By Anonymous on Sep 28, 2017 12:21 am No combat, no story, and no time limits in Discovery Tour, which releases for the game on PS4, Xbox One, and PC next year.
It may not be the Virtual Console service that Nintendo Switch owners have been waiting for, but the first classic Nintendo game is now available for the console. Today, the arcade classic Mario Bros. arrives in the Switch Eshop, kicking off Nintendo's newly announced line of Arcade Archives titles.
Mario Bros. is one of Nintendo's earliest titles, originally releasing in arcades in 1983. Up to two players can compete or cooperate with each other as Mario and Luigi, guiding the plumbers around a single screen and defeating enemies as they emerge from pipes. Unlike later Mario games, however, players can't jump directly on enemies to dispatch them; rather, you need to punch the floor beneath them to turn them over, then kick them before they can regain their footing.
While Mario Bros. has been ported and remade for various consoles throughout the years, the Arcade Archives version reproduces the visuals as they appeared in arcades and allows two players to play together using a single Joy-Con each. The port is handled by Hamster, the studio responsible for the slate of ACA Neo Geo titles. Like those games, Mario Bros. retails for $8/£6.29.
After a long summer still playing last year's football games, you'll be pleased to hear FIFA 18 is almost here. With that in mind, we thought we'd round up everything you need to know about EA's soccer game here, including its release date, some gameplay, our review, and more.
FIFA 18 Release Date And How To Play Right Now
FIFA 18's release date for the UK, US, Europe, and Australia is set for Friday, September 29, 2017. However, some people already have their hands on this year's title, as it was released on EA Access last week and for some pre-order customers earlier this week. If you want to play early, you can buy the Ronaldo or Icon Edition from the PlayStation Store or Xbox Live. The Ronaldo Edition costs US $80 / £80 / AU $120, while the Icon Edition will set you back US $100 / £90 / AU $130. For reference, that's a little more expensive than the standard version, which is currently US $60 / £60 / AU $100.
FIFA 18 Review
In our FIFA 18 review, we awarded the game a 7/10. "It's off the pitch that EA excels," we said. "From the variety of game modes on offer and how everything's presented, to the constant updates in FUT's Team of the Week, Daily Objectives, and discussion of real-world happenings in commentary, FIFA 18 captures the world of football and confidently translates it into a video game. On the pitch, however, EA's soccer series is still lagging far behind PES 2018's more fluid, satisfying football. This year's improvements are welcome, but more needs to be done in the coming years if FIFA is to be a world-beater once again." For more critical opinion, check out our FIFA 18 review roundup.
FIFA 18 Gameplay
Check out some FIFA 18 gameplay at the links below.
FIFA 18's playable demo is out now on the PlayStation Store and Xbox Live. It includes 12 teams--including top clubs Manchester United and Bayern Munich--and two modes: Kick Off and The Journey.
FIFA 18 Player Ratings
With the game out in the wild, all of FIFA 18's player ratings have been revealed. Top of the pile is Cristiano Ronaldo, who is 94 rated. Rounding out the top five highest-rated FIFA 18 players are Lionel Messi (93), Neymar (92), Luis Suarez (92), and Manuel Neuer (92).
FIFA 18 Web App
The FUT 18 Web App is EA's online portal for accessing FIFA 18 Ultimate Team. Check it out here--for a limited time you can even get free rewards just for logging in each day.
FIFA 18 Career Mode's New Features
Career Mode hasn't changed a huge amount since FIFA 17, though there are a few welcome new features in FIFA 18, including interactive transfer negotiations. Rather than submitting an offer for a player and then waiting for an email response, FIFA 18 allows you to conduct transfer negotiations in real-time as part of an interactive cutscene. This involves first meeting with a representative of the selling club and agreeing to a fee for the player in question, before then negotiating personal terms with the star's agent.
The only other new features are "dynamic news clips," imitating those seen in real-world sports coverage when a player or manager gives a press conference. These clips are shown when a player wins a Player of the Month award or when you win a competition, among other events.
FIFA 18 Ultimate Team New Features
FUT 18 also has a number of new features. Squad Battles are new, weekly weekly single-player competitions where you compete against AI-controlled teams built by other human players, before being ranked against other real-world players for the amount of games you win. EA says these offer the best rewards for those who choose not to play online.
Elsewhere, Ultimate Team Legends are no longer exclusive to Xbox and have been renamed Icons. In addition, some Icons will receive Stories cards, in which the player in question actually has three versions available, each corresponding to a different stage in the player's career. As an example, Ronaldinho has one card for his time at PSG in 2002, one for when he played for AC Milan in 2010, and one "prime" card, which highlights his peak in 2004, when he won World Player of the Year while playing for Barcelona. Two of these three cards will be available to obtain in packs and Squad-Building Challenges, though prime Icons will only available on select Thursdays that EA is calling Throwback Thursdays. You'll only be able to get these in limited time packs and Squad-Building Challenges.
FIFA 18 Soundtrack
The full FIFA 18 soundtrack has been revealed, featuring acts like alt-J, The Amazons, and Weezer. Check it out in the Spotify embed below.
By Anonymous on Sep 27, 2017 11:05 pm This month, Xbox One gets Gone Home and The Turing Test, while Xbox 360 gets Rayman 3 HD and Medal of Honor: Airborne.
On Facebook, Niantic announced that the in-game Equinox event will now run until October 3, giving players an additional day to take part in it. During the event, you'll earn double Stardust for catching Pokemon and hatching Pokemon eggs, while registering a new Pokemon in your Pokedex will net you triple the amount of XP as normal.
In addition to that, players have a chance to get special 2 km eggs from PokeStops and Gyms during the Equinox event, which may hatch into Chansey, Mareep, Larvitar, and other rare Pokemon. Niantic is also offering "special boxes" from Pokemon Go's in-game shop that contain items like Lucky Eggs, Lure Modules, and new Super Incubators; the latter hatch eggs 1.5 times faster than a regular Incubator.
Beyond the Equniox event, Pokemon Go players still have a few more days to capture Entei, Raikou, or Suicune, the Legendary dogs from Pokemon Gold and Silver. Each of the three Pokemon is currently available in a certain region until September 29. Raikou can be found in the Americas; Entei is available in Europe and Africa; and Suicune is currently in the Asia-Pacific region. On September 30, the Legendary Pokemon will rotate to a different part of the world, where they will be available until October 31.
Spoilers for American Horror Story: Cult, Season 7, Episode 4, "11/9," below
In the first three episodes of American Horror Story: Cult, the FX horror show played around with the idea of showing extreme people on both sides of today's culture wars. In Season 7, Episode 4, "11/9," the show turned the clock back to Trump's election once more and took that central theme all the way to the finish line. It clawed past people's political differences and exposed the underlying force that, according to American Horror Story, motivates us all: fear. And it showed us exactly the kind of person who might use that fear to unite us.
Kudos to actor Evan Peters, who's been a main cast member for every season of American Horror Story so far, and a favorite among fans. He's been a charismatic but mysterious force in Cult, his full role and influence only hinted at until now. It was easy to assume he'd be the leader of the eponymous cult--that he dons a clown mask and murders people in between chucking lattes at lesbians and running for city council. Viewers hoping for a twist may have been disappointed by that well-telegraphed development, but Peters' Kai Anderson is so fun and terrifying to watch that it doesn't really matter.
And it reveals exactly what role our real-world politics play in this fantasy: In the world of American Horror Story: Cult, Trump is not some Great Leader who galvanizes his followers into action. Or at least, that's not the part of Trump's persona and influence that's relevant to the show. Instead, Trump serves as a proof-of-concept for Kai.
"City council is just the beginning," he tells Beverly Hope (Adina Porter). "Then it's state Senate. Then Congress. Followers in the millions--tens of millions--and then, as we have seen, anything is possible."
"As we have seen," as in, as Trump's rise has demonstrated.
Kai is intensely empathetic, a trait you don't normally see in a villain. He's incredibly good at sensing people's pain, whether he's observing a trainer at the gym or a newscaster on TV. He sees that pain, and he exploits it to make people loyal to him.
Dr. Alexandra Stein, a former cult member who now studies and writes about cults, outlined her five-point definition of what constitutes a cult in an interview with Vice's Broadly:
"One: The leader is charismatic and authoritarian. Two: The structure of the group isolates people. The third thing is total ideology, like, 'You only need me and no other belief system has any relevance whatsoever." The fourth thing is the process of brainwashing." The fifth point, she says, is the result: "creating deployable followers who will do what you say regardless of their own self survival interests."
Yup, that all describes Kai pretty well. Clearly AHS mastermind Ryan Murphy and the show's other writers did their homework.
It's safe to posit at this point that nearly every character on American Horror Story: Cult besides Sarah Paulson's Ally is under Kai's spell, including the neighbors, the reporter, the detective, the grocery store clerk, Billie Lourd's Winter, and yes, even Ally's wife, Alison Pill's Ivy. The paranoia that everyone is against you is playing out on the screen. But the really fascinating thing about "11/9" was seeing how Kai attracted these disciples in the first place, different as they are.
Trump's victory empowered Kai Anderson. It taught him that anything is possible, because fear motivates all people. Fear can explain why liberals afraid of Hillary's establishment ties, like Ally, cast their ballot for Jill Stein, and why people who voted for Obama in 2012 "switched sides" and cast for Trump. In that fear, Kai sees opportunity.
"The world has become tiny, which means the fear in a small town in Michigan can infect the country--the world--in a few days," he tells Beverly. "When fear finds more hosts, it gets stronger, scarier. The tiny fear in one woman turns into a beast that swallows the world by the time it spreads across the country. Great men and women have been weaponizing fear forever, but what all those men had was a great messenger. Someone with a pulpit and a microphone--someone to give that fear a name. Believe me, Beverly Hope, if you get the world scared enough, they will set the world on fire for us."
Every character we saw Kai recruit in "11/9" was afraid--of losing their jobs and homes, of being crushed by an uncaring society, of their rights being stripped away, or of being humiliated. The one character who didn't seem scared was pre-election Ally, so confident in the polls and the good sense of her fellow citizens. Why bother leaving the comfort of the couch to join the crowds? Why not cast your protest vote, when your side's victory is a lock? It's hard to imagine the worst possible outcome when you're comfortable and unafraid.
Maybe that's why Kai's clown cult is doing all this to her--harassing her, stalking her, gaslighting her, isolating her, and making her feel insane. Ally is going to drown in her fear, and I'd bet that by the end she'll be Kai's most devoted follower.
Fear crosses party lines, breaks down walls, and reveals the basest nature in us all. That's American Horror Story: Cult's grim worldview, and I'm finding it difficult to argue with.
Chaz Bono's character, the p***y-grabbing store clerk Gary, put it best, his blood-spurting stump raised high in the polling place: "Welcome to Trump's American, motherf***ers!"
It's almost October, and that means we're getting a new selection of free PlayStation Plus games. Sony has announced the lineup for next month, and it's an impressive one thanks to the headliner, Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain.
Thanks to Cross-Buy, those on PS4 will get a total of four games: Both Vita titles, Hue and Sky Force Anniversary, can be played on the handheld or PS4. And even PS3 owners get a bonus, as Sky Force supports Cross-Buy with the older console as well. That joins Hustle Kings and Monster Jam Battlegrounds as the standard PS3 games for the month.
All six of these games will be available beginning on Tuesday, October 3. You'll have until November 7 to claim them, but time is running out to grab September's free PS Plus games, which return to their regular prices on October 3. Additionally, if you haven't already grabbed the bonus game That's You, it leaves PS Plus on October 24. PSVR game RIGS also remains free until November 7.
Another bonus offer will be introduced in October for Plus members, as they'll get closed beta access to Hand of the Gods, the spin-off of Smite. Until November 14, they're also entitled to a free Plus Pack that consists of a special Galactic Invader Leader skin for Ah Puch, a card back, a player icon, and five Core Packs.
Microsoft has announced the next batch of free Games With Gold titles that will be available for Xbox Live Gold subscribers. October brings with it another four games spread across Xbox One and Xbox 360, and they're just a few days away.
On Xbox One, Gold members can pick up the acclaimed adventure game Gone Home for the entire month. On October 16, it'll be joined by another notable first-person game, The Turing Test. Xbox 360 owners, meanwhile, get Rayman 3 HD for the first half of the month and Medal of Honor: Airborne during the second half. Both of these 360 games can also be playable on Xbox One through backwards compatibility.
We're just days away from the first of these being available, as October 1 is this coming Sunday. You have until then to grab a pair of September's free Games With Gold titles--Forza 5 and Battlefield 3--while another of them, Oxenfree, will stick around until October 15.
If you're looking for something else to pass the time, the latest batch of weekly Xbox One and 360 deals are now available. Among other things, a variety of Call of Duty games are discounted.
October 2017 Games With Gold
Xbox One
Gone Home (October 1-31)
The Turing Test (October 16-November 15)
Oxenfree (September GWG available through October 15)
Ubisoft has announced a new game mode for Assassins' Creed: Origins, and it might not be what you expect. "Discovery Tour," as it's called, is a casual mode coming in 2018 for free that removes all combat so players can freely explore the ancient Egypt setting.
While in Discovery Tour mode, you're apparently able to walk or ride through the entirety of the game, including locations such as Alexandria, Memphis, the Nile delta, the Giza plateau, the Faiyum Oasis, and the Great Sand Seas. There is no combat, no story, and no time limits.
The whole point, it seems, is to help players understand the history of ancient Egypt. Discovery Tour will include "dozens" of "guided tours" that were organised by actual historians and experts. They will focus on things like the Great Pyramids, the mummification process, and Cleopatra's life, among other things.
Ubisoft shared one image from Discovery Mode. As you can see above, it shows part of the mummification process--specifically evisceration--with information sourced to London's National Museum of Antiquities.
Discovery Tour comes to Origins in early 2018 through a free update. The game launches on October 27 for Xbox One, PS4, and PC.
By Anonymous on Sep 27, 2017 10:35 pm The Lobby crew got their hands on the SNES Classic, wax poetic about Divinity: Original Sin 2 (again), and predict what Rockstar has in store for its Red Dead 2 teaser.
Saints Row developer Volition has laid off "over 30 people," according to Kotaku, which names the studio's general manager, Dan Cermak, as one of the people among those affected. The studio's last major release, Agents of Mayhem, failed to make a big impact critically and, according to Kotaku's three sources, parent company Deep Silver "was unhappy" with sales.
As of yet, the circumstances leading to the layoffs haven't been confirmed and it is common for studios to decrease in number after development on a big project is complete. GameSpot has contacted Volition and Deep Silver for a statement on the matter.
Volition was purchased by Deep Silver following THQ's bankruptcy in 2013. It has since released Saints Row: Gat Out of Hell and Agents of Mayhem. While the latter of the two is set in the Saints Row universe, the game was not marketed as a new entry in the popular open-world series, but was instead treated as a brand new property.
The studio also worked on the Red Faction series while under THQ, though the last entry in that series was 2011's Red Faction: Armageddon.
In GameSpot's Agents of Mayhem review, critic Brett Todd awarded it a 4/10, saying it was "a broken and repetitive game," and its personality couldn't overcome these flaws.
"The attitude behind Agents of Mayhem has potential, at least if it's executed properly," he continued. "But there's little to Agents of Mayhem beyond its foul-mouthed and bombastic attitude, which push the game into grating and obnoxious territory. Throw in the poor mission design and bugs, and you've got a game with loads of mayhem, but not much else."
2K Sports has announced its DLC plans for WWE 2K18. The publisher will offer a slate of additional content for the wrestling game following its release, including new wrestlers, moves, and more.
Five themed DLC packs are scheduled to arrive throughout late 2017 and early 2018, and they introduce many new and iconic wrestlers to the game. The Enduring Icons Pack adds WWE Legends The Hardy Boyz, Beth Phoenix, and the Rock 'n' Roll Express, while the NXT Generation Pack brings Aleister Black, Drew McIntyre, Elias, and other NXT stars to the roster. You can find the price and contents of each pack, with 2K's descriptions, below.
Accelerator Pack -- $5
Players will gain access to all unlockable content available at launch in the game's VC Purchasable section (excluding downloadable content)
Players can also decide the overall rankings and attribute levels for all playable characters throughout the life of the product
Enduring Icons Pack -- $10
The Hardy Boyz
Beth Phoenix
The Rock 'n' Roll Express
MyPlayer Kick Start Pack -- $10
Players will gain access to unlock and boost MyPlayer ratings and attributes made available at launch as part of the game's MyCareer mode
Players can also unlock all clothing made available at launch that provides attribute boosts in MyCareer
New Moves Pack -- $4
Tie Breaker
Crash Landing
Pumphandle Death Valley Driver
Swinging Sleeper Slam
NXT Generation Pack -- $10
Aleister Black
Drew McIntyre
Elias
Lars Sullivan
Ruby Riot
2K is also offering a Season Pass for WWE 2K18. The Season Pass runs for $30 and gives you access to all five of the game's upcoming DLC packs once each one is released.
Ghost War, the PvP mode for Ghost Recon: Wildlands, finally has a release date. It's launching on October 10, Ubisoft announced today. The 4v4 mode comes to the shooter through a free update on all platforms. Ubisoft previously tested Ghost War in a beta.
Matches play out as best-of-three, with 10-minute rounds. There are eight maps and 12 classes at launch, and Ubisoft has said it will have "regular updates and new content" after launch. This will include more classes, maps, and modes.
At launch, Ghost War takes the form of a deathmatch-style experience with revives. There is no word yet on what other modes might come later, but objective-style gametypes are potentially one possibility. A new trailer for Ghost War released today shows the final three classes to be revealed: Assassin, Diversionist, and Sentintel. Check out the video above to get up to speed.
A free PvP mode for Wildlands was announced way back in March as part of Ubisoft's post-launch plans for the game, which also included other free updates and paid DLC. Those expansions have already been released.
To celebrate Pokemon's 20th anniversary film, Pokemon the Movie: I Choose You, receiving a limited theatrical run outside Japan, Pokemon Sun and Moon is continuing its giveaway of six special edition Pikachu in the game. Last week, players could get a Pikachu wearing Ash's original hat from the TV series. This week, you can input a code to get a Pikachu that wears Ash's hat from the Hoenn region (the first time he changed his hat in the series).
This special edition Pikachu also comes with a set of moves inspired by those attacks used in the Hoenn region. The moves are:
Thunderbolt
Quick Attack
Thunder
Iron Tail
In order to get the Pikachu, players should choose the Mystery Gift option from the game's menu and enter the code PIKACHU20. You can then pick up your Pokemon from the deliveryman waiting inside any Pokemon Center. To get this Hoenn-inspired Pikachu, you have to input this code between now and October 2.
It's important to note you can only receive one of the six Pikachu during the promotion, so if you already got last week's Pikachu with Ash's original hat, you can't get this week's Pikachu too. Here's the full distribution schedule, if you'd like to hold out for a different Pikachu coming up:
Pokemon the Movie: I Choose You will receive its a limited theatrical run on November 5-6. You can find your nearest theater showing the film on Fathom Events. Anyone who attends will also receive a bonus Ash's Pikachu Pokemon TCG card and a special QR code to use in Pokemon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon, coming to 3DS on November 17. Scanning that code will get you a different Pikachu wearing the cap that's featured in the movie.
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No combat, no story, and no time limits in Discovery Tour, which releases for the game on PS4, Xbox One, and PC next year.
This month, Xbox One gets Gone Home and The Turing Test, while Xbox 360 gets Rayman 3 HD and Medal of Honor: Airborne.
The Lobby crew got their hands on the SNES Classic, wax poetic about Divinity: Original Sin 2 (again), and predict what Rockstar has in store for its Red Dead 2 teaser.
Dave talks about what he thinks makes Divinity Original Sin 2 so special.
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