Atari will start accepting pre-sales for its retro-inspired--and still largely mysterious--Atari VCS console on May 30. The company announced today that pre-sales will be handled through Indiegogo, and customers will be able to pre-order both the black Onyx version and the limited wood-front Collector's Edition. The Onyx will start at $200 for a limited time, but no price was given for the CE. Those who sign up for email alerts through the official site by May 24 will get some bonus offers during the pre-sale. Shipments are planned to begin in Spring 2019.
The VCS features some retro throwback functionality, with both an updated version of the joystick and an included vault of more than 100 classic games. However, Atari is careful to note it isn't strictly a "retro-box" and says that it will also feature functionality for a more modern controller, and the box itself will play more modern games and streaming content.
This comes after Atari pushed back the planned launch of the Indiegogo pre-sale from December, saying that a "key element" was still missing. The new announcement doesn't detail just what that was, but it seems the company is ready to proceed now.
"We continue moving forward on the Atari VCS project and are excited to see this pre-sale kickoff and to share more updates with our fans as we look toward the first shipments," said COO Michael Arzt. "We are building outstanding teams and forging alliances that will make this product great and truly worthy of the Atari VCS name. Expert hardware partners are helping make this project possible and we couldn't be more pleased with their contributions."
There was a lot of information packed into the second episode of Westworld Season 2, "Reunion." Whether it was the revelation that Dolores has been outside of the park before or Logan and William's first introduction to the possibilities the technology used to bring Westworld to life held, there was plenty to be learned throughout this installment. However, there was also one very interesting resolution to a Season 1 mystery you may have missed.
It was halfway through the pilot episode of Westworld when Peter Abernathy, the father of Dolores, found a photo of a woman in modern-day Times Square buried in the dirt on his ranch. That discovery, which wasn't explained beyond this episode, threw Peter out of his loop and eventually led to him being replaced. Now, well over a year later, the series has revisited the mystery woman.
As it turns out, the person in question is none other than William's wife, who was introduced for the first time in "Reunion." That's a very interesting development, given that the photo used was a stock photograph from Getty Images. The model in the photo, America's Next Top Model alum Claire Unabia, told The Huffington Post in 2016 that she was surprised to find out her image was used on the series: "Someone did ask if my picture may have been used for a TV show but I did not know what they were talking about so I just said it was possible," she said at the time.
However, now Unabia has returned as William's wife Juliet. It begs the question of whether this was all a set up from the beginning. While it's possible the show decided to bring her back after the pilot was filmed and aired, Westworld is also seemingly a show that knows exactly where it's going. It is unlikely that the photo was used with no intention of revisiting that particular piece of the story again.
The photographer behind the piece, Erik Von Weber, has well over a thousand photos on Getty Images, featuring a wide range of subjects. In some, he's actually taken pictures of a man in a samurai costume with a helmet practically identical to one seen in in the quick glimpses of Shogunworld.
Whatever the case, solving the mystery of who is in that Times Square photo of opens the door to several more questions: How did it get there? While it's possible the Man in Black dropped it on one of his dastardly Sweetwater adventures, how did it end up in the particular spot, and why was it now that Peter's loop allowed for him to find it? And why could he see it when Dolores couldn't?
This is exactly why fans tune into Westworld, so it's good to know the show hasn't lost its way.
Bandai Namco has inadvertently revealed the next DLC character for Dragon Ball FighterZ. Shortly after the publisher officially announced Fused Zamasu, the official Bandai Namco Taiwan Facebook page (via Siliconera) shared a trailer for another fused warrior who will be joining the roster: Vegito.
The trailer, which you can watch below, has since been removed from Bandai Namco's Facebook page, but not before fans could upload copies of it to YouTube. Vegito is the resulting fusion of Goku and Vegeta, and he naturally boasts characteristics of the two Saiyans. Like Vegeta, he's a brash and confident warrior, which comes across in his moveset; in the trailer, you can see him throwing kicks while his arms are casually crossed.
Just as in the Dragon Ball Super series, Vegito battles in his Super Saiyan Blue form. He can also use some of Goku and Vegeta's moves. The trailer ends with a brief glimpse at his special, the Final Kamehameha--a combination of Vegeta's Final Flash and Goku's signature attack.
Bandai Namco hasn't announced pricing and release details for Vegito yet, but as was the case with the first two Dragon Ball FighterZ DLC characters, he'll presumably be released alongside Fused Zamasu. The latter was officially unveiled last week and is the fused form of Goku Black and Zamasu, the evil Supreme Kai from Universe 10. Bandai Namco recently showcased Fused Zamasu in his own trailer.
Vegito will be included as part of the Dragon Ball FighterZ season pass, which runs for $35 US / £22 / $40.95 AU and gives players access to a total of eight DLC characters upon their release. The first two, Broly and Bardock, arrived back in March and could also be purchased individually for $5 US / £4 / $7.55 AU each.
We're in Golden Week right now, a week when a number of Japanese holidays just happen to be bunched together on the calendar. To celebrate, Square Enix has dropped prices on a number of PC games, notably on many entries in the Final Fantasy series. (Sony is doing a Golden Week PS4 sale as well). Below are the standouts from Square Enix's sale, but you can find the full list here.
To start with, you can get Mini Ninjas for free. To take advantage of this offer, just add it to your cart and use promo code MINININJAS at checkout. From GameSpot's Mini Ninjas review: "This action adventure is low on gruesome assassinations and high on lighthearted fun, but that doesn't mean fans of stealth-kill simulators, or anyone else for that matter, should skip over it."
Just about every Final Fantasy game available on PC right now is currently available for half off. Core installments III - VI are $8, while the later games range from $6 to $10 each. Those are great prices on some of the best RPGs in history--even if you don't prefer the art style changes Square Enix made to some of the games.
In non-Final Fantasy news, Dragon Quest Heroes and its sequel are also on sale for between $20 and $30, and a handful of other more niche titles are on sale as well.
By Anonymous on Apr 30, 2018 11:20 pm Xbox boss Phil Spencer says Microsoft probably won't make its own battle royale game, while a crew of PUBG cheaters finally gets caught.
Fortnite: Battle Royale Season 3 is coming to an end. Epic Games announced Season 4 will start Tuesday, May 1, and that means today, April 30, is Battle Pass owners' last chance to complete Season 3 challenges and reap the rewards.
Season 3 was made up of 10 weeks of challenges, ranging from blowing up opponents to finding llamas and hidden gnomes. While new challenges were revealed every seven days, you can still go back and complete previous weeks' challenges, meaning there are tons of opportunities and rewards available right now that will disappear tomorrow. In order to play, you need a Battle Pass, which can be bought in-game for 950 V-Bucks.
Of course, with Season 3 ending it means Season 4's surprises are right around the corner. Season 4 is set to begin on May 1, and presumably, we'll learn all about the game's Battle Pass and its latest skins available then. Epic Games has been teasing on Twitter that Season 4 may be superhero-themed and related to the small meteors that have been hitting the island. The latest Twitter tease features the words "brace for impact," suggesting the big meteor strike could hit and bring these superhero characters with it.
If you're hoping to make the most of the last few hours of Season 3, which is set to end at 12:30 AM PT / 3:30 AM ET / 8:30 AM BST on May 1, be sure to check out our full guide to its challenges and rewards. If you're new Fortnite, you'll want to begin by reading our 13 useful tips for starting players. For the latest news and updates on Season 4 as soon as it goes live, follow GameSpot's full Fortnite coverage.
By Anonymous on Apr 30, 2018 09:45 pm Some familiar faces appear in this week's episode of Westworld, but the show is still full of twists and mystery. Lucy and Tamoor are here to break it down and uncover some Easter Eggs you may have missed. Beware, spoilers!
Update: Somehow, Avengers: Infinity War smashed its own record. Though it was previously believed to have the biggest opening weekend of all time with an estimated $250 million dollars domestically, the latest Marvel Cinematic Universe venture actually made considerably more. According to Entertainment Weekly, Infinity War actually grossed an estimated $258.2 million over the weekend. Adding that to the $282.7 million in ticket sales internationally puts the film at $640.9 million in its first few days alone--well over halfway to a billion dollars. There's clearly no stopping Thanos and the Avengers. Original story continues below.
Avengers: Infinity War is the new record-holder at the domestic box office. The movie is expected to make $250 million by the end of Sunday in the US and Canada, which would be a new first-weekend record, surpassing Star Wars: The Force Awakens ($248 million). It's made $380 million from overseas markets for a total of $630 million worldwide. That's the biggest global first-weekend in the history of film.
Previously, The Fate of the Furious held the record with $541.9 million. According to EW, Infinity War cost around $300 million to make.
Infinity War's box office performance stands to improve further still, as the superhero movie has not yet opened in China--the world's second-largest area for movies.
One other staggering number made possible by Infinity War is $15.4 billion. That's how much money the 19 Marvel Cinematic Universe movies have made since 2008's Iron Man.
GameSpot's Infinity War review said, "Marvel has accomplished something truly incredible here, although at this point it's no more than the absurdly high-quality bar Marvel fans have come to expect. It's been a long road getting here, but it was worth it."
Rounding out the top five at the domestic box office this weekend were A Quiet Place, I Feel Pretty, Rampage, and Black Panther. You can see the full projections for the April 27-29 weekend below, as rounded up and compiled by EW.
May is right around the corner, which makes today the last opportunity to grab April's free PlayStation Plus games while they're still available. PS Plus subscribers have a few more hours to download this month's batch of free titles for PS4, PS3, and Vita before they return to their regular prices and are replaced by a new round of freebies.
As usual, April's PS Plus lineup consists of six games spread across all three of Sony's platforms. Headlining PS4's offerings is the arcade racer TrackMania Turbo, which is also compatible with PSVR. It's joined by Mad Max, an open-world car combat game based on the film series of the same name.
On PS3, subscribers can still download the colorful racer Toy Home and the top-down twin-stick shooter In Space We Brawl. Vita owners, meanwhile, can grab the side-scrolling brawler 99Vidas and the Q-Bert: Rebooted. The latter three titles are also available on PS4 via Cross Buy, giving PS4 owners a total of five potential freebies to claim this month. You can find the full list of April's free PS Plus titles below.
Any free PS Plus titles you've download will remain playable as long as you have an active subscription. However, this will be the last year that Sony offers PS3 and Vita titles as part of the service. Beginning March 8, 2019, each new monthly batch of PS Plus games will only consist of two titles for PS4.
The Xbox One X is the most powerful game console on the market right now. It can push 4K graphics, run games at impressive frame rates, and play 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray discs. But all that power comes at a price--$500, to be exact. Thanks to a promotion running today only at Best Buy, you can get more than just an Xbox One X for your $500--you can also get three games for free.
Two of the games come with the deal automatically, so you don't get to choose them. They're Destiny 2 and Madden NFL 18, both of which are Xbox One X-enhanced and received high marks in their GameSpot reviews. Fortunately, you do get to pick the third game from a selection of other Xbox One X-enhanced games.
To take advantage of the deal, first visit the sale page and click "Add to Cart" on the 1TB Xbox One X console. That puts the console in your cart, along with a physical copy of Destiny 2 and a download code for Madden NFL 18. Next, select your choice of game from the list. You can choose from recent hits like Sea of Thieves, Monster Hunter World, and Far Cry 5, or any qualifying Xbox One X-enhanced game.
In GameSpot's Xbox One X review, Jimmy Thang wrote, "While the Xbox One X is an expensive box, from a hardware standpoint, you're getting a very powerful and capable machine. You'll be hard pressed to build a comparably powerful PC for $500. On top of that, you get a 4K HDR Blu-ray player, which can cost several hundred dollars on its own."
And if you need some help deciding which model of Xbox One is right for you, the review offers various scenarios and advice.
"Should you get an Xbox One X? That answer should largely depend on whether you'd be happy with the console's library of games. You can check out a list of all the Xbox One X-enhanced games here. If you're happy with the lineup and are thinking about jumping in, allow me to outline three different scenarios for you. If you game on a 1080p TV and don't have any plans to upgrade to a 4K one, the Xbox One S is going to be a better fit for you. While you will get some graphical enhancements with the X, you don't really get your money's worth if you don't have a 4K HDR TV. But what if you already own a 4K HDR TV and an Xbox One? In this case, I'd only recommend getting the X if you have the disposable cash to spare for the increased visual fidelity and performance benefits. If you have a 4K HDR TV, don't have a current gen console, and are looking to purchase one, however, the Xbox One X is a great choice."
Some links to supporting retailers are automatically made into affiliate links, and GameSpot may receive a small share of those sales.
The men's football World Cup starts this June, and fans of the beautiful game now have an official video game to get themselves warmed up for the biggest sporting tournament in the world. EA has revealed its World Cup expansion for FIFA 18, and it's coming to PS4, Xbox One, PC, and Nintendo Switch on May 29.
For the first time, EA has opted to not release a standalone World Cup game and will instead release a free update for its most recent yearly soccer game, FIFA 18. The expansion includes all 32 teams competing in the tournament this summer, along with all 12 Russian host stadiums, official team kits and badges, and more.
Online Friendlies and Tournaments will be playable within the World Cup expansion, while Custom Tournaments will allow you to create fantasy versions of the finals where other teams qualify--helpful if you want to imagine teams such as Italy, the Netherlands, and USA did manage to get to Russia after all.
Ultimate Team, meanwhile, will receive special World Cup cards--including World Cup Icons--and a revamp to Chemistry that sees players benefit from playing alongside players from the same nation or confederation. FIFA Mobile will also get a limited-time World Cup update from June 6, though EA hasn't said much else about the smartphone version as yet.
Being an expansion, the update is built upon the core of the FIFA 18 base game. We awarded that game a 7/10 in our FIFA 18 review. "It's off the pitch that EA excels," we said. "From the variety of game modes on offer and how everything's presented, to the constant updates in FUT's Team of the Week, Daily Objectives, and discussion of real-world happenings in commentary, FIFA 18 captures the world of football and confidently translates it into a video game. On the pitch, however, EA's soccer series is still lagging far behind PES 2018's more fluid, satisfying football. This year's improvements are welcome, but more needs to be done in the coming years if FIFA is to be a world-beater once again."
Season 3 of Fortnite: Battle Royale wraps up this week, and it'll be followed immediately after by the start of Season 4. Epic Games has teased that it might be superhero-themed and tied to the ongoing meteor happenings, but it appears to be finally set to reveal the full details on Tuesday, May 1, alongside its launch.
Recent days have seen Epic continue to update a single piece of Season 4 artwork to feature additional superhero-looking characters. There are now a total of four who we've gotten a look at, while a newer piece of art (below) showcases the silhouettes of all four. Like Epic's other teases, it features the words "brace for impact," and the image suggests the long-awaited meteor crash will happen and bring with it these characters.
Small meteors recently began to hit the island, although nothing of any significance has come of that yet. It looks as if the big meteor was meant as a setup for Season 4, which is expected to bring another Battle Pass, complete with weekly challenges and new skins and other cosmetic rewards.
Epic still has provided very little official information about what to expect from Season 4, including what the Battle Pass will cost. Prior ones have only been purchasable for 950 V-Bucks, a premium in-game currency. Plans to sell Season 3's Battle Pass directly for real-world money were scrapped just before it debuted. That was viewed as less than ideal because it meant you could have to purchase more V-Bucks than are needed for the Battle Pass. On the bright side, you could use the small number of V-Bucks that can be earned by playing to put toward the Battle Pass's cost.
With Tuesday marking the end of Season 3, that makes this your last opportunity to complete Season 3's weekly challenges. If you own the Battle Pass, you'll want to crank out as many as you can to earn this season's rewards while they're still available.
Texas Frightmare Weekend is one of the most popular horror movie events on the calendar, and this year's convention will be the biggest one yet. The event is now in its thirteenth year, and fans attending the convention in Dallas-Fort Worth can enjoy two big classic horror movie cast reunions, as well as buy some fantastic new posters from poster specialists Mondo.
The casts of the '80s favorites Hellraiser and Child's Play will be getting together to introduce and discuss those much-loved movies. In addition, the new Mondo posters feature such classic films as The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Big Trouble in Little China, A Nightmare On Elm Street 4: The Dream Master, A Nightmare On Elm Street 5: The Dream Child, Nightbreed, and Child's Play 2. They will be available exclusively when doors of Texas Frightmare officially open at 6 PM on Friday, May 4, and any remaining posters will go on sale online after the convention. Check all the posters out exclusively below, with full details of the artists and how many will be available at the end of this story.
These two special screenings will kick off Texas Frightmare on Thursday, May 3. The Child's Play 30th anniversary screening includes actors Brad Dourif, Fiona Dourif, Alex Vincent, and Catherine Hicks, plus VFX expert Kevin Yagher, in person for a special post-movie Q&A. Hellraiser, meanwhile, screens later that night and will feature the reunion of the actors who play the movie's terrifying Cenobites, namely Doug Bradley, Simon Bamford, Nicholas Vince, and Barbie Wilde. Get your tickets for Child's Play here and Hellraiser here.
The convention itself takes place at the Hyatt Regency DFW Airport, but these cast reunion screenings are happening at the Alamo Drafthouse Las Colinas, which is the latest addition to the Drafthouse family of theaters. The specific location of the theater has an extra horror link too, as it is located on John Carpenter Freeway. Although the road is named after a Texas businessman, rather than the revered horror director, the theater's creative team realized that this was too good an opportunity to pass up.
As a result, the theater has an interchangeable photo opp wall that features various homages to some of Carpenter's most iconic films, such as Halloween and The Thing. There's also a complete Carpenter-themed Mondo poster gallery lining the various hallways of the theater. Check out the image below:
Join Ben and Erick as they check out the new funky mode in Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze.
Xbox boss Phil Spencer says Microsoft probably won't make its own battle royale game, while a crew of PUBG cheaters finally gets caught.
Some familiar faces appear in this week's episode of Westworld, but the show is still full of twists and mystery. Lucy and Tamoor are here to break it down and uncover some Easter Eggs you may have missed. Beware, spoilers!
May means it's time for Dark Souls Remastered, State of Decay 2, Detroit: Become Human, and more.
