2015's Halo 5: Guardians did not include any kind of split-screen, something that Microsoft was criticized for. Today, the company confirmed that Halo 6, or whatever the next game in the series is called, will indeed have split-screen support.
This was confirmed by 343 Industries executive Bonnie Ross during a speech at DICE 2017. Ross said not including split-screen in Halo 5 was one of the "painful learnings" that Microsoft faced after taking over ownership of the Halo brand from Bungie.
"For any FPS going out forward, we will always have split-screen in," she said.
The game's 60 FPS frame rate is partially responsible for this. When 343 made the decision to have Halo 5 run at a locked 60 FPS, the team did so with the understanding that it would create "some issues" and technical impossibilities for the rest of the game.
No new Halo FPS games have been announced. Xbox boss Phil Spencer recently suggested the next Halo FPS will not be released this year, which is no big surprise, given that Halo 5 is not even two years old.
What do you make of Microsoft's new commitment to Halo split-screen? Let us know in the comments below!
Ahead of its launch next week, we've gotten our hands on a Nintendo Switch, and you can check out all of coverage so far here. But the system doesn't yet have all of its launch-day functionality in place, and it won't until next week.
Nintendo plans to release a day-one update for the system--although, despite the name, it's slated to arrive "just prior" to launch on March 3. Here's what it enables, according to Nintendo:
Access to network features, such as Nintendo eShop, online gameplay, ability to share images to social media, etc.
Ability to link Nintendo Accounts to your Nintendo Switch console.
Ability to connect online using hotspots that require authentication, such as at a hotel or café. A web applet will open up so the user can sign-in or accept terms of use.
Those are some key features that we don't currently have access to. And while connecting to hotspots may not be a concern for many, this update will be important for doing so, as the system doesn't launch with a browser, as past Nintendo systems have.
Once it's released, Nintendo says the update seamlessly downloads in the background. It's "designed to install quickly and doesn't disrupt gameplay."
Uncharted movie writer Joe Carnahan has shared some new details on his script. Speaking to ComingSoon, Carnahan said he tried to match what the games offer in terms of dialogue. This includes swearing and adult themes; he expects a movie based on his script to receive an R rating.
"When I wrote Uncharted, I didn't spare the rod," he explained (via Collider). "I wrote it the way the video game is. They swear in the game, they're kinda foul-mouthed, and I kept all that stuff intact, and I definitely didn't write it as a PG-13 movie. I wrote it the way that movie should be written."
Carnahan, who wrote 2010's The A-Team and the upcoming Bad Boys For Life,says it's not true that R-rated movies can't be big commercial successes, especially today, after Deadpool.
"I never understood the metric for, 'This will make X-amount more if it were PG-13,'" he said. "PG-13 in a lot of ways is a cop out, and I think it's been exposed as such."
Also in the interview, Carnahan talked about the comparisons that people make to Uncharted and Indiana Jones. They may share some qualities, but there is a reason why Carnahan believes his Uncharted script as an "anti-Indiana Jones" feel to it.
"Drake is not a guy who likes museums. He thinks they're all crooked. Curators are 'thieves;' the guys in the Louvre and The Met are thieves and despicable," Carnahan said. "He's a treasure hunter, not an archaeologist. He doesn't have Indiana Jones' idea of pure faith in archaeology. That's not the way he thinks."
"I think Amy Hennig did it when she wrote the game. She made Drake very much an anti-Indiana Jones, you know? Don't forget, for that first game after that pirate attack, Drake and Sully leave Elena behind; they dump her. Indiana Jones would never do something like that. That's a rogue act..."
Finally, Carnahan said his Uncharted movie script is not based on one of the Uncharted games, though of course he used them as a template. "There's no point in just transposing them to film," he said. "You've gotta come up with new sh*t, so that's what I did. It was a great challenge but it was a lot of fun."
The Uncharted series is known for its big action sequences, and you can expect these to be in the Uncharted movie. "I probably wrote four of the biggest, f***in' craziest action sequences I think I've ever written in that movie," he said.
The Xbox One's backwards compatibility program expands again today with three more games.
Microsoft's Major Nelson announced on Twitter today that Gyromancer, Moon Diver, and Space Invaders Infinity Gene have been added to the catalog. If you already own digital copies of these game on Xbox 360, they should show up automatically in your Xbox One game library. If not, you can buy it on your console or through the Xbox Store's website (download links are posted below).
Moon Diver
Xbox One Backwards Compatibility Additions For February 23:
With less than a week left in February, Netflix has now announced everything that's coming to and leaving the streaming service in March.
Arriving on Netflix on March 1 are movies like Blazing Saddles, Memento, Nacho Libre, and all the Jurassic Park movies. The BFG (March 15), Coraline (March 16), and Better Call Saul Season 2 (March 27) are also arriving next month. In terms of Netflix originals, Iron Fist premieres on March 13, while the Selena Gomez-producer drama 13 Reasons Why debuts on March 31.
In terms of what's leaving in March, now is your last chance to watch the first three Jaws movies and National Lampoon's Animal House, as those go away on March 1. Other movies heading out later in the month include Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey (March 3), the Hunger Games parody Starving Games (March 8), and Iron Man (March 23).
You can see a complete rundown for Netflix March 2017 below, as compiled by GameSpot sister site TV Guide. You can check out the March 2017 Hulu coming and going lists here.
Arriving on Netflix for March 2017
*indicates the title is available for download
March 1
Angry Birds Season 2*
Blazing Saddles
Chicago*
Deep Run*
Dirt Every Day Season 1*
Epic Drives Season 2*
Friday After Next
Head 2 Head Season 2*
Hot Rod Unlimited Season 1*
Ignition Season 1
Impossible Dreamers*
Jurassic Park*
Jurassic Park III*
Kate and Mim-Mim Season 2*
Know Your Enemy - Japan*
Kung Fu Panda*
Let There Be Light*
Memento*
Midnight in Paris*
Nacho Libre
Nazi Concentration Camps*
Roadkill Season 2*
Rolling Stones: Crossfire Hurricane*
San Pietro*
Singing with Angels*
Sustainable*
Slumbs of Beverly Hills
The Craft*
This Is Spinal Tap*
Tenacious D in: The Pick of Destiny
The Lost World: Jurassic Park*
The Memphis Belle: A Story of a Flying Fortress*
The Negro Soldier*
Thunderbolt*
Tunisian Victory*
March 3
Greenleaf Season 1
March 4
Safe Haven
March 5
Senora Acero Season 3
March 7
Amy Schumer: The Leather Special
March 8
Hands of Stone*
The Waterboy
March 9
Thithi*
March 10
Buddy Thunderstruck Season 1
Burning Sands
Love Season 2
One More Time Season 1
The Boss' Daughter
March 13
Must Love Dogs
Million Dollar Baby
March 15
Disney's The BFG
Notes on Blindness*
March 16
Beau Sejour Season 1
Coraline*
March 17
Diedra & Laney Rob a Train
Julie's Greenroom Season 1
Marvel's Iron Fist Season 1
Naledi: A Baby Elephant's Tale*
Pandora*
Samurai Gourmet Season 1
March 18
Come and Find Me*
The Vampire Diaries Season 8*
March 20
El Reemplazante Season 1-2
March 21
Ali & Nino*
Another Forever*
Evolution*
Fire at Sea (Fuocommare)
March 23
How to Get Away with Murder Season 3*
Welcome to New York*
March 24
Botternsikes & Gumbles: Season 2
Déjà Vu
Felipe Neto: My Life Makes No Sense
Grace and Frankie Season 3
Ingobernable Season 1
Spider
The Square
The Most Hated Woman in America
Who Framed Roger Rabbit
March 25
The Student Body*
USS Indianapolis: Men of Courage*
March 26
The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou
March 27
Better Call Saul Season 2
March 28
Archer Season 7
Jo Koy: Live from Seattle
March 30
Life in Pieces Season 1
March 31
13 Reasons Why Season 1
Bordertown Season 1
Cooper Barrett's Guide to Surviving Life Season 1
Dinotrux Season 4
FirstBorn*
Five Came Back
GLOW: The Story of the Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling*
Most significant is the shift from the Wild format to Standard, which will decrease the potential pool of cards you'll have access to. Blizzard explained on its forums, "As more cards are added to the Arena pool, having each game feel meaningfully different actually becomes harder to accomplish.
"Many of the cool synergies between cards, such as Jade Golems or Mechs, live within each individual set release. Attempting to create decks that utilize these meaningful synergies in a wide and diluted card pool will become more and more difficult as the Wild card pool grows larger. Arena runs then becomes less about card synergies and smart deck choices and more about being fortunate enough to be presented with the best card from each set. This change should put the focus back on the player for good, synergistic Arena choices and make Arena decks feel more cohesive."
This isn't necessarily the last change to Arena's format, as Blizzard said, " [W]e may add additional changes or formats in the future if it doesn't meet our goals of having Arena feel interesting and different with each set release."
Switching to Standard isn't the only tweak to what cards you'll see in Arena. Blizzard is also adjusting the frequency that specific card types show up. Common cards previously made up roughly 78 percent of Arena cards, which has been deemed "too high considering that many of the cards that focus around individual class identity and power level rely on the common cards of any given class."
Post-update, these types of cards will show up less often in Arena, while two specifics ones--Abyssal Enforcer and Flamestrike--will appear 50 percent less often. Classic neutral cards are also becoming more rare to see in Arena.
Additionally, the distribution of spell cards versus minion cards is being narrowed so spells show up more. This change "allows for more room to have an Arena game that is more strategic and facilitates more plays and counter-plays to occur."
Finally, golden cards in your collection will entitle you to golden versions in Arena. "If you own a single golden card, the first copy of it you choose will be golden," Blizzard explained. "If you own two copies of a golden card, every copy of that card you choose in the Arena will be golden. If you own one golden Legendary, every copy of that Legendary you choose in Arena will be golden."
All of these changes will be implemented in an update that launches "near the end of February."
[Updated February 23 with Gyromancer, Moon Diver, and Space Invaders Infinity Gene]
The Xbox One's backwards compatibility feature, introduced in November 2015, lets you play Xbox 360 games on the new console. But what games are available? We've now rounded them all up--and we'll continue to update this post as new games are made available.
Disney's next big movie, Beauty and the Beast, is going to have a massive opening in the United States, if early box office tracking is anything to go on.
It could make $120 million in the region over its first weekend, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Tracking estimates are not always accurate. Sources at Disney told THR that they are modeling a lower figure, but still over $100 million.
If Beauty and the Beast can hit $100 million, that would make it one of the biggest March openings in movie history. Only three movies have ever made more than $100 million for a March opening, including Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice ($166.1 million), The Hunger Games ($152.5 million), and another Disney film, Alice in Wonderland ($116.1 million).
Beauty and the Beast, which is a live-action re-telling of the 1991 animated classic, opens in theaters on March 17. The original was nominated for Best Picture (a first for an animated movie) and ended up winning two Oscars, including Best Original Song and Best Original Score.
Emma Watson stars in Beauty and the Beast as Belle, while Dan Stevens plays Beast. The movie also features Luke Evans as Gaston and Josh Gad as LeFou. Ian McKellan plays Cogsworth and Ewan McGregor portrays Lumiere. You can watch a clip of Watson singing "Belle" right here.
It is just the latest live-action adaptation of a classic Disney film, following Maleficent, Cinderella, The Jungle Book, and Alice in Wonderland.
Hideo Kojima has shared some new insight into the mysterious PlayStation 4 game Death Stranding. In an interview with the PlayStation Blog, Kojima talked at a high level about the project, discussing how it will be an open-world game that gives players "a lot of freedom." He also teased its online mode and more.
Asked what kind of game Death Stranding is, Kojima said, "You can think of Death Stranding as an action game." The goal is for Death Stranding to be "very intuitive" so that players can jump in easily. At the same time, Death Stranding will offer a "certain new type of depth." Overall, Death Stranding aims to be "something that [players] might not have seen before," Kojima said.
In terms of its openendedness, Kojima said, "You have a lot of freedom of choice to do what you want to do and you can get in vehicles and so on." He added: "If you are a fighter, there's plenty of opportunity for that. If you're not that type of player, there are other ways to play this game."
Death Stranding will offer some kind of "strands" concept. Here is how Kojima explained that:
"This is my 31st year in the games industry and I've been deep in action games across that time. In action games, generally, the player has a gun and plays against enemies in a single-player environment--or they take it online and play against other players in a competitive environment. They join in together with guns--[laughs] it's almost always with guns--to take down a stronger opponent. In this game you can do that but I wanted to go a little deeper beyond that with something that doesn't focus on a weapon like a gun and that's what has a connection to the strand concept."
Regarding Death Stranding's online element, Kojima said this will be "different versus what most people expect from an online game." Whereas some games have separate and distinct campaign and online modes, this may not be the case for Death Stranding. "A lot of games have a 'campaign mode' and once you're done with that you take it to the online mode. This game is not that kind of structure."
Kojima added Death Stranding will not force players to go online.
"If you want to play the game standalone, without an online component, that's perfectly fine," he said.
Deadpool 2 is set to start shooting this spring, and it has been been reported that Daredevil and Cloverfield writer Drew Goddard has joined the movie.
According to Collider, Goddard isn't replacing writers Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, who also wrote the first Deadpool. He is on-board as a "consultant," who can help hone the screenplay as the movie approaches production.
Goddard has got plenty of experience in the sci-fi and fantasy arena. He worked on early episodes of Daredevil and has written various TV and movie projects for JJ Abrams, including Lost, The Cabin in the Woods, Cloverfield, and Alias. He was also Oscar-nominated in 2016 for his script for the sci-fi smash The Martian.
Earlier this week it was reported that Deadpool 2 would start shooting in early May. A listing on the industry website My Entertainment World has the film scheduled to begin production in Vancouver on May 1.
Game of Thrones actress Natalie Dormer will play Dr. Lexi T'Perro in Mass Effect: Andromeda, BioWare announced today. She joins another Game of Thrones actor, Gethin Anthony, who has a role in the game as well. As you might have guessed, this led to a fun moment during the recording process.
"I had a bit of a moment earlier when Gethin Anthony's voice came in over across my [headphones]," she says in the video (below). "It's kind of a weird one, hearing Renly Baratheon and Margaery Tyrell in different guises."
Dormer and Anthony aren't the only TV and movie actors who voice characters in Andromeda. Clancy Brown (The Shawshank Redemption, SpongeBob) voices Ryder's father.
This isn't the only video that BioWare put out for Andromeda today. A new gameplay video, the second in an ongoing series, spotlights the character customization, including skills and more.
You can watch that video below. The first in the series, which was themed around combat, was released last week--watch it here. Next week's video will focus on exploration.
Andromeda launches on March 21 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC. For lots more, check out some new images and GameSpot's new preview feature below:
Bethesda has released a new trailer for Prey, the upcoming shooter developed by Arkane Studios.
The video spotlights the powers and abilities that players can make use of to fight off the evil alien forces. Not only do players have "upgradeable human-based abilities," but they can also acquire abilities from the Typhon aliens themselves and use the powers against them. One of these is called Mimic Madness--it looks and sounds pretty cool and unique.
"One of the first powers you'll learn is Mimic Matter," Bethesda said in a blog post. "Acquired from the diminutive (and aptly named) Mimic Typhon, this power allows you to take the form of just about any appropriately sized object aboard Talos I.
"You'll start small--a coffee mug, a teapot, a lamp, a banana--but as you level up this ability, you'll soon be able to mimic more complex objects, including an impressive array of security turrets and Operator robots."
Prey is due out on May 5 for Xbox One, PS4, and PC. It's in development at Arkane's Austin, Texas studio, which is separate from its team responsible for the Dishonored games. In other news, Arkane recently confirmed that the game will have a "wide variance" of endings.
Even more casting details for Iron Man 3 director Shane Black's new Predator movie have come to light. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Yvonne Strahovski is in "final negotiations" to join the cast for Fox's 2018 action movie.
Strahovski will play the mother of 10-year-old Room actor Jacob Tremblay's character, who is described as a "troubled boy." His father is the character played by Boyd Holbrook (Narcos, Logan).
Holbrook plays the lead in The Predator, with a cast that also includes Sterling K. Brown (The People v OJ Simpson), Keegan-Michael Key (Horrible Bosses 2), Olivia Munn, and Trevante Rhodes (Moonlight). Earlier this week, Game of Thrones actor Alfie Allen joined the cast.
Strahovski was on NBC's Chuck for five seasons and also appeared on Showtime's Dexter. Additionally, she voiced Miranda Lawson in the original Mass Effect trilogy.
"I think that they came to me knowing pretty much that... they said, basically, if I wanted to make Predator but treat it like it was Iron Man 3 instead of just another little movie. I said, 'Let's really do it right this time.'"
To celebrate the release date reveal, Warner Bros. released a new trailer that shows off the game's brand-new co-op mode. Also on display in the video is main character Chase McCain, who is on a mission to defeat the bad guy, Rex Fury. As the game's name suggests, McCain goes undercover, putting on a number of disguises, which leads to some silly situations; take a look:
The new console versions were announced in November. At the time, the games were described as both "remastered" and a "re-release." It's unclear whether the versions coming in spring will be straight ports or or if improvements and content additions will be included.
Unlike many other Lego video games, Lego City Undercover is based on an original story where players take control of an undercover police officer named Chase McCain to bring criminals to justice.
"By the time Lego City Undercover's story comes to an end, you have guided Chase through every action-movie circumstance imaginable, and have probably seen the 'twists' coming a mile away. And that's perfectly OK," said Kevin VanOrd in GameSpot's Lego City Undercover review.
"The game knows you know where it's going, and it has fun at its own expense ... There are bigger, more complex, more beautiful open-world games on the market. But none of them are this good at making you feel so young at heart."
Excited for the Nintendo Switch? You're in the right place. We've got a bunch of videos, galleries, and more about the hybrid console for you, just days away from its launch.
For all the games confirmed to be coming to Switch--but not necessarily at launch--take a look at our roundup. Or, check out our Everything You Need To Know article for gameplay videos and hands-on impressions. For now though, let's dive into this fresh batch of Switch content.
Videos
Nintendo Switch Unboxing
Dave and Tamoor delve into the Nintendo Switch box to see what mysteries it contains. They then put it back in the box, because why not? Watch this video on YouTube.
Nintendo Switch: How To Make A Mii
Tamoor shows us how making a Mii works on Nintendo's latest console. Take a look at that beard! Watch this video on YouTube.
Nintendo Switch: First Time Setup And User Interface
In the last of our new videos, Tamoor highlights what the Switch's UI looks like, from setting up the system for the first time to looking at its menus and settings screens. Watch this video on YouTube.
Galleries
Nintendo Switch: 19 Photos Of Controllers And Accessories
Kallie has taken a bunch of photos of the Switch's controllers and accessories. Check them all out here.
Nintendo Switch Size Comparison: See It Next To Consoles And Portable Devices
My fondest memory of the Mass Effect series is a conversation I had with Thane Krios. In a quiet corner of the Normandy's Crew Quarters he explained that his species, the Drell, believe their souls exist as separate entities from their physical bodies. For Thane, this belief allowed him to reconcile his nature as a virtuous figure with his profession as an assassin for hire; the deplorable actions of his body could not tarnish the purity of his soul. The Mass Effect series is about intergalactic politicking, mediating interspecies relationships, navigating moral dilemmas, and--of course--engaging in warfare. But it's the moments in which characters reveal something deeply personal about themselves that are the most profound.
I've always been fascinated with the series' depictions of religion, the way it leans on frameworks of faith that have parallels in real life but then creates a layer of abstraction by exploring them through alien species or relating them to existence on an intergalactic scale. These are the moments that stick with me, and in my hands-on with Mass Effect: Andromeda, it was a moment like this that I walked away thinking about the most.
Andromeda follows thousands of people from numerous species as they venture from the Milky Way galaxy to a distant world in search of a new home. For these characters, and the player, Andromeda is positioned as a journey of exploration and discovery. From a broader gameplay perspective, it's the discovery of new planets to adventure in, quest threads to follow, decisions to make, and conflicts to resolve--either through diplomacy or violence. But the theme of discovery also drives the narrative arcs of Andromeda's cast, all of whom are hoping to find something beyond a new home.
Aboard the Tempest--the ship that players will use to travel around Andromeda's Helius Cluster--I encountered one such person: Suvi. She's staring out into the the depths of space and admiring the view. To her, the distant stars and majestic planetary bodies are "a constant reminder of the divine intelligence behind all of creation."
Like Thane, Suvi reconciles two parts of her that, to outsiders, seem contradictory: she's a woman of science, but also of faith. During our conversation she reveals science brings her closer to something greater than herself. She's lived her life having to justify these beliefs and needing to prove that her faith in the divine doesn't diminish her work as a scientist.
As a person from a traditionalist muslim family that has grown up in Western society, I couldn't help but relate to Suvi. That perceived incompatibility between faith and science has been mirrored in my own life, and Suvi expressed an idea that I've held but never been able to adequately verbalize. In that moment, I found myself remembering why I love the Mass Effect series and why I find Andromeda's potential so exciting.
After this exchange, I took the time to wander around the Tempest and speak to more of the crew joining protagonist Ryder in the search for a new "Golden World." In the engine room Gil questioned his decision to join the Andromeda Initiative but said he ultimately did so to find a purpose for himself. Similarly, Vetra, a well-connected Turian that specialises in gathering information, felt the need to justify her presence on the mission, indicating that she's dealing with issues of inadequacy and self-confidence. Jaal, who is part of the new Angara race native to the Andromeda galaxy, is an outsider trying to find footing among people from unfamiliar cultures. PeeBee, the wise-cracking Asari, refused to entertain any personal questions and outright said she has no interest in putting down roots or finding a new family in the crew of the Tempest. She bounced between happy-go-lucky, guarded, and distant.
For me, the series' strength lies in textured, layered characters offering unique perspectives that I can learn to understand--and perhaps even relate to. Based on the few hours I spent with Andromeda, it looks like there will be an abundance of them.
Click image to view in full screen
Beyond the promising characters, Andromeda looks to have made a number of interesting changes to the familiar Mass Effect framework, the majority of which I was able to experience in the game's opening missions. Don't worry, there won't be any spoilers ahead.
Our search for a Golden Planet began aboard Hyperion, an Ark housing a human colony numbering 20,000 people. Player-character Ryder is awoken from cryosleep 600 years after departing from the Milky Way galaxy. As Ryder was getting her bearings, a doctor approached and gave me my first taste of the new dialogue system, which looks to address the binary nature of the series' role-playing.
It does this by asking players to select responses based on tone. In any given conversation you're presented with the option to be casual, emotional, logical, or professional, depending on the scenario. Instead of having a series of neutral probing questions and then two responses that align with either the Paragon or Renegade moral archetype, responses now represent a diverse set of emotions that shape each relationship dynamic.
For example, Cora Harper is the Pathfinder's second in command and technically Ryder's superior. When I later became the Pathfinder (despite the fact that she was better suited for the role), some tension began to grow between us. This informed the way I conducted myself around her; I opted to remain professional to prove that I was capable of handling the responsibility. For PeeBee, however, I adopted a casual tone in conversation, purely because she came across as someone that prefers to be around a leader that isn't uptight all the time.
As a result, Andromeda doesn't feel like it's funneling you down a path of good or evil. Instead, the different flavors of responses invite us to play different roles with different people and define relationships with greater nuance.
Ryder's first mission takes me to Habitat 7, a planet set to be the new Earth. However, upon my arrival it became abundantly clear that it was less than golden. In fact, Habitat 7 looked like it had been torn and twisted into something uninhabitable.
It's blue sky and sparse plant life indicated that it could have once been a new home for mankind, but it was now fraught with thunderstorms, and oxygen levels had plummeted as the atmosphere became choked in argon nitrogen. Intense magnetic activity meant that rock formations were floating in the air, and metallic inclusions attracted destructive electrical phenomena, the danger of which I experienced first-hand when a lightning bolt hit our ship and scattered my crew around the designated landing point. With only security specialist Liam Costa in tow, I began searching for the rest of the team.
The different flavors of responses invite us to play different roles with different people and define relationships with greater nuance.
Taking a page of out of Dragon Age: Inquisition's book, Mass Effect: Andromeda's planets are built to be a series of contained spaces where players explore and complete quests. Although they're not connected to form what we'd traditionally consider an open-world, each location is large enough to hold story missions, as well as side missions you can uncover and complete by venturing off the prescribed path and exploring.
To accommodate this, Ryder has been given a robust set of traversal abilities, most notably a jump and a dash enabled by a rocket pack. Ryder was also able to clamber up Habitat 7's rocky cliff faces to reach elevated areas, a skill that proved necessary to track a distress call from a teammate for a sidequest.
These abilities are also at the core of Andromeda's new combat mechanics, which I employed against the aforementioned Kett. At one point we came upon a friend who had been cornered by this unfamiliar alien race. Wearing armour made of bone and brandishing guns, they looked to be hostile but, as pointed out by Ryder, first contact protocols dictate that you cannot open fire unless fired on. Given the option to act first and talk later, I decided to let cooler heads prevail and attempted to talk to the Kett. Since they spoke an unknown language and weren't treating our friend very nicely, I had no option but to engage.
Interestingly, Ryder voiced her displeasure about how things unfolded and even made the case for the Kett feeling as threatened by us as we were by them. Andromeda makes attempts at presenting the Kett, and the mysterious Archon leading them, as figures that could also be on a journey that parallels ours. Since the portions of the game we played were devoid of necessary context, it wasn't clear what their motivations were, but I got the feeling the game doesn't want to present them as clear-cut bad guys.
In this scenario it was us versus them; the perfect opportunity to put combat through its paces. Mass Effect 3's combat serves as the foundation for the way Andromeda plays, in particular the increased freedom of movement. However, one major difference is that the role of cover has been significantly diminished. Although Ryder will automatically move into cover as you approach any appropriately large, solid object--and in fact it's often necessary to recover from damage--but between the new movement abilities, Biotic powers, and destructive weaponry, Ryder feels like a character designed to always be on the offensive.
The Kett didn't make a habit of coming out into the open, preferring to obscure themselves behind cover and quickly move between objects in the environment. As a result, I was forced to take the fight to them by leaping out of cover and launching myself into the air with a jet pack. Once airborne, I could hover long enough to aim and fire off a few shots. Ryder's dash could then be used to quickly maneuver back into cover and begin the loop again.
While combat in previous entries in the series felt very stop-and-start--with players moving between different cover points and popping out to fire their weapons or use powers--Andromeda's skirmishes feel like they're focused on forward momentum. However, the combat's newfound energy comes at the cost of a degree of control and a layer of strategy that series fans are used to having.
Unlike previous games, you only have direct control over Ryder, and teammates can't be issued commands beyond moving to a specified location or focusing fire on a designated enemy. BioWare has also reworked how Biotic powers are implemented to ensure you aren't spending extended time in a radial wheel. Instead of having a suite of powers on an instantly accessible wheel, you have three favourites that are assigned to shortcuts so that they can quickly be employed in the heat of battle, much like in Mass Effect 3. It is possible to create four loadouts that you can switch between during battle, but given that they're two menus deep, it only makes sense to do this in order to adapt to changing battle conditions between waves, rather than as a workaround for the new system.
Another major change for Andromeda is the new freeform class system. Instead of selecting a specific role and developing a set of abilities limited to that class, you're able to learn any ability and even reassign Ryder's skill points at any time. This is a welcome change as it allows you to create unique play styles and experiment with ability combinations. Those that opt to specialise when acquiring and upgrading abilities will unlock Profiles that correspond to classes from previous games. These are used to enhance abilities by bestowing Ryder with stat bonuses. Together these changes empower the player to have greater control over the type of Ryder they develop and guide through the galaxy.
After the delays and relatively little we'd heard about Mass Effect: Andromeda, I began to worry that it may not live up to the series' legacy. And while I can't outright say I'm confident it will deliver, Andromeda's tweaks to combat and dialogue are smart. However, my passion for the Mass Effect series is tied to the connections I developed with its characters. So in the end, that personal moment with Suvi is what makes me optimistic about the series' future.
[Updated February 23 with Shovel Knight and Fast RMX]
A console's launch lineup can be important in helping it get off to a good start. After the struggles of the Wii U, Nintendo is surely hoping the Switch gets off to a strong start in March.
While the Switch's full launch lineup has yet to be confirmed, we now know at least a few of the titles that will debut alongside the system on March 3. As confirmed during the Switch news event on January 12, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Nintendo's new party game 1-2-Switch will be launch titles, as will Ubisoft's Just Dance 2017. Super Bomberman R, The Binding of Isaac: Afterbirth+, and Skylanders: Imaginators are also launch titles, according to Nintendo on Twitter. These appear to be the only confirmed launch titles at this stage. We will round up all the Switch launch titles and those coming later in this post, adding more to the list below as they become confirmed.
By comparison, the Wii U, released in 2012, had 23 launch titles.
As part of its eShop announcements today, Nintendo confirmed three more Nintendo Switch launch titles. The indie games Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove, that game's Specter of Torment expansion, and Fast RMX will be available on March 3 when the console launches.
Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove, developed by Yacht Club Games, includes the original Shovel Knight and all DLC, including Specter of Torment. Both Treasure Trove and Specter of Torment are exclusive to the Nintendo Switch "for a limited time," Nintendo said.
Fast RMX is a "lightning-fast anti-gravity" racing game that features local split-screen and online multiplayer. The game was made by Shin'en Multimedia and is exclusive to Nintendo Switch.
In all, there will be more than 60 indie games on the Nintendo Switch eShop this year, Nintendo said, noting that this figure does not count digital versions of retail games and DLC.
Finally, Nintendo announced today that it will hold a video presentation called next week to celebrate indie games. The event is called "Nindies Showcase" and it will stream from Nintendo's website on Tuesday, February 28, starting at 9 AM PT.
Less than two weeks before the Nintendo Switch is due to launch, Nintendo today confirmed that the console will not have a Virtual Console at release.
Nintendo said in a statement: "Virtual Console games will not be available on Nintendo Switch at launch. We will share more information in the future."
In addition to confirming the Virtual Console news, Nintendo shared some additional insight about how the eShop will work on the Nintendo Switch. First, users will need to download a system update at launch to access it. "The system update downloads in the background, is designed to install quickly and doesn't disrupt gameplay," Nintendo said.
Additionally, the eShop will have a "news feature" that will inform people about "the latest additions to Nintendo eShop, as well as providing information about upcoming games and other updates from Nintendo."
Nintendo also clarified more about how users can share funds across Nintendo devices.
"People who already have funds in their accounts on other Nintendo devices can access them using a shared wallet that works on Nintendo Switch as well," Nintendo said. "Once they link their Nintendo Network ID and Nintendo Account and then their Nintendo Account to their Nintendo Switch system, this functionality becomes possible."
Finally, Nintendo said that people can buy digital Nintendo Switch games through Nintendo.com; the games will then download at home or on the go, provided there is a Wifi connection.
A is not all that Injustice fans are getting today. Warner Bros. has released a new story trailer for fighting game sequel Injustice 2 that shines a light on Superman and his backstory.
"Players will get the chance to learn more about how Superman and his Regime are working to rise to power once again, becoming one of Earth's greatest threats," reads a line from WB's description.
This video is labeled "Part 1," which suggests more will follow. Keep checking back with GameSpot for the latest.
More details have come to light around Final Fantasy XV's Episode Gladiolus DLC. DualShockers noticed that Square Enix recently updated the game's website with more information about the Episode Gladiolus DLC's story and standalone pricing.
In Episode Gladiolus, you will play as Gladio, one of the three characters who travel alongside Noctis from the main story. According to Square Enix, the DLC will deliver a "completely different type of gameplay and an all-new story."
More story details follow below. Story spoilers may be included, so only click the spoiler block if you want them revealed for you.
"Picking up from the events from the group's encounter with Ravus, Gladio leaves the group to train alongside Cor and become even more powerful. He sets on a path to face challenges by encountering larger than life monsters along the way."
You can get Episode Gladiolus as part of Final Fantasy XV's $25 DLC Pass. It can also be purchased by itself for $5, Square Enix has now confirmed. The other upcoming expansions, Episode Ignis, Episode Prompto, and the multiplayer expansion, Comrades, will be sold on their own as well.
NetherRealm will announce the next character for fighting game Injustice 2 today. An image on the official Injustice website confirms a reveal is coming today, February 23, but does not offer any insight or teases as to which fighter this might be.
We will report back with all the details for you as soon as they're announced.
The latest character to be confirmed for Injustice 2 was Swamp Thing. Other confirmed playable characters for Injustice 2 so far include Batman, Blue Beetle, The Flash, Harley Quinn, Superman, Supergirl, Wonder Woman, Deadshot, Gorilla Grodd, Aquaman, Robin, Cheetah, Poison Ivy, Catwoman, Black Canary, and Atrocitus.
Unfortunately, we don't know yet. Skyrim director Todd Howard told Polygon (via IGN) that he "can't say" anything about this, at least not yet.
The version of Skyrim for Switch could be a port of the 2011 original, the remastered 2016 Special Edition, or possibly some other form of the game built for Nintendo's system.
The Skyrim Special Edition comes with all of the game's DLC and support for mods, as well as increased resolution and other effects. A Switch demo reel showed Skyrim on the console, but this might not have been gameplay. We'll report back with more details as they become available.
"We love to make games and worlds for you to get lost in, that you can make your own, and never want to put down. Now you don't have to--now you can play Skyrim wherever you want," Howard said during January's Switch event.
Howard told GameSpot this month that Nintendo was "less interested" in Bethesda's games before the Switch. And like many other developers, Howard isn't completely sure if the Switch will be a hit. "I don't know where it's gonna go," he said. "But I think it's a really smart platform. We like it a lot."
Speaking to IGN, Larson explained how important it was for her to take on this role. "I was once a young girl and I was confused by what a hero was, what I wanted to be when I grow up, and what was important to me," she said. "To attempt to become a symbol of truth and navigating through all the weird questions of growing up feels so--I'm getting emotional just talking about this--it feels so important to me.
"When it comes to [Captain Marvel], just the fact that she can be a bridge between two worlds, that she can go between Earth and space and that her own personal place is in this little area between where Earth ends and space begins and that's only hers, is so moving to me. I'm just inspired. I've been so inspired going through the comics and reading them right now. That's what I've been doing on the side."
Larson also addressed the fact that Captain Marvel's look has changed a lot over the years. "I feel like this is a big conversation and every day I have people yelling at me on Twitter like 'you better have long hair,' or 'you better have a mohawk,' or 'you better wear the helmet,' or 'you better not wear the helmet.' So someone's going to be mad."
Captain Marvel was originally scheduled for a July 2018 release, but was moved back to make way for Spider-Man: Homecoming and Ant-Man and the Wasp. It is now scheduled to be released at cinemas in March 2019. No director has been announced yet.
Captain Marvel has been the name of various heroes over the years. The current incarnation, and the one expected to feature in the film, is the alter ego of the character Carol Danvers. Danvers previously used the name of Ms Marvel and first appeared in her own comic book in 1977, before taking the identity of Captain Marvel in 2012.
The open beta for the squad-based multiplayer shooter Ghost Recon: Wildlands has begun. Servers went live this morning and will stay online until the beta wraps up on February 27.
Unlike the previous closed beta, this one is open to everyone. You can download the beta right now on your preferred platform or use these links to queue up your download right now: PS4, Xbox One, PC.
The beta includes everything from the closed beta, as well as more content in the form of a province called Montuyoc. "Set in the Bolivian Altiplano region, this province contains heavily defended strongholds where the Santa Blanca trains some of its toughest soldiers," Ubisoft explained.
For lots more on the Ghost Recon: Wildlands beta, check out GameSpot's video feature above that covers five things you should know before playing the beta.
Wildlands contains the largest open world that Ubisoft has ever made--you can see the game's massive map here. It launches on March 7.
A movie focusing on X-Force, the mutant superhero team that includes Deadpool, has been in the works for some time. It has now been reported that the film has a new writer.
According to Collider, Joe Carnahan has been hired to work on a script for the movie. Carnahan is best known as the director of action movies such as The A-Team and Smoking Aces, and he is set to direct the third Bad Boys movie, Bad Boys For Life. He is also recently completed the script for the Uncharted movie.
Last year Deadpool star Ryan Reynolds explained that he was keen to do an X-Force movie, stating: "X-Force is really my priority. I really want to get that in." However, this was before Deadpool became the most successful film in Fox's X-Men franchise, and since then the focus has been on Deadpool 2.
X-Force is a superhero team that was conceived by Deadpool's co-creator Rob Liefeld. They first appeared the 100th issue of Marvel's X-Men spinoff comic The New Mutants in 1991, and have gone on to include such other heroes as Cyclops, Psylocke, Wolverine, Storm, and Colossus.
"Deadpool is a movie that did break all the rules. And I think we're going to continue to break those rules," he said. "That involves knowing that he's in a movie, talking to the audience, breaking that fourth wall, a characteristic that they established so brilliantly in the comics way back when. So yeah, I do think that timelines are something that we can make fun of and don't have to be slave to."
Premiering during tonight's episode of Legion, 20th Century Fox released a new prologue for its upcoming Alien: Covenant, entitled "Last Supper."
Featuring the headlining crew of the titular colony ship Covenant, the Last Supper prologue gives viewers a chance to experience the crew's final toast before going entering cryosleep.
Opening with Michael Fassbender as the android Wesley performing a medical on Daniels (Katerine Waterson), the prologue moves on to show the ship captain Branson (James Franco) heading to bed early due to feeling poorly. Unsupervised, the crew begins its revelry, betting on an arm-wrestle, drinking, pausing to help Callie Hernandez's character as she chokes on her food, and finally toasting to the success of the mission.
In a blog post released on Tuesday, Blizzard shared some lore about a character from the Overwatch universe who may or may not be the new playable character being added to the game.
Toward the end of the blog post, styled as a fictional Atlas News interview with young scientist Efi Oladele, she is heard to say "my parents are taking me on a trip to celebrate! It'll be my first time flying, so I can't wait."
This led players to take a closer look at the arrivals board present in one of the spawn locations on the game's Numbani map, the city Efi apparently hails from.
Pre-change Numbani arrivals board, via PVP Live.
According to a report over at PVP Live, a number of changes are present on the board since the Efi blog post was released.
Updated Numbani arrivals board, PVP Live.
The flight from Moscow has been Cancelled.
The Delayed flight from Paris is now On Time.
The Delayed Tokyo flight has been changed to Hanamura and is now On Time.
London's 4:00 AM flight has been changed to Singapore.
Mexico City has been changed to Dorado.
The New York flight is no longer Delayed.
Cairo has been changed to Taipei
Los Angeles has changed to Sydney.
London's 6:30 AM Delayed flight has been removed and changed to an On Time flight from King's Row.
But what do these changes mean? It's unclear at this stage. The arrivals board is in Numbani--Efi's home--meaning these flights are incoming to the city. The fact that Efi refers to taking a flight somewhere--her first flight--means that the changes on the board have no bearing on her specific plane. Or does it? Perhaps we're to learn that a character based in one of the incoming locations has flown to Numbani? Will something happen to Efi's flight? Is Blizzard really going to make an 11-year-old a playable character in a first-person-shooter?
Before celebrations get too out of hand, it seems that the company still has a way to go before you can freely and simply share your purchases between consoles you're logged into (via Ars Technica).
At a recent preview event for 1-2-Switch, YouTuber CrazyDopetastic captured a Q&A session with Nintendo Entertainment planning & development general manager Shinya Takahashi. An audience member asked, if in the situation that he bought a second Switch for his kids, whether he'd be able to buy digital games from the eShop once, and have them playable on both systems.
"Currently we don't have a system like that in place for Nintendo Switch," Takahashi said via a translator, "but we haven't made any final decisions about how we would approach that going forward in the future, so unfortunately I can't provide any concrete answer for you right now."
Barring any translation issues, the implication of this statement is that while eShop purchases will be associated with Nintendo accounts rather than specific hardware, it seems that the accounts themselves will be hardware-bound. We have to assume it's only possible for an eShop account to be logged-in to one system at a time.
We'll know more after March 3, when the Switch is officially released, and online services are up and running for us to test.
Injustice 2 is headed to a game console near you this May. Last year, it was announced that Tom Taylor--who wrote the majority of the original Injustice: Gods Among Us comic series-- would be writing a new comic series before the game's release. Taylor wrote the majority of the original Injustice: Gods Among Us comic series. The upcoming comic takes place in between the two games, and we took the opportunity to talk to Taylor to find out what we can expect.
The new series debuts on April 11 digitally, and the first print issue goes on sale May 3.
Injustice 2 #1 variant cover by Bruno Redondo.
GameSpot: Where does your story pick up in relation to the first game and comic series?
Tom Taylor: Injustice 2 begins soon after the first game. Superman and his regime are in prison. The world is reeling. Batman is picking up the pieces. And a big threat is growing. The world will soon be in so much peril that Emperor Superman would look like a safe option.
Who can Batman turn to for help in fighting evil?
We don't want to spoil too much, but he still has some allies. Harley Quinn is there for one. And, if you've seen some of the recent announcements, then you'll know there are characters like Black Canary and Blue Beetle who will have large roles to play. There are also a lot of other heroes who haven't been seen in the comics or the game yet.
Can Superman really be kept locked up?
That's a very good question. Superman is not an easy force to contain, and there are still people out there on his side. You'll find out the answer very soon.
Can you tell us anything about the new Suicide Squad we'll see?
This is a larger Suicide Squad than we've seen before. And, after a familiar set-up, something happens early on that turns the very concept of the Suicide Squad on its head. This Suicide Squad is more formidable than anything we've seen before.
How closely do you work with NetherRealm and Ed Boon in mapping out your stories?
We're building one big crossover universe here. One continuity (with, admittedly, a couple of small changes for the game). I was sent the game script early on to work out how to play off it and build towards it, just like with Injustice: Gods Among Us. And so much of what we did in the first comic series has informed the second game.
The second comic series is a really big, ongoing story, so I had to come up with a long game plot with some big shocks and turns to explain where the characters are at when we see them in Injustice 2. Ed Boon and I met in San Diego last year, and I let him know some of my early ideas and twists, including something we'll see early on with the Suicide Squad. He grinned ear-to-ear when he heard it.
Editor Jim Chadwick and I also keep in constant contact with Shawn Kittelsen, one of the main writers of the game. Shawn, Dominic Cianciolo, and the other writers have done such a great job with Injustice 2. I can't wait to play the story mode. Shawn is always excited by what we're planning, and any time I come up with something that's too 'out there,' he generally says to go for it and (jokingly) says they'll just have to find a way to incorporate it in Injustice 3.
The comics and the games are like different chapters of the same massive story. I don't think any of us knew going in what a collaborative universe we'd end up building together.
What are you most excited about with this project?
I'm just excited to be back in this universe, and working with Jim Chadwick, Bruno Redondo, Mike S Miller, Rex Lokus, and everyone at NetherRealm Studios again. I had to leave to work on my TV series, The Deep, and that's still going, and doing well, but I never wanted to go. I love these characters and the freedom we have here in our very own DC Universe. We can tell the most shocking or ridiculous or funny or emotional stories without restraint. As a writer, there's nothing more exciting than that.
Injustice 2 #1 goes on sale April 11 online and in stores on May 3. Injustice 2, the video game, is on sale May 16.
Recent Articles:
You are receiving this email because you opted in at our website.
No comments:
Post a Comment