On top of the 24 characters already available in Dragon Ball FighterZ, Bandai Namco is introducing an additional eight fighters to the roster post-launch as DLC. While the publisher has been quiet about who these characters will be, we've now gotten a look at the first two coming to the Dragon Ball fighting game, courtesy of Japanese magazine V-Jump (via Gematsu).
The first two DLC characters on the way to Dragon Ball FighterZ are the Legendary Super Saiyan Broly and Goku's father, Bardock. The former was one of the 15 DLC characters we wanted to see added to the game. According to Gematsu, Broly's special is Gigantic Meteor--an enormous energy ball that uses three Ki gauges. Bardock's special attack is called Revenger Assault; when activated, the warrior transforms into a Super Saiyan and delivers a rush attack.
Broly and Bardock are included in Dragon Ball FighterZ's season pass, along with the other six yet-to-be-revealed DLC characters coming to the fighting game. Bandai Namco hasn't announced individual pricing for the two fighters, but the season pass costs $35 USD / £29 / $52.95 AU.
Dragon Ball FighterZ is available now on PS4, Xbox One, and PC. Critic Peter Brown awarded the title a 9/10 in GameSpot's Dragon Ball FighterZ review and said, "Even if you think Dragon Ball is old hat, and even if you're intimidated by fighting games, there's a good chance you'll be drawn into the explosive action and personalities that expertly evoke the anime's infectious spirit."
As it so often does, Sony is holding another impromptu flash sale on the PlayStation Store. In addition to this week's regular selection of PSN deals, players can now find a big assortment of new discounts on PS4, PS3, and Vita games for the next couple of days.
As usual, the biggest selection of deals is for PS4, and it includes some steep discounts on a number of deluxe and complete editions. Players can get Final Fantasy XV Digital Premium Edition for $30, Overwatch Game of the Year Edition for $30, Dragon Age: Inquisition Game of the Year Edition for $10, Titanfall 2 Ultimate Edition for $10, Battlefield 4 Premium Edition for $15, Injustice 2 Ultimate Edition for $32, and Minecraft: Story Mode Bundle for $14.
The flash sale ends at 8 AM PT / 11 AM ET on February 19, giving you only a couple of days to take advantage of these discounts. You can find the full list of deals available right now on the PlayStation Store. In addition to the flash sale, publisher 2K Games is also holding a sale on some of its own titles, which runs until February 20. That encompasses discounts on XCOM 2, NBA 2K18, BioShock: The Collection, Mafia III, and more titles.
Bayonetta 2 is now available on Nintendo Switch, and alongside it, Nintendo and Platinum Games have brought the original Bayonetta to the console as well. Those who pick up a physical copy of Bayonetta 2 will receive a download code for the first title, but the two games will only be sold individually on the Switch Eshop. While it appears it would cost more to buy the games digitally than at retail, getting both together will still work out to the same price, thanks to an offer from Nintendo.
On the Eshop, each game is available for a different price: Bayonetta 2 costs $50, while the original Bayonetta runs for $30. However, purchasing either one of them will entitle you to an automatic discount on the other, bringing the total cost for both games to $59.98 (before tax)--about the same price as the physical release. If you buy Bayonetta 2 first, you can nab the original for about $10; conversely, buying the first Bayonetta will drop the price of Bayonetta 2 to about $30. You also don't need to purchase both games immediately in order to receive the discount.
Nintendo held a similar promotion when Bayonetta 2 first released for Wii U back in 2014. The initial physical run of the game was likewise bundled with the original Bayonetta, but the two titles were only available separately on the Wii U Eshop, and purchasing one from the digital store would give you an automatic discount on the other. Nintendo later released Bayonetta 2 as a standalone physical release, though the company hasn't announced if it will do the same for the new Switch version somewhere down the line.
Bayonetta and Bayonetta 2 launched for Switch on February 16, headlining a packed week of new releases for the console. The latter in particular was very well received by critics when it first released, earning a rare 10 out of 10 from GameSpot. Critic Mark Walton called it "a masterclass in pure, unadulterated action-game design" in our Bayonetta 2 review. You can see what other critics are saying about the Switch port in our Bayonetta 2 review roundup.
The two Bayonetta games arrive on Switch ahead of Bayonetta 3, which was one of the many surprises revealed during The Game Awards back in December. Nintendo didn't share any concrete details about the game, except that it will be released exclusively for Switch. You can watch the first Bayonetta 3 trailer here.
The beta features three missions set across two maps, which can be played cooperatively with up to four players. In addition to that, Konami is offering special daily missions for the duration of the beta. Everyone who participates in the trial will also receive three bonus cosmetic items in the full game: a FOXHOUND name plate, Metal Gear Rex Head accessory, and a bandana.
The beta runs on all platforms until February 18. It uses the same client as the previous beta, so players who already have that installed on their consoles won't need to download it again, although you'll need to download a patch for the client before you're able to participate.
The last full week of February brings a bunch of new shows and movies to watch on Netflix. From talk shows to original movies to animate adaptations, there's more than enough to binge if you've got the time.
Likely the biggest addition of the week in the live-action movie adaptation of FullMetal Alchemist. The film, based on the popular anime, was released in Japan back in December. In lieu of a theatrical release in the United States, it will instead stream on Netflix.
Joining it are new seasons of Netflix originals Marseille, Seven Seconds, and Ugly Delicious. Additionally, February 18 will see the premiere of the streamer's new weekly talk show, The Joel McHale Show with Joel McHale. Based on what's been revealed about the series thus far, it sounds like a hybrid of a traditional talk show and McHale's former E! series The Soup.
Rounding out the week is Mute, the new film from Moon and World of Warcraft director Duncan Jones. The sci-fi movie stars Alexander Skarsgard as a mute bartender searching for his missing girlfriend in the near-future. Joining Skarsgard on the project are Paul Rudd, Justin Theroux, and Sam Rockwell.
You can take a look at what is coming to Netflix this week below. After that, go ahead and take a look everything added in February.
February 18
The Joel McHale Show with Joel McHale (Netflix Original)
February 19
Dismissed
FullMetal Alchemist (Netflix Original)
February 20
Bates Motel: Season 5
The Frankenstein Chronicles: Season 1 and Season 2 (Netflix Original)
Kickstarter crowdfunding has allowed plenty of die-hard game fans see their dreams come true, but also plenty of those dreams die. In the case of System Shock's remaster by Nightdive Studios, those dreams are now another step away from becoming reality.
Nightdive Studios' System Shock remaster was expected to release this year on PC, PS4, and Xbox One, but a recent update from the team says otherwise. The remaster has been delayed, again, and the development team is on hiatus.
On a Kickstarter post, Stephen Kick, CEO of Nightdive Studios, takes responsibility for a change of direction, which is why he decided to put the team on hiatus to "reassess" its vision for the game. Kick also makes it clear that the remaster is not being canceled. His update does not detail how long the team will be out, nor an expected release date.
"Maybe we were too successful," Kick's update states. "Maybe we lost our focus. The vision began to change. We moved from a remaster to a completely new game. We shifted engines from Unity to Unreal, a choice that we don't regret and one that has worked out for us. With the switch we began envisioning doing more, but straying from the core concepts of the original title."
"Please accept my personal assurance that we will be back and stronger than ever. System Shock is going to be completed and all of our promises fulfilled."
In 2016, Nightdive Studios created a Kickstarter campaign for a remaster of the 1994 game System Shock. The team released a trailer of their vision done in Unity beside the campaign, which gained over 21,600 backers and raised $1.3 million. A third System Shock game is also supposedly in development by ex-Looking Glass and BioShock developers.
We teamed up with RESPAWN Products to give away three of their Respawn-205 series gaming chairs, with the winners' choice of Blue, Green, Red, or Gray. (List Price: $224.99, scroll down below to enter.)
Competition ends Monday, February 19 at 11:00AM PT. Three (3) winners will be chosen. Entry is open to USA residents only. No purchase necessary.
Enter below (the additional entries are OPTIONAL to increase your chances of winning):
The RESPAWN-205 series is a reclining gaming chair defined by its innovative mesh-backing, which provides a comfortably flexible yet supportive experience. With an adjustable headrest and lumbar support, this chair provides top tier comfort whether used during intense scrims or MMO marathons. Crafted for ergonomics and priced affordably, RESPAWN lets you game longer, game better, and game without compromise.
If you haven't had a chance to jump in on Blizzard's team shooter Overwatch, now might be the perfect time to do so. This weekend, Overwatch is free to play on PC, PS4, and Xbox One.
To make the deal even sweeter, the base title and the game of the year edition are 50% off on Steam, the PlayStation Store, and Xbox. The sale also includes retail and will last until February 26.
Overwatch's Lunar New Year event, Year of the Dog, is currently underway until March 5. This year's event includes new skins, emotes, and more for the game's loot boxes, as well as changes to the Capture the Flag mode, a new competitive mode, and a new map called Ayutthaya.
Rainbow Six Siege's third year of DLC is about to kick off, introducing a new, limited-time co-op event and two new Operators. We'll have more on Outbreak--the elaborate co-operative missions set during an extraterrestrial invasion--soon, but for now, let's look at how Siege's new characters will change the way you play its traditional PvP mode.
Operation Chimera, as this first new season of content is called, introduces a new Russian Operator, Finka, and an additional French character, Lion. The former is essentially an attacking form of Doc: she comes equipped with a stim pen that applies a 20 HP boost to both herself and every teammate for 20 seconds, and it even revives any downed allies, wherever they are on the map. In addition, each of the three adrenal surges grants the team a movement and reload speed buff for the same period, as well as a reduction in recoil and resistance to stun effects. Be warned, however: the health boost--like Doc's--slowly depletes back to your normal HP level, and if you get hit while buffed to below 20 HP, you will be immediately downed when the buff ends.
Finka's gadget is clearly capable, but I fear it will--again, like Doc's--go underused. It takes considerable organization to be used to its fullest: it doesn't last long, so it's best triggered when you and a group of allies are about to breach and clear an objective room together. But these situations are infrequent, and despite some attempts to the contrary, Siege has since launch become more about individual talent than moments of coordination. And, like Doc's med pistol, it's rare you actually have chance to revive a fallen teammate before they get finished off; with Finka you stand more of a chance since you don't need to be next to the injured player. However, it's still unlikely you'll have time to activate your stim and come to your friend's aid, and even if you do, they won't have much health left once the temporary buff subsides.
Perhaps the gadget is Ubisoft's attempt to pull Siege back to its core of coordinated, timed attacks, and Finka will usher in a return to that style of offense as teams utilize her gadget's effects to storm a room together. On the other hand, it could encourage attackers to roam further away from their teammates, since they can be revived from across the map at the click of a button.
Regardless of how her gadget is received, Finka could be a popular choice thanks to her weapon. While she can pack the ASG-12 shotgun or 6P41 LMG, it's her Spear assault rifle which could propel her to similar high pickrates as Operation Blood Orchid's Ela. It has very little recoil and decent damage, and it's sure to be a go-to choice for those wanting to try out the Russian operative.
Lion--another two-speed, two-armor attacker--shakes things up in a rather more dramatic way. His gadget is the EE-One-D drone, and it can be used up to three times per round to scout out the positions of every moving member of the opposing team. Activating it not only supplies HUD markers showing you and your team which Operators opposing players have picked, along with their locations, but your squad will also see those players' exact outlines for four seconds. This let me pop a headshot through a wall on more than one occasion, and it proved a powerful tool in both racking up kills and discovering which areas of the map enemies were hiding.
The counter is that both teams receive a three second countdown after the drone is triggered but before its x-ray vision comes into effect. This allows the defending team a moment to stop what they're doing, lie still, and wait for the drone's scan to pass, meaning they'll remain undetected. On the other hand, this forces the defending team to stop what they're doing, lie still, and wait for the drone's scan to pass, so even if this happens and you don't get their outlines, you can still gain an advantage by exploiting their lack of movement. For example, three members of my team got wiped out by enemies who used Lion's ability immediately before Fuzing the objective room--the enemies already knew there would likely be at least one of us in that room, so Lion's ability was used purely to make them stay still while Fuze worked his explosive magic. If my teammates had tried to escape, the enemies would know exactly who had gone where.
Conversely, a poor Lion player could rely on the Frenchman's drone too much, assuming the coast is clear when no enemy is detected, when in fact one lies in wait around the next corner. The Operator's effects on the Siege meta are widespread: spawnpeeking is discouraged, since an early drone sweep will see you detected close to the enemy attack force or standing still in an open window, vulnerable to headshots. Roaming is also riskier, since Lion could take away your element of surprise and easily flank you. And, like Finka, Lion is useful during a final, last-minute push to the objective, when strategy goes out the broken-down barricade in favor of sheer panic. At this stage, defenders are more likely to be scrambling around, trying to cover multiple entry points, so a well-timed drone scan can be a massive advantage. Similarly, Finka's health boost and stun resistance is a huge help to any attacking team that doesn't have the precious seconds to check for Kapkan and Ela traps when dashing into the objective room, though her adrenaline does make every ally breathe faster and thereby take more damage from Smoke's beauties.
[Lion's] effects on the Siege meta are widespread ... spawnpeeking is discouraged [and] roaming is also riskier
For those thinking Lion is simply a better Dokkaebi, think again. Dokkaebi's phone hijack cannot be countered by simply keeping still, and Lion cannot hack into enemy cameras, so the Korean will still be required to help counter the increasing ubiquity of Valkyrie cams. The two are simply interesting twists on each other, and I feel at least one of those and Jackal are needed in any good attacking lineup to stop roamers from tearing an advancing attacking team apart.
When Operation Chimera launches on March 6, it will be another step towards countering roaming, pushing defending players back into the objective room just like how we all played on Siege's launch. It's interesting, then, that Ubisoft hasn't introduced another Operator to counter the current trap meta, especially after Twitch's recent nerf. Nevertheless, the two new Operators are worthy additions to Siege's roster, with Lion in particular serving as a major shakeup that I'm eager to see in the wild.
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