Dying Light 2 Will Have "A Lot More" Open World Events Than the First Game

dying light 2

In spite of its troubled development and multiple delays, Dying Light 2 developer Techland has been sharing updates and details on the upcoming game much more frequently of late. Recently, they started uploading AMA videos to answer questions from fans, and in another video they've released a few more details about the game.

Specifically, when asked about the game's open world and how it will compare to the first Dying Light, associate producer Julia Szynkaruk said that Dying Light 2's open world is going to have a lot more to do, not just in terms of events and encounters, but also in terms of areas to explore.

"Yes, there will be a lot more open world events in Dying Light 2," Szynkaruk said (transcribed by MP1st). "Not only will we have a living world with encounters all over, but also you will be able to explore new locations, such as GRE Quaratines or Dark Places."

Meanwhile, lead game designer Tymon Smektala also said that though Dying Light 2 is going to be a choice-based games, as far as aligning with the factions in the game goes, you will not have the option to not align with anyone whatsoever.

"You have to understand that our world is extremely brutal, extremely primal, full of threats and conflicts," he said. "So, if you have no allies, you basically die very quickly — and we don't want you to die very quickly, and we also want you to make a decision,  we also want you to make a statement. So a lone wolf option is not available, you will have to decide if you want to play with those guys or the other ones."

Dying Light 2 currently has no firm release date. It's in development for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PS4, Xbox One, and PC. On next-gen consoles, the game will support 4K, 60 FPS, and ray-tracing across multiple graphics modes. Read more on that through here. Meanwhile, Techland is also working to ensure that the game is properly optimized on PS4 and Xbox One.

PlayStation Studios Steam Page Hints at More Upcoming PC Releases

PlayStation Studios

A year ago, it seemed impossible that first party PlayStation games would ever be playable on any platform, but of late, Sony's started bringing over some of its marquee games over to PC. It started with Horizon Zero Dawn, and soon, Days Gone is releasing for PC. PlayStation Studios now has a dedicated page on Steam, appropriately enough, and the page suggests that more games might be coming in the near future.

The PlayStation Studios creators page lists 41 games under its Steam publications so far, which includes games as well as DLCs. Interestingly enough though, only 24 of those are currently viewable on Steam- Horizon Zero Dawn, Predator: Hunting Grounds, Helldivers, and all of their respective DLCs. Of course, Days Gone is coming up as well, and it's going to have DLCs of its own added to Steam, though that still wouldn't explain the sizeable gap between the total games listed and the ones that are currently viewable.

Of course, while announced Days Gone for PC, PlayStation Studios boss Jim Ryan did say that "a whole slate" of first party PlayStation games will also be released for the platform in the future, so this doesn't come as a surprise. It is interesting, however, that they might be ready sooner than you would have thought.

Biomutant Gameplay Trailers Showcase PS4 and Xbox One Performance

Biomutant

With Experiment 101's Biomutant out this month, the developer and THQ Nordic have released some new gameplay trailers highlighting the performance on Xbox One and PS4. Check them out below. Frame rates and resolutions that can be expected across each platform, including PS4 Pro and Xbox One X, have also been revealed.

On PC, the action RPG will run at 4K/60 FPS but there won't be a cap on the frame rate. For Xbox One and PS4, you can expect a dynamic 1080p resolution and 30 FPS performance. PS4 Pro and Xbox One X players can look forward to 60 FPS performance but again, at a dynamic 1080p resolution.

While the title will be playable on Xbox Series X/S and PS5 through backwards compatibility, it will likely default to the Xbox One X and PS4 Pro frame rates and resolutions respectively. Experiment 101 hasn't revealed plans for a current-gen update so we'll need to wait for more details in the coming months. In the meantime, Biomutant is out for Xbox One, PS4 and PC on May 25th.

Arkane's New Fantasy IP is Reportedly Called "Omen"; Vampire-Related and Coming Next Year – Rumour

arkane studios logo

Earlier this year, job listings suggested that Arkane Studios' Austin team, who developed Prey and Dishonored, were working on a new fantasy IP. Now, some new details on whatever this new game is have potentially emerged- and the game's apparently closer to launch than you'd expect.

The rumour originated on ResetEra and has since been shared on Twitter by @_XboxNews. Arkane Austin's new IP is apparently called Omen (or that's its working title, at least) and has vampires. The game apparently has Spring 2022 target launch window, and will allegedly be revealed at E3 next month, perhaps with a CGI trailer.

Of course, this is an unconfirmed, unverified report, so take this with a grain of salt, but if it does turn out to be accurate, it'll be interesting to see what a studio as talented as Arkane does with this premise. We'll keep you updated on all new details, of course, so stay tuned.

EA Motive's Next Game isn't Mirror's Edge – Rumour

ea motive logo

Star Wars: Squadrons developer EA Motive confirmed late last year that it's working on several upcoming unannounced projects (but not Star Wars), which was followed shortly afterward by GamesBeat's Jeff Grubb teasing that the studio is working on an established EA IP that fans are going to be happy about.

The guessing game has been on since then, and the IP that's been mentioned most often by hopeful fans is Mirror's Edge. It seems, however, that that's not what the developer is working on after all. Speaking during the recent GamesBeat Decides podcast, Grubb re-iterated that EA Motive is working on an established EA IP, but added that it's not Mirror's Edge. He later also added that the game is probably not going to be at the EA Play Live event in July.

An established EA IP that fans will be happy about? That sounds like Dead Space to me- at least I hope that's what they're working on. Either way, all we can do right now is wait and watch. Stay tuned, and we'll keep you updated on any new details that come our way.

Sony Exec Hypes up Upcoming PS5 Third Party Releases

ps5

PlayStation Studios head Hermen Hulst recently said that Sony has over 25 exclusive games in development for the PS5, and with those games including the likes of God of War: Ragnarok, Horizon Forbidden West, Gran Turismo 7, and many more on top of those, it definitely looks like PS5 players are going to have a lot to look forward. But there's plenty more on the horizon as well.

Responding to a post abut the aforementioned quote on his LinkedIn page, Christian Svensson – vice president and head of global third party relations at PlayStation – teased the upcoming third party output for PS5 as well, saying, "Just wait until you see what's coming from our third party partners too."

Plenty of major third party exclusives have already been announced for the PS5, including the likes of GhostWire: Tokyo, Deathloop, Forspoken, and Final Fantasy 16. Kena: Bridge of Spirits is also launching as a PlayStation exclusive in August.

The Division Heartland Gameplay and Details Have Leaked

Tom Clancy's The Division Heartland

Ubisoft confirmed recently that it would be focusing more on free-to-play games going forward, and the upcoming The Division Heartland is an early step in that direction. The game was recently announced, and though details on it are still scant, a new leak has spilled the beans on some of them. Ubisoft recently held closed tests for the game, which is where these details come from.

A little bit of gameplay footage has also become available, via @SkyLeax on Twitter. Meanwhile, an internal developer briefing (via VGC) also details the game. Apparently, it will have two main modes- a PvE mode set in a small town called Silver Creek called Expedition, and a 45-player PvPvE mode called Storm.

Lead game designer Taylor Epperly explained in the leaked video that both modes will see players "scavenging, exploring, looting, fighting and surviving, all while avoiding the most aggressive and unpredictable virus contamination The Division has ever seen."

The Division Heartland is set to launch for PC, consoles, and cloud some time before April 2022.

Starfield Will be Exclusive to Xbox and PC – Jeff Grubb

starfield

Talk about Starfield has been heating up these last few weeks and months, but the one question that's been around for significantly longer than that is that of what platforms it will launch for. Now that Bethesda is owned by Microsoft, can PlayStation players expect to see the upcoming sci-fi RPG on their platform of choice?

Journalist Jeff Grubb recently took to Twitter and claimed, quite definitively, that Starfield is going to be exclusive to PC and Xbox. Whether or not the game will cross-gen remains to be seen (it would be safe to assume that it will be), but if Grubb's words are anything to go by, a PlayStation launch is off the table.

That, honestly, shouldn't be surprising to anyone. Microsoft paid a lot of money for Bethesda, so it's no surprise that they want Bethesda's biggest upcoming games exclusively for their own platforms. When the acquisition was finalized, Xbox boss Phil Spencer suggested that Bethesda content would be exclusive to platforms where Xbox Game Pass is available– so again, the writing's been on the wall for some time.

Starfield currently has no launch date, but reports have suggested that the game's going to be at E3 next month, and that Microsoft is pushing for a Holiday 2021 launch. Meanwhile, recently a bunch of screenshots from a 2018 build of the game also leaked- take a look through here.

Final Fantasy 16 Ranks High in Famitsu Most Wanted Charts

final fantasy 16

The latest weekly Famitsu charts for the most highly anticipated upcoming games are in, and there are some interesting movements this week. On top of the charts, things are rather routine, with Tales of Arise topping the charts again, and Final Fantasy 16 trailing it by a little over thirty votes to claim second place. In third place, Bayonetta 3 has seen a massive jump.

Resident Evil Village, which hadn't yet launched when voting for these charts took place, is in fourth place. Following that, a number of upcoming Switch exclusives dominate the charts, including Rune Factory 5, the sequel to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl, and Shin Megami Tensei 5. Meanwhile, Pragmata at ninth place and Samurai Warriors 5 at tenth place round out the top 10.

You can check out the full top 10 below. All votes were cast by Famitsu readers between April 15 and April 21.

1. [PS4] Tales of Arise – 599 votes
2. [PS5] Final Fantasy 16 – 564 votes
3. [NSW] Bayonetta 3 – 427 votes
4. [PS5] Resident Evil Village – 382 votes
5. [NSW] Rune Factory 5 – 368 votes
6. [NSW] The Legend of Zelda Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2 – 348 votes
7. [NSW] Pokemon Brilliant Diamond/Shining Pearl – 297 votes
8. [NSW] Shin Megami Tensei 5 – 294 votes
9. [PS5] Pragmata – 289 votes
10. [PS4] Samurai Warriors 5 – 273 votes

[Via Nintendo Everything]

Watch Dogs: Legion – Title Update 4.5 Adds 60 FPS Mode for Xbox Series X/S and PS5

Watch Dogs Legion - Mina

Following the last major update, the Watch Dogs: Legion development team is busy working on Title Update 4.5. Along with the Tactical Op "Project OMNI", it also adds the much-anticipated 60 FPS performance mode. The latter will only be available for Xbox Series X/S and PS5 players though.

Title Update 4.5 will also have a number of bug fixes for the Hero character Mina. Along with Mina keeping a previously possessed NPC's weapon, there will be fixes for some NPCs being able to utilize her skills. An issue that occurred when using Mind Control on an NPC and then going out of bounds, which resulted in having to forcefully restart the game, will also be fixed.

Proper patch notes will be revealed near launch so stay tuned for more details. Watch Dogs: Legion is currently available for Xbox One, PS4, PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PC and Google Stadia. You can read about the single-player mode in our review here. An online mode was added back in March and allowed players to co-op together in various missions.

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