are worthy of it. To unlock the ability to purchase Godhuman, you must first acquire 400 mastery on the following Fighting Styles: Superhuman Death Step Electric Claw Sharkman Karate Dragon Talon Screenshot: PC Invasion There is no simple way to put it, this is a hard task that requires a lot of grinding. You'll have to earn these Fighting Styles and continually use them to level up their mastery (their level). Once you have achieved this feat, you can find the Ancient Monk to purchase this fighting style. Related: How to get and use the Fist of Darkness in Blox Fruits Getting Godhuman in Blox ... 
It's been 10 years since SMITE 1 came out in March 2014, and now, in 2024, we're getting SMITE 2. In hopes that this isn't an Overwatch 2 situation, I'm going to detail all the differences between SMITE 1 and SMITE 2 that warrant the sequel. What are all the SMITE 2 changes? SMITE 2 takes the beloved action MOBA formula forged in SMITE 1 to the next level. For those that want the TL;DR, here are the main bullet point changes that SMITE 2 brings: Related: How to sign up for Smite 2 Alpha playtest General Camera movement improvements Ability animation improvements Revamped visual FX for every ability Snappier character animations Redesigned UI Unreal Engine 5 DualSense integration Gameplay Gods aren't classified as physical or magical. All Gods can purchase Strength or Intelligence items to customize their playstyle. Active Abilities, or Relics, are becoming items. Any God can buy an Item to ... 
Since Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown is almost ready to be released in the wild, you can get ahead of everyone else by playing it before it launches. If you don't have access to the Sands of Time and can't fast-forward till January 18, this guide will show you how to play Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown early. Prince of Persia The Lost Crown: How to play it early Often developers have their games released in portions. For example, if you got the premium edition of Diablo 4, you could play it sooner than someone who didn't get that version. For Ubisoft's 2.5 D platformer, it's a little different. Rather than pre-ordering a certain version, you must subscribe to Ubisoft Plus, this will give you access to the game on January 15. This is the developer's answer to Microsoft's Game Pass. However, if you are a PlayStation or Nintendo Switch owner, this option isn't available to you as Ubisoft Plus is only on PC and Xbo...