Microsoft held a special event in Mexico City to promote all the happenings surrounding Xbox One, titled X018. The event showed off loads of new footage for upcoming games, announcements of release dates, DLC, and features, and even a few surprise Microsoft acquisitions. You can check out the full roundup of all the news from the show below.
Crackdown 3
Crackdown 3 is finally happening with a solid release date. You'll be able to patrol the city and crack the skulls of some criminal overlords on February 15, 2019. [Full story]
The company also debuted a brand new multiplayer mode for Crackdown 3 called Wrecking Zone. It pits two teams of five against each other in a destructible arena.
Plus, for fans or newcomers alike, the original Crackdown is now free through November 30. Get in there and clean up the town, agents.
Forza Horizon 4 DLC
Forza Horizon 4 showed off its first big expansion, titled Fortune Island. The DLC will take you to the windy roads and treacherous weather of the northern British Isles, and introduce a host of new cars as well.
Xbox Game Pass Adding 16 More Games
Xbox One's all-you-can-eat subscription service, Xbox Game Pass, announced 16 new games heading to the subscription in the coming months. Those include PUBG, Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice, and Ori and the Blind Forest, among others.
Finally, Game Pass now has its own dedicated app, which will help players discover new games and set them to download from wherever they are.
New Studio Acquisitions
Microsoft expanded its portfolio of studios as well, with two more announcements. The first was the InXile, the studio behind Wasteland and The Bard's Tale.
The second studio acquisition was the developer behind Knights of the Old Republic and Fallout: New Vegas, Obsidian Entertainment.
Xbox One Black Friday Deals
With Black Friday around the corner, Microsoft couldn't resist teasing the deals it has in store for the retail holiday. Xbox One consoles and games will get some deep discounts.
State of Decay 2 Getting Free DLC, Very Soon
The zombie survival game State of Decay 2 is getting a free DLC pack, and just like that zombie you don't realize is right behind you, it's closer than you think. [Full Story]
Sea of Thieves Getting New PvP Arena
Sea of Thieves showed off its next big update, which will bring a new PvP competitive arena to the pirate game. [Full Story]
Devil May Cry 5 Void Mode
DMC5 showed off a lengthy look at the new Void mode, which will let demon hunters test their skills or just try out new moves in a simulated environment with lots of options. [Full Story]
Final Fantasy XIII Trilogy Now Xbox One Backwards Compatible
The Xbox One backwards compatibility list has gotten another expansion with the addition of all three Final Fantasy XIII games. Civilization Revolution, already backwards compatible, has also been updated with Xbox One X enhancements. [Full Story]
New Kingdom Hearts 3 Trailer
The latest trailer for the Disney and Square Enix epic Kingdom Hearts 3 debuted, giving us an extended view of Pooh bear. [Full Story]
Xbox One KBM Support
Several games will be getting keyboard and mouse support on Xbox One, including Fortnite. [Full Story]
Metro Exodus Gets A Big Collector's Edition
We got a closer look at Metro Exodus, including its hulking $235 Spartan Collector's Edition. [Full Story]
Jump Force Trailer Is Just Saiyan
An extended look at Jump Force gave us a better look at some fighters, including some notable names from the Dragon Ball franchise. [Full Story]
During Microsoft's XO18 livestream, the developers behind Shadow of the Tomb Raider revealed more info about the upcoming DLC for the game. In The Forge, players will be able to take on a number of new challenges and tombs, even allowing for players to work with a friend to solve many complex puzzles. In the new trailer, we saw a glimpse of what's to come in the new adventure, which will take the Lara Croft to a complex smithing temple hidden in the dense jungles.
In The Forge, Lara and her ally will uncover a new tomb in South America, housing a new threat that will put the world at risk yet again. Like other DLCs from previous Tomb Raider games, these updates add entirely new areas to explore, and along with new enemies and weapons to find. What's interesting about The Forge, however, is that it will add co-op play, with many of the puzzles and tombs tasking both characters to solve many of its complex challenges. Along with story content, there's also the inclusion of the Score Attack mode, which will allow players to compete agains each other by traversing the environment and gaining a higher score over their opponent.
As the first post-launch DLC for Shadow of the Tomb Raider, The Forge will be one of several new expansions coming to the game. Though you can play the entire DLC with a friend, you can still play solo as well. With a planned schedule of new content over the next several months, the season pass will allow many players to take part in new events and story missions that will gradually be included in the game. The Forge is set to launch on November 13, this new expansion will add even more tombs and secrets to uncover.
There's much more to see from XO18. In addition to the reveal of Crackdown 3's multiplayer mode, the new IP Void Masters, there were several new games revealed for Xbox One's Game Pass--including PUBG, Hellblade, and Agents of Mayhem.
"As one of the industry's premiere RPG developers, we couldn't be more excited about the opportunity to add their expertise to Microsoft Studios, while enabling the studio to preserve its unique culture and build on its talent and vision to fully realize their creative ambitions," Microsoft said in a statement.
This is one of two acquisitions Microsoft revealed intentions of making during X018. It is also set to acquire inXile Entertainment, the studio behind Wasteland 2, Torment: Tides of Numenera, and The Bard's Tale IV: Barrows Deep. As Microsoft notes itself, these two studios share heritage and develop games in similar genres. The platform holder has said both Obsidian and inXile "will continue to operate autonomously and bring their unique talents, IP, and expertise to Microsoft Studios as they build new RPG experiences for our players and fans."
Microsoft also notes that with these two new studios as part of its family, Microsoft Studios is now made up of "13 distinct and diverse game development teams." During E3 2018, Microsoft confirmed acquisitions of Santa Monica-based The Initiative, a new studio led by Darrell Gallagher, former head of studio for Tomb Raider developer Crystal Dynamics.
Additionally, State of Decay developer Undead Labs, Forza Horizon studio Playground Games, We Happy Few developer Compulsion Games, and Ninja Theory, the British developer of Heavenly Sword, DmC: Devil May Cry, and Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice, were also added to its studio portfolio.
Microsoft is set to add another developer to its growing list of first-party studios. At X018, a celebratory Xbox event taking place in Mexico City, Microsoft revealed its intention to acquire inXile Entertainment, the developer of Wasteland 2, Torment: Tides of Numenera, and The Bard's Tale IV: Barrows Deep.
The announcement was made by Matt Booty, head of Microsoft Studios and, according to Microsoft, inXile will continue to operate independently, but have the support to pursue its creative ambitions on all existing and new projects. InXile's Brian Fargo said joining Microsoft allows the studio to tap into the "incredible Microsoft ecosystems that is second to none." He said the team intends to carry on making role-playing games.
Microsoft has bolstered its development studio portfolio significantly this year. At E3 2018 it revealed five studios had joined the Xbox family. Santa Monica-based The Initiative, which is being headed up by Darrell Gallagher, former head of studio for Tomb Raider developer Crystal Dynamics, was said to be building a team of "world class talent" to develop "groundbreaking new game experiences."
Xbox boss Phil Spencer also confirmed that State of Decay developer Undead Labs and Forza Horizon studio Playground Games had been acquired by Microsoft. The latter is making a brand-new game, which is rumored to be Fable 4. We Happy Few developer Compulsion Games also was named as a new Microsoft studio, but perhaps the biggest surprise was Ninja Theory, the British developer of Heavenly Sword, DmC: Devil May Cry, and Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice.
As with inXile, Microsoft said these studios will retain "creative independence," and Microsoft's investment in them give these teams the additional resources and backing they need to take "bigger risks" and make "bolder worlds." InXile is currently developing Wasteland 3, which was crowdfunded using Fig. The game is expected to launch in 2019.
The addition of these studios comes at a time when Xbox was under scrutiny for its lack of first-party titles for Xbox One. While projects these new studios are developing may not be targeting the platform holder's current platform, at E3 2018 Microsoft confirmed work on new Xbox hardware was underway.
Microsoft has detailed a number of Black Friday 2018 discounts, giving people the opportunity to pick up its consoles and subscribe to services for cheaper than usual. The announcement was made during X018, the Xbox event being held in Mexico City. The platform holder is knocking up to $100 off its Xbox One consoles, which means you can pick up the Xbox One X for $400, which it notes is the cheapest its ever been. Xbox wireless controllers will also be $10 off, including the custom ones created using Xbox's Design Lab.
On top of that, Xbox Game Pass, which gives subscribers access to a large library of titles they can download and play for the lifetime of their subscription, is being offered for $1 for the first month. This deal is available from today through January 3. Similarly, Xbox Live Gold--which is required to use the Xbox Game Pass service--is going for $1 for the first month too. It's worth noting that these are set to automatically renew at the end of the month, when you'll be charged full price, so make sure to cancel before then if you don't want to be automatically charged on an ongoing basis.
A number of first-party games are also being discounted, most notably Forza Horizon 4, Sea of Thieves, and State of Decay 2, PUBG, Super Lucky's Tale, which are being discounted by as much as 35%.
In GameSpot's Forza Horizon 4 review, Edmond Tran awarded it a 9/10, saying there's "a diverse range of activities stuffed into every corner of Horizon 4." He continued: "Meaningful changes contribute to smart driving dynamics and a more consistent sense of achievement. Everything you do in Horizon feels valuable, no matter how big or small--from the basic thrills of speeding a fast car down a gorgeous mountain highway to spending time tinkering with your favorite ride to manage seasonal road conditions to just hanging out with friends and strangers online and goofing off in friendly games. The charm of the Horizon series is as palpable as ever, a winning, all-inclusive recipe that celebrates the joy of driving above all else."
In his review of Sea of Thieves, Peter Brown said the open-world pirate game is "a somewhat hollow game that can be fun for a handful of hours when played with friends, and something worth trying out if you happen to be an Xbox Game Pass subscriber.
"Even though it's hard to wholeheartedly recommend," he added, "I like enough of what I see to hold out hope that things will eventually improve as the game continues to be patched and updated with new content." Since its initial launch, Sea of Thieves developer Rare has released updates to improve the game and an expansion called Forsaken Shores. You can also read GameSpot's review of State of Decay 2 to find out more about what we thought of that game.
Xbox Game Pass features both first-party and third-party titles. Check out our comprehensive list of games available on Xbox Game Pass now to see what else a subscription would give you access to.
Microsoft has big plans for Xbox Game Pass over the coming months. At its X018 conference, the company announced 16 more games coming by the end of the year--and the line-up includes some big names and critical darlings.
Microsoft also announced a new Xbox Game Pass app, available now on iOS and Android. The app aims to make it easier to discover new Game Pass games from its large library, and set them to download remotely so they're waiting for you when you get back to your Xbox One. Just make sure that your console settings have "Instant On" and remote installations enabled to make use of the functionality.
Finally, if you're still curious to try out Game Pass, Microsoft announced a special starter price. You can open a subscription for $1 for your first month as long as you sign up by January 3. Afterwards, of course, if you allow the subscription to continue it will resume its regular price of $10 per month.
Microsoft has launched an Xbox Game Pass application for iOS and Android devices. As detailed during the X018 event, the app allows users to browse the library of titles available as part of the Xbox Game Pass subscription and download them to their Xbox One console. This means that, while on the go, you can set games to be ready for you when you sit down in front of your console.
In addition to the new app, Microsoft detailed a number of new titles that are being added to the Xbox Game Pass library. For those that have a subscription to the service, these games can be downloaded and played at no further cost, and will be available to them for as long as they are subscribed--barring any decision Microsoft makes to remove their availability from the service.
The biggest new addition is PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds, the popular battle royale title, which will be available from November 12. Thief of Thieves is available from today, and Agents of Mayhem, MXGP3, and Thomas Was Alone are set to be added on November 22.
In December, Ori and the Blind Forest, Kingdom Two Crowns, and Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice will also be added to Xbox Game Pass. During the holiday season, indie titles Aftercharge, Supermarket Shriek, Mutant Year Zero, Pathologic 2, The Good Life, Void Bastards, and Secret Neighbor will be introduced to the Xbox Game Pass library the day they become available on the platform. Finally, Ori and the Will of the Wisps--the sequel to Ori and the Blind Forest--will be available through Xbox Game Pass when it is released for Xbox One and PC in 2019.
To further entice people into subscribing, Microsoft is offering a discount on the price of a Xbox Game Pass. For the first month, subscriptions will be available for $1 from now through January 3. Microsoft is also discounting Xbox Live subscription prices down to $1 for the first month, so you could get set to download games and play online for a total of $2. Keep in mind that these are likely to be set to auto-renew at the full price, so make sure to cancel if you don't want an ongoing membership.
The list of titles available as part of Xbox Game Pass is already significant and includes both first-party and third-party games from the Xbox One and Xbox 360 catalog. Recent highlights include Forza Horizon 4 and State of Decay 2. You can see the full list of Xbox Game Pass titles for a more comprehensive look at the library.
At Microsoft's X018 conference, the company announced the first big expansion for Forza Horizon 4. The DLC is called Fortune Island, and it's set to launch on December 13. It keeps you racing through the UK but takes you to some northern British Isles with particularly craggy mountainsides and dangerous weather like lightning storms. The new setting isn't without its peaceful charms, though, as you'll be able to witness the aurora borealis.
Naturally, Fortune Island will come alongside a new set of cars to drive as well. The game has already started rolling out the five custom-built Ford vehicles from the GymkhanaTEN video series. Car Pass members can already grab the 1977 Ford GymkhanaTEN, F-150 Hoonitruck, and the 1993 Ford Escort Cosworth Group A. Later this month they can also get the 1965 Ford Hoonicorn Mustang V2 and the 2017 Ford Fiesta RS, followed by the 2016 Ford GymkhanaTEN Focus RS RX in December.
Fortune Island is part of the expansions bundle for $35, which is available for Ultimate Edition owners at no additional cost. If you're a Game Pass subscriber, you've already gotten access to Forza Horizon 4 as part of your subscription, and you can get the expansions as a bundle or individually for 10% off.
Setting the expansion in the rocky north should prove a challenge for experienced racers, especially given the game's marquee feature of changing seasons. GameSpot's Forza Horizon 4 review found the seasons had a real impact on gameplay, and contributed to a diversity of race types.
"Everything you do in Horizon feels valuable, no matter how big or small--from the basic thrills of speeding a fast car down a gorgeous mountain highway to spending time tinkering with your favorite ride to manage seasonal road conditions to just hanging out with friends and strangers online and goofing off in friendly games," said critic Edmond Tran. "The charm of the Horizon series is as palpable as ever, a winning, all-inclusive recipe that celebrates the joy of driving above all else."
Deep Silver has announced a special version of 4A Games' Metro Exodus will be when it launches in 2019. Titled the "Spartan Collector's Edition," the package is limited to 4,000 units and is available to pre-order now from the Metro Exodus website.
"The Spartan Collector's Edition ships in a gigantic, barrel-shaped package, based on an in-game design that adds to the authenticity," Deep Silver explains. It contains a statue of Artyom--the main character of the series--which is hand-painted resin and stands at 10.5 inches high. There's also a replica of Artyom's Spartan Order dog tag, collectible postcards, and two patches.
The Spartan Collector's Edition can be purchased as a stand-alone item or complete with a copy of The Aurora Limited Edition, which has a copy of the game, an art book, and the Metro Exodus expansion pass, packaged in a custom metal outer case inspired by Metro Exodus' in-game locomotive, The Aurora. The Spartan Collector's Edition will cost $149.99 on its own or $234.99 bundled with the Aurora Edition.
Take a look at the full contents of the Spartan Collector's Edition with descriptions, courtesy of Deep Silver, below.
A Premium Artyom Statue: This highly detailed, hand-painted resin statue stands at 10.5 inches high and captures the iconic scene from the Metro Exodus announcement trailer of Artyom fighting off a deadly Watchman. Each statue is individually numbered.
Authentic Spartan Order Dog Tag: A finely crafted replica of Artyom's Spartan Order tag.
Artyom's Memories Collectible Postcards: Arytom's most treasured items are postcards from the world before it was devastated by nuclear war. Fans of the Metro series will recognize Artyom's collection, given to him by those he encounters on his journey.
Spartan Order Patches: Two authentic Spartan Order patches to wear with pride.
Metro Exodus is set to release February 22 for PS4, Xbox One, and PC. Check out our full pre-order guide for more purchasing options.
At X018, the Xbox fan event taking place in Mexico City, Microsoft announced that mouse and keyboard support will arrive on Xbox One on November 14, and Xbox Insiders will be able to use it on select games at launch, with more titles adding support later. Among these games is Epic Games' Fortnite and Digital Extremes' Warframe.
In November, Bomber Crew, Deep Rock Galactic, Strange Brigade, Vermintide 2, War Thunder, and X-Morph Defense will also be updated to offer keyboard and mouse support. Beyond that, Microsoft has named Children of Morta, DayZ, Minion Master, Moonlighter, Vigor, Warface, and Wargroove as games "adding support in the future."
According to Microsoft, when the feature becomes available next week, developers will have the tools required to create "tailored mouse and keyboard experiences for they game as they see fit to ensure a fair and fun experience for fans.
The company also took the opportunity to reveal a selection of "Designed for Xbox" mice and keyboard peripherals. Razer has been confirmed to be the exclusive partner for these products and is expected to introduces their line of Designed for Xbox peripherals at CES in January, 2019. Microsoft says these are going to be "created for living room or desktop scenarios, come equipped with a dedicated Xbox key, and support the new Xbox Dynamic Lighting feature enabling immersive in-game lighting effects."
Of course, the introduction of mouse and keyboard support is a big deal, especially for competitive titles such as Fortnite. Traditionally, it's believed that those using mouse and keyboard have an advantage as they enable users to be more precise and react quicker. Microsoft seems to be placing the onus on developers to figure out how to implement support in their games, and it will be interesting to see if more developers adopt the input method, and how they plan to handle the potential split in the player base this could cause. For Fortnite specifically, players using keyboard and mouse will be matched against others doing the same.
First-person shooters are, naturally, the genre mouse and keyboard is perhaps best suited for, and some players of competitive titles such as Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, Battlefield V, PUBG, Overwatch may welcome the support. This also opens up the console to accommodate a variety of other genres, such as real-time strategy, much better,. Historically, titles in this genre such as Civilization or Halo Wars have been tweaked to work with controllers. Mouse and keyboard support also opens the door to a bunch of touch-based titles to appear on the console.
Apparently, author George R.R. Martin was wrong about the name of HBO's officially untitled prequel series set thousands of years before Game of Thrones. In a recent blog post, Martin, who penned the "A Song of Ice and Fire" books on which Game of Thrones is based, let slip the show was called The Long Night. That name comes with a huge number of lore implications for the story. Now he's walked back that reveal in another post, presumably after some pushback from HBO.
In the first post, Martin confirmed that Naomi Watts had been cast in the show, which is being run by Kingsman and Kick-Ass writer and producer Jane Goldman and co-created by Martin. He dropped the name of the show, which HBO hadn't revealed, but which corresponds to a major event in Game of Thrones history: specifically, the creation of the White Walkers. Apparently that was a tidbit that HBO wasn't ready to fully confirm.
Martin wrote in another post on November 5 that HBO had told him the upcoming series is still untitled. "HBO has informed me that the Jane Goldman pilot is not (yet) titled THE LONG NIGHT. That's is certainly the title I prefer, but for the moment the pilot is still officially UNTITLED. So… mea culpa, mea culpa, mea culpa."
Still, the idea that Martin thinks the show is, or could be, called The Long Night probably means the speculation that comes along with that name is still valid.
The Long Night refers to a time around 8,000 years before the current events of the show, during what's known in Game of Thrones lore as the Age of Heroes. It was specifically a very long winter--the world of Game of Thrones has weird seasons that can last years, and the Long Night lasted even longer. According to the Starks' servant Old Nan, "There came a night that lasted a generation, and kings shivered and died in their castles even as the swineherds in their hovels. Women smothered their children rather than see them starve, and cried, and felt their tears freeze on their cheeks."
What was extra awful about the Long Night was the arrival of the Others, or White Walkers, for the first time in Westeros. Descending from the North, the White Walkers led an army of the dead that, Nan says, routed armies, swept through castles and towns, and showed no mercy. According to Westerosi legend, it was only when an unknown figure called the Last Hero sought out and allied with the magical folk called the Children of the Forest that the White Walkers were defeated.
Setting the Game of Thrones prequel in the Age of Heroes already suggested the Long Night would be its subject matter, and Martin leaking the title is further confirmation the show is likely to cover a lot of that legendary ground. From what we've already seen on Game of Thrones, the prequel series is likely to upend fan expectations by showing a truer version than the stories that were passed down around Westeros. From previous rundowns of the premise from HBO, we also know that the series will deal with a few legendary figures, specifically Bran the Builder, the founder of House Stark (who also built Winterfell and the Wall), and Lann the Clever, the founder of House Lannister.
There are also the Children of the Forest, who we know from Game of Thrones Season 6 were the original creators of the White Walkers. The Children made the first of the undead creatures in response to the original humans to settle Westeros, the First Men, basically kicking them off their land and cutting down their forests. The Long Night created an uneasy truce in the wake of that conflict.
Finally, we're likely to see some interesting things going on across the Narrow Sea in the prequel, as well. The generation-long winter didn't just befall Westeros, it impacted the entire world, and the eastern civilizations have their own legend about what happened. That's the story of Azor Ahai, the hero in the Lord of Light religion, who used the glowing sword Lightbringer to battle "the darkness." It's not clear what exactly that means, or whether Azor Ahai and the Last Hero are one and the same.
Martin didn't reveal any other information about the show when he let the name slip, but he did write that there still are other Game of Thrones prequels in "active development." Without revealing any potential stories for the other shows, he mentioned that "the readers among you might want to grab a copy of Fire & Blood," his upcoming book, when it's released on November 20. That story is also a Game of Thrones prequel, but goes back through the 300 years before the original books to detail the history of the Targaryen family--another fascinating time in Martin's world, filled with intrigue, war, and dragons.
Meanwhile, we do know that Season 8 of Game of Thrones made at least one cast member cry, and that it'll have the biggest and most brutal battle in the series' history. There was also a least a short time when showrunners David Benioff and DB Weiss were considering trying to make three standalone movies out of the final season. And while there aren't too many details out there about what to expect from the end of Game of Thrones, a recently released tie-in video game might hold some clues.
We're still a ways off from the last season of Game of Thrones, slated to air sometime in early 2019, but some info about the show's last six episodes is finally starting to come out. Specifically, we know how the final battle for Westeros against the White Walkers will begin: with the Mother of Dragons arriving in the North.
Entertainment Weekly released a long cover feature full of tidbits about the final season, and while HBO has been extremely protective of spoilers and secrets, showrunners DB Weiss and David Benioff did give a few hints about what we can expect. Up first is the beginning of the final season, in which at least a few of the leaders of Westeros converge on Winterfell, the seat of House Stark and the fortress that's the centerpiece of humanity's defense against the Night King's undead army.
The opening of Season 8 will mirror that of Season 1, with Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke) riding to Winterfell with her armies in preparation for the arrival of the Army of the Dead. It's a deliberate call all the way back to the first episode in 2011, when King Robert Baratheon (Mark Addy) rode to Winterfell to ask his old friend, Ned Stark (Sean Bean), to return to King's Landing as his Hand of the King. That request kicked off years of warfare and led to many tragic deaths, and given that this is Game of Thrones, it's definitely not unreasonable to expect Daenerys's arrival could result in the same.
"It's about all of these disparate characters coming together to face a common enemy, dealing with their own past, and defining the person they want to be in the face of certain death," co-executive producer Bryan Cogman told EW. "It's an incredibly emotional, haunting, bittersweet final season, and I think it honors very much what George set out to do--which is flipping this kind of story on its head."
Season 8 in general will be about characters we've been following throughout the show finally meeting each other, and the results of those interactions, and potential conflicts. Game of Thrones has always had the threat of the White Walkers looming in the distance, but the show is really about the characters and politics of Westeros and their endless battles for power. Those dynamics still exist in Season 8; for one thing, Sansa Stark (Sophie Turner), the Lady of Winterfell, is not super happy that her brother Jon Snow (Kit Harington) bent the knee to Daenerys last season.
Regardless of whether the humans work out their differences--there's still the treacherous Cersei Lannister (Lena Headey) down south in King's Landing, likely plotting something awful--the dead are coming. EW's report also discusses the massive battle that will inevitably take place in Winterfell, noting that one episode is going to be wall-to-wall action in Winterfell. According to Peter Dinklage, who plays Tyrion Lannister, the battle in Season 8 makes the massive Battle of the Bastards at Winterfell in Season 6 "look like a theme park." In fact, the epic scale of Season 8 once led Benioff and Weiss to speculate about releasing it as three standalone movies instead of a season of TV.
Other than the broad strokes, the rest of what might happen in Season 8 is still largely unknown. There might be a few clues in the recently released Game of Thrones tie-in game, Reigns: Game of Thrones, but we're stuck speculating until the show's 2019 release. Game of Thrones won't end there, though--the show's first prequel, set thousands of years before the current series, is now casting.
Call of Duty is the first big shooter franchise to wade into the thickening fray of the battle royale genre and attempt to dethrone its current kings: Fortnite and PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds. The new Blackout battle royale mode in Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 makes a strong case for the franchise's ascendance in this genre, too. Blackout takes a lot of things that have become signature elements of battle royale, like last-player-standing matches, huge maps, randomized weapons, and careful gameplay, and tightens up the formula with the solid mechanics and polish for which the franchise has become famous.
That doesn't mean that Blackout has won the battle royale melee just for showing up, though. Yes, developer Treyarch has made a lot of great improvements to things players are used to seeing in PUBG, Fortnite, H1Z1, and others, but it's by no means perfect. Blackout relies heavily on players' existing knowledge of other battle royale games, for instance. It introduces a lot of new systems without giving much explanation about how they work, like other battle royale games, without acknowledging that with its huge audience, it's probably introducing many players to the genre for the first time. And it's still following the lead of the games that have come before it.
Blackout is a fun mode with a lot to love. The question is, can it last, especially as more and more developers chase the battle royale trend? Here are five ways that Treyarch could improve Blackout to help it become the last battle royale game standing.
Make It Easier For New Players To Learn The Game
The great thing about Call of Duty games, and one of the things that's helped make the franchise so enduring and popular, is that they're generally very easy to pick up and play. Hopping into a standard Deathmatch game in any Call of Duty doesn't require too much background knowledge for reasonably seasoned players. You don't need to know the pros and cons of every gun, for example, to be a solid fighter, because the game provides you with loadouts that make it easy to get a sense of what works for you and what doesn't.
By its very nature, the battle royale genre upends this thinking. It's inherently a more complex concept. Spending time trying out new equipment comes at the high price, since matches are longer and more involved. In any given game, you need to know where to deploy or try to deploy; what equipment you actually need to survive and to fight; what "circle collapses" are and how they work; and how to actually engage enemies. Yet Blackout gives very little information or explanation to new players about the mode and how it works. Call of Duty has the power to bring a huge number of people to the battle royale genre yet squanders it by chasing the audience of players who already play those kinds of games. It's a huge missed opportunity.
Make Blackout More Accessible For The Less Hardcore
Continuing the last point, the folks at Treyarch could stand to try to make Blackout clearer and more accessible beyond the first couple of matches. Most of the games in the battle royale genre can already be tough to break into and understand. Not only are there things new players have to learn basically with zero assistance when they start these games, but these games are full of intricate systems and mechanics whose uses and benefits aren't very clear, even when you've built up some experience in the game.
Blackout is already a little better than most games at getting you acclimated. Hovering the cursor over weapons and equipment on the inventory screen gives players some (very brief) insights into their types, uses, strengths, and weaknesses. But you'll learn little or nothing about things like just how useful adding grips to your gun can be, or what differences to expect between 5.56 and .45 ammo. Some players and streamers even take to Reddit and YouTube to figure out all the little details about how guns, armor, and equipment in these games work--and that level of dedication inherently leaves more casual players, who don't have the time to research bullet drop or recoil reduction, on the outs. Blackout has the opportunity to make a more inviting battle royale game that's easier to understand, no matter whether you play one match a week or 50.
Audio Needs An Overhaul
A key part of battle royale is sound, especially when playing solo. Players are alone on the a vast island in Blackout, with only their wits and whatever they can scavanage, and often they can rely only on their senses to locate other players and protect themselves. In most battle royale games, sound is more important than just about anything else, because hearing other players walking, driving vehicles, or fighting one another is often the only information you can get about where they are and whether you're in danger.
Blackout currently seems to have two problems with audio. First, the sound in Blackout can be frustrating when you're relying on it. Your own footsteps and actions are very loud, while sounds from other players can be excruciating to hear and pin down. This does make the Awareness perk, which boosts your ability to hear sounds from other players, a lot more valuable, but it shouldn't be quite so hard to hear who's sneaking up on you in the first place.
On top of that, other players have complained about issues in which sound doesn't always work correctly in Blackout, or comes out of the wrong speaker or headphone channel; a player might be approaching you from the left, but you're hearing it coming from the right, for instance. That's an element that needs to be fixed in Blackout if it's going to have longevity. Even without focusing on a major problem like that, though, audio could use some work in the future to make it more viable for players to use their senses to survive.
More Zombies!
Blackout sets itself apart from the rest of the battle royale genre with a lot of little Call of Duty-type elements--like the addition of undead enemies carried over from the Zombies mode. In certain areas, your sneaking and looting can be halted by zombies popping up and trying to murder you. Right now, though, you could play several matches of Blackout and never come across a zombie. Even if you did, you'd likely never really have a need to be afraid of them, since they're easily avoided and not especially dangerous. Zombies in Blackout are little more than a novelty, but they could be a lot more.
Just simply putting zombies in more locations would instantly create a totally different battle royale dynamic, creating a middle ground between existing battle royale and Call of Duty's Zombies mode. We saw something in this vein with the Blackout beta, in which Treyarch included a zombie boss character players could encounter, and take down, during matches. Treyarch could get even more creative with zombies; the developer could add them to popular locations that see the most players at the start of every match, while smaller, more hidden locations could be safer, changing up players' incentives when they first start a match. Or the number of zombies filling the map could be more reactive to where players die. Zombie populations could climb as the circle closes, or they could pick up speed and strength as it tightens, making being caught outside the circle even more harrowing than it already is.
There are a lot of possibilities to make zombies a bigger part of the Blackout experience, even if those possibilities are relegated to additional game type options separate from the standard Blackout competition.
Lead, Don't Follow
Blackout does a great job of taking the existing battle royale formula and improving upon it. Perks, weapon selection, improved mechanics, zombies, and streamlined gameplay are all great additions that make playing Blackout familiar yet different. But they all also feel like somewhat superfluous renovations to someone else's building. Blackout is very similar to the current top battle royale titles, and because of that, it feels like it's chasing the current leaders, rather than searching for a path of its own.
Blackout has identified some of the problems of other battle royale titles and fixed them, while also putting a bit of a Call of Duty spin on the whole idea. Going forward, however, Call of Duty needs to do more than just turn out a Call of Duty version of PUBG. What exact shape that might take is tough to guess at, but in a field that's quickly filling up with battle royale options, as well as copycats and knockoffs, it's going to take more than polish and improvements for Blackout to keep players invested long-term.
They don't call it the Wasteland for nothing in the Fallout series. The series' nuclear war-ravaged world is complete with things like mutated creatures, radiation-soaked zombies, and plenty of other frightening creatures that hunt anybody foolish enough to go wandering around. But despite the hardships of the post-apocalypse, the Fallout series has also always had its survivors, whether they're farmers learning to cultivate an irradiated world, organizations hoping to rebuild society, or warlords trying to rule whatever's left.
Fallout 76 takes a different approach. Rather than the usual single-player RPG that finds players leaving an underground Vault to explore the Wasteland and meet the people who live in it, Fallout 76 removes NPCs and replaces them with other players.
The result is a Fallout game that feels a bit strange. Through about eight hours in various sessions of the Fallout 76 beta, it's been hard to shake a feeling of loneliness while playing a game devoid of characters. Even though you're surrounded by other players from the start, there's a feeling that West Virginia is already dead, and you're picking clean its corpse.
The creepy feeling comes early in the game, after you leave Vault 76, where you've waited out the first 20 years of nuclear fallout. Your job as one of Vault-Tec's best and brightest is to rebuild the world. You're a little late doing that at the start of the game, thanks to over-partying the night before the Vault opens. As a result, the main quest at the beginning of the game has you following the Vault's former Overseer as she travels the world hoping to find and take control of three remaining nuclear missile silos--ostensibly to keep those weapons from ever being used again.
Tracking the Overseer's path through the Wasteland takes you the town of Flatwoods near the Vault, where you learn about some folks trying to make the post-apocalypse a better place: the Responders. This group, mostly consisting of former first-responders like paramedics and firefighters, roam the Wasteland looking to help people, and have set up several communities for that purpose. When you arrive in their town, you take part in an automated process to join up as a volunteer. It's a tutorial that has you wandering around town, trying to find the people who can teach you to cook, clean your water, and perform other essential survival tasks. The state of the town makes what you're going to find a foregone conclusion, though, and before long you confirm that none of the nice people of Flatwoods has survived.
Your Responder volunteer training continues apace, thanks to audio diaries left behind by the Responders who didn't make it, and which give you a sense of the lives they lived as they fought to survive their new world. Before long, you intercept a Responder radio signal that directs you to their headquarters at Morgantown, a larger city with an airport. The signal is pretty desperate: the Responders are expecting an attack by zombie-like people called the Scorched, and they need all hands on deck in order to repel it.
Spoiler alert: They didn't.
Fallout 76's lack of NPCs turns its setting into a ghost world, with the player arriving just after the worst has already happened. Stumble on the cabin of an old moonshiner and you might find evidence of his existence, but not the man himself. Head over to Grafton, a town where the mayor is broadcasting a radio signal asking for assistance, and you find the humans are dead and a computer is running the show. The world of West Virginia was full of people before--it just isn't anymore.
Contrast that with previous Fallout games and it becomes clear why Fallout 76 just feels a bit off. In past games, pretty much the first thing players do is stumble into post-apocalyptic civilization, where the people of the Wasteland aren't just eking out lives for themselves, but often thriving. One of the first people you meet in Megaton, the first town in Fallout 3, is its sheriff, which shows that the settlement isn't just a bunch of people barely hanging on, but one that has laws, and someone to enforce them. Places like Diamond City in Fallout 4, or the Strip in New Vegas, show just how strong civilization can become. These aren't just places where you pick up quests, they're evidence that Wasteland life continues. They make the world feel substantial and lived-in, and they give your actions in that world stakes.
Fallout 76 makes its approach a little more uncanny by constantly supplying audio diaries and information about those lost souls in whose wakes you follow. A group of audio tapes left by the Responders called Survivor Stories gives the characters just enough backstory to make their absences more haunting. Your path following the Overseer is similarly replete with bits of character-building audio, as your leader visits the important places from her pre-Vault life and talks about her memories. All these tiny stories are well-written and well-acted, which makes them stand out even more. There was life in the Wasteland in Fallout 76--we just missed it.
Adding other players to Fallout 76 at the expense of NPCs is a trade that sacrifices something essential about the Fallout games. The series has always been both somber and satirical in equal measure, but at its heart it was at least a little bit hopeful. The world didn't end when the nukes fell, it just changed.
Filling the Wasteland of Fallout 76 with players doesn't make it feel any less dead. We might build camps and buildings, but it's likely we'll all eventually put on party hats and aviator sunglasses, flash goofy emotes at each other, and try to murder each other. There's a transitory lightness to the multiplayer side of games like this that no amount of audio logs can overcome.
Without characters, Fallout 76 has no narrative balance against the people just screwing around in the Wasteland, and therefore, nothing to make the world feel substantial. It's sad, because the fascinating, engrossing stories of the people who once populated Fallout's West Virginia are there. They're just not around to make you care anymore.
Microsoft has a ton of new content coming to its biggest Xbox One and PC games of 2018, and that includes State of Decay 2. During its X018 event in Mexico City, the company gave fans their first look at Undead Labs' next update for the zombie survival game: Zed Hunter.
Zed Hunter arrives as a free update for State of Decay 2 on November 16. It introduces a handful of new weapons to the game, among them the crossbow. Design director Richard Foge described the new weapon as a stealthier way to take out enemies; you're able to quietly fire bolts at zombies from a distance without drawing attention to yourself. These bolts will also stick to the environment, and you'll be able to recover them if they don't break.
In addition to the crossbow, the Zed Hunter update introduces three new "quiet" melee weapons, as well as six new consumables, some of which are based on zombie plague experiments. These will give you abilities in exchange for blood plague accumulation, such as the power to see in the dark. You can watch the reveal trailer for Zed Hunter above.
That isn't all the new content on the horizon for State of Decay 2. Foge teased that another free update is coming in early 2019. This one will let players experience new challenges and new ways of surviving with their communities. He also teased that players will be able to return to Trumbull Valley in 2019, although he wasn't able to share any more details beyond that.
Microsoft shared a ton of announcements during its X018 event. The company revealed a new mode coming to Rare's shared pirate adventure Sea of Thieves called The Arena. We also got our first look at Void Bastards, a stylish shooter from developers behind System Shock and BioShock.
With every trailer and new gameplay feature they release, Just Cause 4 manages to look even more over-the-top and ridiculous in its execution. In the new trailer coming from Microsoft's X018 event, which showed off the latest games coming to Xbox One and PC, Avalanche Studio's next open world game aims to outdo everything they've done from the last game by several degrees.
In the trailer, we saw Rico face off against his toughest adversaries yet. In addition to showing new weapons and gear, we also saw many returning gameplay features--including Just Cause 3's wingsuit. Like in the last game, it allowed players to glide across great distances, to cover ground quickly and with greater agility. However, a new game-changing mechanic is the inclusion of hostile weather. When you least expect it, tornados may hit, causing increased destruction and danger for every character in the world.
During the game's showing at X018, game director Francesco Antolini spoke about many of the abilities and skills you'll have to use during the game. In addition to an upgraded grappling hook, allowing you to attach to more objects than ever before, you'll now have access to an upgraded black market--which can spawn new weapons and items for Rico in an instant. Set for release on December 4, Just Cause 4 is looking to be a massive upgrade from its predecessor, which already held the crown for being the biggest game of the series.
There's been a lot coming from the XO18 event. In addition to the reveal of new IP Void Bastards, we also saw the reveal of Crackdown 3's multiplayer mode, and along with a set of games coming to the Game Pass. If you want to know more about all the interesting new reveals, be sure to check out GameSpot for more coverage.
A big portion of the experience of Red Dead Redemption 2 is crossing the rolling plains, deserts, and forests of the Wild West on horseback. The world of RDR 2 is huge, and while there are a lot of things to grab your attention along the way no matter where you're headed, getting anywhere is going to take time. That's not always a bad thing; the world of RDR2 is beautiful, and it's kind of nice to just sit on your horse and take it all in. But constantly steering your horse to keep it on trail and definitely get tedious.
You can make your travel in Red Dead Redemption 2 a little more relaxing by letting your horse take the lead when you ride. The game includes a feature that lets you set your horse to automatically take you to a destination by sticking to trails and roadways. Your horse is pretty smart, and once you've given it the right instructions, it can be trusted to do the traveling--you just need to pay attention to any events happening on the side of the road that you might want to check out, and to watch for any bandits who might try to get the drop on you.
In order to set your horse to autopilot, you first need to define where you want the horse to go. Do that by pulling open your map and setting a waypoint marker at your destination. The game then lays out the route to your location by way of trails, like a GPS would. That's the path your horse will follow to your destination.
When you mount up, start riding your horse like normal, and press the button to spur it (X on PlayStation, A on Xbox One) until you get up to the speed at which you want to travel. Once you're going fast enough, hold down the spur button to maintain your horse's speed, same as when you're matching speed with a companion during a mission.
While you're holding the spur button, press and hold the button to switch camera perspectives (the trackpad on PS4, View on Xbox). You'll see a small meter filling in the corner of the screen marked Cinematic Camera. Once that activates, your horse will follow the trails to your final destination with no further input from you. In fact, you can lay the camera down and watch as the camera swings around to give you different perspectives on Arthur's ride and the world around him.
Once you're going, you can tap the spur button again in time with your horse's gallop to speed it up, and touch the slow button (R1 on PS4, RB on Xbox) to reduce your horse's speed without canceling its autopilot. Pressing in the right Analog Stick switches the camera to a new angle, should you not like the one the game picks for you. You can take back control just by touching the control sticks, and you can switch the camera back to normal by tapping the camera button again.
The Cinematic Camera trick is nice when you've got a long trip and you don't want to bother steering your horse around every tiny curve in the trail, but it has some drawbacks. For one thing, you won't be able to quickly see things on the side of the road until you turn off the Cinematic Camera, should you happen to ride past an optional activity. You'll also be a bit vulnerable if you're letting the horse do the driving, should bandits, outlaws, or lawmen attack you while you ride.
Generally, though, letting your horse take the reigns is a nice way to relax as you get around Red Dead Redemption 2 and enjoy the scenery. Just be sure to keep your revolver handy--just in case.
The Mass Effect franchise is currently in a state of suspended animation following the lackluster showing by the series' fourth game, Mass Effect Andromeda. But there's still a big Mass Effect following out there, and developer BioWare knows it--that's why it acknowledges November 7 each year as "N7 Day" with some messaging to fans to remind them of their experiences trying to save the Milky Way Galaxy from the Reaper threat.
And it seems like BioWare boss Casey Hudson just used the studio's N7 Day Twitter post to hint at the future of Mass Effect.
BioWare posted a short video on Twitter mostly made up of people from both the studio and the fan community talking about why they like Mass Effect. It also includes an announcement that the studio turned out a free update for Andromeda on Xbox One X that improves the game's graphics.
What might be the most interesting part is the ending, though, where Hudson makes a statement laden with innuendo: "It means coming into the studio every day, dreaming about what the next great Mass Effect game will be."
Then he stares right into the camera for a long moment as he sips from a Mass Effect mug with the famous Commander Shepard line, "I Should Go," stenciled on the side. What does it mean???
Maybe nothing. After all, it's not like BioWare or its owner, Electronic Arts, ever said Mass Effect was officially canceled--but single-player DLC for Mass Effect Andromeda never materialized, despite some clear setups for some in the story, after that game received a rough reception from both fans and critics. BioWare has been putting its efforts into Anthem, its open-world sci-fi multiplayer game, which is set to release in February.
It sure does seem like Hudson's lingering look at the camera is a meaningful wink to fans, letting them know that the Mass Effect series hasn't been killed off in a boardroom somewhere. And in a blog post in August, Hudson noted that BioWare knows fans want more Mass Effect (and more of its fantasy franchise, Dragon Age), and said the studio has people working on "secret projects," even though he wouldn't enumerate what they might be. So that meaningful look seems like a playful reminder to fans on N7 Day that BioWare hasn't forgotten about them.
There's one the big question of what Mass Effect might look like, post-Andromeda. Would BioWare maintain the course set by the fourth game, which spins off from the original trilogy and takes place in a whole new galaxy, or would that game's rough reception lead to a whole new course?
If Hudson is telling fans to keep the faith for the future of Mass Effect, though, it'll likely be a long time before we hear anything more about it, thanks in part to Anthem. In the meantime, fans might just have to watch BioWare communications for secret messages.
When you're not robbing folks, riding from town to town, and trying to keep your gang out of trouble in Red Dead Redemption 2, chances are pretty good you'll be hunting. Tracking and killing animals keeps you and your gang fed and earns you crafting materials, as well as goods to sell to make money to get Arthur better equipment. But for any hunter in Red Dead Redemption 2, the ultimate prize are the various Legendary Animals scattered around the map, whose pelts yield unique rewards--if you're canny enough to bring them down.
In Chapter 2, you'll be introduced to your first Legendary Animal in a story mission with Hosea, in which he and Arthur set out to hunt a huge grizzly bear. You can return to the hunt later if you're so inclined, but it's possible to take the bear on your first encounter with it, if you're skilled (or more likely, lucky). If you manage to kill and skin the big grizzly, you'll get a Legendary Bear Pelt, a unique item in the world of Red Dead Redemption 2 that can be used to make special new gear.
The question is, what exactly do you do with the huge Legendary Bear Pelt once you have it? Red Dead 2 isn't very clear on this point. In fact, there are special requirements for using the pelts of Legendary Animals--you can't just sell them to any store in a town, or donate them to Pearson back at your camp. In the case of the Legendary Bear pelt, there's a good chance you won't even have heard of the person yet who you need to interact with in order to use it.
Here's what you need to know about hunting the Legendary Bear, where you'll find it, and what to do once you've killed it.
Where To Find The Bear
The easiest way to get to and deal with the Legendary grizzly is in Chapter 2, when you take on the mission Exit Pursued By a Bruised Ego from Hosea. Arthur and Hosea will head out to find the Baharati Grizzly Bear in the Grizzlies East region, north of O'Creagh's Run, and once you've finished the mission, the bear will be hanging around in the area for you to hunt. Once you've fought off the bear during the mission, Hosea will decide to take his leave of hunting giant killer animals with some "I'm getting too old for this s---" dialogue. At that point, you can choose to stick around and finish what you started and take down the bear.
It's worth noting that the bear is no pushover and it can definitely kill you if you're not careful. If you're not outfitted super well at this point in the game, you might want to take some time in the world to earn better gear and improve Arthur's well-being before you commit to the fight. That said, it's possible to kill the bear here and now--we did it with Arthur's stock weapons that he had at this point in the game.
Bring down the bear and you'll be able to skin it, taking a whole bunch of stuff, including the Legendary Bear Pelt. This is the unique item you need for crafting special clothing you can't get anywhere else.
You've Got The Legendary Bear Pelt--Now What?
Once you have the pelt, you'll probably be pretty confused about what to actually do with it. Regular shopkeepers won't take the pelt off your hands, and neither will Pearson in camp. You need to go to a specific person to deal with the pelt: the Trapper.
If you talk to Pearson, he may well off-handedly mention the Canadian fur trapper who hangs around in the area, which will mark the Trapper's location on your map. He roams around, so make sure to check your map for his icon before heading out. He also has a shop in Saint Denis, located in the southeast corner of the map, in the outdoor market, where you can reliably find him.
When you find the Trapper, you'll be able to check out his goods, all of which are unique clothes made from the pelts of Legendary Animals. The thing is, you'll need more than to just take down the bear if you want the whole outfit. Various Legendary Bear items also require other pelts, as well as for you to spend some money. Here's what you'll need to craft each piece of the Legendary Bear outfit:
Legendary Bear Head Hat: Legendary Bear Pelt, $40,
Completing the outfit also requires the Boar Riding Gloves, which require a Perfect Boar Pelt and two Perfect Rabbit Pelts, and will cost you $15.
Though each of the bear items notes that a Legendary Bear Pelt is required, there's only the one. Once you've taken down the Baharit Grizzly, you'll have fulfilled the Bear Pelt requirement for each clothing item.
What Happens If You Lose Your Bear Pelt?
You'll likely sling the Legendary Bear Pelt onto your horse and then find yourself riding for quite a ways to track down the Trapper, whether you're headed south to Saint Denis or out into the wilderness. In all that travel time, misfortune can easily befall even the most careful of cowboy, and if your horse falls or you're killed, you'll likely lose the Legendary Bear Pelt.
That's okay! Don't panic. Whether you carry the pelt physically to the Trapper or not, once you've killed and skinned the Baharati Grizzly Bear, the pelt is unlocked. That requirement will be fulfilled on the Trapper's list even if you don't actually carry the skin all the way to him. You can still access the clothing items once you have everything you need for the recipes.
There are a whole lot of other Legendary Animals to find out there in the big world of Red Dead Redemption 2--check out our guide on where to locate them all. And try our clothing guide for information about where you can get more clothes to customize Arthur's look.
During Microsoft's X018 event, Devil May Cry 5 producer Matt Walker and director Hideaki Itsuno appeared on the stream to discuss the upcoming sequel and reveal Void Mode, which will help teach players the tricks of the demon hunting trade. While previous games in the series have attempted to clue players in on how to play the game, this time Capcom is formalizing the process by giving the process its own mode.
At PAX West 2018, Itsuno said the team was working on a training mode, which is "something people have been asking for" but Capcom has had "certain titles where we haven't been able to get that done correctly." This time, however, it has "made sure to make the effort." This mode is of course Void Mode, and during the stream we learned that players will enter "The Void" and experiment with weapons and styles. There are options such as the ability to turn damage on and off to either practice or see how much damage you do. Devil Breakers can be used indefinitely to get comfortable with them.
Itsuno and Walker also provided a showcase of Nero's Devil Breakers. These are a unique weapon for the character that give him a variety of interesting tools and abilities that he can work into combat and traversal. The Gerbera GP01 is a variant of another Breaker that give Nero movement options using shockwaves. The Pasta Breaker is a Breaker created by the inventor character Nico, and it has a fork on it. It's the only Devil Breaker that lets you cycle your remaining Breakers. The Sweet Surrender is the only Breaker that can heal Nero, and Break Gauge moves will recover three bars of health at the cost of the Breaker itself. Finally, there's the Mega Buster, which is inspired by Mega Man, and it changes Nero's poses and animations to pay homage to Mega Man.
Devil May Cry 5 releases for Xbox One, PS4, and PC on March 8, 2019. Along with Nero, the series' leading man Dante will be a playable characters. The duo are joined a mysterious third character called V, who is entirely new to the series. In terms of story, Devil May Cry 5 takes place a few years after the fourth game, with Nero running his own demon hunting agency.
The game will continue the series' tradition of having weird and wacky weaponry, and at New York Comic-Con the Faust Hat--a cowboy hat that has eyes--made its debut. According to Capcom, Faust Hat was designed to offer a risk and reward dynamic. While wearing it, players can fire Red Orbs at enemies from their hands and throw the hat as a weapon too. If you kill enemies, you'll receive a substantial amount of Red Orbs back. However, throwing the hat at an enemy also "marks" it with its own hat, and if they attack you in return, you'll lose more Red Orbs.
In only a few hours playing Just Cause 4, I had summoned an electrical storm to blow up an enemy base (as well as some nearby unsuspecting cows), turned a monster truck into deadly spinning airship, and been thrown hundreds of feet by a tornado after riding it using a wingsuit. I also managed to get struck by my own summoned lightning on more than one occasion--retribution, perhaps, for those cows.
Just Cause 3 was notable at its 2015 release for the amount of creativity and chaos you could create within it--indeed, that was the point. During a hands-on preview for Just Cause 4 in Los Angeles, developer Avalanche Studios demonstrated just how much it has turned up the dial on your capability to wreak goofy, physics-based havoc in its upcoming sequel. Between new, huge weather events and a toolkit for making things move, fly, explode, and snap together, there's plenty of fun to have in seeing how ingeniously you can combine its many intricate systems, and use them to blow things up.
Creative Destruction
The big driver of the creativity in players' hands in Just Cause 4 is the expanded grappling hook carried by protagonist Rico Rodriguez. Not only does the grappler still let you zip around the game world or tether objects to make them smash together, you can now add inflatable balloons and tiny rocket boosters to objects, and in greater numbers than in Just Cause 3. There's also a new loadout menu that lets you define a bunch of parameters about said tethers, balloons, and boosters--like how much lift your balloons have, whether your rockets explode when they run out of fuel, the speed at which your tethers retract, and more. You can flip between loadouts instantly, making it easy to add balloons, rockets, and tethers one after another.
All of that means you get unprecedented control over your grappler abilities, which encourage you to make Minecraft-like contraptions using the physics of the Just Cause 4 world. After taking a monster truck for a spin down the highway, crushing all cars in my path, I hooked it up with some balloons and boosters and turned it into a flying, semi-controllable monster airship.
Of course, poor planning and a misunderstanding of remedial physics caused the truck to spin end-over-end at speeds that probably would have liquefied poor Rico's internal organs, but once I got the hang of it, I could fly the truck around pretty reliably, then drop it back onto the ground and drive away. You can use those same abilities in combat to do things like turn vehicles into rocket-powered wrecking balls, or just send unsuspecting bad guys floating into the ether for daring to draw down on you.
Ride The Lightning
The capabilities and combinations available in the grappler offer a host of possibilities for getting into serious trouble in Just Cause 4, but the game raises the stakes in a second way: extreme weather. Avalanche showed off its in-game tornadoes at E3 2018, which can ravage the countryside, tearing up things like trees, buildings, and people, and there are also lightning storms, sandstorms, and blizzards to look forward to as well.
Weather is something players both have to navigate and that can used to their advantage, but seeing as this is a Just Cause game, Avalanche has also weaponized some of that weather for your enjoyment, in the form of experimental weapons. We tried a Wind Cannon gun that could blast enemies, vehicles, and objects with tornado-force gusts, capable of literally blowing away tanks and even guard towers; a Lightning Cannon that could fire both a laser-like beam of electricity; and a grenade that created a small-scale lightning storm.
That storm, which spanned a pretty large area and saw lots of lightning bolts arcing down all over the place, is a hilarious agent of chaos even beyond what players might plan. Though it was clear the game somewhat prioritizes lightning striking targets like enemies or explosive objects, the lightning will also go after civilians, animals, vehicles, and even Rico himself.
With all those systems at play, it's a given that players will come up with weird, novel, and ridiculous solutions to problems and ways to make those systems interact. Giving players that freedom is part of what Avalanche is going for--and even if unexpected interactions create bugs or problems, that's okay, too.
"When you build systems rather than scripting things, you get combinations that you weren't expecting," said Hamish Young, lead mechanics designer on Just Cause 4. Young shared a story about how he managed to drive a car into a tornado in the game, which then carried him out over a river. He managed to get enough speed while the vehicle flew through the storm that he exited on the far side of the water and drove off. Avalanche didn't plan for tornadoes to work as de facto bridges, but that's the sort of emergent, interesting situations that building interworking systems can facilitate.
"We kind of have a rule, where it's kind of okay for the game to 'break,' as long as it's funny," Young said. "We always try to make sure that, we may not cover every possible edge case, but we try to do enough that if it does break, then at least people are having fun."
A Different Approach To Story
If there's a place where Avalanche isn't doubling down on making things more exaggerated and insane, though, it might be in Just Cause 4's story. The core, like other games in the series, is that Rico is trying to whip up the people of the game's setting, an island called Solis, into a rebellion against oppressive rulers. Another motivation, though, is that he's investigating the suspicious death of his father.
Narrative Designer Ben Jaekle said that with this installment, Avalanche is trying to make its characters feel a bit more realistic, even as they deal with over-the-top situations.
"In Just Cause 4, our approach was to kind of deliver a slightly more grounded experience," he said. "We kind of wanted to rein in the characters a little bit, and focus on the idea of ordinary, likeable people with heart and intelligence and desires, who are put into a really extraordinary environment where a tornado rips a train off the tracks and throws it at you. So instead of people necessarily making really cheesy jokes about how the train comes flying at you, they might react in a slightly more believable, real way. Which I think makes those moments better, because they feel less cartoony and they feel more real, and therefore more funny. So you're like, 'Yeah, I probably would have said that too if a train came flying at my face.'"
Still, if Avalanche's preview of the game was any indication, there will be plenty of opportunities to fly around Solis, dropping lightning on people and turning tanks into floating death balloons. Just Cause 4 hits PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC on December 4.
Disney's new streaming service will come online in late 2019, Disney CEO Bob Iger announced on a Disney earnings call, CNET reported. Iger also confirmed the service, dubbed Disney+, will come with new live-action shows in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and Star Wars franchises.
Disney+ will be the streaming home for Disney's various existing films and TV shows, which means much of that stuff will stop being available on services such as Netflix starting in 2019. But Disney+ also see an influx of its own original content to tempt subscribers away from the services they already use. The most notable additions are a pair of live-action series Disney is planning for two of its biggest franchises, Star Wars and the MCU.
On the MCU side, Disney is bringing back fan-favorite character Loki, played by Tom Hiddleston, for his own show. The Star Wars series, meanwhile, will spin off from Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, to tell more stories of Cassian Andor, the Rebel spy played by Diego Luna. Both series will see the film actors return to reprise their roles. The Cassian show joins another Star Wars spin-off project, The Mandalorian, created by Iron Man director Jon Favreau.
Sweetening the deal for subscribers to Disney+ are animated series. The new season of the returning Star Wars: The Clone Wars will appear on the service, as well as a Pixar series based on Monsters, Inc. The service will also get a reboot of High School Musical and exclusive movies.
Disney hasn't revealed what the streaming service will cost yet, or the exact date of its launch--or of the release of those new series. But for fans of Star Wars especially, it looks like keeping up with the franchise is going to require a new subscription starting toward the end of 2019.
Destiny 2 players are still hoping for a new Exotic in Thunderlord, which is presumed to be the reward for the on-going, multi-week murder-mystery quest that started at the end of the Festival of the Lost. But if waiting three weeks to get your hands on a new Exotic is just too long, you can rely on Xur, the weird merchant and servant of The Nine who pops up each weekend. As always, he has a handful Exotics to sell you in exchange for Legendary Shards. Here's where to find him and what he's selling right now.
This week, you'll find Xur on Io. Spawn in at the Giant's Scar landing zone and hop on your sparrow, then head straight through the Cabal base into the drilling area beyond. Head for the northwest corner of the area and look for a cave near some Taken enemies. Inside and to the right is Xur, creeping in the darkness.
His lineup of Exotics, as per usual, includes one weapon and one piece of armor for each of the three classes from the Year One collection. The weapon is The Prospector, a grenade launcher you can hold down the trigger to fire in full-auto mode. When you release the trigger, you can detonate all your launched grenades at once--and they stick to surfaces and set things on fire, too.
The Prospector (Exotic grenade launcher) -- 29 Legendary Shards
Alongside the direct-purchase items above, Xur has the Fated Engram. This is guaranteed to decrypt into a Year One Exotic you don't already own, making it a good way to fill out your collection if you find Xur's offerings lacking--provided you can afford it.
Even if you can't, the latest Destiny 2 update mercifully makes Exotic duplicates less likely to drop. The game now accounts for the Exotics you've got in your collection when a new one drops randomly in the world, which will decrease the chance of getting an Exotic you already own. Duplicates are still possible, but Bungie has also changed things so dupes are more likely to be armor than weapons, because armor pieces feature random perks, meaning there is a potential upside to finding something you already have.
The update has also increased the chances of unlocking a quest to get another Exotic: Malfeasance, a Taken-infused hand cannon. The quest line to track it down starts when a specific boss, the Primeval Ascendant Servitor, appears in Gambit matches. Bungie's last update upped the rate at which the Servitor shows up in Gambit, which should hopefully mean more Malfeasances for more players.
Xur is here until the weekly reset on November 13, and he'll only show up two more times before Destiny 2 closes Season 4 on November 27, according to a recent blog post. That means your Gambit and Crucible ranks will reset--but at least in the meantime, you'll be able to jump into Iron Banner again starting on November 13 to try to complete your spiffy Iron Lord armor sets.
At the recent X018 event, Microsoft revealed a new IP inspired by old-school sci-fi and several games from the immersive-sim sub-genre. Coming from developers behind System Shock and BioShock, Void Bastards puts you in the role of one of many prisoners aboard the Void Ark, which finds itself adrift in a hostile interstellar zone known as the Sargasso Nebula. Referred to as a strategy-shooter, Void Bastards blends together traditional shooter gameplay with roguelike mechanics, where the death of one character will be the start of another person's journey.
Published by Humble Bundle and set for release on PC and Xbox One, Void Bastards focuses on the exploration of the Sargasso Nebula, and surviving the dangers that outer space possess. After choosing your character, you'll chart out your course in the hostile nebula, exploring many derelict space stations and alien worlds. Over the course of your character's journey, you'll acquiring new weapons and abilities, which will help you survive the many threats you'll encounter in space.
With a strong roguelike influence, Void Bastards also places focus on having players decide where they should go next. While one location in the nebula could have minimal risk and high rewards, one remote space station could lead to certain doom for your character, costing you precious resources and the life of your chosen character.
It was also revealed that Void Bastards would be available on Xbox One Game Pass at launch. During the XO18 livestream, Microsoft revealed 16 games coming to their Game Pass program, which includes Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice and PUBG. For more info on the X018 reveals, in addition to Crackdown 3's release date, be sure to check out our continuing coverage of the game.
Jump Force unites some of the manga and anime world's most iconic characters to battle it out in real-world locations. At Microsoft's X018 event, developer and publisher Bandai Namco showcased two of most popular characters on the roster: Super Saiyan Blue Vegeta (also known as Super Saiyan God Super Saiyan) and Golden Frieza.
Both of these characters made their debuts in Dragon Ball Super, which is the most recent series. As such, these are the most powerful incarnations of the characters, which is evident from the gameplay seen at the event. The footage showed off the Awakening Transformations for both characters. This ability effectively powers up a character in Jump Force and gives them access to some of their signature moves.
In the video we saw Goku transform into his God stage and then dart around the arena in Paris, delivering crushing blows to Frieza before unleashing his Kamehameha. Vegeta put down a similarly ruthless beat down, ending with his Galick Gun. Finally, Golden Freiza finished off with his incredibly over-the-top, one finger energy ball.
Other characters that will be on the Jump Force roster include Goku, Naruto, and Luffy, representing publisher Shonen Jump's most successful franchises. Then there are also characters from older but still popular properties such as Fist of the North Star,Saint Seiya, Yu Yu Hakusho, Bleach, and Hunter x Hunter. In addition to playable fighters, there are some characters that are used just to drive the story, such as Ryuk and Light from Death Note.
Bandai Namco has confirmed Jump Force's release date as February 15 for PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. If you need a more immediate fix of anime/manga fighting, Dragon Ball FighterZ is an excellent alternative. In GameSpot's review, Peter Brown described it as much more than just the nostalgia trip these games tend to be.
"Where past games attempted to get there through huge character rosters and deliberately predictable trips down memory lane, FighterZ has bottled the essence of what makes the series' characters, animation, and sense of humor so beloved and reconfigured it into something new: a Dragon Ball fighting game that can go toe-to-toe with the best of the genre," he said.
During a showcase of new info for Crackdown 3 today at X018 in Mexico City, Microsoft announced that all Xbox One owners can download the original Xbox 360 Crackdown for free, anytime before November 30, 2018. It's available now on the Microsoft Store, or on Xbox Live. Similarly, when Crackdown 3 launches early next year, it will arrive on Microsoft's Game Pass subscription service on day one.
This news came on the heels of the new unveiling of Crackdown's 3 multiplayer mode. The aptly named Wrecking Zone features fully destructible environments, such as dense cityscapes made of relatively fragile skyscrapers, and this feat is only possible because Microsoft is leveraging its Azure cloud computing service.
Crackdown 3 has was first announced over four years ago at E3, and it has experienced a pair of delays, first when it missed a 2016 window, and again after it failed to launch with the Xbox One X. It's one of Microsoft's flagship exclusives next year, and is currently scheduled to launch on February 19.
The big theme at XO18 was Game Pass announcements. Besides Crackdown 3's availability on the service, there were 15 other Game Pass games revealed, including Void Bastards and the ever popular battle royale shooter, Playerunknown's Battlegrounds. For all the announcements from X018, head over to our news section.
Sea of Thieves, the pirate game developed by Rare, is getting a new player versus player mode called The Arena in 2019. Announced during X018, the Xbox fan event being held in Mexico City, the mode was billed as a way for players to "test their pirating skills in fast-paced matches against rival crews."
Rare is promising matches that are a "fun, frenetic and action-packed race to find treasure that brings together all the most exciting elements of Sea of Thieves." On top of this, The Arena will also introduce a brand new-tavern area and a Trading Company called the "Sea Dogs." This outfit will provide players with new goals to achieve, rewards to unlock, and fresh opportunities to build their pirate legend.
During the stream, developers Rare studio head Craig Duncan and executive producer Joe Neate came on stage to talk about The Arena. According to Neate, The Arena will be a distinct mode that is selected from a menu. The studio is currently testing it internally and will then give access to it to some of its community to refine. The launch date is currently set as "early 2019" and it will be a free update.
Sea of Thieves originally launched in March, 2018. In GameSpot's Sea of Thieves review, Peter Brown said it was "a somewhat hollow game that can be fun for a handful of hours when played with friends, and something worth trying out if you happen to be an Xbox Game Pass subscriber.
"Even though it's hard to wholeheartedly recommend, I like enough of what I see to hold out hope that things will eventually improve as the game continues to be patched and updated with new content," he added.
The last major update for Sea of Thieves update introduced Cargo Runs, which could be completed to improve your standing with the Merchant Alliance. These missions asked players to find specific cargo in question, acquire it--using any means necessary--and then drop it off at a destination point. Performance is evaluated based on speed and how well the goods were handled, so it's a matter of being fast but careful.
Rare has also launched Forsaken Shores, an expansion that opens up a volcanic region of the map that players can sail to and explore to complete challenges. Before that, there was the Hungering Deep and Cursed Sails add-on.
Microsoft has announced that Ori and the Will of the Wisps, the sequel to acclaimed Xbox 360 titles Ori and the Blind Forest, will be available to Xbox Game Pass subscribers when the game launches in 2019. Those that have an active membership for the Microsoft service will be able to play the game at no additional cost.
Ori and the Will of the Wisps was first announced at E3 2018 and, as expected, the debut trailer showcased its beautiful, whimsical art style, as well as some of the tricky platforming gameplay that made the first game so compelling. As of yet, Ori and the Will of the Wisps doesn't have a specific release date, but developer Moon Studios is targeting 2019.
This announcement was made during X018, a fan event celebrating all things Xbox. During the show, Microsoft also confirmed that Ori and the Blind Forest is making its way to Xbox Game Pass in December, so you can play the first game in the series ahead of the sequel's launch.
For those that aren't subscribed to Xbox Game Pass, Microsoft is offering a discount from now through January 3. During this period, membership will be available for $1 during for the first month. Xbox Live Gold subscriptions will also be discounted to $1 for the first month, so with both you'll be set up to download a variety of games and take them online. This is a good deal if you've had your eye on Forza Horizon 4 or State of Decay 2, which are two multiplayer titles released recently.
Ori and the Blind Forest launched in March, 2015. In his review, Kevin VanOrd awarded it a 9/10. "It's important, however, not to mistake Ori and the Blind Forest for being simply beautiful," he said. "It certainly is--but it is also unceasingly clever. It consistently surprises you with new tricks: gravitational divergences, new ways to move through its spaces, and carefully designed levels that require you to think quickly and respond.
"It is not as snappy as, say, a typical Mario platformer, seeking instead a broader gameplay arc stretching across a single, interconnected world. It's a superb and thematically consistent approach that allows Ori and the Blind Forest to build joy on a bed of heartache, adding a new layer of mechanical complexity with each ray of hope." Read the full Ori and the Blind Forest review for an in-depth analysis of it.
Microsoft announced even more backwards compatible games coming to the Xbox One at its X018 conference. On November 13, the service will add three more games: the full trilogy of Final Fantasy XIII titles with Xbox One X enhancements. Plus Civilization Revolution, which is already available via backwards compatibility, will be getting some Xbox One X upgrades as well.
The original Final Fantasy XIII was Square Enix's big tentpole title in its marquee franchise. For its two sequels--Final Fantasy XIII-2 and Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII--the studio focused more singularly on the central character of Lightning and blended in some action game mechanics. While FFXIII's narrative was built to stand alone, XIII-2 and Lightning Returns are part of a matched set, with a cliffhanger that neatly leads from one into the other.
Civilization Revolution took the sim aspects of the popular strategy series and simplified them for a more quick and casual experience. That helps the interface work a little better on consoles, but the game has hit tons of other platforms including mobile devices.
As always, once these go live on the service, if you already own these games you can insert the disc to start the download, or find the digital version in your Games section on the dashboard. The number of games on Xbox One is big and constantly growing, so check out our full list of backwards compatible games to see if any of your nostalgic favorites are already available.
Kingdom Hearts 3 already has an all-star cast of Disney characters, but at Xbox's X018 fan event one more made his debut. Everyone's favorite honey-loving bear, Winnie the Pooh has been confirmed to appear in the third entry in the Square Enix-developed title. Of course, this isn't the first time he's been featured in the series, as players have traveled to 100 Acre Woods, home of Pooh, Tigger, Piglet and friends multiple times.
This time, we got to see Pooh talking to Sora, Donald, and Goofie, telling him that he'd always be with him. Along with Pooh, the trailer also provided another glimpse at what Master Xehanort and Organization XIII are up to. Naturally, it will require Sora, Donald, Goofy, and a supporting cast of some of the most iconic Disney characters from throughout the ages to come together and put a stop to these evil schemes, which involves creating an ultimate keyblade.
Shinji Hashimoto from Square Enix also appeared during the stream to talk about Pooh's appearance, saying that in Kingdom Hearts 3 there will be mini-games to play in the 100 Acre Woods. For this location specifically, gameplay will be oriented around puzzles. Talking about technological advancements and what they bring to Kingdom Hearts 3, Hashimoto said the Xbox One hardware allowed the team to depict roaring scenes in the Pirates world and the vastness of Big Hero 6's San Fransokyo.
The trailer also gave us a glimpse at the some of other words, including an evil Baymax in the Big Hero 6 universe. Some on-ship acrobatics in the Pirates of the Caribbean world.
On November 5, Square Enix released a trailer set in the Kingdom of Corona, the world in which Tangled takes place. In that trailer, Sora, Donald, and Goofy meet Rapunzel and Flynn, before being ambushed by enemies. Rapunzel looks to have a pretty handy traversal ability that involves using her long hair to swing from tree branches. This will no doubt help the gang get around much easier.
Other Disney franchises represented in Kingdom Hearts 3 include Toy Story, Big Hero 6, Frozen, Hercules, and Monsters Inc. Various members of the voice cast attached to these are also reprising their roles for the game. For example, Zachary Levi be playing as Flynn Rider while Donna Murphy will once again be Mother Gothel. For Frozen, Idina Menzel will be voicing Elsa, while Kristen Bell returns for Anna, Josh Gad is Olaf, and Jonathan Groff is Kristoff. Haley Joel Osment will also be voicing series protagonist Sora again.
Kingdom Hearts 3 is set to release on January 29, 2019 on Xbox One and PS4.
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