Kotaku Sunday, May 26, 2024 10:00 AM  This week saw the release of Senua's Saga: Hellblade II, which we praised in our review for its rich narrative, stunning visuals, and second-to-none audio design. Here, we've got tips for mastering its visceral combat, as well as suggestions for making it look its best on PC, and getting the most out of its story.… |
PCGamesN Sunday, May 26, 2024 12:22 PM  In one of his final interviews before Larian moves on to new projects, Baldur's Gate 3 director and company CEO Swen Vincke says the team didn't "overly crunch," but that it would be a lie to say "we didn't" at all. With two new mystery games on the way Vincke and the team are starting to look at what's next for Larian, but not before an appearance at the Digital Dragons conference. MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Baldur's Gate 3 builds, BG3 mods, Baldur's Gate 3 classes |
PCGamesN Sunday, May 26, 2024 11:00 AM  Helldivers 2 developer Arrowhead says it is looking into ways to mitigate lobby hosts unfairly kicking you mid-game. With the host having all the power, you can easily lose loads of progress and rewards that aren't given out until you extract if the lobby owner decides to kick you early for whatever reason. Here's hoping we'll soon see this problem creep up less and less, then. Continue reading Helldivers 2 to put a stop to its most frustrating griefing method MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Helldivers 2 weapons, Helldivers 2 servers, Helldivers 2 system requirements |
PCGamesN Sunday, May 26, 2024 10:36 AM  A decade since launch, Paradox Interactive's mighty Europa Universalis 4 remains one of the best grand strategy games on PC. Much like rivals Civilization 6 and Stellaris, EU4 continues to grow through community-made mods alongside its official expansions. One of the most creative and interesting of these yet is Europa Universalis 4: Post Finem, which dares to imagine how our world might look absent the influence of the mighty Roman Empire. MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Europa Universalis IV DLC guide, The best Europa Universalis 4 mods, Play Europa Universalis 4 |
PCGamesN Sunday, May 26, 2024 11:40 AM  We're all eagerly waiting on Civilization 7 news, but in the meantime there are plenty of contenders. Among the more traditional offerings such as Old World and Humankind, Stellaris spinoff Nexus 5X shifts the format to a more speedy take on the beloved strategy games. Hoping to do the same for the historical 4X format is new indie game Rogue Hex, and as the Medieval era arrives you can try the roguelike deckbuilder for yourself with a free Steam demo. Continue reading Civilization goes roguelike in 4X strategy game you can try now MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best roguelike games, Best 4X games, Best strategy games |
Rock Paper Shotgun Latest Articles Feed Sunday, May 26, 2024 11:00 AM  Hello reader who is also a reader, and welcome back to Booked For The Week - our regular Sunday chat with a selection of cool industry folks about books! Of course, regular readers will know that 'book' was actually the name of the doctor, but that's beside the point. This week, it's Syphilisation and The Quiet Sleep developer and RPS contributor, Nikhil Murthy! Cheers Nikhil! Mind if we have a nose at your bookshelf? |
Siliconera Sunday, May 26, 2024 3:00 PM
It's a great time to get into, or even back into, World of Warcraft, given that there's the choice of the standard game or Classic experience. But that also means making an important chance. Who do you want to be? Forging a new identity is tough. So which class would you most recommend as being best suited for someone heading into World of Warcraft? We have some ideas, and we'd love to hear yours as well.
I played World of Warcraft as a Paladin for a looong time, until I eventually got a bit fed up with it. It was during the Legion expansion that i began to prioritize my Death Knight character, and boy do they have "the Juice", as kids say. The same durability and self healing Paladins have with more damage and fun abilities. I used to scoff at their edgy lore, now I embrace it. — Elliot
I'm a relative newcomer, but the most recent updates have made it easy to jump in. But what World of Warcraft class would I most recommend? Well. It depends. While I do jump onto "Retail" (the main server with all of the latest updates and raids) from time to time as my Frost-aspected Death Knight, I've found myself more partial to Hunter in World of Warcraft Classic Season of Discovery. I like being able to level by myself and the skill system for your pet is honestly really cool. So while Death Knight has all of the flair and DPS that I love (and a set of really cool glowing blue eyes), Hunter has become my go-to as I gravitate more and more into playing Classic. This is mostly because of its survivability by comparison, and the ability to solo non-raid specific content. — Kazuma
World of Warcraft and World of Warcraft Classic are available for PCs.
The post Which World of Warcraft Class Do You Most Recommend? appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Sunday, May 26, 2024 12:00 PM
The Bridge Curse 2: The Extrication is a Taiwanese horror game that plays very similarly to the average horror movie in that it starts out strong, has a promising middle, and then sort of peters out near the end. While its strong foundation in Chinese beliefs and culture help it to stand out from other horror games, it could have done with quite a bit of trimming before it could stand out from the crowd.
The story of The Bridge Curse 2: The Extrication is technically a continuation of the first game, as well as the The Bridge Curse series of movies. You don't need to play the first game or watch the movies to understand this though. It starts with reporter Sue Lian entering the school to investigate the mysterious disappearance of student Huang Ting-ting. The last known footage of Huang shows her in an elevator, with her jumping in and out and acting erratically much like the Elisa Lam elevator video. As Sue follows the clues and interviews the military sergeant in the school, she finds herself in a bizarre alternate dimension.
The scene then changes to three university students: Rich, A-Hai, and Doc. They want to film a movie based on a 1960 murder case in which the the daughter of the school's headmaster was killed by her fiancé. They also find themselves in the same alternate dimension as Sue. Not only do these students need to reunite and escape, but they also need to solve the mysteries haunting Wen Hua University and rescue Sue as well.
It starts out strong, with Wen Hua University after hours serving as a perfect backdrop for a horror movie. The ambience is strong and unsettling, and the designs for the ballerina and female ghost being very memorable. However, the story is just too long for how much they actually show of it. The genre shift away from supernatural survival horror near the end also made the game feel less compelling. For reference, there are five chapters in total, with you controlling a different character each section. While the developers advertise them as distinct, they're really not. Sue and A-Hai play virtually the same (relying on the Anima Lantern to solve puzzles and fend off enemies) while Rich and Doc have nothing except each other.
In my opinion, the second chapter featuring the Mad Ballerina was too strong. It made the rest of the game feel really bad in comparison. Her story itself wasn't interesting since it seems episodic than connected to the grand picture, but playing red light green light against murderous mannequins in an intense ballet sequence is pretty awesome. It's certainly more unique and challenging than the actual final boss of the game. The story could have been about half the length at only three chapters long. That would have been better. The villain didn't seem to have a clear motive for doing what he did and his appearance was jarring, looking more like a bizarre Ent than the other ghosts. It's unfortunate how he's the last impression players get of the game.
My biggest issue with this game is the AI and "combat" difficulty. The final boss in particular has very little object permanence and often lost track of me even when I wasn't doing any crazy jukes. A-Hai and Sue also have the Anima Lantern, which prevents a fatal attack once and then it needs a cooldown to charge up again. The thing is, enemies can't crouch in this game apart from the final boss, who can destroy the tables you hide under. The Anima Lantern trivializes the game because of the ghosts' inability to crouch and the university's abundance of tables. You can employ a hit-and-away tactic in which you jump out, throw yourself at the ghost to stun them with the lantern's counter, do whatever you need to do, and then hide under a table to let your lantern charge again.
The potential is there for The Bridge Curse 2: The Extrication. It could have been an amazing horror game between its beautiful graphics, interesting use of Chinese beliefs, and its memorable monster designs. Unfortunately, its overly long story and poor enemy AI weigh it down. That's not to say the game isn't scary, of course. It certainly took me much longer than necessary to beat it just because I needed to work up the nerve sometimes to enter certain rooms. If you want a scare and The Bridge Curse 2: The Extrication sounds up your alley, then I recommend playing until the end of the third chapter.
The Bridge Curse 2: The Extrication is readily available on the PS5, Xbox Series X, Nintendo Switch, and Windows PC. Windows PC version reviewed.
The post Review: The Bridge Curse 2: The Extrication Scares, but Could Be Shorter appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Sunday, May 26, 2024 10:30 AM
In honor of the launch of Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, Nintendo announced a means for everyone to recreate the Plane Mode "curse" in the real world. It worked with John "The Paper Airplane Guy" Collins, who held the record for paper airplane flights between 2012 and 2022, to create a plane and share proper instructions for making and flying it.
To start, someone can visit the official site to get the template. This can then be printed out to make the plane. (Someone could also use their own paper to do so.) They can then head to YouTube to see the special video going through the creation process to make a Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door paper air plane.
Here's the full video:
Plane Mode is the very first "curse" form Mario acquires in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door. When on a specific space with a plane design on it, players can press a button to make Mario fold himself into a paper airplane. You can then glide across gaps. This mechanic ends up being necessary to reach certain areas and progress throughout the course of the adventure, alongside the other "cursed" forms.
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door is available on the GameCube and Switch worldwide.
The post Nintendo Shares Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door Air Plane Guide appeared first on Siliconera. |
Siliconera Sunday, May 26, 2024 9:00 AM
When it comes to the anime-inspired Tamagotchi Nano models, the goal tends to be about maintaining and improving a specific character's condition instead of grand evolutions. In the case of the Spy x Family Tamagotchi Nano, it's about caring for Anya Forger. It's as entertaining as you'd expect. However, I also find it makes me want some means of regularly dressing up Anya and ensuring she has the cutest wardrobe ever.
Once you start the Spy x Family Tamagotchi Nano, you immediately start caring for Anya. As this is one of the more stripped-back variants, it isn't as taxing as other models. You don't need to constantly check stats. Just pop in every once in a while to feed Anya. Play games with her, of which there are three, or give her sweets to boost her happiness. The main thing to watch for here is that Henry Henderson will sometimes appear, usually accompanied by a sound. You then need to press the A button as soon as possible to make Anya elegantly impress him.
The fun part of this, aside from getting to care from Anya in general, is unlocking outfits. Instead of her evolving or changing form based on how well you are doing or hitting certain milestones, her clothing will change. So if you feed her until she's full frequently, play and give her treats to ensure she's happy, and don't let Henderson catch you off guard, she'll tend to change her outfit at least once. Twice, if your care is especially good and you're attentive.
It really made me wish that, well, I could see more outfits and make her even cuter. The level of detail for her standard sprite and clothing options is surprisingly high, given this is only a Tamagotchi Nano. Likewise, when other characters like Loid, Yor, and Damien show up, they all look great too. So it's really a great motivator to see how certain actions, such as playing a lot of the dodgeball minigame, result in Anya deciding to wear her gym clothes all the time.
The only downside is that the Spy x Family Tamagotchi doesn't always make it incredibly clear (or easy) to discern what some of its Missions games want to ensure I get to build up Anya's wardrobe. The easiest is a dodgeball-themed one, which involves using A and B to move her out of the way of balls. Though honestly, I would sometimes forget A is down and B is up. The minigame with Bond involves mashing the A button and is quite easy, but since there's no explanation that Anya and Bond are on the run, you can fail continually unless you look it up. The S-P-Y slot machine isn't too difficult, provided you pay attention to the reels to spell S-P-Y. However, I found the fact that you need to do so perfectly to net certain clothing options a tad frustrating.
I suppose the plus side is that my dress-up dream inspired by the Spy x Family Tamagotchi Nano is about to come true, thanks to Spy x Anya. The adventure game, which is already available in Japan, involves helping the young girl create a photo diary for a school assignment. You do things with the Forger family, play minigames, and… play dress-up. So, I suppose this is essentially helping me ease the wait for the other activity involving Anya.
The Spy x Family Tamagotchi Nano is this novelty that leverages the fact that Anya Forger is adorable. It relies on the fact that we think she's cute to start, and want to care for her to see how much cuter she can get in her extra outfits. The fact that I've only seen five in addition to her base ones and not unlocked either of the "special" ones just makes it (and the promise of Spy x Anya's costumes) more promising.
The Spy x Family Tamagotchi Nano model is available worldwide. Anyatchi Pink and Spy Green case variants are available
The post Spy x Family Tamagotchi Makes Dressing Up Anya a Delight appeared first on Siliconera. |
PC Invasion - FeedDDD Sunday, May 26, 2024 3:34 PM  Wuthering Waves players have now discovered how to perform a type of super jump that can launch you further vertically and horizontally than a normal jump. Here's how to do the jump yourself. Wuthering Waves: How to perform a super jump As seen online through TikTok posts and even the Wuthering Waves subreddit, there's a cool new super jump that you can do to earn you incredible traversal in the open world. It's not only great for gaining height, but for a bit of extra distance as well. You can perform this super jump in Wuthering Waves by doing these moves in this order: Jump Attack Dash Attack Grapple Jump Super Jump! byu/Seif_88 inWutheringWaves This super jump involves six steps as demonstrated in this video by Seif_88 on the Wuthering Waves subreddit. It'll be tough at first to replicate, but once you memorize how it works it'll be a lot easier to perform while exploring the open world. You must first jump, then at... |
PC Invasion - FeedDDD Sunday, May 26, 2024 8:10 AM  Trackers are a great tool you can use to measure your skills in Fortnite. If you've never used one before, let me show you the best Fortnite Trackers, what they are, and how to use them. What is a Fortnite Tracker? Fortnite Trackers allow you to deep-dive into your gameplay stats. You can usually access this information through an app. There are also plenty of websites you can use without downloading anything. Trackers can show you your K/D ratio, Win/Loss rate, and even match-specific information. Most of these services also show your ranking versus the rest of the world so you can see if you're as good as you think you are. How to use a Fortnite Tracker There are several Fortnite Trackers that all function a little differently. I've used the FortniteTracker.com website for years, so I'll explain how it works and what all the numbers mean. I'll recommend a couple of different Trackers later on in this guide, and they function pretty simil... |