Outside of the holidays, it's rare to find deals on Nintendo Switch hardware, but Nintendo has announced a new bundle that serves as a good entry point if you're interested in picking the console up. The bundle goes on sale starting February 15 and includes a system with neon red and blue Joy-Cons, as well as $35 credit for its digital storefront, the Eshop.
The bundle will be available at retailers around the US and costs $300, the standard price of a Switch console. While the bonus credit can be put toward any Eshop purchase, the storefront is home to a preponderance of great--and fairly cheap--indie games, such as Golf Story, Celeste, and the recently released Advance Wars-like strategy game Wargroove.
The credit can also be used to purchase DLC, which many of Switch's must-have titles have received. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild's expansion pass costs $20, as does Splatoon 2's single-player focused Octo Expansion. If you pick up Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, its fighters pass runs for $25 and will give you access to five of its planned DLC characters, including Persona 5's Joker.
If you're unsure of what to purchase with the Eshop credit, we've put together a gallery of the best Nintendo Switch games for $20 or less to help you decide what's worth downloading.
Activision has revealed the PC system requirements fo From Software's upcoming Souls-like game Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice via the title's Steam page. The minimum and recommended requirements aren't all that different from what you needed for Dark Souls III, so if you played From Software's 2016 Souls game on PC, you should be fine.
The minimum requirements for Sekiro are slightly higher than what they were for Dark Souls III though. For Sekiro, you need either an Intel Core i3-2100 or AMD FX-6300 processor that's paired with 4 GB of RAM and either a Nvidia GeForce GTX 760 or AMD Radeon HD 7950 GPU. You'll have to bump up your system's specs to run the game on its recommended settings, obviously, but the Steam page does not reveal the difference in targeted resolution and framerate between the two.
Below, we've outlined the full list of both the minimum and recommended PC system requirements.
Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice PC System Requirements
Minimum
OS: Windows 7 64-bit | Windows 8 64-bit | Windows 10 64-bit
Processor: Intel Core i3-2100 | AMD FX-6300
Memory: 4 GB RAM
Graphics: Nvidia GeForce GTX 760 | AMD Radeon HD 7950
DirectX: Version 11
Network: Broadband Internet connection
Storage: 25 GB available space
Sound Card: DirectX 11 Compatible
Recommended
OS: Windows 7 64-bit | Windows 8 64-bit | Windows 10 64-bit
Sekiro is a very different take on the challenging but fair formula that From Software has developed through Demon's Souls, the Dark Souls series, and Bloodborne. The game changes how combat works--opting for a system that focuses more on guard breaks--and also implementing both parkour and stealth mechanics. Because of the new approach to combat, boss battles will play out very differently in Sekiro as well. Sekiro's protagonist, known as The Wolf, will also speak, and journey through a Japanese drama that utilizes flashbacks to flesh out the game's cast of characters. There won't be online multiplayer in Sekiro either, but this means the game will support a pause function.
Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice launches on March 22, and it's coming to Xbox One, PS4, and PC.
It's somewhat of a quiet week in Destiny 2 given all that's been happening with the game recently, but like clockwork, Xur has checked in for his weekly visit. As always, he's here to sell some Exotic items to hopefully tide you over until the next bit of meaningful Destiny 2 content. Here's where to find him and what he's selling.
For this particular trip, Xur is located at The Tower. When you spawn, head left and go all the way to the hangar area where Amanda Holliday is found. From there, turn left and head toward the open back area, past where Dead Orbit sets up shop. You'll find Xur just up a set of stairs.
His item lineup is no surprise: three pieces of Exotic armor, with one for each class, and one Exotic weapon. That gun is Skyburner's Oath, a scout rifle that lobs somewhat slow explosive rounds. But aim down the sights and those rounds become more powerful and move significantly faster.
The armor side is more notable, because these Exotics (unlike weapons) have random rolls on their perks, so you might find something that suits your playstyle nicely. Hunters get The Dragon's Shadow chest armor, which causes your dodge ability to reload your weapons and grants a buff that improves both speed and handling for a short time. Titans get the Wormgod Caress gauntlets, which increase your melee damage when you pull off a melee kill. And finally, Warlocks get the Sunbreakers gauntlets, which cause your solar grenade to burn for longer, and melee kills restore grenade energy. The full lineup and prices are as follows:
Also available from Xur is the Fated engram. This costs a whopping 97 Legendary shards but will decrypt into a Year One Exotic you don't already own (assuming you haven't collected them all). While pricey, it's a reliable way to fill out your Exotic collection. Additionally, Xur has the Five of Swords challenge card that lets you add modifiers to Nightfall Strikes.
While the first part of Destiny 2's annual pass has concluded, you can still work on getting The Last Word Exotic hand cannon. Next week will bring the Crimson Days event for Valentine's Day; that begins on February 13.
A promotion for Orville Redenbacher popcorn has given us our first glimpse at the costumes worn by the heroes in Avengers: Endgame. The image shows the looks for Captain America, Iron Man, Thor, Black Widow, Hulk, and Hawkeye--or as he's expected to be known, Ronin.
Ronin aside, the photo (via ComicBook) shows the heroes largely returning to their roots. Thor, Cap, and Iron Man all don pretty traditional looks. Iron Man's suit is much more polished and spiffy than the wreckage we've seen in trailers so far, and Cap is back to the clean-cut star-spangled man after his darker, bearded appearance in Infinity War (RIP). Black Widow is wearing a sleek black jumpsuit, and her hair has returned to its fiery red. Hulk is the biggest departure from the norm, wearing a jumpsuit of his own that appears perfectly fitted to his massive frame.
The official synopsis suggests that the heroes will attempt to "undo Thanos' actions and restore order to the universe once and for all, no matter what consequences may be in store." We expected as much, given that Marvel has already begun teasing movies starring characters that are ostensibly deceased like Spider-Man. How exactly they'll do this, and who won't live through it, remains to be seen.
The first trailer for Avengers: Endgame suggested that Ant-Man could be instrumental to the plan, given Steve Rogers' surprise at seeing Scott Lang appear on his doorstep. It seems that the Avengers presumed he was deceased, when a post-credits scene for Ant-Man and the Wasp revealed he was in the quantum realm during Thanos' genocidal finger-snap.
Before Endgame hits, though, Marvel has one more hero to introduce. Captain Marvel is coming on March 8, and the post-credits sequence of Infinity War implies that Nick Fury thinks of her as his trump card. As for Endgame itself, it appears likely to be longer than any other Marvel movie to date--which makes sense given that it's the culmination of a decade of this connected universe. Check out our breakdown of the Super Bowl trailer for more.
PlayStation is hosting another flash sale on PSN, offering deals on some games that you may have missed during the hustle and bustle of the holiday season. Many of the discounts are to games that released in the fall, so you could be forgiven for having them overshadowed by all the big AAA releases of 2018.
Darksiders 3 is the long-awaited sequel, and the first entry in the series since THQ Nordic acquired the rights. It's been marked down to $48, or you can pick up the Blades & Whips edition for $70. Similarly, Fallout 76 has been marked down to $36, and the more expensive Tricentennial Bundle is going for $48. You can also snag Monster Hunter World for $25, or its Digital Deluxe edition for $30. In each case, going for the pricier option gets you some exclusive unlocks.
Other highlights include Tetris Effect, one of our top games of 2018, for $30, Earth Defense Force 5 for $48, and Moonlighter for $12, among others. Tetris Effect will also let you try it for free this weekend on PS4, so if you like what you play you can grab it at a discount. Check out the full listing below, which is relatively short for a flash sale.
These are notably all PS4 games, with no PS3 or Vita games on the list. That appears to be another sign that Sony is slowly phasing out its attention on those platforms, as it will no longer offer games for them as freebies on PS Plus as of March. Plus members are getting a boost to their cloud storage space, though, and that perk went live today.
This is a flash sale, so the discounts don't last long. You'll have to make your purchases by February 11 at 8 AM PT.
Chasm ($12)
Darksiders 3 ($48)
Darksiders 3 Deluxe Edition ($60)
Darksiders 3 Blades & Whips Edition ($70)
Earth Defense Force 5 ($48)
Earth Defense Force 5 Deluxe Edition ($72)
Evasion VR ($20)
Fallout 76 ($36)
Fallout 76 Tricentennial Bundlle ($48)
Idle Champions of the Forgotten Realms: Idle Champions Outfit Pack: Minsc's Giant Boo Costume ($7.50)
Idle Champions of the Forgotten Realms: Idle Champions: Bruenor Starter Pack ($6)
Idle Champions of the Forgotten Realms: Idle Champions: Faerie Dragon Familiar ($7.50)
It's a great--if confusing--time to be a fan of the Child's Play series. The classic killer doll franchise is now more than 30 years old, and not only is a new TV show in the works, but an unrelated movie remake also hits theaters this summer. The first trailer has now been released for that film.
The trailer doesn't give much away, and fans hoping to see or hear Chucky might be disappointed. But we do get the story set-up, which seems to hit the beats of the original 1988 movie. A young boy is given a Buddi toy, the hottest doll on the market. Unfortunately, this doll has a mind of his own and sets about causing all sorts of murderous mayhem. No word yet if the remake Chucky has been possessed by a serial killer like in the original films, but he certainly seems every bit as evil as the first version. Check the trailer out above.
Child's Play is directed by Lars Klevberg, who has also helmed the upcoming horror Polaroid. It stars Aubrey Plaza (Legion) and Brian Tyree Henry (Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse), plus Gabriel Bateman (Light's Out) as the kid who end up in possession of the evil doll Chucky. It's produced by David Katzenberg and Seth Grahame-Smith, who also produced the blockbuster 2017 adaptation of Stephen King's It The movie hits theaters on June 21.
In a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly, Klevberg spoke about getting involved the remake. "Child's Play was, and is, one of my all-time horror movies and it was one of my introductions to horror," he said. "I got the script [for the remake] and it was really really good, and I knew it was from the producers from It, and I jumped in immediately."
As for the Child's Play TV series, it's titled 'Chucky,' and is being developedfor SyFy. While Child's Play creator Don Mancini is not involved with the new movie, he is writing and producing the show.
The Chucky series kicked off in 1988 with Child's Play, which was followed by two direct sequels in 1990 and 1991. The series took a more overt comic turn with 1998's The Bride of Chucky and three subsequent films. Mancini wrote every movie in the series to date and directed the last three, including 2017's The Cult of Chucky.
If you're constantly running out of storage space for your save files, today is your lucky day: Sony's PlayStation Plus storage expansion is now live, giving all PS Plus members 100 GB of cloud storage.
That's 10 times the previous allowance PS Plus members received as part of their subscription. The expansion comes as Sony removes free PS3 and PS Vita games from its monthly games selection, focusing on PS4 games only for the near future at least.
Expanded 100GB cloud storage is rolling out now to PS Plus members. Enjoy 10 times more cloud storage for all those PS4 game saves! pic.twitter.com/u98QZUHBiv
PS4 will soon receive a new system software update too, after Sony sent out beta invites for version 6.50 of the console's firmware. It seems there are no major features coming in that update as yet.
PlayStation Now, the game-streaming service on PlayStation 4 and PC, continues to add more games. February's releases have been announced, and they include a mixture of PS3 and PS4 games. From EA, the new additions include Battlefield Hardline and Need for Speed Rivals, while NetherRealm's fighting game Mortal Kombat X is also out right now on PlayStation Now.
Death Stranding, the next game from Metal Gear Solid creator Hideo Kojima, is already playable--and developer Kojima Productions is allowing outside people to play it. Jordan Vogt-Roberts, who is directing the upcoming Metal Gear Solid movie, recently tweeted that he's had a chance to play Death Stranding. In short, he was blown away, describing the game as a "miracle."
"YOU. ARE. NOT. READY," Vogt-Roberts said of his impressions of Death Stranding thus far.
So @HIDEO_KOJIMA_EN let me play DEATH STRANDING❗️The world is next-level immaculate. It's like freebasing pure Kojima & Shinkawa. Remember when FURY ROAD blew you away but also made you (in the best-most-thankful way) ask "wtf" how does this miracle exist? YOU. ARE. NOT. READY❗️ pic.twitter.com/RkVxtZCcbj
Vogt-Roberts isn't the only celebrity to speak highly of Death Stranding. Speaking to Metro, The Walking Dead actor Norman Reedus, who plays a character in Death Stranding, said he's never seen anything like what Kojima is doing with the game.
"The concept is so far out into the future. Instead of eliminating everyone around you, it's bringing everyone together," he explained. "It's a very positive video game, but scary and depressing at the same time. It's kind of a new movie. I've never seen anything like what we're doing."
Overall, Reedus said Death Stranding is a "crazy complicated game." The trailers and information about the title released thus far do not fully encapsulate what Death Stranding is, it seems.
"The trailers show you an aspect of it, but not a whole picture of what the game will be," he said.
Death Stranding is Kojima's first new game since his split with Konami. Very little is known about the game, and that appears to be intentional, with Kojima weaving secrets into its new trailers. In addition to Reedus, the game features other celebrities such as Mads Mikkelsen, Lea Seydoux, Lindsay Wagner, Guillermo del Toro, and Troy Baker. No release date has been set as of yet.
Fortnite's Week 10 challenges have gone live across all platforms, which means we're coming to the end of the game's seventh season. Developer Epic Games still hasn't announced when Season 8 of Battle Royale will begin, but we do know when the current season will formally wrap up.
According to Epic's website, Season 7 of Fortnite is scheduled to end on Thursday, February 28. This doesn't necessarily mean that Season 8 will kick off immediately afterward; there have been instances in the past where a new season would begin a few days after the previous one ended. However, it does give us some idea of when we can expect Season 8 to start.
As for what awaits in the new season, that remains remains anyone's guess. Epic hasn't shared any details yet about Season 8, although some strange things have begun happening in the game. Recently, players have experienced sudden earthquakes in the middle of a match, and based on audio files gleaned from a datamine, it appears the tremors will only continue to grow in strength.
It's unclear what these earthquakes portend for Season 8, but Epic typically ushers in new seasons of Fortnite with some sort of world-changing event. Prior to the start of Season 7, an iceberg could be seen drifting toward the island, and Season 6 began after the infamous purple cube known as Kevin plunged into Loot Lake and transformed it.
In the meantime, players still have a little more time to complete this season's challenges. If you need help, you can find times and guides in our complete Season 7 challenges roundup. Epic has also announced a big Share the Love event for the game, which will encompass new Overtime challenges, additional rewards to unlock, and two double XP weekends.
Crunchyroll has announced the host for this year's Anime Awards. The company also revealed the list of presenters that will be revealing the winners for each award during the ceremony.
For 2019's Anime Awards, voice actress Cristina Vee is scheduled to be the host. Vee is well known within the anime and gaming community for voicing dozens of popular characters. For anime, Vee is most famous for portraying The Familiar of Zero's Louise, Sailor Moon's Rei Hino, Hunter x Hunter's Killua Zoldyck, Devilman Crybaby's Miki Makimura, and--most recently--Konosuba's Darkness. In video games, Vee is best known for voicing Riven the Exile in League of Legends, Ophilia in Octopath Traveler, and Shantae in the past two Shantae titles.
Crunchyroll has secured several talented folks from the anime and animation industry to present the awards. Some are notable for their creative work within the industry, such as Made in Abyss composer Kevin Penkin and Rooster Teeth director and writer Miles Luna. Others are known for their efforts in reporting on and influencing the industry, like IGN senior editor Miranda Sanchez and YouTube content creator Geoff "Mother's Basement" Thew. The full list of presenters are outlined below.
Crunchyroll's Anime Awards 2019 Presenters
Michelle Phan -- Entrepreneur, EM Cosmetics, and influencer
Ryan Potter -- Actor (DC's Titans and Big Hero 6)
Justin Briner -- English voice actor (My Hero Academia)
Kevin Penkin -- Composer (The Rising of the Shield Hero and Made in Abyss)
Freddie Wong -- RocketJump Productions, Director (Anime Crimes Division)
SungWon Cho (ProZD) -- Creator/Influencer (Anime Crimes Division)
Roger DiLuigi -- Creator/Influencer (Roger's Base)
Yssa Badiola -- Animator/Director, Rooster Teeth
Miles Luna -- Writer/Director, Rooster Teeth (gen:LOCK)
Victoria Holden, Miles Thomas, and Tim Lyu -- Crunchyroll staff and supporting hosts
This year's Crunchyroll Anime Awards will be held February 16 at 6PM PT / 9PM ET / 2AM UK. You can buy tickets to watch them live in San Francisco, CA or tune in on Twitch to watch Crunchyroll's livestream. New award categories were added to this year's event. As one of the judges, I assisted in deciding the nominations for each category.
Now that Week 10's challenges have arrived on all platforms, Season 7 of Fortnite is finally winding down, although developer Epic Games still has a few more surprises in store for players before Season 8 begins. The studio has announced the Valentine's-themed Share the Love event, which kicks off on February 8 and will encompass new challenges, rewards, and more.
Once the event is underway, players who support a Creator or enter a Creator Code will receive the Cuddle Hearts wrap for free. The wrap will be available following next week's 7.40 update and sports a very Bret Hart-esque pink and black design, as you can see below.
Also arriving with the 7.40 update will be a new set of Overtime challenges, which will be available through the end of the season. Completing the challenges will unlock five new rewards, such as the Valentine wrap and Vines contrail. Battle Pass holders will also be to unlock new styles of the Trog, Powder, and Onesie skins.
On top of the new challenges, Epic will hold two double XP weekends in Fortnite, on February 15-17 and February 22-24, giving players one final chance to level their Battle Pass up before Season 7 ends. The developer has also announced a Share the Love Competitive Series, with placement matches set to take place on February 9 and 10.
Finally, Fortnite Creative is getting a Featured Island Frenzy event. Epic will rotate a new set of featured islands in the mode each day between February 12 and 22. You can read more details about the Share the Love event on Epic's website.
Season 7 of Fortnite is scheduled to end on February 28, so you only have a little more time to complete any outstanding challenges. You can find tips to help expedite the process in our complete Season 7 challenges guide.
Apex Legends, the free-to-play battle royale game from Titanfall developer Respawn, continues to have a strong opening week. The game has now crossed 10 million players, with a record of more than 1 million concurrent players, Respawn announced in a blog post.
"This has been a truly incredible journey. We tested and tweaked. We argued and agreed. We got to a point where we felt some magic. We knew it would be risky to take the franchise in this direction, to go free to play, and do a surprise launch," Respawn founder Vince Zampella said. "But we fell in love with Apex Legends and wanted, needed, other people to play it too."
He added that the massive success of Apex Legends so far has exceeded the company's "wildest dreams." Zampella went on to say that launch is "just the beginning" for Apex Legends. As announced previously, the title will offer a Fortnite-style battle pass that will deliver seasons' worth of new content over time.
In fact, Respawn said it hopes the game can live on until 2027 or longer. Players can expect "exciting changes and gameplay evolutions" for the game as it progresses.
By comparison, the latest statistics from Epic Games show that Fortnite has 200 million players and a peak concurrent record of 8.3 million players. But Fortnite is a sensation unlike almost anything else.
Apex Legends was announced and released earlier this week on PS4, Xbox One, and PC. It was a quick success, as it picked up 1 million players in eight hours, going on to reach 2.5 million players not much longer and a peak concurrent user record of 600,000 players. As today's numbers demonstrate, the game is enjoying a nice growth trajectory, and it'll be interesting to see how much bigger the game becomes over time.
Apex Legends is far from the first competitor to Fortnite and PUBG, but it's different in that it comes from a massive, established publisher in Electronic Arts.
In addition to Apex Legends, Respawn is working on something new in the Titanfall universe to release later this year, though whether or not it is the much-requested Titanfall 3 remains to be seen. Additionally, Respawn is developing a Star Wars game called Jedi: Fallen Order, and it is also slated to launch in 2019.
We've been enjoying our time in Respawn's new free-to-play battle royale game, Apex Legends, exploring the diverse ability sets of the eight different Legends. However, two Legends, the psychotic Caustic and goofball Mirage, are locked from the start. You can either drop some real-world cash to buy both immediately, or earn in-game Legend tokens to unlock them. We've finally discovered how long it would take to do the latter.
Phil Hornshaw, who wrote up our early impressions of Apex Legends and is currently putting together our review of the game, earned the necessary 12000 Legend tokens to unlock one of the two Legends when he reached level 23, which took him about 17 hours. He still hasn't earned enough to unlock a second character, as Legend tokens unlock more slowly after reaching level 20.
Obviously, this amount of time could fluctuate for you, as you can level up faster by completing bounties and hunting down the featured Champion. Surviving for longer periods of time, getting high kill counts, reviving allies, respawning allies, killing the Champion's squad, killing the Kill Leader, or playing with people you're friends with (instead of randoms) nets you moderate to large experience bonuses too.
Killing the Champion or their squad or surviving for a long time are the fastest ways to level up. Defeating the Champion nets you a 500 XP bonus, and it's another 500 for taking out their whole squad. You get about a 200 XP bonus for every minute you survive, according to PSU, which means you can get huge bonuses for just hiding and surviving until the very end of a 17-20 minute match. If you're playing with two friends, you get an extra 300 XP bonus if your squad makes it to the top three as well.
You might also be able to unlock new Legends and cosmetics faster once Apex Legends' Battle Pass comes out. Respawn hasn't provided a definite release date for the Battle Pass, but it's currently scheduled for March. Although Respawn has confirmed cross-progression won't be added, cross-platform play could still happen in Apex Legend's future.
Apex Legends is available for Xbox One, PS4, and PC.
The private beta for The Division 2 has begun, and like any real beta this one appears to be exposing some technical hiccups for Ubisoft to mend. The studio has already outlined some tips to avoid common problems in the beta, and announced upcoming maintenance.
On its known issues page, Ubisoft outlines two relatively serious issues that it says will be fixed before the full game launch, but that may present problems for beta players. The first is that extended play sessions could either degrade the experience on PS4, or crash the game altogether on PC and Xbox One. To avoid this, the studio recommends restarting the game every two to three hours.
The second known issue is that receiving a game invite from a friend within the game, while you are outside the game, will cause the client to crash once you launch it. The practical solution offered here is to simply make sure you start the game first and then join the group from within the game client.
In a tweet, Ubisoft says server maintenance will be performed on Friday, February 8, starting at 12:30 AM PT / 3:30 AM ET, and last approximately three hours. That scheduled time is just before an extra piece of content was to be added: a piece of endgame content called an Invaded mission. Presumably that will now hit as soon as the maintenance ends.
Other beta content includes two main missions, five side missions, open-world activities, and one new Dark Zone. The player cap is set at 30 for the beta.
You can check the official Twitter account for updates on any issues that come up, and visit the forums to offer feedback and report new issues. The Division 2 launches on March 15.
We're now in the final stretch of Fortnite Season 7, but there's still plenty to do in Epic's hit battle royale game before Season 8 kicks off. That includes Week 10's challenges, which are now available across all platforms. You'll find the usual assortment of tasks in this batch, including another search for Expedition Outposts.
As usual, completing challenges will reward you with Battle Stars, which in turn will level your Battle Pass up and unlock Season 7 cosmetics. If you finish all of the tasks from a given week, however, you'll also complete one of this season's Snowfall challenges and unlock a special loading screen that points you toward a free Battle Star (good for leveling your Battle Pass up by one tier) or a Banner (which can be used as a profile icon) hidden somewhere on the map.
If you've finished all 10 sets of weekly challenges, you'll complete the final Snowfall challenge, which will reward you with the loading screen pictured below. This one depicts the Prisoner--the Legendary skin you unlock for completing 60 weekly challenges--sitting beside a campfire atop a hill. Look to the left of the campfire, however, and you'll spot a Banner waiting beneath a tree in the distance. That's where you'll need to go to find the item.
The tree in question can be found at the edge of the desert, near the race track just east of Retail Row. Once you've jumped into a match, glide to the area, locate the tree, and the Banner will appear beneath it, just as in the loading screen. Collect it like you would any other item then finish the match, and the Banner will be yours to use as an icon. You can see its exact location on the map below. We also show you where to go in the video above.
Like always, there are a couple of caveats for this secret Banner. The item won't appear in the game unless you've completed all 10 sets of weekly challenges, so you can't simply go to the right location and expect to find it unless you've done the necessary work. If you need help finishing up any remaining tasks, you can find tips in our complete Season 7 challenges guide.
Season 7 is scheduled to end on February 28 according to Epic's website, so there isn't much time left to complete this season's challenges. Of course, with Season 8 quickly approaching, some unusual things have begun happening in the game, namely earthquakes. What this means for the new season remains to be seen, although it wouldn't be surprising for the tremors to result in some portion of the map being dramatically transformed.
After several hours spent playing Devil May Cry V, my wrist was cramped and the joints in my fingers were aching. These pains should be familiar to Devil May Cry fans; the series always demanded a high level of dexterity to master its combat. But in this sorry state, a joy washed over me: "I'm playing a new Devil May Cry, and that's awesome." But at the same time, another thought prodded my mind: "Will everyone else want this?"
DMCV is a return to not only the series' previous canon, but to the philosophy and near fighting game-like intricacy of the first four games. As a longtime fan, it was exhilarating to play Nero and Dante again, slowly learning the strategic nuances of their every move, while constantly trying to better my execution. The high skill ceiling taunted me, instigating a deep desire to better understand how Nero's Devil Breaker arms work, and to finally master seamlessly switching between Dante's four different fighting styles.
While I'm confident hardcore fans will love the work that's been done with combat in DMCV, the level design in between combat sections leaves much to be desired. This is where I find myself second guessing what the game is doing. There are some lessons from DmC: Devil May Cry that haven't been learned from here. Say what you will about the polarizing reboot, but that game presented some incredibly interesting level design and provocative visuals; showcasing diverse and compelling environments (sans the edgy text displayed on walls).
In DMCV, you're typically running through ruined city streets and dilapidated buildings infested by thorny roots from a massive demonic tree at the center of town. A mission in the aforementioned tree helped break things up, but interesting sights like this were quickly overrun by more of the same apocalyptic backdrops. The repetition wore me down, especially when I started to realize that progression outside fights could be narrowed down to "destroy this red sack on this root, open path, repeat." It made me yearn for the chaotic highs of air juggling demons and subsequently breakdance-fighting their friends into oblivion.
If not for DMCV's fantastic combat, this issue would be more troublesome. But it got me thinking: does this problem exist because classic DMC games are designed with a different philosophy in mind? While I can't answer this question myself, all I know is that the innovation of the combat system is what keeps me eager to return to DMCV.
Newcomer V is an excellent example of this innovation; his ranged playstyle is probably the most creative and refreshing part of DMCV so far. You use V's summoned beasts to damage enemies for you, while you stand back and wait for the moment to deliver the final blow after their life has been depleted. It's all about space management and calculated movement; you need to be mindful of enemies around you, as a dodge in any direction will instantly call back one of his summons from the fray for a brief duration. Cunningly avoiding attacks as you command your beasts to deliver complex juggles provides a satisfying thrill. It's made all the more rewarding by the impact of a final blow alongside V's goading remarks. V's fighting style defies the directly offensive strategies of previous playable characters, but it's one that still feels right at home with the series. He's where I feel DMCV's combat design expresses itself the most, innovating and rearranging what we know from past games.
There are hints of previous mechanics all around, but refinements and alterations have brought new life to them. V's playstyle calls to mind the tactics spurred by Vergil's concentration gauge from DMC4: Special Edition, where minimal movement and calculated attacks are key. On the other hand, Nero's various Devil Breakers significantly evolve his playstyle by adding more offensive options in a fight. You can propel a foe across the screen with the Overture's powerful attack, but in short time, detonate it in another group of demons while switching over to the Punch Line, riding it like a rocket-propelled skateboard into those still left alive. A great degree of technical skill is introduced to Nero thanks to the Devil Breakers, making his once beginner-friendly playstyle more complex than ever before.
Dante is the only character who seems to remain faithful to previous iterations with few adjustments made to his base abilities--but maybe that's the point. With all the new mechanics introduced with Nero and V, Dante maintains the series' tradition, confidently declaring that everything you remember from the classic DMC combat system is back. That said, I only had access to a few of the weapons in his arsenal, so it's possible even he may change as you progress further in the full game.
It's difficult to balance my expectations for DMCV. The more experimental DmC: Devil May Cry inspired me to think more deeply about what a game in the series could be, calling upon a higher standard for its accessibility and design overall. But my time with DMCV brought back memories of my infatuation with the story and combat of early games. Dante sports that same endearing confidence that charmed my teenage heart all those years ago. Nero maintains the brashness of DMC3 Dante that I love; though, a new outlook reduces his once angsty demeanor. And with the innovation and creativity present in combat, I can't help but look past my greater dreams of what DMC's structure could be and simply accept DMCV for the traditional experience it is. If that means newcomers being further alienated from one of my favorite series of all time, then that might be a reality I have to accept. My fondness for the series in this form is simply too strong to want it any other way.
When DmC: Definitive Edition and DMC4: Special Edition both launched in 2015, the franchise was at a crossroads. After playing both, I realized that the series can honestly be one or the other and still be phenomenal. Before going to this event, I anticipated Capcom would make DMCV a hybrid of both, but in the end it chose one: classic DMC.
From Software has released a new trailer for its upcoming Souls-like game, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice. The trailer delivers our first official look at the game's story, specifically the origin of its protagonist, The Wolf. You can watch it above.
The developer behind Dark Souls and Bloodborne is changing quite a few aspects of its tried-and-true formula to deliver a new kind of experience with Sekiro. For one, Sekiro's protagonist actually speaks. The story in Sekiro plays out more as a Japanese drama, with players embodying a specific character with his own established backstory, feelings, and sense of morality. Some of the narrative will play out as flashback sequences as well, which is another first for From Software when it comes to its Soulsborne titles.
Sekiro's boss battles will also play out differently than what's been seen in Bloodborne and Dark Souls. "The traversal options allow much more dynamic movement within the boss arena, both for yourself and the boss character themselves," From Software director Hidetaka Miyazaki said. "Previously, you would have just had to run around a huge boss' feet and hack away at his ankles, but now you have all these movement options; you can both fully use the extent of that arena." You'll actually be able to pause the game too, even in the midst of a hectic fight, as there isn't any multiplayer in Sekiro.
Miyazaki has confirmed that Sekiro is "probably even more challenging than previous From games," and after playing some of it, we agree. Sekiro's addition of parkour and stealth mechanics certainly allows you to move faster and occasionally kill more efficiently in comparison to previous Soulsborne titles, but the game's new combat system of wearing down an enemy's guard before executing them definitely has a learning curve.
Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice is scheduled to release on March 22 for Xbox One, PS4, and PC.
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