In today's Call of Duty: WWII reveal livestream, developer Sledgehammer Games confirmed the game will include a cooperative mode featuring zombies. The company also released a teaser image, which you can see below.
The developer said the mode, which appears to be the latest iteration of the fan-favorite Zombies gametype, is "an entirely new story and a pretty horrifying experience," and it will tell "the story of the Third Reich's desperate attempt to create an army in the final stages of the war."
Not much more information was provided, but the developer did promise more information on Call of Duty: WWII as a whole at E3 in June, so we'll hopefully find out more about Zombies then.
After a series of rumors and leaks, it's official: Call of Duty is going back to its World War II origins. Simply titled Call of Duty: WWII, the next entry in the annualized shooter franchise follows an American squad through the European theater of the war. It treads familiar ground, taking players through the D-Day invasion of Normandy and Battle of the Bulge, but for developer Sledgehammer Games, returning to Call of Duty's roots is more than just matching the setting and scenes of its predecessors--it means understanding World War II on a deeper level.
We recently visited the Sledgehammer office, where we saw parts of two single-player missions, one of which was the invasion of Normandy. It's an iconic moment in the war, and one that's been recreated many times in video games and other mediums. This doesn't differ much from other depictions of the Normandy battle in games and movies, but what do stand out are the details.
Call of Duty: WWII stars a 19-year-old private in the 1st Infantry Division, and it's clear, even from just watching the mission instead of playing it, that he's scared. He's inexperienced. He stumbles over fallen soldiers, he struggles with a Bangalore torpedo, and his breathing is harsh and uneven. Sure, there's a cinematic element to the whole scene, but it's not exactly cool and exciting--it's harrowing. He knows he could die at any moment.
While at Sledgehammer, we spoke to leads from the animation, art, audio, and narrative departments, and everyone mentioned the same thing: they had to do extensive research in order to properly portray not only the war but also the experience of being there.
While many Normandy missions turn outward, surveying the horrors of the invasion on a grander scale, this one seems to focus inward and could tell a more introspective piece of a larger story.
For the animation team, that meant studying everything from documentaries to photos to field manuals for weapons in order to capture how a soldier would physically and emotionally react in any given situation, and it shows.
"There is no stacking up on a door, and breaching a door, and flash-banging 12 guys and killing them with one shot," animation director Chris Stone explained. "It's just, what would you do if you were a kid with no training? Maybe you'd peek around the corner, maybe you'd take a shot, and maybe you'd kind of move somewhere … In terms of trying to recreate a visual experience of World War II, it's all those little things that add up."
For a D-Day segment, those little things are crucial. Without them, it's just another retread of the Normandy mission; but with them, the level has the potential to stand out. While many Normandy missions turn outward, surveying the horrors of the invasion on a grander scale, this one seems to focus inward and could tell a more introspective piece of a larger story.
The other level we saw took place in Hurtgen Forest, where German troops would blow the tops off trees to send shrapnel raining down. It starts off slow. You're trudging through the forest, sniping German soldiers, until finally, the bombings start. It's very much a Call of Duty level, and it's as exhilarating and terrifying as Normandy but for entirely different reasons.
Much of that is thanks to the sounds of the artillery, the rending of wood, the crashing of metal, and the crackle gunfire. Audio Director Dave Swenson told us that Sledgehammer's sound team recorded World War II explosives and weapons in an attempt to make the game more immersive, and it seems to work in Hurtgen. But the best audio detail comes before, when the Fighting First is moving through a river.
Like in the Normandy mission, your soldier moves clumsily over uneven terrain and under the weight of his weapons and supplies. But he also sounds encumbered. To get it just right--to try to put you in that forest--Swenson decided to find a river where he could record footsteps, as opposed settling for a less natural-sounding pool. The result is this 1st Infantry Division soldier sounds tired, and I felt that more than I did the bass from artillery reverberating in my chest. Even when striking a different tone, this campaign appears more focused on the individual soldier than on the cacophony of war.
Stone, too, talked about the team's focus on immersion through animation. "When they're done playing this game, [we want players to] set their controller down and say, 'Wow. I feel like I might have a little bit of a sense of what it was to be there,' which is really totally different from what we wanted from our players before."
This campaign appears more focused on the individual soldier than on the cacophony of war.
When they talked about that goal, all the team members cited the research that went into all those engrossing details. They're important for effectively putting you in a soldier's position, and from what we saw, doing the homework mattered--the little things, added in with care and attention, can make it feel more relatable.
Sledgehammer's decision to hone in on the minutiae of being a soldier in World War II is interesting. It gives the studio an opportunity to return to a conflict overexposed in video games and present it in a more meaningful way.
However, the biggest question is what its details add up to. Fans of first-person shooters have come to expect their campaigns to be empowering, with their character becoming almost super-human to overcome impossible odds. It will be interesting to see if Sledgehammer sticks to its guns and keeps the experience grounded, or if it pivots back into familiar territory.
Call of Duty: WWII is launching on November 3 for PC, PS4, and Xbox One.
The first details about Call of Duty: WWII's multiplayer have been revealed, including a social space that sounds similar to Destiny's Tower.
We got a few pieces of information about multiplayer alongside a new trailer and single-player details. One brand-new addition for the franchise is Headquarters, a place to socialize that will feature "recognition and awards." It's not clear what exactly those rewards will be, but it sounds like a base of operations outside of multiplayer lobbies.
Multiplayer introduces a new War Mode, which places you in "iconic World War II battles" with objective-focused, Axis-versus-Allies team gameplay. It also lets you choose class-like Divisions, "including Infantry and Armored Divisions."
A full multiplayer reveal is scheduled for E3 in June, where it will also be playable on the show floor.
Call of Duty: WWII is launching on November 3 for PC, PS4, and Xbox One.
This year's entry in the shooter franchise follows the US 1st Infantry Division as they fight their way through the European theater of the war. Missions include the D-Day invasion of Normandy and Battle of the Bulge.
Although you primarily play as the young, inexperienced Private Daniels in the single-player, there will also be a mission that casts you as a woman fighting in the French resistance.
Also from the leaks, Activision confirmed that a beta will be available ahead of launch, but there isn't a date yet. Finally, Transformers actor Josh Duhamel is confirmed to appear in Call of Duty: WWII as Technical Sergeant William Pierson, a 34-year-old from Oklahoma.
The Pro Edition that surfaced in leaks will be exclusive to GameStop, at least in the US, and will cost $100. It comes with the game, a steelbook case, the season pass, and "additional bonus content."
For more on Call of Duty, be sure to check out our single-player impressions from our visit to developer Sledgehammer Games.
It's unclear what exactly we'll discover in the stream; Activision has only said that it will be a "worldwide reveal." It's possible we may see the first footage of the game, which takes Call of Duty back to WWII for the first time since 2008's World at War.
It's unlikely, however, that we'll discover much news about the game's multiplayer modes; Activision has traditionally revealed its Call of Duty games with single-player details before lifting the lid on multiplayer further down the line. Rumors, however, suggest the shooter will feature multiplayer maps set on "many of World War II's most iconic locations." What's more, "Players will also enjoy exciting new ways to interact and socialize with their friends and the Call of Duty community," a leak said.
The beetle images below illustrate what the improvement might look like. The photo on the left is, according to the website, a ladybug "that has been rendered at 4K using existing Xbox One assets." The right image, meanwhile, "has been given vastly improved textures" and utilizes Scorpio's extra GPU power over Xbox One.
The tech site also has images of what the upgraded console can do using the exact same assets, over varying resolution displays. Check out the full gallery over at Windows Central.
The pictures apparently represent mere tech demos, and are not from any released or in-development game. They were shown off recently to Microsoft's "partners" at a private event.
Pixar's Cars franchise has had somewhat of a split personality so far, starting off as a traditional sports movie in its first iteration before veering into a completely new direction in its sequel as a comedy spy adventure. But like a NASCAR driver continually turning left, the series has finally come full circle. During a recent visit to Pixar's HQ in Emeryville, California, for a sneak preview of Cars 3, the film's creators told GameSpot and other assembled press that if the first Cars was about how a brash young athlete made it to the top of his sport, Cars 3 is about how that same athlete copes with the slow, sad realization that the passage of time has finally robbed them of their talent. Cars 3 returns to the franchise's roots by shifting its focus to the cocky Lightning McQueen (voiced by Owen Wilson) as he attempts to get to the top of the racing world.
But wait, you say. Wasn't that the plot of the first movie?
While Cars 3 seems to follow the template of the original, the similarities look to be purely superficial. Yes, McQueen's main quest within the film is to win a big race, but everything surrounding that goal is different this time around.
"Cars 3 is really the third act of the Cars story," Cars 3 writer Mike Rich said. "In the first act, Lightning McQueen is a brash, cocky, young rookie who has speed on his side. It was even in his mantra: 'I am speed.' He had all the answers, and his appreciation for the sport was just very, very limited to what was in it for him in that particular moment.
"But the problem, the challenge that he presented us with when we last we saw him was that he's on top of the world. He's a champion race car driver. He's had so many things go his way, and that's not a good place to start when you're trying to craft a story."
Story supervisor Bob Peterson (a longtime Pixar writer who worked on films like Finding Nemo, as well as doing the voices for Dug in Up and Roz in Monsters Inc.) said the creative team looked to the world of real sports for the next chapter in McQueen's life.
"We talked a lot about Kobe Bryant and the tough time he had, and Michael Jordan, and any athlete as they get older. They just don't have the legs anymore. What do they do? Do they crumble, or do they try to rise up?," Peterson said. "It seemed to point to a universal truth, and one thing we always try to find when we're doing these films is if there's a universal truth that we all can hook into."
Rich says that in his research for Cars 3, he found that athletes all have their different ways of dealing with this problem. And some deal with it much better than others.
"The mistake that some athletes make is that they just try to stay young. So they don't adapt," he said. "There was this one athlete I heard interviewed, and actually, we put this line in the film because it worked so well. He was asked: 'How do you know when things are changing? How do you know when it's time to start thinking about doing things differently?' His answer was: 'The kids will tell you.' So we popped that one in there."
But age isn't McQueen's only rival. In Cars 3, serious competition is introduced in the form of Jackson Storm (voiced by Armie Hammer), a state-of-the-art vehicle with all the modern bells and whistles that an older ride like McQueen simply doesn't have. Remember Strip "The King" Weathers from the first Cars? He was the aging, antiquated character the then-modern Lightning McQueen was up against. In Cars 3, McQueen has taken on the role of Strip Weathers.
"Jackson has all of the things that McQueen had when he was a rookie," Rich said. "He's young. He has speed. He has swagger--maybe a bit more of an edge than McQueen even had in Cars 1. But what he represents is the same thing that McQueen actually represented when he was younger: the very real possibility that Storm and this next generation of young racers could be the end of the sport that McQueen truly loves."
If you've seen any of the downbeat trailers for Cars 3, you'll know that McQueen suffers a serious crash in the movie. After seeing the first third of the film during our visit to Pixar, we now know that the crash occurs during a race that sees Lightning overexert himself in an effort to best Storm. An injured McQueen, determined to finish his career on his own terms, now asks himself a question: Does he try and get faster, or does he race smarter? The answer, it seems, comes in the form of another new addition to the cast: Cruz Ramirez.
Ramirez is a technician and trainer who works for McQueen's sponsor Rust-eze, and she aids him in his rehabilitation efforts. The relationship, according to Peterson, doesn't start off smoothly, however. "[Ramirez is] a young trainer, and she pushes [McQueen] and reminds him that he was old every step of the way, which is what he didn't want to hear," he said.
"Both of them had really great things going for them, but also things that they were stuck on. McQueen was stuck thinking he had to be young and train like a young man. And she was stuck thinking that her racing days were past her. It gave us something for both of them to learn as they came together."
For a franchise that's one of Pixar's kid-friendliest (if you have any doubt, just walk outside and see how much Cars merchandise you see on toddlers and preschoolers), tackling heavy themes dealing with the complexities of aging and becoming less relevant may seem like a misstep. But for story supervisor Scott Morse, Cars 3 falls perfectly in line with Pixar's long history of focusing on creating heartfelt, relatable narratives.
"The one thing we've learned at Pixar is that we don't make kid films. We make family films. We do our best to not talk down to anybody in the audience," he said. "We've noticed that kids tend to want to understand something that's just above their level. McQueen is maturing; he's evolving. McQueen's a character that kids grew up with. For kids in particular, to see somebody they're comfortable with going through an evolutionary change, it helps them understand how to do that. It makes a nice conversation."
The next expansion for Forza Horizon 3 has been revealed, and it takes the game in a distinct new direction.
Horizon 3's new Hot Wheels expansion brings both Hot Wheels cars and tracks to the game, presenting what looks like a more arcade-style of gameplay. Players visit six "themed" island off Australia's coast, each connected by Hot Wheels tracks that consist of loops, corkscrews, and more.
These new roads are also home to boost pads, half-pipes, big jumps, and other, cosmetic elements, such as a giant mechanical dinosaur seen toward the end of the trailer above.
In addition to racing along these pre-made tracks, you can use a Stunt Swap feature that allows you to modify "stunt track sections." These can then be sent to friends for them to try out.
Ten Hot Wheels vehicles are included in the DLC, such as the 2012 Rip Rod and 2011 Bone Shaker, as well as a mystery Barn Find car to discover. Here are the nine confirmed rides:
1969 Hot Wheels Twin Mill
2011 Hot Wheels Bone Shaker
2012 Hot Wheels Rip Rod
2005 Hot Wheels Ford Mustang
2016 Jeep Trailcat
2016 Zenvo ST1
2007 Toyota Hilux Arctic Trucks AT38
2010 Pagani Zonda R
1972 Chrysler VH Valiant Charger R/T E49
This is Horizon 3's second major expansion, following the excellent Blizzard Mountain. The open-world racing game has also received a number of additional vehicles through DLC.
Hot Wheels launches for Horizon 3 on May 9 for $20. It's also included in the $35 Expansion Pass that comes with Blizzard Mountain.
Also coming on May 9 is an update for the game. Few specifics were shared, but we know those playing the PC version will receive support for "numerous popular driving wheels" in addition to improved CPU performance and new graphical options.
Sony has announced the lineup of free games PlayStation Plus members will receive next month.
On PS4 in North America, Plus subscribers will be able to grab sea-exploration game Abzu, as well as Telltale's episodic Tales From the Borderlands. Those in Europe, meanwhile, will see Alienation in place of Abzu.
If you enjoyed Burnout 3: Takedown's Crash Mode, you might be interested in this upcoming indie game. Three Fields Entertainment, a company established by the founders of Burnout developer Criterion, has revealed its new title: Danger Zone.
Danger Zone challenges you to create the biggest car crash possible, with bigger crashes equating to bigger rewards--similar to Burnout 3's Crash Mode, which proved popular when the game was released in 2004. If you cause enough vehicles to collide, you'll earn a SmashBreaker, which turns your car into a bomb that can explode on demand.
"We are going back to our roots by creating a game in a genre we are truly passionate about," said Fiona Sperry, Three Fields' founder and CEO, in a press release. "Danger Zone takes what made the Crash Mode featured in 2004's Burnout 3: Takedown so popular and transforms it into an all-new car-crashing, arcade-style game. We look forward to engaging those same fans by delivering an entirely new and extremely fun experience."
Twenty single-player missions are included, and although there will be "connected leaderboards" that allow you to compare scores with your friends, there has so far been no mention of true multiplayer.
Despite Crash Mode's popularity, Takedown was the last game it was featured in--save for the 2011 downloadable title Burnout Crash!. It's likely, meanwhile, that this new game is the driving title Three Fields teased in July last year.
Three Fields was founded by ex-Criterion founders Fiona Sperry and Alex Ward in 2014 after they left that company and its parent EA. The young studio has since gone on to make a virtual reality shooter called Lethal VR and silly golf game Dangerous Golf. We weren't too taken by the latter, however: critic Peter Brown said the game is one "you want to love," but that it "needs more than boisterous effects and odd scenarios to sustain its allure."
Nintendo has again partnered with McDonald's to offer toys based on its franchises with Happy Meals.
From now until May 22, Happy Meal purchases will come with one of eight different toys. They may lack the same level of appeal or functionality of Amiibo figures, but they do each have a "special function." The translucent Mario, for instance, can light up different colors.
This isn't the first time Nintendo toys have been offered with Happy Meals. Previous partnerships brought us toys based on Mario Kart 8, Mario, Pokemon, and more.
McDonald's is also offering the chance to win a Nintendo Switch and a copy of the upcoming Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. Making a purchase at McDonald's and registering it in the restaurant chain's mobile app will provide you with one entry in the sweepstakes, while Happy Meal purchases will net you two entries. Alternatively, you can simply send an email once per day between now and May 22 to receive free entries. There are 100 bundles in all up for grabs, and the full rules (and instructions for obtaining those free entries) can be seen here.
If you're in more of a hurry to get your hands on a Switch, GameStop has a limited number in stock today. Both Best Buy and Toys R Us will have the system available in limited quantities this Friday to coincide with the launch of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe.
Retailer GameStop announced today that it has received a "limited supply" of Nintendo Switch consoles and is selling them at stores across the US right now.
The timing is noteworthy, considering Mario Kart 8 Deluxe launches on April 28. It's one of the highest-profile releases so far for the Switch, and is sure to help move systems.
"It's perfect timing to have additional Nintendo Switch units arrive just days before the launch of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe," GameStop senior director of merchandising Eric Bright said. "This is truly an amazing pairing of the latest in Nintendo technology innovation with a classic, iconic game."
The Nintendo Switch costs $300, while Mario Kart 8 Deluxe goes for $60. GameStop is offering $200 in credit when you trade in a PS4, Xbox One, 3DS, or Wii U and apply it to the Switch. The offer is good until Sunday, April 30.
Additionally, Best Buy and Toys 'R Us will have Switch units back in stock this coming Friday, April 28, timed with the launch of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe.
Eric Bellefeulle, former lead user interface artist for BioWare Montreal, has published some concept art providing an early look at Mass Effect: Andromeda. The images, which you can see on his Artstation gallery, reveal some interesting things about the game's early life.
While much of this is primarily focused on UI, they hint at ideas that weren't featured in the final game, such as the ability to receive bonuses by scanning Remnant glyphs. There's also a look at some environments that changed over time, such as Ryder's quarters, which in the art is shown to have a large cylindrical tank to house SAM, the AI that is featured prominently throughout the game.
One image that really sticks out, however, is the squad menu. It shows early character models for Cora and Peebee, who both look drastically different, and also reveals that Nakmor Drack was originally called Narmor Drack. Vetra Nyx, meanwhile, was called Vale Nyx.
Then there's the image of Liam Kosta, the human security and response specialist, who looks very familiar. Do you recognise him?
Okay it's Childish Gambino homeboy used him as placeholder art.
Anyways, it seems that, early in Mass Effect: Andromeda's development, BioWare used Donald Glover as a model for Kosta. Glover is an actor known for his work on 30 Rock, Community, and Atlanta, and a rapper that goes by the name Childish Gambino.
The final version of Liam Kosta still bears striking resemblance to Glover and may have even picked up some of his personal traits along the way. It certainly would explain why Liam suddenly decides to walk around the Tempest shirtless.
It all makes sense now.
Unfortunately, Liam doesn't stop to spit dope rhymes or make any side-splitting jokes, so the similarities mostly end there. And in fact he turns out to be much less interesting and charismatic than Donald Glover.
As Childish Gambino, Glover's latest release was 2016's "Awaken, My Love!" It features the excellent track Redbone, which was featured in Jordan Peele's acclaimed psychological horror film Get Out, which you should watch if you haven't already.
Kosta, meanwhile, I can only hope is never seen or heard from again.
Pokemon Shuffle, the free-to-play puzzle game for 3DS and mobile devices, has received new stages. The Pokemon Company announced today that new stages themed around Alola--the region from Pokemon Sun and Moon--are now available in Pokemon Shuffle. Pokemon from Sun and Moon, including Play Litten, Popplio, and Rowlet, are available to catch on these stages.
They are available to capture through special stages, following this schedule:
Litten -- Now until May 9
Popplio -- May 9 through May 23
Rowlet -- May 23 through June 6
Additionally, everyone who logs into Pokemon Shuffle between May 2 and May 30 will receive the Alolan Vulpix creature.
In other Pokemon news, the next Global Mission for Sun and Moon has begun. For this challenge, players must collectively collect 3 million Poke Beans in the Poke Pelago, according to VG247. If they can manage it, players will receive 2,000 FC. You can read more about this mission here.
Are you going to jump into Pokemon Shuffle or Sun/Moon to try out the new content and events? Let us know in the comments below!
The Anniversary Festival, as it's called, is going on now. Everyone gets a free assortment of in-game fireworks, along with gifts that are associated with their account status (free vs. paid, etc). Players will also find new quests and other events to take part in to mark the occasion.
It's @lotro 10th anniversary today! Still the most accurate representation of the landscape and lore of Middle Earth I've ever played #lotropic.twitter.com/sGWxSlPH30
Depending on when you registered your LOTRO account, you will receive a different reward. For example, people who registered on April 30, 2016 or earlier (1 Year), get a one-year character portrait frame and the fireworks. The most veteran players, those who created accounts on June 30, 2007 or earlier (10 Year) a ten-year character portrait frame and Dragon Fireworks, which are available permanently. Additionally, 10 Year players get a portrait frame and Dragon Fireworks for their Monster Play character, along with a 10-year token that can be turned in for a cosmetic trait.
Even if you have not played LOTRO in years you can still claim your gifts, giving lapsed players a nice reason to come back. You don't even have to log in to get the gifts, however, as they are automatically applied to your account and will show up the next time you log in, even if that's after the Anniversary Festival ends on May 8.
All gifts will appear in your inventory, though if it's full, you will need to make space.
As for the new Anniversary Festival quests, there will be three new ones every week through July 13. These quests will bring players back to the "places we have been, and gets us some cool stuff in the process." Quests begin at the party tree in Hobbiton, delivered by Mr. Waldo Rumble.
LOTRO has been continually updated since launch in 2007. Most recently, a patch called Battle of the Black Gate added new content set at steps of Sauron's holdout.
Independent developer Double Fine's first Kickstarter game--Broken Age--is finally headed to Xbox One, it seems. The game already came out for PC, PS4, and PS Vita, and now, according to a rating from PEGI, it may be coming to Microsoft's console.
The ratings group for the United States, ESRB, has no rating for an Xbox One version of Broken Age in its database.
As Eurogamer noticed, Broken Age originally came out two years ago this week on PS4 and PS Vita, so it might be that there was some kind of exclusivity deal in place that is now expiring. This is not confirmed, however.
GameSpot has contacted Double Fine for comment and we will update this post with anything we hear back.
You can read GameSpot's reviews of Broken Age's two acts below:
Ahead of Injustice 2's release next month, the fighting game's list of achievements has emerged online, with some of the achievements mentioning a character who has not been announced yet.
Two separate achievements involve the Joker, one of which is titled, "I Love You, I Hate You." For this, players must defeat the Joker as Harley with the final hit coming from Go Night Night. The other achievement referencing the Joker is "Why Aren't You Laughing," which you can unlock by defeating Batman as the Joker with a final hit stemming from Not So Funny Is It?
Big news for Jurassic World 2 today, as Jeff Goldblum--one of the stars of the original series--is coming back for the new movie. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Goldbum will make an appearance in Jurassic World 2, though the extent of his involvement in unknown at this time.
Goldblum played the mathematician Ian Malcolm, who disapproved of the idea to make a park filled with dinosaurs that would eventually eat people, in 1993's Jurassic Park. He appeared as the same character in 1997's The Lost World.
Jurassic World 2 again stars Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard, with other new cast members including James Cromwell and Toby Jones, among others. The film is directed by A Monster Calls' J.A. Bayona, who replaces Colin Trevorrow; he is directing Star Wars: Episode IX.
Trevorrow is still attached to Jurassic World 2, as he co-wrote the script and is a producer on it. Recently, he tweeted the cryptic image below of what look like dinosaur eggs.
Jurassic World was a massive hit, bringing in $1.67 billion worldwide to become one of the highest-grossing movies in history. The sequel arrives in June 2018.
The story for Halo 5: Guardians took a different approach than past entries in the series, as you didn't always play as series hero Master Chief. Sometimes you fought as Spartan Locke, who was leading a team to hunt Chief down. Not everyone enjoyed this deviation from past games, and one of Microsoft's top Halo bosses, franchise manager Frank O'Connor, is aware of the feedback.
"We took some digs for storytelling in Halo 5, but they were absolutely merited. We very much realized that people wanted Master Chief's story of Halo 5," he said in the latest issue of GamesTM, as reported by Wccftech (via NeoGAF). "We definitely marketed in a way that we hoped was going to bring surprise, but for some fans and certainly fans of Master Chief, it was a huge disappointment because they wanted more Chief."
O'Connor went on to say that this was a "big learning" that 343 Industries took away from Halo 5.
"Chief we tend to think of as kind of a vessel for your adventure rather than necessarily this major character in the universe. He's really just your entry into the universe," O'Connor said. "But people have become attached to him over the last fifteen years and they've started to sort of fill in the gaps that the character deliberately has for gameplay reasons with a genuine emotional attachment. We certainly underestimated that with Halo 5."
O'Connor added: "It wasn't that surprising to me, but the volume of 'give us more Chief' at the end of Halo 5 was significant and so I think if anything he's slightly more important now than he has ever been, certainly to our franchise."
He went on to tease that instead of adding more new playable characters into the Halo universe, Halo fans can expect the focus for the next Halo games to "shift the focus a little bit to making the world a little bit more realistic and compelling and, I would say, more fun for players who get to inhabit the Chief in the future, pretty much as they demanded."
The next Halo game has not been officially announced, but we know it will have split-screen. O'Connor himself said more than a year ago that Halo 6, or whatever the sequel is titled, was in the works. While a new Halo shooter probably is not coming this year, you can expect the next title will react to the feedback surrounding Halo 5's story and the concerns fans had about it.
"Doubling down on Master Chief story and the amount of focus on him was probably the easiest learning from Halo 5," he said. "That was a really simple thing to absorb and embrace."
What would you like to see from Halo 6 and its story? Let us know in the comments below!
The first details on the next Adam Sandler movie have been revealed--and he's recruiting another big name in comedy for it. According to Collider, Netflix announced today that Chris Rock will appear in The Week Of, which will be directed by Saturday Night Live's Robert Smigel.
The wedding comedy tells the story of the time immediately before Sandler's movie daughter gets married to Rock's movie son. Further plot details haven't been released yet, but you can probably imagine all the wacky things that could happen when they come together under those circumstances.
Netflix chief content officer Ted Sarandos said in a statement, "Adam Sandler and Chris Rock are cornerstones of the Netflix comedy family and we are over the moon about these two legends reuniting to give our members worldwide a healthy dose of the hilarity that they have been creating together for years. Similar in the romantic comedy tone of Sandler's most recent film Sandy Wexler, this film will be the perfect vehicle for Sandler and Rock and their millions of fans around the world."
The Week Of is the fourth movie in Sandler's original four-movie deal with Netflix and will premiere in 2018, according to Deadline. Netflix and Sandler have since reached a new deal for a further four movies, which is no surprise given how successful they have been.
Smigel, Sandler, and Rock have worked together in the past, most recently on the movie Grown Ups that starred Sandler and Rock.
Phoenix Point, the new turn-based tactical game from X-COM creator Julian Gollop, is turning to crowdfunding to help come to market.
A crowdfunding campaign for the game launched today on Fig, the platform that offers traditional rewards backing (similar to Kickstarter or Indiegogo), as well as actual investment opportunities. The stated goal for Phoenix Point's campaign is $500,000; $300,000 of which is available for investments.
The campaign has been a hit so far, as it's raised nearly $250,000 already from more than 3,900 backers. The drive ends on June 8, so funding is sure to climb higher.
You can secure a digital copy of Phoenix Point through Fig by pledging $30 or more. The game is scheduled to launch in Q4 2018 for PC.
Phoenix Point was announced in March 2016 and has been in the works since at least then. Gaming Insiders founder David Kaye, as well as former developers from Ubisof Sofia and Crytek Black Sea, are working on Phoenix Point; people who worked on XCOM 2 and X-COM Apocalypse are also on the team.
"We are creating Phoenix Point by taking influences from the famed X-COM franchise," Gollop, the CEO of developer Snapshot Games said in a statement. "We are updating our favorite gameplay features from X-COM titles such as UFO: Enemy Unknown and X-COM Apocalypse that I designed, and mixing them with some of the amazing ideas Firaxis Games executed brilliantly in their franchise reboots, to create an entirely new game whose essence lies in the XCOM genre."
A UK teenager is going to jail for two years for creating a program that resulted in more than 1.7 million attacks on Xbox Live, Minecraft, and TeamSpeak, according to The Guardian.
Adam Mudd created the Titanium Stresser program used in the reported attacks when he was 16, according to the report (via Eurogamer). He sold the program to unnamed "cybercriminals," allegedly earning himself more than £386,000.
Teenage hacker jailed for masterminding attacks on Sony and Microsoft https://t.co/ktiwb7M6X4
Mudd, who is now 20, apparently pleaded guilty to the charges, which included one count of committing unauthorized acts with intent to impair the operation of computers; one count of making, supply or offering to supply an article for use in an offense contrary to the Computer Misuse Act; and one count of concealing criminal property."
The presiding judge, Michael Topolski, said the sentence needed to have a "real element of deterrent," saying he wouldn't lessen the term, as Mudd's counsel, Ben Cooper, had asked for. According to the report, Cooper said Mudd was "sucked into the cyber world of online gaming and was 'lost in an alternate reality' after withdrawing from school because of bullying."
"I'm entirely satisfied that you knew full well and understood completely this was not a game for fun," Topolski, the judge, said to Mudd during proceedings. "It was a serious money-making business and your software was doing exactly what you created it to do."
According to The Guardian, "Mudd showed no emotion as he was sent to a young offender institution."
The report goes on: "The court heard that Mudd, who lived with his parents, had previously undiagnosed Asperger syndrome and was more interested in status in the online gaming community than the money."
According to the report, Mudd carried out 594 DDoS attacks against 181 IP addresses running from December 2013 through March 2015. The game RuneScape was targeted, facing 25,000 attacks, the report said. The game's publisher reportedly spent £6m trying to prevent DDoS attacks.
Ahead of the big livestream event for Call of Duty: World War II tomorrow, Activision is apparently showing the game off to celebrities. NFL star Torrey Smith of the Philadelphia Eagles tweeted today that he saw the game. His verdict? "It's crazy," he said.
Sega has posted some more Sonic Forces gameplay footage, showing off the new version of the classic Green Hill Zone, complete with the music and sound effects you may remember.
The game, which is in development at Sonic Team, runs on a brand-new engine that Sega is calling "The Hedgehog Engine 2." The game's new name, meanwhile, is a reference to the battle between the forces of good and evil.
In other Sonic news, this year's other new Sonic game, Sonic Mania, has been delayed from this spring to summer. A more specific release date hasn't been provided yet, but Sega recently showed off the game again, teasing new enemies, preorder bonuses, a collector's edition vinyl album, and the return of the Flying Battery Zone. You can watch a video of that here.
Movie studio giant Disney announced a lot of release dates today. In addition to confirming dates for Star Wars: Episode IX and Indiana Jones 5, Disney revealed when Ralph Breaks the Internet: Wreck-It Ralph 2, The Lion King, Frozen 2, and others will premiere in theaters. All of the dates were confirmed by Hollywood news site Entertainment Weekly.
Ralph Breaks the Internet, the sequel the video game-inspired original, will now come out on November 21, 2018, which is months ahead of its previously announced March 9, 2018 date. November 21, 2018 was previously the date for Disney's Gigantic, an animated re-telling of the Jack and the Beanstalk story, but this movie is now coming on November 5, 2020.
The new Lion King, from Iron Man director Jon Favreau, will arrive on July 19, 2019. Indiana Jones 5 was previously scheduled for that date, but it is not coming in July 2020.
Additionally, the long-awaited sequel to Frozen will arrive over the Thanksgiving weekend in 2019, debuting on November 27, 2019.
Other Disney movies that now have dates include A Wrinkle in Time (March 9, 2018) and Magic Camp (April 6), as well as two untitled animated movies, one each from Disney (November 24, 2021) and Pixar (June 18, 2021).
Are you looking forward to these Disney movies? Let us know in the comments below!
A post on Diablo's website covers some of the bonuses (see the official descriptions below), while you can see them in the image gallery immediately below, captured by GameSpot in the game.
These come to the beta through an update to the 2.6.0 PTR patch, 2.6.0.45183. This update also makes changes to the Necromancer's various skills and passives. It also fixes a problem with Decay Golem. Additionally, the PTR update adds Necromancer Set Dungeons to Adventure Mode and introduces a time limit to complete Set dungeons to 5 minutes.
If you have been selected for the Necromancer closed beta, this will show up on your Blizzard Account Management page. You can then select "Necromancer Beta Test" from the drop-down menu in the launcher to install and start playing. Additionally, you can copy over characters from your regular Diablo III account and bring them to the Necromancer beta test.
Full instructions for downloading the beta and copying characters can be found here. If you still need to sign up for the beta, you can do that right here.
Diablo III Necromancer Set Bonuses:
Class Sets
Bones of Rathma ([PH] Bone / Pet Set)
(2) Set Bonus
Your pets have a chance to reduce the cooldown of Army of the Dead by 1 second each time they deal damage
(4) Set Bonus
You gain 1% damage reduction each time your pets deal damage. Max 50 stacks.
(6) Set Bonus
Each active Skeleton Mage increases the damage of your minions and Army of the Dead by 200%
Trag'Oul's Avatar ([PH] Blood Set)
(2) Set Bonus
Blood Rush gains the effect of every rune
(4) Set Bonus
While at full life, your healing from skills is added to your maximum life for 45 seconds. Up to 100% more.
(6) Set Bonus
Spending 10% life grants you a stack of Blood Cascade. Each stack of Blood Cascade increases the damage of life-spending attacks by 200% and also increases the life you lose by 10%. Using a skill to heal will consume a stack and heal for an additional 300%
Grace of Inarius ([PH] Saint Set)
(2) Set Bonus
Bone Armor's damage is increased by 1000%
(4) Set Bonus
Bone Armor stacks are now refreshed. In addition, Bone Armor grants an additional 2% damage reduction per enemy hit
(6) Set Bonus
Bone Armor also activates a Bone Tornado damaging nearby enemies by 375% weapon damage as Physical. Enemies hit by the tornado take 850% additional damage from the Necromancer's abilities and minions
Pestilence Master's Shroud ([PH] Melee Set)
(2) Set Bonus
Each corpse you consume fires a Corpse Lance at a nearby enemy
(4) Set Bonus
Each enemy hit by Bone Spear reduces your damage taken by 2% up to a maximum of 50%. Lasts 15 seconds.
(6) Set Bonus
Each corpse you consume grants you an Empowered Bone Spear charge that increases the damage of your next Bone Spear by 1000%
The Nintendo Switch will be back in stock at Toys 'R Us this week alongside the launch of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, the retailer has announced.
A representative for the company told GameSpot that all stores across the United States will have a "limited inventory" of the consoles this Friday, March 28.
"Like our previous inventory drops of this hot item, we recommend that customers get in line at their local store before the doors open at 10 AM on Friday," the spokesperson explained.
In Russia, Nintendo will offer a Switch bundle that comes with a copy of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, but this is exclusive to that country. Unlike the Wii and Wii U, there are no bundled games with the Switch.
"The smallest changes in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe refine an already great racing game," reviewer Kallie Plagge said. "But the huge overhaul to the original's afterthought of a Battle Mode is a chaotic, varied opportunity to play very differently than in Grand Prix mode and well worth reinvesting yourself in Mario Kart 8 on Switch."
Notebook, eDP panel: Blue-screen (code 3B) occurs followed by the Recovery screen during software unbundling process.
GeForce GTX 1060: Blue-screen crash occurs pointing to driver (Nvlddmkm.sys) after the system reboots from sleep mode.
GPU idling voltage has increased.
According to the release notes of the new driver, the following are some of the existing and known issues:
(GeForce Experience) Driver installation may fail when attempting to perform a driver over-install. To workaround, perform a clean installation.
(SLI - GeForce GTX 1080) Battlefield 1 XP1 with SLI enabled, corruption appears in the game when switching between full-screen and windowed mode.
(GeForce GTX 1080 Ti) Mass Effect: Andromeda, random memory errors may occur when playing the game.
(GeForce GTX 1080 Ti) Sid Meier's Civilization VI, G-Sync/SLI/DirectX 12: Black corruption appears while entering the in-game menu after skipping the cutscene.
(GeForce GTX Titan X) Ansel in Ghost Recon Wildlands with FXAA enabled from the Nvidia Control Panel, the application crashes when enabling the in-game Ansel UI.
(GM204 based GPUs) Tom Clancy's The Division Survival DLC, game crashes, pointing to ntdll.dll when changed to full-screen and to windowed full-screen.
(GM204 based GPUs) ShadowPlay - For Honor silently may crash if the intro video is skipped while instant replay is on.
(SLI - GeForce GTX 970M) Level loading may hang in Gears of War 4.
(GM204 based GPUs) Quantum Break window either remains blank or freezes in game scene in windowed mode.
(SLI) Street Fighter V performance drop (pause and play) observed when the game is played at 4K resolution with SLI enabled.
GeForce Experience itself is not getting an update and staying on version 3.5.0.70 for now. You can read the details of the 381.89 Game Ready driver on Nvidia's website.
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