Despite being an enjoyable arena shooter, LawBreakers has faced a challenging first few months as the size of its playerbase has dwindled. Developer Boss Key Productions co-founder Cliff Bleszinski is intent on saving the game, and part of that effort manifests itself this week with the release of a major new update.
Described as the biggest content patch released so far, Boss Key and publisher Nexon have announced details of the All-Star update (version 2.0). For more competitive players, this introduces a ranked mode called Boss Leagues. This ladder-style mode will launch with a beta season that will help to shape how it operates in the future. Dubbed Season 0, anyone who plays Boss Leagues during this beta period will receive some freebies, including exclusive profiles and silver weapon skins. To take part, however, you'll first need to reach level 5.
Boss Key also introduces two new maps. Gateway is a Blitzball arena map described as "The world's first 'mobile stadium,' which floats effortlessly in the sky thanks to Hadronium's anti-gravitational properties." Also new is Redfalls Blood Moon, which is a modified version of the existing Redfalls map.
Additionally, this update brings balance changes, multi-region queuing (which should help players to get into matches more quickly), better tutorials, and new cosmetics. All of this arrives on Thursday, October 19. The patch begins rolling out on PS4 and PC through Steam beginning at 10 AM PT / 1 PM ET / 6 PM BST (4 AM AEDT on October 20).
Blizzard has brought another character from Overwatch to Heroes of the Storm: Junkrat, who serves as a ranged Assassin. This marks the second one in a row to make the transition from the hero shooter, following last month's release of Ana.
Junkrat in Heroes of the Storm is a pretty faithful recreation of the character. His trait, Total Mayhem, causes him to drop explosives when he dies, damaging nearby enemies after a short delay. Frag Launcher sends out a grenade in a targeted direction that bounces along until it hits an enemy (or reaches its maximum distance); it can also ricochet off terrain. Concussion Mine places a mine at the targeted location that can be manually detonated at any time to deal damage and knock enemies or Junkrat backward. Junkrat isn't hurt by the mine, but it can send him flying over terrain to escape from enemies if executed correctly. Finally, Steel Trap roots and damages the first enemy to walk over it.
Players have two Heroic options, as usual, and the first is another carry-over from Overwatch. RIP-Tire sends out a bomb that you can control for a limited time (complete with the ability to jump) and can be detonated to deal damage in an area. Enemies nearest to the bomb take more damage than those further away.
But more intriguing is the wholly original Heroic he gets for HotS: Rocket Ride. This causes him to jump onto a rocket and ride it into the air; from there, he can slowly adjust his landing spot as he comes back toward the ground. After a few seconds, he crashes, dealing damage and dropping Total Mayhem's explosives. Apparently having been blown to smithereens, he disappears from the map altogether, only to reappear back at the respawn Altar after five seconds. He can then ride the rocket out into the map with a 150% movement speed bonus until he dismounts.
Junkrat is out now in Heroes of the Storm. Today's update also kicks off the Hallow's End event, which adds a special quest, new skins, and other Halloween-themed cosmetics, as well as a special Brawl. You can read more about this (and other such updates) in our roundup of all the in-game Halloween 2017 events. You can also check out some images of HotS' new content in the gallery above.
Of all the things that could spoil Justice League, could it really be a Big Bang Theory contest that revealed a major surprise from the film? That seems incredibly possible thanks to a new promotion the series is holding, which will send a lucky winner to the movie's Los Angeles premiere.
It was first pointed out on Reddit that as part of the contest, users must spin a wheel that includes the logos for the various Justice League members--Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, The Flash, Cyborg, and Aquaman. However, a seventh logo was also included, which happens to belong to the Green Lantern. That's an interesting addition because, until this point, there has been no confirmation that a Green Lantern would appear in the film.
Interestingly though, this isn't the first time it's been hinted that a Lantern showing up in the movie is a possibility. An earlier trailer for Justice League included the movie's villain Steppenwolf speaking about how vulnerable the planet was, noting there were "no Lanterns" and "no Kryptonians" to protect it. While those who saw Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice know Superman died at the end of the film, it's also clear that he'll be returning at some point in this film.
Perhaps the same will go with the Lantern, given that a Green Lantern Corps movie is in the works for a 2020 release. There's no better way to drum up interest in that upcoming film than to include a Lantern--or possibly more than one--in Justice League.
Whatever the case, fans won't have to wait too long to find out whether or not a Green Lantern will be appearing in the film--or who would play the character. Justice League is in theaters on November 17.
Rockstar has revealed the new content in store for Grand Theft Auto V this week. Along with the usual batch of discounts and rewards, the biggest addition to GTA Online is the much-anticipated Transform Races, a new Stunt Race mode that players can participate in starting today.
During the course of a Transform Race, your vehicle will change between bikes, cars, planes, and more depending on the terrain. The transformation happens automatically when you reach a certain point in the track. Transform Races also introduce a new type of checkpoint called Warps, which will instantly transport you to a different location on the map.
Transform Races take place on 15 brand-new Rockstar Created Races; the developer says more will be added later this fall, as will a Race Creator to create your own Transform Race tracks. To celebrate the launch of the mode, all players who participate in them through Thursday, October 26, will earn double GTA$ and RP bonuses.
In addition to Transform Races, players can earn double GTA$ and RP from Lamar's Contact Missions this week. A number of Smuggler's Run aircraft are also on sale, as are a pair of Super-class cars and some upgrades. Players can get 25% off of the following:
LF-22 Starling (both Buy it Now and Trade Price)
V-65 Molotok (both Buy it Now and Trade Price)
Buckingham Alpha-Z1 (both Buy it Now and Trade Price)
Grotti Visione
Ocelot XA-21
Engine Upgrades
Turbo Upgrades
Suspension Upgrades
Handling Upgrades
Finally, this week's Premium race is 45°, which is locked to motorcycles. As usual, all players who participate will earn triple RP, while those who finish in the top three will receive a substantial GTA$ reward. It will run through October 23; the following week, the Premium race will be Green Machine, which is locked to Supers.
This week's Time Trial race is Down Chiliad. It likewise runs through October 23, and players who beat the target time will earn a hefty GTA$ and RP bonus. From October 24-30, the Time Trial race will be Del Perro Pier.
With no warning, Ubisoft has released the second DLC pack for Mario + Rabbids: Kingdom Battle. This introduces new co-op and high-end content for players to complete.
As is to be expected from something called the Ultra Challenge Pack, the DLC introduces eight Ultra Hard Challenges that a new trailer describes as the game's "biggest challenge" yet. Specifics on what these entail were not shared, but you can get a glimpse at what's included in the video below. These are located inside the game's secret chapters, so you'll need to have completed at least a portion of the game in order to try your hand at them.
The other component of the DLC is a new co-op campaign. This includes five maps that are exclusive to co-op play and feature Chain Chomps, Tornados, Boos, and Pyroclasts to deal with.
The Ultra Challenge Pack is out now and can be purchased for $7/£5.80. Alternatively, it's included with the Kingdom Battle season pass, which costs $20/£16. That has already delivered DLC steampunk weapons and pixelated weapons, with another pack--featuring new story content--coming in 2018.
The latest batch of Xbox One and Xbox 360 discounts are now available for Xbox Live Gold members. This week's selection consists of some great games for both platforms, including a few recent releases.
On Xbox One, Gold members can find discounts on some of this year's sports games, including NBA Live 18: The One Edition ($30/£30), Madden 18 ($40.19/£40.19), and some virtual currency bundles for NBA 2K18. All three editions of NHL 18 are also on sale; the standard version costs $40.19/£40.19, while the Deluxe and Super Deluxe editions run for $53.59/£53.59 and $67/£60.29, respectively.
Xbox 360 owners don't have quite as many discounts to choose from, though there are still some notable games on sale. This week, Gold members can pick up Red Dead Redemption, which is backwards compatible with Xbox One, for $9.89/£8.24. Other notable games on sale for Gold members are The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings Enhanced Edition ($3), Grand Theft Auto IV ($8/£7.19), and Bully Scholarship Edition ($7.49/£6).
As always, this week's Xbox Live Gold deals will only be available for a limited time and expire at 6 AM ET on October 24. You can find the full list of discounts on Major Nelson's blog.
The untitled Han Solo spin-off film is untitled no longer. With less than a year to go before its release, Lucasfilm has finally shared the official name of the movie, which is simply Solo: A Star Wars Story.
Director Ron Howard shared the name in a video posted on Twitter today. He notes that shooting has wrapped, thanks the crew, and says that he hopes fans have enjoyed seeing the photos he's shared from the set. He then references the fact that they still haven't named the film, prompting Chewbacca to hand him a board with the name and logo on it.
Solo: A Star Wars Story follows the same naming convention as the first Star Wars spin-off, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. Further spin-offs are also on the way, though specifics have not been shared. Among the possible characters they may feature are Obi-Wan, Boba Fett, and Yoda.
Few details have been shared about Solo. One of the aforementioned images that Howard has shared suggests we may see the Kessel Run. Beyond that, we don't know much except that it will provide insight into the life of a younger Han Solo (played by Alden Ehrenreich). Solo's release date is set for May 25, 2018.
PC and Xbox One owners who haven't already picked up the latest entry in the Mass Effect series can now do so for free, provided they're a subscriber to Origin or EA Access, respectively. EA has added Mass Effect: Andromeda to the library of free titles that Access members are entitled to.
As with all games in the EA and Origin Access Vault, Andromeda is playable in its entirety for as long as you're a subscriber. EA did not provide a date for when Andromeda would be added to the Vault when it announced it was coming recently, but it's suddenly appeared for free to subscribers today.
EA and Origin Access are subscription services that provide discounts on digital EA purchases, Play First Trials, and free playable games. Those free games are available for as long as you're a subscriber and entitle you to everything available in the EA / Origin Access Vault, depending on your platform. An equivalent PS4 service is not yet available.
Takashi Miike is a man, one suspects, who must find little time to rest. Blade of the Immortal--an adaptation of the manga of the same name--is the director's 100th film since his filmmaking career began in 1991; he works so fast that his 101st film, JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Diamond Is Unbreakable - Chapter 1 is already behind him, and a 102nd film is currently in post-production.
Miike's films haven't always come west, and the ones that make an impact internationally tend to be his most violent and provocative films (like Audition, Ichi the Killer, and the truly great 13 Assassins). Blade of the Immortal follows this grand tradition, with the film's marketing focusing on the body count (which hovers around 1000 according to the posters and trailers) as a central gimmick. A lot of people get killed in the film's grand and ambitious action scenes, and Miike takes every opportunity to show off the action expertise he's built up over his career. Blade of the Immortal is the kind of film you're hoping you'll get when you see Miike's name on the poster--a preposterous and entertaining samurai flick with a whole lot of well-choreographed violence.
The film opens at an unspecified point in history with our hero, samurai Manji (Takuya Kimura, formerly of the boy band SMAP) slaughtering an entire gang. This would be the stand-out action set-piece of most other films, with Manji taking on what must be at least 100 men. The slaughtering is vengeance for his just-murdered sister Machi, and Manji, who has lost an arm, a hand, and a lot of blood by the end of the fight, sees no reason to keep on living. But Manji is not allowed to die yet--a mysterious old woman inserts 'blood worms' into him, which can repair any wounds he receives. Yes, Blade of the Immortal can be very silly, but the blood worms are a handy bit of exposition that lets the rest of the movie happen. From this point, Manji cannot die, and is doomed to live the life he has given up on.
Decades later, an unaged Manji is to hired assassinate the leader of the Ikki-ryu school of swordfighting, which has been systematically taking down every other school across the region, by Rin, the daughter of one of the master swordsman slain by the leader of the Ikki-ryu. Rin, of course, just happens to look just like his sister (Hana Sugisaka does double duty and plays both roles). Once they pair up, the film slips into a basic video game structure, with Manji essentially travelling between boss battles until he can reach the final enemy, the cold-hearted Master Anotsu (Sota Fukushi).
Blade of the Immortal wears its manga origins clearly, with its sometimes-rushed character introductions and occasional dalliances into fantasy hinting at a wider world that is being pulled from. A scene early in the film, for instance, introduces a bad guy who carries a talking decapitated head, a concept that seems to sit outside what the rest of the film is doing, and a long section where Manji confronts another immortal warrior feels like an episode from a Blade of the Immortal TV show inserted into the middle of the movie.
This is never a hindrance, though, with screenwriter Tetsuya Oishi (who also handled the superior Japanese live action adaptations of Death Note) ensuring that there's no assumed knowledge, and that the film's concepts are kept relatively simple. A lot is communicated through character design and performance, with even minor, quickly dispatched enemies often having distinctive hair styles, laughs, movement tics, or other characteristics that distinguish them. If you can buy into blood worms causing immortality you'll be fine, although you still might come away a bit perplexed by the film's sense of morality. There's a philosophical through-line here about what separates good from evil that never adds up to much, and scenes where characters don't have their swords drawn can sometimes drag.
This is a minor issue though--the film is two and a half hours long, but does not feel stretched out, and there's always something in the frame that feels worthy of your attention. Manji himself is a great piece of design, with his thick scars and wild samurai hairstyle. Kimura fits the stoic, haunted archetype he's playing well, and acquits himself during the film's numerous wild action set-pieces. He performed the role with a severe ligament injury to his right knee, but you'd never know from watching him.
Miike is an old pro at framing action by now, and the film takes time to impress upon the viewer the beauty of old Japan amongst all the bloodshed. There are plenty of slow pans and artful wide shots, assuring that the movie--which is, again, about an immortal samurai on a killing spree--feels like a project that the production staff took very seriously, despite its obvious silliness. Surprisingly, Manji's immortality doesn't really detract from the tension of the fight scenes either. The basic rule of storytelling is that you can't kill the protagonist before the final battle, but with Manji, anything short of death could happen--he could get stabbed, chopped up, beaten, broken down, or worse.
Speaking of the final battle, good heavens. Miike is an audacious director when it comes to big action--the phenomenal battle that anchors 13 Assassins being the standout example--but Blade of the Immortal's follow-through on its final set piece battle is phenomenal. Usually, if a movie sets up a fight as ridiculous as the one Blade of the Immortal does, it will find some way out of actually showing it--a character will run at their enemies, the screen will fade to white, and the next scene will show the battle's aftermath (in fact, Miike actually does something similar with an earlier scene). Not so here--instead we get a lengthy, truly marvelous action sequence. This absurd scene of wonderfully choreographed extreme violence, which manages to tie together most of the film's narrative threads while spilling an incredible amount of blood, is really what you came to see.
Blade of the Immortal is being compared to Logan, and on a conceptual level this is fair--it's about an older, cynical, invincible man protecting a young protege that he feels a deep connection to, by going on a killing spree. But Miike's film is far goofier, and while it doesn't carry any real emotional weight it's more ambitious as an action film. Across 100 films, the quality of Miike's work has been understandably inconsistent; hopefully, Blade of the Immortal is indicative of how good the next 100 will be.
The upcoming Sonic Forces is shaping up to be an entertaining follow-up to 2011's Sonic Generations. While it still calls back to the past with its visuals and level design, it builds upon its predecessor's concepts and mechanics with new ideas of its own.
The game switches between 2D and 3D modes, and you'll play as Classic Sonic, Modern Sonic, and a custom character, depending on the level. Both Classic and Modern Sonic play similarly to how they did in Generations, but the custom character playstyle is where some of the Sonic Forces' newest innovations are showcased.
Custom characters are equipped with special weapons called Wispons, which grant them unique offensive and navigational abilities. For example, the Drill Wispon allows you to quickly charge through foes or ride up and down walls. During a given stage, you can bring up to two custom characters, allowing you to freely switch between them at will to utilize their respective Wispons.
Sonic Forces' third playstyle is surprisingly involved, requiring you to make quick and precise use of Wispons in order to overcome obstacles. And as you use them to navigate the environment, new paths open up to offer even more platforming challenges to clear. In many ways, custom characters are more advanced than the typical Classic and Modern Sonic playstyles that fans have likely grown accustomed to over the years.
Watch the video above for a glimpse at custom characters in action in the game's new iteration of Sonic 2's iconic Chemical Plant Zone. Further on in the video you can also see Classic Sonic in wracking up rings in the Casino Forest Zone.
Sonic Forces is set to release on November 7 for PS4, Xbox One, Switch, and PC. It comes from the same developers that made both the critically acclaimed franchise games, Sonic Colors and Sonic Generations. Sega recently announced a Bonus Edition of the game, which comes with nice physical and digital bonuses.
While we still don't have any official details on what to expect from Pokemon Go's upcoming Halloween event, there's now more evidence that it'll introduce a couple of new Pokemon. The iOS App Store inadvertently shared an image presumably for the event that features some Ghost-type Pokemon, including a couple that aren't currently available in the game.
The new image (via Eurogamer) shows four Ghost Pokemon, most notably the Generation 3 monsters Duskull and Sableye. This certainly lends more weight to the recent datamine that suggests certain Gen 3 Pokemon would be added soon to the popular AR game. The image also features a Pikachu wearing a witch's hat, which will likely only be available to catch during the Halloween event. You can see it below.
Sableye and Duskull also appear in an image that was unearthed by the aforementioned datamine, which features Gengar standing atop a spooky hill along with other Gen 3 Ghost Pokemon: Shuppet, Banette, and Dusclops. The image also shows a Trainer wearing a hat that resembles the Sun/Moon Ghost Pokemon Mimikyu. Additionally, sound files for all Pokemon species up to #386 (the Legendary Pokemon Deoxys) and Halloween music (including the Lavender Town theme) were found in the game.
This would mark the second Halloween event Niantic has run for Pokemon Go since the game first released in summer 2016. During last year's event, spooky Pokemon like Gastly, Haunter, Drowzee, and others would spawn more frequently, and players got increased candy bonuses for every Pokemon they caught. You can see our roundup of all the games holding Halloween events this month.
We teamed up with Blizzard to give away ten (10) BlizzCon 2017 Virtual Tickets! Entry is open Worldwide. Yup, you read that correctly... WORLDWIDE. Competition ends Monday, October 23rd at 12:00PM PT and ten winners will be contacted via email. Scroll down to enter below.
The Virtual Ticket let's you stream BlizzCon 2017 from the comfort of your own couch, live and in high definition. You'll get coverage of both days of the show, including panels, contests, interviews, the closing ceremony, and more, along with some in-game goodies. This year's BlizzCon takes place November 3rd & 4th.
The in-game freebies you get include:
Overwatch: BlizzCon 2017 Winston Skin
World of Warcraft: Stormwind Skychaser and Orgrimmar Interceptor
StarCraft II: Junker SCV, Probe, and Drone Skins
Heroes of the Storm: Nexus Razorback Mount
Diablo III: Murkromancer Pet
Hearthstone: Mystery Goodie
Enter below (the additional entries are optional to increase your chances of winning):
Assassin's Creed Origins' release is drawing near, and developer Ubisoft has revealed the minimum PC specs and system requirements you'll need to play. The company says that optimizing the game for PC play has been very important, as has making the game accessible to players on a wide variety of systems.
"The PC version was developed in parallel with all the other versions by the main team in Montreal, in collaboration with our PC-dedicated team in Ubisoft Kiev," said Jose Araiza, the coordinating producer on Assassin's Creed Origins. "This approach was adopted while the game features were being designed, making PC and mouse-and-keyboard controls a full part of the equation from the get-go."
Araiza said the minimum system requirements will be the same as Assassin's Creed Syndicate, which released two years ago. "This means that the range of supported machines is wider than ever," he said.
Assassin's Creed Origins comes out on PC, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4 on October 27. It's the latest instalment in a series that has been around for a decade, and if you need help catching up on the story, check out our look back at every Assassin's Creed game. In the meantime, here are the minimum and recommended system requirements.
Minimum System Requirements
OS: Windows 7 SP1, Windows 8.1, Windows 10 (64-bit versions only)
Processor: Intel Core i5-2400s @ 2.5 GHz or AMD FX-6350 @ 3.9 GHz or equivalent
Video Card: Nvidia GeForce GTX 660 or AMD R9 270 (2048 MB VRAM with Shader Model 5.0 or better)
RAM: 6GB
Resolution: 720p
Video Preset: Lowest
Recommended System Requirements
OS: Windows 7 SP1, Windows 8.1, Windows 10 (64-bit versions only)
With its release approaching, Bethesda has debuted a launch trailer for Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus. It's somewhat positioned as a recruitment ad, encouraging you to join up with the resistance fighting to take back control of the United States from Nazis.
More significantly, the trailer is punctuated with a brief moment where we see Adolf Hitler enter a room. Although the character has been referenced numerous times in Machinegames' previous Wolfenstein titles, he's never actually appeared in them.
Every seven days, Destiny 2's weekly reset changes a bunch of variables within the game, from the activities on offer to the rewards available to the items on sale in shops. This week's Nightfall Strike, Exodus Crash, is set in Arcadian Valley, while Eververse have some new gear on offer.
Two modifiers are active in Exodus Crash this week, one of which again offers a way to earn additional time. Timewarp: Rings presents a set of large white circles throughout the mission for you to jump through; each one provides an additional 30 seconds of time to finish the Strike. The other modifier, Prism, rotates through each of the three elements, with the chosen element doing additional damage (and the others doing less than usual). Following the release of a Destiny 2 update last month, this now functions correctly, as the message indicating the chosen element no longer lasts for just a brief moment. Additionally, an on-screen effect helps to highlight when the element changes from one to the next.
In terms of Challenges, Speed of Dark is active as always, which requires you to finish the Strike with at least five minutes remaining. Unbroken tasks you with completing the Strike with fewer than three deaths. And finally, Faster Than Lightning asks your Fireteam to kill nine Shanks with melee attacks before defeating Thaviks.
Exodus Crash in Arcadian Valley has a recommended Power level of at least 240. If you haven't made it to that point, you may want to consider waiting until after you've raised your Power level before grabbing the Nightfall reward, which is Powerful gear. This Nightfall will be available until Destiny 2's next weekly reset, which occurs at 2 AM PT / 5 AM ET / 10 AM BST / 8 PM AET on Tuesday, October 24.
Away from the Nightfall Strike, you can grab a new bundle from Eververse. Costing 2000 Silver, the legendary Golden Sevens bundle contains seven bright Engrams, seven shaders, 500 Bright Dust, and a unique Nothing Gold ship. Take a look at the ship for yourself below.
Plenty more has likely changed for the week, with previous resets offering new Milestones, Challenges, and treasure maps to buy from Cayde. Sadly, the weekly reset also means last week's Iron Banner event is now over. However another event, the Leviathan Prestige Raid, goes live tomorrow, October 18, after it was delayed last week.
With Star Wars Battlefront II launching next month, Sony has announced several new PS4 models themed around the game for North America and Europe. Each region gets multiple new new options, although for North Americans, only one of them actually sports a unique design.
As seen in the trailer and images below, the simply titled Star Wars Battlefront II PS4 Pro bundle features a black 1 TB system with Star Wars written on the front in white and some emblems on the top. These include the signature icons for the Galactic Empire and the Resistance in either corner in off-white, but featured in red in the middle is that of the Inferno Squad. This is the group you play as a member of in Battlefront II's single-player campaign.
This bundle comes with a matching black controller that again features the Empire and Resistance emblems on either side, as well as repeated versions of the Star Wars logo on the touchpad. Also included is a physical copy of Battlefront II's Deluxe Edition; this provides three days of early access and some in-game upgrade packs. It launches on November 14 in North America and Europe, three days before the game itself. European pricing was not shared, but in North America, it runs for $450 USD / $550 CAD.
Star Wars fans seeking a standard PS4 also have a new option. In Europe, this takes the form of a gray system that otherwise features the same design as the Pro unit. Despite the difference in base color, it comes with the same black controller as the Pro bundle and a Deluxe Edition of the game. Additionally, standard black versions of the PS4 Pro and PS4 will be bundled with the base edition of the game.
In North America, Sony will sell a standard black PS4 bundle with a standard edition copy of the game. This launches for $300 USD / $380 CAD on November 17, the same day as Battlefront II.
Two new DLC packs--one free and one premium--are on the way to Resident Evil 7: Biohazard in December with optional VR support. Capcom today revealed new details about both Not a Hero and End of Zoe expansions and shared a new trailer to tease what awaits.
As detailed previously, the free Not a Hero DLC brings series regular Chris Redfield into the mix. It's set after the base game's campaign and sees Redfield looking for Lucas Baker; in the process, he happens upon BSAA agents sent after Baker who ended up as prisoners. Not a Hero launches for free to all players on December 12.
Also coming on that day is End of Zoe, which Capcom says features a "mysterious outdoorsman named Joe who lives along the bank of the marshes and has a chance encounter with Zoe that sets both their fates in motion." This will be sold on its own for $15/£12 and is included with the game's season pass.
The next pair of Pokemon games, Pokemon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon, are quickly approaching their November 17 release date, and ahead of their launch, Nintendo has been giving away a ton of free items and Pokemon for the previous Sun and Moon versions. Many of the giveaways have already ended, but there are still plenty of rare freebies for Sun and Moon players to get their hands on.
We've rounded up all of the distributions that are currently running for Pokemon Sun and Moon, as well as a few that will be available for Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon when those versions launch. We'll be updating this list as more giveaways are announced, so check back often to see what free items and Pokemon you can get.
Pokemon Sun/Moon Free Gifts
Mega Stones -- Ends Oct. 31
Mega Stones are exceptionally rare and valuable in Pokemon Sun and Moon. When equipped to their corresponding Pokemon, Mega Stones allow it to Mega Evolve during battle, often changing its type and giving it a considerable stat boost. Nintendo is giving away several batches of Mega Stones that aren't normally available in Sun and Moon, all of which are redeemable via a universal download code. Input the following codes in Mystery Gift by October 31 and you'll receive these Mega Stones:
Players in the US can pick up a free download code for Charizard from the electronics department in Target stores. The popular Fire-type Pokemon comes at level 50, is equipped with the Red Card item, and knows the moves Dragon Dance, Flare Blitz, Fly, and Earthquake. As with other download codes, you need to input your code via Mystery Gift to receive Charizard. The distribution runs until October 14, and you have until February 4, 2018 to redeem your code.
Marshadow -- Ends Oct. 23
For a very limited time, players can pick up a free download code for the Mythical Pokemon Marshadow. Those in the US can get the code from GameStop, while players in the UK will have to visit "participating retailers." This is the first legitimate way Sun and Moon players can obtain the rare Fighting/Ghost-type, which comes at level 50 and is equipped with Marshadium Z. It also knows the attacks Spectral Thief, Close Combat, Force Palm, and Shadow Ball.
Pikachu
To celebrate the release of the Pokemon series' 20th anniversary film, Pokemon The Movie: I Choose You, The Pokemon Company is giving away six different versions of Ash's Pikachu for Sun and Moon. To receive a Pikachu, enter the code PIKACHU20 in Mystery Gift. However, you can only receive one of the six Pikachu, and the version you get depends on when you enter the code. The full Pikachu distribution schedule is below.
Players who purchase either Pokemon Gold or Silver from the 3DS Eshop by September 21, 2018 will receive a bonus download code for the Mythical Pokemon Celebi. The code can be redeemed in Pokemon Sun, Moon, Ultra Sun, or Ultra Moon. We've outlined the steps you need to take to find and redeem the code here.
Magearna
Unlike other Mythical Pokemon, the Steel/Fairy-type Magearna is available not through Mystery Gift, but via a QR code. After defeating the Elite Four and completing the main story, you can use the QR Scanner feature to scan the below code. After doing so, visit the Antiques shop in Hau'oli City and pick your Magearna up from the deliveryman waiting there. The Mythical Pokemon comes at level 50 and knows the moves Fleur Cannon, Flash Cannon, Lucky Chant, and Helping Hand.
Shiny Silvally -- Ends Nov. 13
Beginning October 23, players in the US and Canada can pick up a free download code for a shiny Silvally from GameStop and EB Games stores. The distribution will run until November 13. Players in the UK will also have a chance to get the rare Pokemon at participating GAME stores from November 3-16.
Pokemon Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon Free Gifts
Rockruff -- Ends Jan. 10, 2018
Purchase either Pokemon Ultra Sun or Ultra Moon by January 10 and you'll receive a special Rockruff as a free bonus. This Rockruff will only evolve into Dusk Form Lycanroc, a new variant of the popular wolf Pokemon that is exclusive to Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon.
Ahead of its imminent release on the Community Test Environment, DICE has provided a look at some new Battlefield 1 content. This comes from the game's next expansion, Turning Tides, and you can check it out in the video above.
One of the major components of what we got to see are two new maps: Cape Helles and Achi Baba. However, these maps are still in development; DICE has taken the unusual path of showing off white-box versions that don't yet have their final textures in place. That means you're seeing these maps in an early, unfinished state; you can expect the final releases in December to look nicer.
Camp Helles
In the video, you'll see some standard Conquest action as well as a new mode that returns from earlier in the series. In Conquest Assault, one team starts the round holding every point on the map; the enemy team attempts to make its way through to the last point before exhausting its supply of 250 tickets. Because the defending team doesn't have a headquarters, players on that side are only able to respawn on their teammates if they lose all of their capture points. If all members of the team die, the attacking team wins.
Turning Tides also of course includes new weapons--six guns and three melee weapons--a selection of which you can see in the video. The Assault kit gets the C96 Trench and M12P16, Medic gets the Farquhar-Hill (with range and stability variants), Support gets the Brownin GM1917 (also with a telescopic variant), and Recon gets the Arisaka and Carcano. There's also the new Breech gun Flak option for Assault players that is ideal for taking down airplanes, though it works just fine on enemy infantry, too.
Turning Tides is slated for an initial release sometime this December. It will also include two new vehicles (the L-Class Destroyer and L-Class Airship), a new Elite class (the Infiltrator), a new Operation (Gallipoli), and new specializations, service assignments, and unlocks. All of this, as well as the two CTE maps and all of the weapons above will be out in December. A month later, we'll get two more maps (Heligoland Bight and Zeebrugge) and a new faction, the British Royal Marines.
Prior to any of this, those willing to wade into the CTE can check out a select portion of its content beginning today, October 17. Turning Tides is the third major DLC pack for Battlefield 1 to date, with the Apocalypse DLC still to come in "early" 2018. In the meantime, you can put the latest Battlefield 1 update through its paces, which was released last week, and the Turning Tides concept art below.
With development on The Witcher 3 and its DLC complete, and work on Gwent and Cyberpunk 2077 underway, there hasn't been much word out of CD Projekt Red recently. That is, with the exception of some criticism from ex-employees on Glassdoor--a site used to review companies and supervisors--which has now made enough waves to warrant a response from the studio itself.
In an open letter published on Twitter, co-founder Marcin Iwinski and studio head Adam Badowski spoke about the studio's culture and concerns surrounding what all of this could mean for its future. The two reference the negative Glassdoor reviews--which mention low pay and long hours--but they don't address any of the specific criticisms.
"If you're following news related to CD Projekt Red, you might have recently stumbled on information regarding morale here at the studio," the letter reads. "We'd normally avoid commenting on company reviews on spaces like Glassdoor, but this around--especially in light of the fact that we haven't communicated anything about Cyberpunk 2077 for a long time and saw some gamers getting worried about the project--we'd like to elaborate on a few things."
Among the subjects the letter touches on are departures--which it largely chalks up to standard changes for a game developer. It notes that headcount has almost doubled from the 200 people it had when The Witcher 3 launched. It adds that hiring continues, and that anyone leaving--even a big name--won't jeopardize ongoing development.
"When we start down the road to creating something, we know the destination and we're sure of one thing: even if something feels impossible, it doesn't mean it is," the letter continues. "And, as it turns out, most often things are perfectly possible, they just require a lot of faith, commitment, and spirit. This approach to making games is not for everyone. It often requires a conscious effort to 'reinvent the wheel'--even if you personally think it already works like a charm. But you know what? We believe reinventing that wheel every friggin' time is what makes a better game."
Regarding its much-anticipated new game, the letter only states, "Cyberpunk 2077 is progressing as planned, but we are taking our time--in this case, silence is the cost of making a great game." Little about the game has been announced beyond the fact that it is an ambitious RPG that has been in development for more than five years and is headed to PC, PS4, and Xbox One. Earlier this year, CD Projekt Red acknowledged that early Cyberpunk 2077 files had leaked and were being held for ransom.
You can read the full open letter below. We'll report back as the situation develops.
"If you're following news related to CD Projekt Red, you might have recently stumbled on information regarding morale here at the studio. We'd normally avoid commenting on company reviews on spaces like Glassdoor, but this around--especially in light of the fact that we haven't communicated anything about Cyberpunk 2077 for a long time and saw some gamers getting worried about the project--we'd like to elaborate on a few things.
First off, we'd like to talk about the departures. In 2015, when we released The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, we were over 200 developers strong and that was the core crew of the studio. Since then, we've almost doubled the headcount and we're still hiring. Do people leave? Sure they do. We always wish them all the best and respect both their decision and the feedback they give us as the reason for their departure. We are continuously working on making Red a good workplace for everyone, but we also have a set of values that constitutes who we are and how we do things.
So, does a departure, even a high profile one, mean that the project is in danger? One would need to be very courageous to base the future of an AAA role-playing game of such scope on one person (or a few people).
Every role-playing game we ever developed seemed impossible to achieve at the moment we set out to create it. It took us five years to finish The Witcher 1, we had to make our own engine to complete The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings, and we had to entirely reinvent the way we made games to deliver an open world for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. When we start down the road to creating something, we know the destination and we're sure of one thing: even if something feels impossible, it doesn't mean it is. And, as it turns out, most often things are perfectly possible, they just require a lot of faith, commitment, and spirit.
This approach to making games is not for everyone. It often requires a conscious effort to 'reinvent the wheel'--even if you personally think it already works like a charm. But you know what? We believe reinventing that wheel every friggin' time is what makes a better game. It's what creates innovation and makes it possible for us to say we've worked really hard on something, and we think it's worth your hard-earned cash. If you make games with a 'close enough is good enough' attitude, you end up in a comfort zone, And you know what the magic happens.
Cyberpunk 2077 is progressing as planned, but we are taking our time--in this case, silence is the cost of making a great game.
As always, many thanks for being so engaged in what we do. It shows us it's all worth the hours we put in.
Yours, Marcin Iwinski (co-founder) / Adam Badowski (studio head)"
A division of Sony is to publish video games for, among other consoles, Switch, the company has announced. Sony Music Entertainment has launched a new publishing label called Unties, whose upcoming projects include a game, titled Tiny Metal, that's coming to Nintendo's hybrid console as well as PC and PS4.
Unties has so far revealed three more projects: one for PS4 and two listed for "PC / TBA," hinting they could come to other platforms later on. Sony Music says the label has been set up "to unearth high-quality [indie] titles … and utilize SME's vast entertainment business wisdom in order to expose them to as many consumers as possible." It went on to say it intends "to free creators from the myriad ties that bind them when it comes to publishing their games" and "make free, limitless publishing a reality."
This isn't the first time Sony has published games on non-PlayStation consoles: Sony Online Entertainment previously published games such as PlanetSide 2 and Payday: The Heist on PC. SOE, which was separate to the PlayStation brand and Sony Interactive Entertainment, was later sold off and renamed Daybreak, no longer a part of Sony.
It's interesting, then, to see Sony--albeit, again, not the PlayStation or SIE division--entering the multiplatform publishing business once more, this time on a rival company's console. For more, check out some images of Tiny Metal above or a trailer here.
Update: Destiny 2's weekly reset has now occurred, meaning the Iron Banner event is no longer available. Luckily, another event, the Leviathan Prestige Raid, goes live tomorrow, October 18, after it was delayed last week. Original story follows.
The latest Destiny 2 event, Iron Banner, is live now in the Crucible. The event returns from the original Destiny, offering exclusive armor and gear if you earn enough Tokens. However, things are a little different this time around.
As with all Crucible modes, matches are now 4v4 rather than 6v6. In addition, Iron Banner is now entirely about skill; Power levels are not taken into account, as Light levels were previously. "Your fighting abilities, not your power levels, will decide the outcome," developer Bungie says.
You can access the Iron Banner by visiting Lord Saladin in the Tower. That task itself requires that you complete the campaign, as the Tower is inaccessible until you've done so. Once you've spoken with Saladin, Iron Banner is entered through its own Crucible playlist--which features Quickplay modes and matchmaking--and you can play as a Fireteam or dive in solo.
Another event, the Leviathan Prestige Raid, was due to go live today, but that has now been delayed until Wednesday, October 18. Bungie said: "An exploit has been discovered in the Leviathan Raid that causes the encounters to be stripped of their intended challenge. To allow time to fix this issue, we are delaying the start of the Prestige Raid until next week. It's important to us that the team who earns World First status doesn't have their legacy tarnished by doubt, skepticism, or uncertainty." However, the release of Destiny 2's new map, Distant Shore, went ahead as planned and it's live now.
Assassin's Creed Origins launches very soon, and to celebrate publisher Ubisoft has revealed a line of ultra-rare new Yeezy sneakers. The trainers have been designed in collaboration with renowned sneaker artist Dominic Lowman, and only 16 pairs will be made worldwide.
Two color schemes have been produced: a black design in addition to a white one. Ubisoft says none will be made available to buy, and will instead only be made available in free giveaways. The company stated, "Details will be announced across Ubisoft and partner social media channels shortly." Check the designs out for yourself below.
Just last week, Ubisoft revealed Origins' Free DLC and season pass details. The game will receive two major expansions after its October release date in addition to a number of smaller add-ons, some of which will be free.
By the time you're reading this, Polyphony Digital's Gran Turismo Sport is available to download on PSN, but due to the game's always-online nature I haven't been able to test everything it has to offer. Servers were taken down for maintenance over the weekend, leaving me with only the arcade mode to play. And though I do enjoy GT Sport's driving model, it's difficult to feel motivated by one-off arcade races when all currency and experience earned is voided once I shut off my PlayStation 4. Things aren't off to a great start.
GT Sport is in many ways a departure for Gran Turismo, aimed squarely at people interested in rising through the ranks of a professionally governed online racing league. As a result, developer Polyphony Digital and the Federation Internationale de l'Automobile have taken strict control over player progress, car purchases, and even the in-game photo mode for some mysterious reason. You aren't given a choice to either opt in or out of this system, and must contend with its limitations even if you have zero interest in the FIA.
This attitude is indicative of a larger problem: catering almost exclusively to the tastes of racing's elite upper-crust. GT Sport lives in the world of exotic supercars and tightly tuned variants of racing-grade consumer rides. Gone are the days of experimenting with cars from decades past that offer more charm than horsepower. If that's what you're after, you should probably keep playing Gran Turismo 6, or look to a modern alternative like Forza Motorsport 7 to get your fix. GT Sport's official car count hovers right around 160, but the more realistic number, when you take difficult-to-discern variants out of the picture, is closer to 90 distinct designs. Most manufacturer's feel woefully underrepresented, with only two or three unique models to choose from.
Gran Turismo games are always little offbeat, but bewildering trysts with non-racing subjects in GT Sport feel like misguided attempts to create the country club of racing games. It's amusing at first when the game's menu backdrop fades from an interesting event in racing history to, say, the date that Celine Dion won her first grammy, or the discovery of the neutrino, but over time these flourishes start to leave a bad taste in your mouth as you discover how little racing content there is to explore--even when servers are up and running. Don't get me started on the inclusion of fashion label (and GT Sport sponsor) Tag Heuer next to car manufacturers in "Brand Central," the place you go to buy cars and explore the history behind them. Seeing a watchmaker get the same treatment as a car designer in a racing game isn't harmful, but it makes you question where its priorities lie.
I can say that when I'm not shaking my head at strange limitations and designs, I genuinely enjoy driving in GT Sport--that's one thing Polyphony Digital hasn't lost sight of. Whether or not the amount of missions and cars is enough to keep me engaged in the long-run is the real question. Check back in the coming days for my full review, but it's safe to say that you should approach GT Sport with trepidation if you had hopes for a relatable or typical Gran Turismo experience.
Destiny 2 features a bunch of amusing emotes that you can purchase, and one of the best is a Monty Python-inspired, high-kicking walk. However, it turns out that the emote let players get into some walled-off, unfinished areas--and now, Bungie has removed it from sale.
Although the developer hasn't officially given a reason for its removal, the cause seems pretty clear. Numerous YouTube videos show players utilizing the move to clip through walls; the one below, for example, shows one player getting into the Eververse Trading Company's booth.
The emote has been available in Bright Engram drops since the game's release, but the bug didn't become apparent until the emote went on sale as an individual purchase. There's no word yet on when the exploit itself will be fixed.
In other Destiny 2 news, the game comes out very soon on PC. It launches on October 24, and today the developer released a new trailer for the version and confirmed when you'll be able to pre-load it. For more on Destiny 2's PC port, check out GameSpot's roundup of everything you need to know about Destiny 2 PC.
Nintendo Switch has already received a good number of awesome games, but if you've been holding out for big, mature AAA titles on the platform, you'll soon get your wish. In the space of a single week, Skyrim, Doom, and L.A. Noire all launch on the platform.
Even though the games have been out for a while on other platforms, it's still a pretty awesome week for Switch owners, as they can pick up a huge RPG, an over-the-top FPS, and a fantastic crime-solving adventure game.
We already knew the release dates of Skyrim and L.A. Noire, but Bethesda just revealed Doom's date today. The shooter is coming out on November 10, and it'll come with the full game and all the DLC released on other platforms.
Skyrim, meanwhile, will be released on November 17, and it comes with all three of Skyrim's expansions. It also features motion controls and Amiibo support. Finally, L.A. Noire launches right between Skyrim and Doom, on November 14. It, too, comes with all the DLC, and it includes some Switch-specific control schemes.
Even though these are older games, it's good to see AAA developers supporting the platform with their big titles. Bethesda is even bringing at least one of its newer releases to the platform--Wolfenstein II is slated for launch on Switch sometime in 2018.
It's hard to be surprised anymore at collector's editions, since we've seen everything from a mini-fridge for Call of Duty to a $386,000 version of Dying Light that included an entire bunker. Today, however, Sony Interactive Entertainment Taiwan announced a Gran Turismo SportPS4 bundle that still manages to stand out as particularly wild, because it comes with an actual, drivable car.
That's right--the bundle comes with a limited-edition 2018 Mazda MX-5, complete with Gran Turismo and PlayStation logos. And if the car wasn't enough already, the bundle also features a PS4 Pro, a PSVR headset and Move controllers, a Thrustmaster T-GT steering wheel, an Apiga AP1 racing chair, a Bravia 4K HDR TV, 12 months of PS Plus, and, of course, the game.
Only one of these bundles was put on sale for the absurd price of $46,600, and it was already bought by a car collector. So if you were dreaming about parking a Gran Turismo-branded sports car in your garage, you're unfortunately out of luck.
If you just want the game, though, you don't have to wait too much longer. Gran Turismo Sport launches tomorrow, October 17, for PS4.
2K Sports has published the results of its annual NBA season simulation. Starting with the most exciting part, the NBA 2K18 simulation predicts that the Golden State Warriors and Boston Celtics will reach the NBA Finals. The Warriors will successfully defend their title, winning the 2017-2018 NBA Championship in five games, the simulation said
The Warriors were just too good, the simulation said, winning the series 4-1. The Celtics' sole victory was a close one, with Boston taking Game 4 by just two points on the back of a Kyrie Irving triple-double. After claiming the back-to-back title, Warriors coach Steve Kerr won Coach of the Year in the simulation, which is no surprise.
Here are some other takeaways from 2K's NBA 2K18 season simulation:
The Rookie of the Year award went to Ben Simmons of the Philadelphia 76ers. He averaged 16.2 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 7.4 assists.
Kevin Durant put up better numbers than LeBron James in terms of points, rebounds, steals, and blocks. Also, Durant won the Finals MVP again.
Joel Embiid returns in form, averaging 27 minutes per game, with 17.9 points, 8.5 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2.5 blocks per game.
The worst-performing teams were the Miami Heat (22-60), the Indiana Pacers (27-55), the Orlando Magic (30-52), and the Sacramento Kings (30-52).
Go to NBA 2K's Facebook page to see a more detailed breakdown of NBA 2K18's latest season simulation. The simulation was conducted using the game's MyLeague mode.
While there's still plenty of October left, Hulu is already looking toward November and the arrival of a bunch of a new titles on their streaming service. In addition to new episodes of your favorite TV shows, November will see the debut of some notable Hulu original series and a slew of new movies to watch.
The most notable addition for the month is sure to be the series premiere of Marvel's Runaways, the streamer's first comic book adaptation. From Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage, the creative duo behind The O.C. and Gossip Girl, Runaways tells the stories of six teenagers who learn their parents are supervillains.
Future Man, from executive producers Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, will bring time traveling comedy to Hulu. Josh Hutcherson stars as a janitor that might also be the savior of the universe.
As for movies, popular titles like 13 Going on 30, Ocean's Eleven, and Terminator 2: Judgement Day will become available to stream. Additionally, 21 James Bond films will debut on Hulu on November first, giving subscribers access to almost every single film starring the famed secret agent, prior to Daniel Craig taking on the role. The only early film that's missing is 1967's Casino Royale.
Take a look at the full list of what is arriving and departing Hulu in November below.
Ubisoft has released a cool new live-action trailer for Assassin's Creed: Origins. Titled "I Am," the slickly produced trailer follows main character Bay-yek as he leaps and murders through ancient Egypt. He says, "I'm not an army. I'm not a man. I'm a creed."
The trailer was directed by Catch Me Daddy director Daniel Wolfe and uses the Nicholas Britell song "The Middle of the World" from the Moonlight soundtrack. Check it out below.
Ubisoft said the trailer was made with "authentic film role," using some 200 extras to populate its world. "Dozens" of animal species can be seen in the trailer.
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