Following a scheduled maintenance period today, Destiny 2 is back online, and a new update is now available. Among other things, it addresses the controversial item that featured a design associated with a hate group.
Bungie announced last week that it had discovered an item in Destiny 2 "share[d] elements with a hate symbol." It described this as unintentional and apologized, vowing to remove the item swiftly. It did now specify the name of the item, but fans quickly discovered that it was likely the Hunter's Road Complex AA1 gauntlets. A longer-than-expected maintenance period last week saw the item partially, but not completely removed--the actual in-game version was replaced, but the thumbnail and inventory view still showed the original version.
Although it's not mentioned in the patch notes for the new update, version 1.0.1.3, Bungie has now completely removed the offending imagery as promised. In the images above, you can see that the design is now gone. The underlying style of the armor remains the same, just with the pattern in question no longer laid over the top.
Aside from this change, update 1.0.1.3 primarily fixes bugs, including those related to the Prism modifier and an issue where players didn't properly obtain the Man O' War weapon.
Bungie's scheduled maintenance period for Destiny and Destiny 2 has come to an end sooner than expected, and players on both PS4 and Xbox One can now jump back into the game. Before they can do so, however, they'll first need to download the new 1.0.1.3 update, which is now available.
Alongside the update's release, Bungie has shared the official patch notes. It's not a major update by any means and primarily deals with bug fixes. Much like the issue with the MIDA Multi-Tool quest that has since been fixed, Bungie has resolved the bug with the Man O' War quest reward that was lost if your inventory was full. If you missed out on acquiring the Man O' War when completing the quest, you'll now be able to pick it up from Asher Mir on Io.
Another notorious bug involves the Prism modifier, which has been used in Destiny 2's first two Nightfall Strikes. With this enabled, the game rotates through each of the three element types, with that element doing more damage for a period of time (while the other two are less effective). However, the chosen element is only briefly shown, making it difficult to know at any given moment which one you should use. That's no longer the case after this update, and there will also be an effect on-screen whenever a new element is rotated in to help players notice the change. Bungie said this fix also resolves a problem with the Momentum modifier, which was intended to be used for this week's Nightfall Strike but had to be abandoned in favor of bringing back Prism for a second week in a row.
Fixed an issue that caused players to not receive Man O' War Linear Fusion Rifle Quest Reward when they have a full weapon inventory
Players can obtain their missing Man O' War from Asher Mir on IO
UI
Fixed an issue where the Prism modifier did not persistently display the currently featured element
Prism will now display a brief screen effect when the element changes to increase visibility
This will also resolve an issue impacting the Momentum modifier
General
Fixed an issue where a Raid object was receiving an unintended amount of damage from Wardcliff Coil
Fixed an issue where completing a Meditation before selecting it from Ikora would hide that Meditation and prevent players from completing it receiving appropriate rewards.
Fixed a rare memory leak that would result in a Matchmaking crash
This week marks the release of Marvel Vs. Capcom: Infinite, the latest installment in the crossover fighting game series. Like previous Marvel Vs. Capcom games, Infinite pits some of the biggest characters from the two companies' histories against each other in tag battles. This time, however, Capcom has made some notable changes to the gameplay, streamlining Infinite's tagging system and introducing Infinity Stones to put a unique twist on the long-running series.
Reviews for Marvel Vs. Capcom: Infinite have begun appearing online, and the general consensus among critics has been positive thus far. In GameSpot's Marvel Vs. Capcom: Infinite review in progress, critic Tamoor Hussain says the game "represents the most significant change to the Marvel Vs. Capcom formula since its creation." We've rounded up a sample of other reviews below; for a broader look at what critics are saying about Marvel Vs. Capcom: Infinite, visit GameSpot sister site Metacritic.
Game: Marvel Vs. Capcom: Infinite
Developer: Capcom
Platform: PS4, Xbox One, PC
Release date: September 19
Price: $60/£50
GameSpot -- 8/10 (Review in Progress)
"The mechanics underlying Marvel Vs. Capcom: Infinite make it an outstanding fighting game. Capcom has understood what caused the stagnation of Marvel Vs. Capcom 3's competitive scene and, to some extent, the issues Street Fighter V currently faces. In response it has created a fighting game focused on individuality and expression, with deep systems that reward studious players but also accommodate casuals. As someone who both plays and watches fighting games, I am excited to see what the future holds for Marvel Vs. Capcom: Infinite." -- Tamoor Hussain " style="word-wrap: break-word;-ms-text-size-adjust: 100%;-webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;color: #6DC6DD;font-weight: normal;text-decoration: underline;">Full review]
IGN -- 7.7/10
"While Marvel Vs. Capcom: Infinite's tag-team fights are like a bolt of lightning from Mjolnir, its story is dreadful and its characters look like they were deliberately designed to spawn a million derpy memes. It manages to be easily one of the worst and also one of the best fighting games in recent memory all at once. Like its heroes and villains, it's stuck between two worlds." -- Darry Huskey " style="word-wrap: break-word;-ms-text-size-adjust: 100%;-webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;color: #6DC6DD;font-weight: normal;text-decoration: underline;">Full review]
Polygon -- 7.5/10
"It's hard to deny how much of a blemish Marvel Vs. Capcom: Infinite's visuals are, but it would still be a mistake to skip this entry for that reason alone. The fast tagging system and the Infinity Stones change up the series' standard mechanics and open up so many options for creative play, no matter your skill level. Infinite is expressive, exciting and fun to play, but the visuals inspire more eyerolls than the hype this series deserves." -- Chelsea Stark and Jeff Ramos " style="word-wrap: break-word;-ms-text-size-adjust: 100%;-webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;color: #6DC6DD;font-weight: normal;text-decoration: underline;">Full review]
US Gamer -- 3.5/5
"I came away from Marvel Vs. Capcom: Infinite generally enjoying the game. I think most of the players that liked Ultimate Marvel Vs. Capcom 3 will be right at home here. I just feel more needed to be done to differentiate the game from its predecessor, especially in the roster department, which is a fighter's bread-and-butter. In many ways, this is a sequel, but when it comes to the roster overall, MvC Infinite feels like disappointing retread of what came before. So it's recommended for fighting fans, but temper your expectations accordingly." -- Mike Williams " style="word-wrap: break-word;-ms-text-size-adjust: 100%;-webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;color: #6DC6DD;font-weight: normal;text-decoration: underline;">Full review]
Game Informer -- 8.25/10
"Marvel Vs. Capcom: Infinite is a fighting game that tries to appeal to everyone, and it largely succeeds (unless you're a die-hard Wolverine fan). I occasionally cringed at the bad one-liners, but I also giggled with absurd joy every time photojournalist Frank West tossed a demigod like Thanos across a dilapidated space station. Marvel Vs. Capcom: Infinite isn't trying to be taken seriously; it's a series of geeky what-if scenarios that play out in spectacular aerial battles. After I embraced that, I had a lot of fun." -- Ben Reeves " style="word-wrap: break-word;-ms-text-size-adjust: 100%;-webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;color: #6DC6DD;font-weight: normal;text-decoration: underline;">Full review]
GamesRadar+ -- 3/5
"Infinite is a well-constructed, mechanically-responsive game. It doesn't feel sloppy or inaccurate, it's just... not very exciting. There's a lack of finesse to the presentation that makes everything feel Good Enough, but not more than that. Contrasted against the flashy cel-shaded art direction and over-the-top tone of Marvel Vs. Capcom 3, or the silky smooth sprites and technical precision of Marvel Vs. Capcom 2, Infinite feels like it's just content to exist." -- Sam Prell " style="word-wrap: break-word;-ms-text-size-adjust: 100%;-webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;color: #6DC6DD;font-weight: normal;text-decoration: underline;">Full review]
In honor of Rick And Morty Season 3, we're giving away a Mr. Meeseeks Funko Pop! One (1) winner will be chosen after the giveaway closes on Sunday, September 24th at 12:00PM PT.
Open to US residents only, void where prohibited. If you do not win this time, you'll be automatically entered in the next giveaway.
Enter below (the additional entries are optional to increase your chances of winning):
While Marvel's upcoming Netflix show The Punisher is expected this year, it still does not have a confirmed release date and very few details are known about the story. Netflix has released a series of cryptic tweets and teasers, the latest of which is a found-footage style video of star Jon Bernthal delivering some brutal justice. Check it out below:
This promo follows a motion poster that was released last week. We've also seen a first teaser and a list of potential episode titles, plus a synopsis for the show, which reads, "After exacting revenge on those responsible for the death of his wife and children, Frank Castle uncovers a conspiracy that runs far deeper than New York's criminal underworld. Now known throughout the city as The Punisher, he must discover the truth about injustices that affect more than his family alone."
In a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly, Bernthal explained that The Punisher would be the darkest, most violent Marvel show so far. "This season is much darker as it goes, it gets darker and darker and more visceral," he said. "The show takes you on this journey of Frank becoming more and more human again and then shutting off and shutting off and going back to what works for him, and the place where he kind of belongs, and I think that's a place of solitude and of darkness and destruction. It's going to get into as dark and as brutal a place as you've ever seen in the Marvel world, I can promise you that."
Bernthal also spoke about playing a character that is both a ruthless killer and a hero that the audience is supposed to side with. "I think there's a bit of Frank in all of us," he revealed. "We all go through bouts of darkness and regret and shame, and we mess up and we make mistakes, so I think to really zero in on that and to dig into that wound is what makes him interesting.
"But if there's one thing I want to get right for this show, it's that I want to be completely respectful of the military community and the people that this character means so much to. I just really want to get that right. More than anything, Frank is a soldier."
The first poster for the upcoming reboot of Tomb Raider has been released, alongside a short teaser. The poster shows star Alicia Vikander as Lara Croft, looking very intense and holding a dangerous bladed weapon, while the teaser reveals that the full trailer arrives tomorrow, September 19. Check the teaser out below, and the poster at the end of this story:
The film also stars Dominic West (The Wire) as Lara's father, Walton Goggins (Sons of Anarchy) as the villain, and Daniel Wu (Warcraft) as a ship captain who works with Lara on her adventure. Tomb Raider is directed by Roar Uthaug (The Wave) and hits theaters on March 16, 2018.
In a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly, Vikander spoke about taking on the role of Lara Croft and what would set her apart from both the Lara of the games, as well as Angelina Jolie's previous movie portrayal. "She has all the fierce, tough, curious, intelligent traits," she said. "But we've stripped away all of her experience. She hasn't gone on an adventure just yet. She thought she was a stuck up businessperson living in the modern youth culture of suburban London, but then this whole box of information. This is the beginning."
Update: Destiny 2's servers are back online earlier than expected. Patch 1.0.1.3 is now available for download on both PS4 and Xbox One, fixing some nagging issues with the game. These include the bug with the Prism modifier, which did not properly display the current elemental effect during Nightfall Strikes these past two weeks. The original story follows.
Those looking to play Destiny 2 (or the original Destiny) will be unable to do so for a period of time today, September 18. Bungie has taken servers offline for maintenance, which will be punctuated with the release of a new update.
Maintenance began at 7 AM PT / 10 AM ET / 3 PM BST today, though online players weren't booted offline until an hour after that. Servers are slated to come back online at 11 AM PT / 2 PM ET / 7 PM BST, although it's always possible that could be extended. A maintenance period last week ended up lasting several hours longer than originally announced.
Remember that tonight marks Destiny 2's weekly reset. That means you'll have only a limited amount of time to complete any weekly tasks, such as the Nightfall Strike, before they reset.
The Dragon Ball FighterZ roster continues to expand. Three more characters have been announced for the upcoming fighting game, including an entirely original one who will play a prominent role in the game's story mode.
In the most recent issue of Japanese magazine V-Jump (as translated by Gematsu), Bandai Namco revealed that longtime Dragon Ball heroes Yamcha and Tien Shinhan will both be playable characters in Dragon Ball FighterZ. Yamcha is described as a close-range fighter who uses "surprise attacks," including his signature Wolf Fang Fist. Tien, meanwhile, is a versatile character who can unleash a variety of techniques in battle, such as the Tri-Beam and Dodon Ray. He can also call on his companion Chiaotzu, who can "seal the opponent's movement" using his telekinetic abilities.
In addition to the classic fighters, V-Jump revealed that a brand-new character named Android 21 will also appear in Dragon Ball FighterZ and is a "central figure" in the game's what-if story mode. She is described as a scientist whose intelligence is on par with the villainous Dr. Gero, and it appears she has some connection to Android 16's revival; in the magazine, each screenshot depicts her standing next to the resurrected fighter.
Sony has kicked off the latest round of sales on the PlayStation Store, and they consist of some very nice offers. In the US, these are headlined by the PlayStation Picks sale, which discounts games by up to 50% for everyone, or up to 60% for those with a PlayStation Plus membership, while UK PSN members get some very different offers. [Update: These deals come to an end tomorrow, September 19, making this your last chance to pick up many of these games at their current, discounted prices.]
Separately from all of this, the Day 1 Digital promotion continues, allowing you to get a discount by purchasing two select games that have either recently released or are not yet out. Doing so by November 7 entitles you to a 20% off coupon on PSN for a future purchase. Eligible games include Uncharted: The Lost Legacy, Destiny 2, and Everybody's Golf.
Looking for a deal? It's a new week, which means there is a fresh set of deals available on Xbox Live across Xbox One and Xbox 360. There are quite a few solid deals this week across a variety of genres, so you might find something you're interested in. [Update: Today, September 18, is your last chance to take advantage of this week's offers.]
These are just a small sampling of all of this week's Deals With Gold offers. Go to Major Nelson's blog to see a full breakdown of the week's Xbox One and Xbox 360 deals, some of which require a Gold membership. The offers are good through September 18.
In a statement to GameSpot, Capcom confirmed that it will release four more playable characters for Marvel Vs. Capcom: Infinite later this year: Monster Hunter, Winter Soldier, Black Widow, and Venom. The full statement reads:
"We know there has been much speculation on who the remaining four DLC characters will be, and we are happy to announce that Monster Hunter, Winter Soldier, Black Widow and the shape-shifting Venom will all be battling their way into Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite later this year. We are hard at work on these characters and can't wait to show them to you when they are ready!"
Bungie is expecting to release the next update for Destiny 2 next week. In the studio's latest weekly blog post, it said this update--1.0.1.3--will address "some known issues." One of these is the "harmful imagery" that players recently discovered. " style="word-wrap: break-word;-ms-text-size-adjust: 100%;-webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%;color: #6DC6DD;font-weight: normal;text-decoration: underline;">1.0.1.3 patch is out now.]
This is a reference to the piece of armor that was found to have a connection to a "hate symbol." Bungie already started scrubbing this item from Destiny 2, and the new update will remove it completely, it seems.
The new Destiny 2 update should be out "within the next week," Bungie said. Specific timing hasn't been announced as of yet, but we'll report back with the patch notes when they are released.
Destiny 2 being a live service game, fans can expect numerous updates coming down the pipeline in the time ahead. Bungie will also support Destiny 2 will paid expansion content, the first of which, Curse of Osiris, is reportedly coming out in December.
Battlegrounds continues to set records. The uber-popular Hunger Games-like PC shooter recently reached more concurrent users than another other game in Steam history. The title reached 1,348,374 users on September 16, pushing past the 1,291,328 record that Valve's DOTA 2 reached back in March 2016.
Battlegrounds, which is still in development and is sold through Steam Early Access, is priced at $30. DOTA 2, meanwhile, is a free-to-play game that Valve heavily promotes, making Battlegrounds' success all the more notable.
In other news about Battlegrounds, creator Brendan Greene recently spoke about how he envisions the game potentially reaching 100 million players someday. He also said he does not plan to raise the price of the game when it exits Early Access, as some games have done.
Battleborn, the hero shooter from Borderlands studio Gearbox, is getting one more big update and then that's it. Creative director Randy Varnell made the announcement in a forum post, stating, "As of this week, there will be no more Battleplans and there is currently no planned content after the Fall Update."
Though updates are ending, Battleborn is "here to stay," Varnell said. The game's servers are staying online "for the foreseeable future." As for the Fall update, this was announced at PAX West. It'll include new, Borderlands-themed skins, updated title art, and new Finisher boosts and taunts. Some "minor" balance changes are also included.
Varnell added that he will be transitioning to a role on the team that is currently development Gearbox's unannounced game, which could be Borderlands 3.
"I've been working on Battleborn nearly exclusively since 2012, and in some ways, that work stretches back to 2009 for me," Varnell said. "It's been a long labor of love with many of my good friends at Gearbox, and I'm proud to have shared that journey with you, our community. Your spirit and loyalty have been a constant inspiration to the team at Gearbox."
Varnell went on to say he thanks fans for "giving Battleborn a chance." The game underperformed for publisher 2K Games, and its multiplayer element was made free.
Battleborn was Gearbox's biggest investment in its history in terms of production, though it's certainly possible that the studio's new, unannounced game could eclipse that if it is indeed Borderlands 3.
Warner Bros. has released a new trailer for Injustice 2, this one showing off the DLC fighter Raiden, who comes to the game in October. The action-packed trailer shows Raiden kicking ass with his numerous moves. It culminates with his finishing move, which is brutal and epic. Take a look at the trailer for yourself in the embed below.
The video also shows that a Black Lightning premiere skin is coming to the game through the Ultimate Edition (more on that below).
Raiden comes to Injustice 2 through the Fighter Pack 2, which launches on September 2. There. There are three characters in all in the Fighter Pack 2; the other two are Black Manta and the cigar-loving action hero Hellboy.
Fighter Pack 2 is included with Injustice 2's Ultimate Edition or can be purchased separately. Fighter Pack 1 was priced at $20, with its individual characters--Sub-Zero, Red Hood, and Starfire--costing $6 each. So you can expect a similar format for Fighter Pack 2.
It was a big night in the world of TV, as the Emmys took place tonight. If you missed the broadcast or want to catch up with all the winners in one place, you can now see a roundup of all the nominees and winners for every category.
Stranger Things and Westworld picked up multiple nominations but won nothing. A big winner was Hulu's The Handmaid's Tale, which took home the award for Outstanding Drama Series, with star Elisabeth Moss winning for Outstanding Lead Actress In A Drama Series. The show also won awards for Outstanding Directing, Outstanding Supporting Actress, and Outstanding Writing.
HBO's Big Little Lies also had a great night, taking home five awards, including Outstanding Limited Series and Best Actress In A Limited Series (Nicole Kidman).
Additionally, the excellent and haunting drama Black Mirror won its first Emmys this year, starting with Outstanding Writing for a Limited Series, Movie, or a Dramatic Special for the episode "San Junipero." It also won the Emmy for Outstanding TV Movie for the same episode.
You can see a roundup of all the categories, nominees, and winners (in bold) below, as compiled by The Verge. The awards show aired on CBS, which is the parent company of GameSpot.
OUTSTANDING DRAMA SERIES
Better Call Saul
The Crown
The Handmaid's Tale
House of Cards
Stranger Things
This Is Us
Westworld
OUTSTANDING LEAD ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES
Viola Davis, How to Get Away with Murder
Claire Foy, The Crown
Elisabeth Moss, The Handmaid's Tale
Keri Russell, The Americans
Evan Rachel Wood, Westworld
Robin Wright, House of Cards
OUTSTANDING LEAD ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES
Sterling K. Brown, This Is Us
Anthony Hopkins, Westworld
Bob Odenkirk, Better Call Saul
Matthew Rhys, The Americans
Liev Scheiber, Ray Donovan
Kevin Spacey, House of Cards
Milo Ventimiglia, This Is Us
OUTSTANDING LIMITED SERIES
Big Little Lies
Fargo
Feud: Bette and Joan
Genius
The Night Of
OUTSTANDING TELEVISION MOVIE
Black Mirror: San Junipero
Dolly Parton's Christmas Of Many Colors: Circle Of Love
The Immortal Life Of Henrietta Lacks
Sherlock: The Lying Detective
The Wizard Of Lies
OUTSTANDING LEAD ACTRESS IN A LIMITED SERIES OR MOVIE
Felicity Huffman, American Crime
Nicole Kidman, Big Little Lies
Reese Witherspoon, Big Little Lies
Carrie Coon, Fargo
Jessica Lange, Feud: Bette and Joan
Susan Sarandon, Feud: Bette and Joan
OUTSTANDING LEAD ACTOR IN A LIMITED SERIES OR MOVIE
Ewan McGregor, Fargo
Geoffrey Rush, Genius
Riz Ahmed, The Night Of
John Turturro, The Night Of
Benedict Cumberbatch, Sherlock: The Lying Detective
Robert De Niro, The Wizard Of Lies
OUTSTANDING COMEDY SERIES
Atlanta
Black-ish
Master of None
Modern Family
Silicon Valley
Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
Veep
OUTSTANDING LEAD ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES
Pamela Adlon, Better Things
Jane Fonda, Grace and Frankie
Allison Janney, Mom
Ellie Kemper, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Veep
Tracee Ellis Ross, Black-ish
Lily Tomlin, Grace and Frankie
OUTSTANDING LEAD ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES
Anthony Anderson, Black-ish
Aziz Ansari, Master of None
Zach Galifianakis, Baskets
Donald Glover, Atlanta
William H. Macy, Shameless
Jeffrey Tambor, Transparent
OUTSTANDING VARIETY TALK SERIES
Full Frontal with Samantha Bee
Jimmy Kimmel Live!
Last Week Tonight with John Oliver
The Late Late Show with James Corden
Real Time with Bill Maher
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
OUTSTANDING DIRECTING FOR A VARIETY SERIES
Derek Waters and Jeremy Konner, Drunk History - "Hamilton"
Andy Fisher, Jimmy Kimmel Live - "The (RED) Show"
Paul Pennolino, Last Week Tonight with John Oliver - "Multi-Level Marketing"
Jim Hoskinson, The Last Show with Stephen Colbert - "Episode 0179"
Don Roy King, Saturday Night Live - "Host: Jimmy Fallon"
OUTSTANDING WRITING FOR A LIMITED SERIES, MOVIE, OR DRAMATIC SPECIAL
David E. Kelley, Big Little Lies
Charlie Brooker, Black Mirror: San Junipero
Noah Hawley, Fargo - "The Law of Vacant Places"
Ryan Murphy, Feud: Bette and Joan - "And the Winner Is…"
Jaffe Cohen, Michael Zam, and Ryan Murphy, Feud: Bette and Joan - "Pilot"
Richard Price and Steven Zaillian, The Night Of - "The Call of the Wild"
OUTSTANDING DIRECTING FOR A DRAMA SERIES
Vince Gilligan, Better Call Saul - "Witness"
Stephen Daldry, The Crown - "Hyde Park Corner"
Reed Morano, The Handmaid's Tale - "Offred"
Kate Dennis, The Handmaid's Tale - "The Bridge"
Lesli Linka Glatter, Homeland - "America First"
The Duffer Brothers, Stranger Things - "Chapter One: The Vanishing of Will Byers"
Jonathan Nolan, Westworld - "The Bicameral Mind"
OUTSTANDING REALITY COMPETITION SERIES
The Amazing Race
American Ninja Warrior
Project Runway
RuPaul's Drag Race
Top Chef
The Voice
OUTSTANDING WRITING FOR A COMEDY SERIES
Donald Glover, Atlanta - "B.A.N."
Stephen Glover, Atlanta - "Streets on Lock"
Aziz Ansari and Lena Waithe, Master of None - "Thanksgiving"
Alec Berg, Silicon Valley - "Success Failure"
Billy Kimball, Veep - "Georgia"
David Mandel, Veep - "Groundbreaking"
OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES
Uzo Aduba, Orange Is the New Black
Millie Bobby Brown, Stranger Things
Ann Dowd, The Handmaid's Tale
Chrissy Metz, This Is Us
Thandie Newton, Westworld
Samira Wiley, The Handmaid's Tale
OUTSTANDING WRITING FOR A VARIETY SERIES
Full Frontal with Samantha Bee
Last Week Tonight with John Oliver
Late Night with Seth Meyers
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
Saturday Night Live
OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A LIMITED SERIES OR TV MOVIE
Bill Camp, The Night Of
Alfred Molina, Feud: Bette and Joan
Alexander Skarsgard, Big Little Lies
David Thewlis, Fargo
Stanley Tucci, Feud: Bette and Joan
Michael Kenneth Williams, The Night Of
OUTSTANDING DIRECTING FOR A LIMITED SERIES, MOVIE OR DRAMATIC SPECIAL
Bungie is not completely satisfied with the state of Destiny 2's PvP. In Bungie's latest weekly blog post, the developer said while the Quickly Crucible playlist is "working as we had hoped," the Competitive playlist is running into some issues.
Specifically, it's a matter of unfair matches happening too often. "Too many players are getting stomped by opponents who grossly outmatch them," Bungie said. Indeed, in my own sessions, I've been on both sides of the equation--and neither is very fun. So it's nice to hear Bungie is making a change to help even out the playing field.
In Competitive, matchmaking times are longer. But the tradeoff is that the matches are supposed to be hosted on a better connection and with opponents who more closely match your own skill level. Right now, however, there is a bug that is leading to uneven matches. Bungie said it is "applying that fix right now," so this shouldn't be an issue for much longer.
"If you've been having fun in Quickplay, nothing has changed. Game on. If you've been getting your ass kicked in Competitive, you'll have more of a fighting chance," Bungie said. "If you've been kicking ass in Competitive, we're sending some worthier opponents your way."
Bungie added that the Crucible will always be changing in response to feedback and data. "It adapts to the way you play, so this won't be the last update we apply to the state of combat," the developer explained.
In other Destiny 2 news, Bungie has released a brief teaser trailer for the game's Trials of the Nine Crucible event, which kicks off later this week--watch it here.
YouTube channel ZaziNombies is back with its latest impossibly cool Lego creation. This newest video shows Destiny 2's Exotic Sunshot handcannon created with Lego bricks.
The creation uses around 550 bricks, including the special "light bricks" for the core. The weapon uses gold and chrome bricks to match the game weapon's design, while cut-up black sticker sheets were used to get the accents right on the handle and barrel. It's 40 centimetres long and is described as being top-heavy, according to the video (via Game Informer).
You may not be able to get or make this Destiny 2 Lego weapon in real life. But in game, you can acquire it by completing the "Sacrilege" campaign mission and then speaking to Asher Mir on Io.
This is not the first Destiny 2 weapon shown off by the ZaziNombies channel. Some of the others have included the Ace of Spades and the Gjallerhorn.
[UPDATE]Black Mirror won another award for Outstanding Television Movie for its episode "San Junipero." Series creator Charlie Brooker cracked some more jokes: "I've heard 2017 described as being trapped in one, long Black Mirror Episode," explained Brooker during his acceptance speech. "But I'd like to think that if I had written it, it wouldn't be quite so on-the-nose." He went onto say the episode is about love, not hate, and he demanded everyone in attendance immediately make love to one another.
The original story is below.
During Sunday's 69th Annual Primetime Emmy award ceremony, Netflix's series Black Mirror won its first Emmy for Outstanding Writing for a Limited Series, Movie, or a Dramatic Special for the episode "San Junipero."
Accepting the award was the writer and series creator Charlie Brooker, who has a good sense of humor, for a person who writes an incredibly compelling yet morbidly depressing series on Netflix: "This is terrifying," Brooker said during his acceptance speech. "I didn't think of anything to say. First world problems."
The win was for the episode "San Junipero," which followed two women who fall in love in the town of San Junipero; however, the episode is a bit more complex than that as it also involves death and the afterlife.
Brooker's speech was brief, but he ended it on a comedic moment: "Thank you. I'm shocked," he stated. "I'm going to go melt this down for..." It was at that point his mic cut off. Regardless, Black Mirror fans will be extremely happy that one of the best episodes in the series is getting the recognition it deserves.
This year, Black Mirror was nominated for a total of three Emmys: Cinematography, Outstanding Television Movie, and the aforementioned win for writing. While the series has been nominated and won numerous other awards--which includes a 2012 International Emmy win--this is the first time the series has won a Primetime Emmy.
It's going to be a big week for Call of Duty: WWII, seems. A tweet from the Call of Duty channel confirms that a week's worth of single-player news is coming this week, beginning on September 18 with a brand-new campaign trailer.
Later in the week, Activision will release pieces titled "Meet the Squad," "Meet your allies," and "Real battles. Real history." It sounds like fans are in for a treat this week.
Welcome to the Front Lines: Starting Sept 18, we're bringing you a week of #CODWWII Campaign intel. Prepare for your final mission briefing. pic.twitter.com/BziHIzxcQ5
Call of Duty: WWII is set during World War II, the setting of the earlier games in the series before it shifted to modern day and the future. The game opens with a recreation of the D-Day invasion in Normandy on Omaha Beach. Another mission will see players infiltrating a German base by wearing Nazi disguises.
Humble Bundle, a company whose platform lets people pay what they want for bundles of games and give a portion of sales to charity, has announced a major milestone. More than $100 million has now been raised for charity since the site launched in 2010.
The funds have supported "thousands" of charities around the world, including those that support disaster relief, protect civil liberties, and distribute food and water where it is needed, Humble Bundle said in a nice video which you can see below.
The Humble community has now raised over $100,000,000 for charity! 🎉 See how you've made a positive impact on the world: pic.twitter.com/f8Xs89tbwn
"Thank you, Humble customers for your generous contributions," Humble Bundle co-founder John Graham said in the video. "Together, the Humble Bundle community has made a huge positive impact on the world."
A veteran location scout was killed in Mexico recently, his car found riddled with bullets in what is believed to be one of the deadliest places in the country. According to Variety, location scout Carlos Munoz Portal, 37, was shot to death in a remote area near San Bartolo Actopan. The area reportedly has one of the highest murder rates in all of Mexico.
Munoz was there scouting locations for the fourth season of Netflix's crime drama Narcos. He worked for production company Redrum, which is based in Mexico City. Munoz also scouted locations for movies like Spectre, Sicario, Man on Fire, and Apocalypto.
In a statement, Netflix said: "We are aware of the passing of Carlos Munoz Portal, a well-respected location scout, and send our condolences to his family. The facts surrounding his death are still unknown as authorities continue to investigate."
The fourth season of Narcos is rumoured to focus on Mexico's deadly Juarez cartel, following Season 3's shift from Colombia. It remains to be seen if production of Narcos Season 4 will stay in Mexico following Munoz's murder.
According to The Guardian, a spokesperson for Mexico's attorney general suggested the investigation into Munoz's death may be difficult because "we have no witnesses."
Keep checking back with GameSpot for more on this story as it comes to light. Narcos Season 3 premiered in September.
The new Stephen King movie It continues to stand tall at the box office. The horror film made $60 million at the US box office this weekend, holding its place as the No. 1 film, according to box office estimates posted by Entertainment Weekly. While It had another strong show, the same cannot be said for Requiem for a Dream and Black Swan director Darren Aronofsky's new movie, mother!, which flopped with just $7.5 million over the three-day period.
It's box office haul dropped only 51 percent compared to its debut last week. Its total US haul now stands at $218.7 million after only 10 days. With that much money, the film is the biggest-ever September release domestically, easily surpassing the $174.8 million that Crocodile Dundee made in 1984. With a further $60.3 million from international markets, It has now made around $371.3 million. So yeah, the planned sequel seems like it will surely happen.
As for mother!, projections had it making a modest $11 million, but it couldn't reach that figure, landing at the previously mentioned $7.5 million to land in third place. The film has a big-name director (Aronofsky) and a star-studded cast that includes Jennifer Lawrence, Javier Bardem, Ed Harris, and Michelle Pfeiffer. For Lawrence, mother! is the worst opening-weekend for a nationwide release ever in her career. Her previous worst was The House at the End of the Street, which made $12.3 million during its opening weekend in 2012.
The No. 2 movie this weekend was the action flick American Assassin, which pulled in $14.8 million. As EW explains, that's in the area of what the first John Wick movie made when it was released. That film got a sequel and a third entry is on the way, so American Assassin could be another franchise. Notable about the film is that it's star Dylan O'Brien's first movie appearance following the serious injury he sustained while shooting the newest Maze Runner movie.
You can see the full Top 10 list below, as rounded up and compiled by EW.
GameSpot has been reviewing video games since 1996. Back then, dinosaurs hadn't been extinct for as long as they have today, computers were only just figuring out how to beat Garry Kasparov at chess, and Tamagotchi digital pets had millions of people the world over cleaning up after them. The Nintendo 64 was released in Japan and later in North America, Crash Bandicoot became the PlayStation's mascot, and notable game releases that would spawn sequels for years to come included Diablo, Quake, Resident Evil, and Tomb Raider. The world was very different back then, and so were video game reviews.
Our approach to reviewing video games at GameSpot has evolved over the years, and with the 2013 rebuilding of the site, we took the opportunity to revisit the process again. There were a couple of key issues that we wanted to address, namely that it's near impossible to write a single review that caters to everyone and that it's absolutely impossible to write a review that remains accurate when the game in question evolves over time. Our solution? Two words: multiple reviews.
Not convinced? OK, here's the 336-word version:
With the exception of review emblems, which are no more, the significant changes that we've made to GameSpot's reviews are all additive to what we were already doing. We're still committed to delivering reviews in a timely fashion, and the first review that we post for any game will still be written by a reviewer who has extensive experience with the series or genre in question. For all intents and purposes, these "featured" reviews are the same reviews that GameSpot has been producing for years, and therefore, they'll almost certainly be rendered inaccurate over time as the games reviewed are updated.
Historically, the only way for us to address this issue was to add brief "After the Fact" updates to reviews, and while we still update reviews in a similar fashion, we're well aware that we need something more. That's one of the reasons the new GameSpot site has been built to accommodate multiple reviews of the same game; when enough time has passed and a game has changed so dramatically that we no longer feel our review is helpful--and assuming there's still enough interest to warrant it--we post a new one. Our original review still lives on GameSpot, but isn't featured as prominently as the updated one.
Multiple reviews also afford us a way to present you with opinions from differing perspectives. If you're looking to get into a series that's already several games in, you might be interested to read a review that's written by someone who also missed out on earlier games to figure out if it's a good entry point, for example. Or perhaps you're looking to play a game with a child and would love to get a parent's perspective. We don't offer multiple perspectives on every game that we review, but we're an opinionated bunch, and it's rare that we can all agree on anything, so don't be surprised if additional reviews for games show up on the site as and when editors get around to playing them.
What's a "review in progress?"
On occasion, games are released before we've had ample time (or opportunities) to test every aspect. This typically occurs when a game releases with online multiplayer support, with servers activated on launch day. In cases such as this, when we can't pass judgement on a key component of a game, we will sometimes publish a "review in progress," which will be denoted by the headline and by a blue score (rather than the usual orange.) Once we're ready to evaluate a game in full, we will add the relevant critique to the existing text, and turn the article into a standard review. Given the fact that additional testing is required, the score seen on the review in progress is subject to change as necessary.
What do those numbers mean?
We rate games on a scale of 1 to 10 in order to give you an at-a-glance sense of the overall quality of a game. Please note that as the quality of gaming experiences naturally improves over time, we don't simply rate new games higher, even if they're technically better. Instead, as games come out that raise the bar, we adjust our expectations accordingly. A game that earns a high score today is probably better than a game that earned the same score on our scale several years ago.
Our scores are defined as follows:
This is NOT how we assign review scores to games. Honest.
10 - Essential
9 - Superb
8 - Great
7 - Good
6 - Fair
5 - Mediocre
4 - Poor
3 - Bad
2 - Terrible
1 - Abysmal
If you have any questions about GameSpot reviews, please feel free to contact reviews editor Peter Brown or Editor in Chief Randolph Ramsay directly via their respective profile pages.
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