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GamersHeroes Friday, February 14, 2025 11:46 PM Honkai: Star Rail Version 3.1 Launching February 26       The team at HoYoverse announced that Honkai: Star Rail's Version 3.1, dubbed "Light Slips the Gate, Shadow Greets the Throne," is set to release February 26.   The post Honkai: Star Rail Version 3.1 Launching February 26 appeared first on GamersHeroes.

GamersHeroes Friday, February 14, 2025 11:20 PM Tides of Annihilation 11-Minute Gameplay Showcase Released       Following a successful reveal during Sony's State of Play showcase earlier this week, Eclipse Glow Games has revealed a new gameplay video for their upcoming action-adventure Tides of Annihilation. The post Tides of Annihilation 11-Minute Gameplay Showcase Released appeared first on GamersHeroes.

GamersHeroes Friday, February 14, 2025 9:51 PM SUGOI Showcase 2025 Submissions Closing February 21       It's the final countdown - there's just one week left for indie game developers to submit their titles for March 27's SUGOI Showcase 2025. The post SUGOI Showcase 2025 Submissions Closing February 21 appeared first on GamersHeroes.

GamersHeroes Friday, February 14, 2025 9:04 PM The AVGN "Nerd Room" MAGFest 2025 Game Booth Design Video Released       Making an appearance at MAGFest 2025 earlier this year, The Nerd himself is going to take you back to the past to show how Retroware collaborated with Mega Cat Studios to recreate the iconic "Nerd Room" at the signature event. The post The AVGN "Nerd Room" MAGFest 2025 Game Booth Design Video Released appeared first on GamersHeroes.

GamersHeroes Friday, February 14, 2025 8:32 PM ELDEN RING NIGHTREIGN Valentine's Day Trailer Released – Yes, Really!       FromSoftware and Bandai Namco are feeling the love this Valentine's Day with their live-action trailer for ELDEN RING NIGHTREIGN. The post ELDEN RING NIGHTREIGN Valentine's Day Trailer Released – Yes, Really! appeared first on GamersHeroes.

GamersHeroes Friday, February 14, 2025 8:19 PM Hugs & Hearts Returning to Hello Kitty Island Adventure       Just in time for Valentine's Day (you did remember, right?!), the Hugs & Hearts festival has returned to Sunblink and Sanrio's Hello Kitty Island Adventure. The post Hugs & Hearts Returning to Hello Kitty Island Adventure appeared first on GamersHeroes.

GamersHeroes Friday, February 14, 2025 8:16 PM Honor of Kings Valentine's Day Event Now Live       Romance is in the air in Honor of Kings -  both TiMi Studio Group and Level Infinite are showing their love for the community with a number of skins and events to celebrate Valentine's Day today. The post Honor of Kings Valentine's Day Event Now Live appeared first on GamersHeroes.

Kotaku Friday, February 14, 2025 5:25 PM Kotaku's Weekend Guide: 5 Games We've Got A Hot Date With       Happy Valentine's Day! Hope you've got a hot date lined up. If not, well, uh, we can't exactly help you with that. We can, however, play matchmaker when it comes to helping you pick out a game to spend some quality time with. Read more...

PCGamesN Friday, February 14, 2025 7:09 PM System Shock 2 remaster has a new name, and soon it'll have a launch date too       While Half-Life often steals the show and sits fondly in more players' memories, let's not forget that fellow sci-fi FPS series System Shock was just as brilliant and revolutionary. The original game recently got a full remake decades on from when it first opened the FPS genre up to levels of freedom previously unseen. System Shock 2 was equally excellent, and a remaster (rather than a full remake) has been in the works for a while now. Well, that wait may soon be coming to an end. While I sadly don't have a release date to share with you right now, what I can say is that developer Nightdive will be revealing it next month during GDC. Continue reading System Shock 2 remaster has a new name, and soon it'll have a launch date too MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best FPS games, Best old games, Best RPG games

PCGamesN Friday, February 14, 2025 6:04 PM Cities Skylines becomes a minimalist, tile-based city builder in Dawnfolk       At a first glance, you might not think that Dawnfolk is a city builder. With its tile-based approach and minimalist art style, it perhaps resembles a cozy puzzler more than a Cities Skylines rival. However, you'd be wrong. Built by a single developer, Dawnfolk takes a more streamlined approach to city building while retaining a lot of the deep strategic gameplay fans of the genre love, and it's just launched on Steam. Continue reading Cities Skylines becomes a minimalist, tile-based city builder in Dawnfolk MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best city building games, Best indie games, Best PC games

Siliconera Friday, February 14, 2025 7:00 PM Ironmouse and Kson Sanrio Virtual Festival 2025 Performances Teased       Sanrio has teased the upcoming performances of Vshojo Vtubers Ironmouse and Kson in the Sanrio Virtual Festival 2025. The company posted two videos of the artists rehearsing on social media alongside the dates of their performances. Ironmouse will perform on 2 timeslots at the Sanrio Virtual Festival 2025, slated for February 23, 2025 set for at 10:30pm and 6:30pm Japan Standard Time (JST,) with another performance scheduled for March 9 at 1:30pm JST. Her Time Shift performance is set for March 17 at 7:30am JST. Additionally, Ironmouse's rehearsal video features the artist performing "Sour Taste" while wearing an outfit featuring a Cinnamoroll head accessory. You can check out the video here: https://twitter.com/SANRIO_Vfes/status/1889600336924418335 Similarly, Kson's performances on February 23, 2025 will happen at 11pm and 7pm JST. Her March 9 performance is scheduled for 2pm JST, while her March 17 Time Shift performance will happen at 8am JST. Meanwhile, the Kson rehearsal video for Sanrio Virtual Festival 2025 shows her performing a cover of Kenshi Yonezu's Vocaloid song "Matryoshka," released under his Hachi alias. Here's a look at Kson's rehearsal: https://twitter.com/SANRIO_Vfes/status/1889962729034711177 The Sanrio Virtual Festival is running until March 9, 2025. Ironmouse and Kson will perform on February 23 and March 9, 2025 at different timeslots, and Time Shift broadcasts are set for March 17, 2025. The post Ironmouse and Kson Sanrio Virtual Festival 2025 Performances Teased appeared first on Siliconera.

Siliconera Friday, February 14, 2025 6:00 PM Phoenix and Edgeworth Get Big Shoulders in Ace Attorney Merchandise       Capcom revealed a new Ace Attorney merchandise collaboration with Japanese artist sattou (@sattou0 on Twitter) that gives big shoulders and tiny heads to Phoenix, Edgeworth, and other iconic characters in the series. The goods are now available from the Cap Kuji Online website until March 21, 2025. One entry for the lottery costs 880 yen (or about $5.78) while a a set of 10 entries costs 7,920 yen (~$51.99.) The goods are expected to release in late June 2025 and are only available in Japan so far. The S and A prizes only feature Phoenix Wright and Miles Edgeworth, with the B prize adding Apollo Justice, and the C prize also including Godot to the aforementioned characters. Meanwhile, prizes D and E include Maya Fey and the Judge for a total of 6 variants. Here are the goods included in the new Ace Attorney merchandise collaboration giving big shoulders to the characters, alongside the chances of getting the items: S Prize – PC Cushion (2 available) with a 1/100 chance A Prize – Deskmat (2 available) with a 5/100 chance B Prize – T-shirt (3 available) with a 9/100 chance C Prize – Hairclip (4 available) with a 10/100 chance D Prize – Clear file folder & postcard set (6 available) with a 35/100 chance E Prize – Pin badge (6 available) with a 40/100 chance And here's how the goods look like: S Prize S Prize A Prize A Prize B Prize B Prize B Prize C Prize C Prize C Prize C Prize D Prizes E Prizes Images via Capcom The new Ace Attorney merchandise collaboration with artist sattou is now available from Capcom's Cap Kuji Online website until March 21, 2025. The last Ace Attorney entry to appear was the Ace Attorney Investigations Collection on the Switch, PS4, Xbox One, and PC. The post Phoenix and Edgeworth Get Big Shoulders in Ace Attorney Merchandise appeared first on Siliconera.

Destructoid Friday, February 14, 2025 10:07 PM Who does John Noble play in Severance Season 2?       Even though John Noble had been cast for Season 2 of Severance, we've yet to see his character as we reach the halfway point of the season. Well, sorta. Let's talk about who John Noble plays in Severance Season 2. Image via Apple TV+ Who is John Noble's character? In the Severance Season 1 finale we learn that Burt's outie is actually married. We only see a glimpse of his husband when Irving's innie approaches Burt's house and bangs on the door. In Season 2 Episode 5, Burt confronts Irving about what happened in the finale of Season 1, before informing him that his husband, Cecil Fields, was upset about the events that transpired. Despite the trouble caused, Burt invites Irving over to his house to have ham with him and his husband Fields. It looks as though the Fringe and Lord of the Rings actor will be taking over the role of Burt's husband Fields in Severance Season 2. We haven't seen him just yet, but it looks likely we will in Severance Season 2 Episode 6 which is titled Atilla. So was John Noble cast as Fields in Severance Season 1? Nope! Even though we got a glimpse of Fields at the end of Severance Season 1, it was very brief and was not played by John Noble. In Season 1, Fields was portrayed by Arthur Brooks, who also appeared in Independence Day, Beverly Hills 90210, Newhart, and more. Interestingly, if you look back at the Season 1 finale, Arthur Brooks as Fields actually looked like it could have been John Noble. As such, it's likely the deal for Noble to play as Fields in Season 2 was already done, but he was unavailable to film the brief scene in the finale which led to them picking someone who could look close enough that it wouldn't be a complete shock to the audience to see him again in Season 2. Based on Irving accepting the invitation from Burt to come over and join him and Fields for ham, we might be finally seeing John Noble in Severance Season 2 pretty soon! The post Who does John Noble play in Severance Season 2? appeared first on Destructoid.

Destructoid Friday, February 14, 2025 5:52 PM What is the Avowed max level?       Each section of the Ability tree requires reaching various ranks in the Fighter, Ranger, and Wizard classes. If you want the most of this feature, you must unlock the maximum player level. So, let's dive into the Avowed max level. What is the maximum player level in Avowed? The Avowed maximum player rank is Level 30, where you must earn more than 100,000 XP. A feat such as this will undoubtedly take up a lot of your time, and it may only be achievable during the game's later stages. However, given that there's a ton of content in the beginning, it could be possible to reach the maximum rank if you explore Dawnshore, Emerald Stair, and Shatterscarp to the fullest. Avowed offers a multitude of ways to earn XP, from engaging in side quests to exploring new areas and undertaking bounty missions. One of the first things I like to do is fill out the map as much as possible. You can earn XP simply by walking into a new area, but you'll still need to fight off a few enemies here and there. For more help on this front, check out our guide on how to level up fast. Once you reach Level 20, you can start collecting from the final tiers in the Fighter, Ranger, and Wizard classes. There's not really a bad choice here, as it mainly correlates to your playstyle. Continue to earn XP to reach the maximum level, unlocking the Peak Performance achievement. Xbox users will get 30 G points out of it, which you can exchange in the store. Screenshot by Destructoid Even if you do unlock the maximum level, there's still a lot that needs to be done in the achievement collection. You'll likely have to do multiple playthroughs, especially when it comes to major choices. It also involves objectives with your Companion skills and solving all the treasure maps. These ventures will undoubtedly include a lot of grinding, but at least you'll have the advantage of a maximum player level. The post What is the Avowed max level? appeared first on Destructoid.

Destructoid Friday, February 14, 2025 5:27 PM Best early attributes in Avowed       Depending on which difficulty you're playing on in Avowed, your early selection of attributes can make or break your gameplay. Regardless of your preference, some stats are just flat-out more important than others early on, so here's a breakdown of which ones you should initially focus on. Best early Stats in Avowed Avowed is set within the same universe as the Pillars of Eternity series, and the stats available reflect this, meaning they function similarly here, and certain ones hold the highest value for your character in the early game. Might - Putting Attribute points into Might will increase your Damage and Carry Capacity. Both aspects increase in effectiveness as you add more points. For clarity, despite Might being a traditionally 'Physical' stat in most RPGs, in Avowed (and Pillars of Eternity), this stat's Damage increase refers to all damage types, including spells. Constitution - When putting points into Constitution, your character will gain increased Maximum Health and boosted Poison/Bleed Resistance. The extra resistances are nice, but the main value of this stat is that Health increase. The more points you put here, the bulkier you'll be in terms of overall hit points. Dexterity - Investing Attribute points into Dexterity improves your Attack Speed and Action Speed. Attack Speed means you will simply swing or fire your weapon faster. Action Speed refers to everything else surrounding Attack Speed, such as reloading a gun, casting a spell, or drawing a blade. Screenshot by Destructoid Perception - Placing points into Perception rewards your character with an increased Critical Hit Chance and a boost to your Maximum Range. Critical Hit Chance is self-explanatory, providing you with a chance to deal additional damage on a hit. Maximum Range refers to how far a ranged attack will fly before disappearing into the nether. It also reduces Damage Fall off of ranged attacks hitting a target at a distance. Maximum Range also works on spells. Intellect - Investing points into Intellect will provide your character with an increased Essence Pool and increase your Elemental Resistances. Essence is the equivalent of Mana in the Pillers of Eternity universe, which naturally includes Avowed. Resolve - The most unusual stat of them all, investing in Resolve increases your character's Maximum Stamina while improving your Second Wind Efficiency. Stamina determines how much you perform tasking actions such as attacking. Second Wind Efficiency relates to how much health you will get back should you trigger the Second Wind effect, which occurs after you die once in combat. Screenshot by Destructoid While every stat in Avowed is powerful, Constitution is the most valuable in the early game. Why? No amount of damage boosting will matter if you cannot survive a hit or two. This is especially true on the game's hardest difficulty, Path of the Damned, as enemy attacks that land are often fatal without Constitution investment. I highly recommend investing at least five to seven points into Constitution before branching off to making your build with the other stats. Your damage can be increased through speeding up attack animations, upgrading your gear, and enchanting your weapons, but Health is not so easily obtained, which is why the value of the Constitution is sky-high. The post Best early attributes in Avowed appeared first on Destructoid.

Destructoid Friday, February 14, 2025 5:07 PM What are Vaal Orbs in Path of Exile 2?       Path of Exile 2 is a game where you can go from building a god-tier character to accidentally turning your best gear into a cursed, unusable relic with a single click, all thanks to the chaotic beauty of Vaal Orbs. These mysterious little orbs can either skyrocket your item to greatness or plunge it into the abyss, so let's unravel what they actually do, when to use them, and why they're the ultimate gamble for any weary gear-chaser. What do Vaal Orbs do in Path of Exile 2? Vaal Orbs are a unique type of currency item in Path of Exile 2 that can be used to apply a powerful enhancement to your items. When used on an item, a Vaal Orb can modify that item in a random, unpredictable way. Screenshot by Destructoid Unlike other currency items in the game that apply specific modifications (like the Chaos Orb, which re-rolls item affixes), Vaal Orbs bring a sense of risk and excitement with every use. Either way, when a Vaal Orb is used on an item, that item is almost always permanently Corrupted. How Do Vaal Orbs Work? To use a Vaal Orb, right-click it and apply it to an item you want to enhance. This can be done to almost any item in your inventory, but it's crucial to understand what Vaal Orbs do before using them recklessly. Here's what could happen: Corruption - Using a Vaal Orb will always Corrupt the target item. This means the item is altered in some way, either positively or negatively, while preventing you from ever altering it again in any way. Some possible outcomes include adding an extra affix, upgrading the tier of an affix, or granting an entirely new ability, such as a bonus to critical hit chance or a new socket. No Changes - Sometimes, you might use a Vaal Orb on an item, and it will result in no visible changes. This is part of the randomness and risk factor associated with these Orbs. Even when no changes occur, the item will still be Corrupted in the process. Screenshot by Destructoid Negative outcomes - The more you play with Vaal Orbs, the more you'll realize that things can go wrong. In some cases, an affix might be removed entirely, and the item could lose its power. Let me be clear: this outcome can completely ruin an item, and there's nothing you can do about it. Unique bonuses - Some Vaal Orbs add completely new properties to items. For example, some armor pieces may gain specific stats or resistance modifiers that weren't previously available. These bonuses can significantly improve your build or add a much-needed utility to your character. This outcome is also the reason why many players use Vaal Orbs in the first place: for a chance the most powerful gear in the game. When should you use a Vaal Orb? One of the most exciting aspects of using Vaal Orbs is the high-risk, high-reward factor. But knowing when to apply a Vaal Orb is crucial to ensuring it's worth the gamble. You should use a Vaal Orb on an item after you've already done all possible enhancements to it through other methods, like using the standard crafting system. Vaal Orbs should be your last step, as they carry the risk of permanently locking in a modifier and corrupting your item. A prematurely corrupted item is of no use to anyone, so tread lightly before deciding to use one. Screenshot by Destructoid Consider the following scenarios before using a Vaal Orb on your item: Endgame gear - If you're at the endgame and have a piece of gear that's already been crafted or enhanced as much as possible, this is when you might want to take the plunge and use a Vaal Orb. While Vaal Orbs can weaken already strong items, using one at this juncture could lead to an item that is impossibly stronger than what you started with. If you hope to push your item to its maximum potential, consider using a Vaal Orb here. Items with high potential - If you're working with an item that has already shown to have high potential, whether it's rare or unique, using a Vaal Orb can push it to even greater heights. However, don't do this with an item you're not ready to part with, as corruption means you won't be able to alter the item again. Items you're willing to sacrifice - If you're experimenting with a piece of gear that you aren't heavily attached to and want to see if the Vaal Orb can turn it into something truly great, you should absolutely use a Vaal Orb on it. Just know that you may lose something valuable in the process. Only use Vaal Orbs when you're ready to risk it all for a chance at something extraordinary. They're designed to add that excitement and uncertainty to the crafting process. The reward could be a game-changing item, but the risk is real, and you could end up with a worthless piece of gear. The post What are Vaal Orbs in Path of Exile 2? appeared first on Destructoid.

WGB Friday, February 14, 2025 8:20 PM Dynasty Warriors: Origins Has Surpassed 1 Million Copies Sold       Dynasty Warriors: Origins has sold over 1 million copies, marking a notable success for the series. The game enjoys positive reviews and strong player engagement, especially on PC.

MonsterVine Friday, February 14, 2025 9:00 PM Tides of Annihilation Unveils 11-Minute Gameplay Walkthrough       Eclipse Glow Games has unveiled an 11-minute gameplay walkthrough for their upcoming action-adventure title, Tides of Annihilation. This in-depth video offers a closer look at the game's dynamic combat mechanics, exploration elements, and narrative depth. Expanded Combat Mechanics In the gameplay video, players witness protagonist Gwendolyn summoning spectral knights to execute powerful combo attacks. This […]