Iconic Star Trek actor Patrick Stewart has announced that he will once again portray Jean-Luc Picard in a new Star Trek series. As reported by CNET, the announcement was made during a Star Trek convention being held at Las Vegas, where Stewart appeared on stage to reveal his involvement and discuss his decision to return to the character. Stewart later posted a lengthy statement on Twitter, saying that it is "an unexpected but delightful surprise" to play Picard again.
"I will always be very proud to have been a part of Star Trek: The Next Generation, but when we wrapped that final movie in the spring of 2002, I truly felt my time with Star Trek had run its natural course," he said. "It is, therefore, an unexpected but delightful surprise to find myself excited and invigorated to be returning to Jean-Luc Picard and to explore new dimensions within him. Seeking out new life for him, when I thought that life was over.
"During these past years, it has been humbling to hear stories about how The Next Generation brought people comfort, saw them through difficult periods in their lives or how the example of Jean-Luc inspired so many to follow in his footsteps, pursuing science, exploration, and leadership," he continued.
"I feel I'm ready to return to him for the same reason--to research and experience what comforting and reforming light he might shine on these often very dark times. I look forward to working with our brilliant creative team as we endeavor to bring a fresh, unexpected, and pertinent story to life once more."
According to the Star Trek: Discovery Twitter account, the new show "tells the story of the next chapter in Picard's life." In June Alex Kurtzman, who has worked on recent Star Trek movies and TV show Star Trek: Discovery, signed a five-year deal with CBS Television Studios to release several new Star Trek shows. The series focused on Picard is the first to be confirmed since that announcement, and the show will air on CBS All Access.
This is not an instant win. Winners will be selected at random and receive an email with the code. Codes are for the Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 Multiplayer Beta only and do not give access to the full game when it launches officially.
Here are the official Beta dates:
Multiplayer Beta Weekend 1:
Friday, August 3 at 10:00am PT to Monday, August 6 at 10:00am PT (PlayStation 4 only)
Multiplayer Beta Weekend 2:
Friday, August 10 at 10:00am PT to Monday, August 13 at 10:00am PT (PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC)
Saturday, August 11, 10 am PT – 10 am PT Monday, August 13 (PC Only Open Beta)
The series which has become the most played in Call of Duty history, as well as a cultural phenomenon around the globe returns October 12th with the release of Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, a gritty, grounded, all-out combat experience. Black Ops 4 raises the bar for Multiplayer mode that increases tactical gameplay and player choice, along with the biggest Zombies offering ever with three full experiences at launch, and Blackout, where the Black Ops universe comes to life in a massive battle royale experience featuring iconic characters and locations from all four Black Ops games in a one-of-a-kind offering that is uniquely Black Ops. Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 transforms the established universe played by hundreds of millions of fans with the largest gameplay experience ever created in the series.
Arc System Works' massive crossover title, BlazBlue: Cross Tag Battle, is seeing yet another roster of characters join its ranks soon. Its second season of fighters has been announced, including nine new faces from three different titles.
This season's roster includes Nine The Phantom, Mai Natsume, and Izayoi from Blazblue: Centralfiction; Yuzuriha Sougetsu, Mika Returna, and Merkava from Under Night In-Birth; and Akihiko Sanada, Labrys, and Mitsuru Kirijo from Persona 4 Arena. You can check out their previews in the trailer above.
This post-release DLC might be here a bit sooner than you were expecting too. All nine characters will be available on August 6.
BlazBlue: Cross Tag Battle is available now on PC, PS4, and Nintendo Switch. While its finals at Evo are already finished, you can still see today's final rounds in other fighting games such as Dragon Ball FighterZ, Super Smash Bros. Melee, and Street Fighter V: Arcade Edition. The full Evo 2018 schedule is here.
D.Va's mech and Reindhart's armor are finally getting the Overwatch Summer Games treatment with brand new legendary skins. The refreshing blue paint job on the mech is complimented by a cute floral outfit on its pilot. Reinhardt, meanwhile, is geared up and ready to hit the field.
D.Va's signature pink "MEKA" has now taken on a more tropical appearance, sprinkled with light blue hibiscus flower designs and white and magenta accents. D.Va herself is much more casual than her traditional uniform, with her long brown hair tossed in a bun, heart sunglasses, pink rashguard and shorts, and coordinating blue life jacket. You can see her new Waverider skin preview below.
Back on land, Reindhart's Gridironhardt skin is decked out in pads instead of armor. Instead of wiping out the front lines with a shield, this legendary skin will let you barrel through the enemy with a tackle. Check out his skin preview below.
Break enemy lines with Gridironhardt Reinhardt (Legendary)! 🏈 Join us in Busan for Summer Games, kicking off August 9. pic.twitter.com/DIHj9XmaBv
Overwatch's Summer Games event is back for its third year on August 9. Lucioball will return this year and the arena will be headed to Busnan, South Korea.
Amazon and Twitch Prime members can also pick up new freebies until September 3 in celebration of the games. For even more Overwatch news, be sure to head on over to our Overwatch hub.
Gaming's most prestigious fighting game tournament, EVO, is just around the corner. This year's competition takes place this weekend in Las Vegas, Nevada, and features some of the most recognizable names in esports battling for the top spot in a number of popular fighting games. Even if you can't attend the event in-person, however, you can still follow along with all the action online.
EVO will stream the entire competition on Twitch, so you can catch all of the matches as they unfold from the comfort of your home. The tournament kicks off on Friday, August 3, at 8 AM PT / 11 AM ET and runs through the weekend, concluding with the Top 8 Finals of Guilty Gear Xrd Rev 2, Super Smash Bros. Melee, and other games on Sunday, August 5. You can see the full tournament schedule below.
Aside from the intense competition, EVO is where developers traditionally reveal big fighting game announcements. Last year's competition featured the most world premiere announcements in the tournament's history; it offered fans their first glimpse of Trunks in Dragon Ball FighterZ and revealed the return of Skullomania, among other announcements.
This year's tournament seems like it will also feature a few surprises for fighting game fans. EVO global business dev Mark Julio teased on Twitter that gamers "definitely do not want to miss out" on the event and reiterated that last year's competition featured a "record number" of announcements. What announcements await this year remains to be seen, but you can learn more about the tournament on the official EVO website.
EVO 2018 Finals Schedule
August 5
8 AM PT / 11 AM ET -- Guilty Gear Xrd: Rev 2
10:30 AM PT / 1:30 PM ET -- Super Smash Bros. Melee
1:30 PM PT / 4:30 PM ET -- Tekken 7
4: PM / 7 PM ET -- Dragon Ball FighterZ
7:30 PM PT / 10:30 PM ET -- Street Fighter V: Arcade Edition
We're in the thick of Season 5 of Fortnite: Battle Royale on PS4, Xbox One, PC, Nintendo Switch, and iOS. As before, the latest season brings with it a selection of new challenges to complete on a weekly basis, as well as a variety of Battle Pass rewards to unlock. This time, however, Epic has made a few notable changes to the way certain Battle Pass challenges operate. Here's everything you need to know about the new Season 5 challenges, details on all of the ones available so far, and how to get them all done.
Once again, players who purchase the Season 5 Battle Pass will get a set of objectives to complete every week, which in turn will go toward leveling the Battle Pass up and unlocking new rewards. Unlike past seasons, however, weekly challenges are now divided into two categories, Free (which are available to all Fortnite players) and Battle Pass (which are reserved for those who've purchased the Pass). That means that even if you haven't bought the Battle Pass, you'll still be able to complete certain objectives and earn rewards.
If you do decide to pick up the Battle Pass partway through the season, you'll be also able to retroactively unlock any premium rewards you've earned based on the tier that you've already reached. However, one of the advantages of purchasing the Battle Pass early is bonus XP, which is awarded for playing in general and for playing in a party with friends. Since leveling up with XP translates into Battle Stars, you'll want to grab the Battle Pass as soon as you can and take advantage of these bonuses.
There are two other types of challenges to complete this season as well: Road Trip and Drift. The former are much like the Blockbuster challenges from Season 4; when you complete all of the challenges in a given week, you'll receive a special loading screen that points to the location of a hidden Battle Star. Drift challenges, on the other hand, task you with gaining a certain amount of XP. There are five Drift challenges to complete in total in Season 5, each of which reward you with a new style option for the Drift skin. If you manage to complete four out of the five Drift challenges, you'll also unlock the Rift Edge, an alternative for the pickaxe. For a limited time, you can also complete special anniversary challenges tied to Fortnite's birthday event.
You'll find a complete list of all Season 5 challenges available so far below, along with links to our maps and guides that will help you complete them all. You can see all of the new skins, cosmetics, emotes, sprays, and other items to unlock this season in our gallery of Fortnite Season 5 Battle Pass rewards.
Fortnite: Battle Royale Season 5 Challenges
Road Trip
Complete all challenges from any week -- loading screen
Complete all challenges from any 2 different weeks -- loading screen
Complete all challenges from any 3 different weeks -- loading screen
Complete all challenges from any 4 different weeks -- loading screen
Complete all challenges from any 5 different weeks -- loading screen
Complete all challenges from any 6 different weeks -- loading screen
Complete all challenges from any 7 different weeks -- loading screen
In Season 5 of Fortnite's challenges, developer Epic Games has introduced a secret Road Trip challenge that allows you to get a free Battle Pass tier. To do this you need to follow a clue to a specific location. However, there are some steps you need to complete before you can do this. The first of these is to successfully finish all of the challenges from a week for the fourth time, at which point a special loading screen will be unlocked that provides the clue you need to find the hidden Battle Pass tier.
The new secret loading screen shows a bunch of Fortnite characters having a jolly old time at the pool party in Lazy Links. If you look past all the fun and frolicking to the back wall, you'll spot an image of a camel and a drinking cup, along with a picture of the Battle Star--that's the clue you need.
The location of the prize is on the road between Paradise Palms and Lucky Landing, in quadrant G9. Head over there and you'll quite easily spot the statue and the extra goodie too. Take a look at the video above to watch us track down the Battle Star, or use the images below to see a precise location map. Remember that this will only appear if you've completed all of the challenges from four different weeks.
If you're looking for something else to do, Fortnite's 5.10 content update introduced a new limited-time mode called Fly Explosives. Jump into this and you'll be outfitted with a jetpack and explosive weapons to do some high-flying damage. After spending some time in the vault, the Guided Missile has also been re-introduced, with some changes that you can read about in the patch notes linked above. For more Fortnite Season 5 coverage, including guides on previous challenges, take a look below.
Season 5, Week 4 of Fortnite is in full swing, which means there's a bunch of new challenges to undertake. Among the newest set of challenges available to all players is one that asks you to jump through flaming hoops with a Shopping Cart or ATK. The easy part of this challenge is getting your hands on a Shopping Cart or an ATK, but from that point on you'll have to put in some legwork to find the firey hoops and hurl yourself through them. But never fear, we've got a guide here along with a map to help you find the locations of each ring you'll need.
Statistically, finding five flaming hoops is actually a little easier than you might expect, since there's more than five on the island. The easiest way to locate them is to watch our video above and follow along. We've also got a map below pointing where the flaming hoops are, as well as details on where the ones we jumped through can be found. If you're struggling to find a vehicle, the ATK--All-Terrain Kart--can typically be found without much trouble around the buildings located at Lazy Links, Fortnite's recently added golf course.
Flaming Hoop Locations
Over the cavern west of Lazy Links
Over the ice cream van between Lazy Links and Loot Lake
South of the Tomato Town tunnel
Multiple surrounding the stunt mountain
Between the Viking village and Snobby Shores
Hills north of Flush Factory
Under the bridge where the desert biome starts
East side of the southern desert bridge, near the dinosaurs
East of Paradise Palms
The other tricky challenge for Season 5, Week 4 involves searching for a Battle Star hidden somewhere on the map. As always, Epic provides a clue as to its location, but it's purposefully vague. We've hunted it down, and put together a Search Between Gas Station, Soccer Pitch, Stunt Mountain guide, so you won't have any trouble if you use that.
Another week has come and gone, and that means a fresh batch of Fortnite challenges for PS4, Xbox One, PC, Nintendo Switch, and iOS players to complete. We're now in Season 5, Week 4, and there's a full lineup of seven more challenges to complete. You can read about those below, complete with a map and location details on how to complete the week's most difficult challenge: search between a gas station, soccer pitch, and Stunt Mountain.
This challenge is only available to those with the Season 5 Battle Pass. All you have to do for it is head to the designated location and pick up the Battle Star, which can be found in grid C5 on the map, at the base of Stunt Mountain, just northwest of Tilted Towers--it's hidden near a pale white tree. This tree is located north of the gas station and just south of Pleasant Park. You can look at the images below to see exactly where it is on the map and also get a breakdown of all the challenges. Alternatively, watch the video above to see us do the challenge.
Click images for a full-size view
Other Battle Pass-only challenges for Week 4 are more straightforward. These include dealing 500 damage to enemies with a Sniper Rifle, searching seven chests in Flush Factory, and getting three pistol eliminations. None of these need to be completed in a single match, so you can slowly make progress at your own pace over the season.
In the free challenges section, the two most straightforward challenges involve building 250 structures and eliminating five opponents in Dusty Divot. The one that will eat up some time is jumping through five flaming hoops with a Shopping Cart or an ATK; we've got a separate guide to help you find all of the hoops.
Fortnite Season 5, Week 4 Challenges
Free
Build structures (250) -- 5 Battle Stars
Jump through flaming hoops with a Shopping Car or ATK (5) -- 5 Battle Stars
Eliminate opponents in Dusty Divot (3) -- 10 Battle Stars
Battle Pass
Deal damage with Sniper Rifles to opponents (500) -- 5 Battle Stars
Search Chests in Flush Factory (7) -- 5 Battle Stars
Search between a gas station, soccer pitch, and Stunt Mountain (1) -- 10 Battle Stars
Pistol Eliminations (3) -- 10 Battle Stars
Fortnite's weekly challenges allow players to unlock Battle Stars by fulfilling specific objectives. These range from simply taking out a specific set of enemies, to trickier challenges that involve following treasure maps. Completing these unlocks unique customisation items and also levels up your Battle Pass--if you have one. Challenges are split into two categories, with a set of quests for all players and then a second set available exclusively to Battle Pass owners.
Developer Epic Games recently launched Fortnite's 5.10 content update, which introduces a limited-time mode called Fly Explosives. In this mode, players are equipped with jetpacks and explosive weaponry to wreak havoc on their fellow combatants. The update also pulls the Guided Missile out of the vault and puts it back into play, albeit with some changes.
For those still doing Season 5, Week 3 challenges, you can take a look at out our guide on how to follow the Flush Factory treasure map and also the locations of all the Clay Pigeons. If you haven't already done the Fortnite birthday challenges, we've got a guide for where to find the birthday cakes too. Take a look below for a comprehensive list of our Fortnite Season 5 coverage. The list includes guides to all the challenges so far, as well as a gallery of the new cosmetics introduced in the latest season, among other recent developments surrounding the game.
The tail end of summer is here and autumn is on its way, and that can only mean football is back. Likewise, video game football is back, as EA's annual addition to the Madden franchise helps kick off both the football season and the busy release season for new games. Madden NFL 19 is coming next week, and reviews are already rolling in.
The consensus is that this year's Madden is an iterative improvement on last year's installment. Reviews run the gamut from the strongest franchise entry in years to a solid but unspectacular sequel, but all seem to agree it's dependable for some gridiron action. Our Madden NFL 19 review in progress praised the wealth of Ultimate Team activities and more precise control, but found that some changes to Longshot and Franchise XP may irk longtime fans. Read on for a variety of critical responses, and check out GameSpot's sister site Metacritic for even more reviews.
Game: Madden NFL 19
Developer / Publisher: Electronic Arts
Platforms: PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
Release date: August 10
Price: US $60 / £60 / AU $69
GameSpot (Review in Progress) -- 8/10
"Madden 19 is an excellent football game that improves on last year's entry in almost every way. There are problems, but there has never been a football game that more authentically represents the NFL than this in terms of presentation, controls, and depth. Madden 19 servers go live on August 10, and GameSpot's final review will be published after we've thoroughly tested their stability." -- Eddie Makuch [Full review]
GamesRadar -- 9/10
"Despite a few niggling issues, Madden 19 is going to be a game you'll be playing well into the Super Bowl and beyond. It effortlessly makes its way onto the series' Mount Rushmore; every swaggering step and ankle-breaking shimmy all the more reason to want to return and replay a game at the peak of its powers on the pitch. Madden has never been better in terms of cleats-on-the-ground nitty-gritty gameplay. Its periphery content, such as Longshot: Homecoming, shouldn't be overlooked, either. Care and attention has been poured into the game from opening coin toss to final whistle--and you're going to love every minute of it." -- Bradley Russell [Full review]
IGN -- 8.9/10
"Madden 19 returns the primary focus where it belongs: that moment-to-moment gameplay between the end zones. It's only true stumbling point is the lackluster story mode that fails to recapture the magic of the first, but that's entirely offset by the new player handling that once again leverages the power of the Frostbite engine. Most importantly, Madden 19 has finally cracked that slightly repetitive feel that can make it tough to go on, game after game. With Real Player Motion delivering a fluid on-the-field experience, and Franchise mode customization offering another level of realism, Madden is in a great place." -- Dustin Toms [Full review]
Digital Trends -- 8/10
"Madden NFL 19 offers an accessible Ultimate Team mode, a welcome player progression change, and minor gameplay tweaks that make the game ever so slightly more realistic. Longshot: Homecoming, however, is an unmitigated disaster." -- Steven Petite [Full review]
Game Informer -- 8/10
"Madden 19 doesn't have earth-shattering features that draw me in. Some new features don't shake out how I hoped they might, and other problems haven't been fixed. But I'm still going to spend hours with this title for the way it captures the sport and puts me in the center of it with some fantastic gameplay moments. Like when the real life team you root for loses in the playoffs, you rue the mistakes but smile at the victories that got them there. Being a video game sports fan and a fan of real-life sports is no different. Sometimes things don't always go the way you think they might, but if you can't find joy in being a part of it all, then perhaps you need to find something else to invest your time into." -- Matthew Kato [Full review]
USGamer -- 3.5/5
"Madden 19 is a solid, if occasionally ragged, follow-up to last year's big transition to Frostbite. The improvements to the animation and franchise mode stand out, but Longshot: Homecoming feels like a step back from last year's ambitious introduction. The multitude of interesting but mostly subtle updates ultimately make this an entry that is primarily geared toward hardcore fans of the series." -- Kat Bailey [Full review]
The next RPG in the Persona franchise, titled Persona Q2: New Cinema Labyrinth, just received a new Japanese trailer (see below) that revealed plenty of new details. Casts from the past three mainline games are brought together in what appears to be a charming, yet mysterious adventure with cinema as the central motif. Cinematics and gameplay were shown off, as well as adorable chibi versions of Persona 5's Phantom Thieves to fit the Persona Q aesthetic.
Like the first Q spin-off game--with Rei and Zen--new characters are thrown into the mix. The currently unnamed character is shown standing in front of a theater screen and later falling from a building; there's also shadow-like figure standing in a film room. During the brief gameplay clips in the trailer, you can see a party made up of the three main protagonists, Makoto Niijima, and Yukari Takeba. Afterward, you can see the Persona 3 protagonist casting a spell with a Persona 5-style graphical cut-in for effective attacks. A dialogue sequence also shows Ann Takamaki talking with Teddie and Yu Narukami, Caroline and Justine tripping over themselves, and Ann with Goro Akechi investigating the theater.
It seems there's a misunderstanding as the Persona 4 and 5 main characters; they're seen fighting each other hand-to-hand. Lastly, a wonderful surprise comes at the end of the trailer which shows the optional female protagonist from Persona 3 Portable.
The long-running franchise is known for its stellar character development and dynamic turn-based combat. As spin-offs of Shin Megami Tensei, Persona 3, 4, and 5 in particular merged elements of the social simulation genre and traditional RPGs to create unique and powerful experiences. Persona Q adopts the dungeon-crawling exploration and modified turn-based combat style seen in the Etrian Odyssey franchise while staying true to the spirit of the core Persona games.
Persona Q2: New Cinema Labyrinth launches in Japan on November 29, 2018 for Nintendo 3DS. Details on a localized version for the West has not yet been revealed. More information on the game will be given on August 6.
We consider Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth one of the best 3DS games available; it unites the Investigation Team and SEES for a challenging and charming RPG. We also awarded second place to Persona 5 in our best games of 2017 list. This year marks the 10-year anniversary of Persona 4, be sure to read our retrospective feature in celebration of the game's impact and legacy.
Not only can you play as a good boy in this new title from Spooky Squid Games, you can help save some real good boys too. With each purchase of Russian Subway Dogs on PC and Mac until August 8, $1 will go to Save Our Scruffs, a charity dedicated to finding rescue dogs safe homes around the world.
From the team that brought They Bleed Pixels to life comes a new pixelated arcade game. In Russian Subway Dogs, you'll play as one of man's best friends just trying to live another day in the Moscow Metro, swiping food from Russian commuters.
In the game's campaign, you'll follow Proletaricat and her chaotic kittens in 100 levels inspired by real-world train stations. But in order to get those sweet treats, your good boy will have to dodge vodka, rival pups, and an elusive subway bear. If stories aren't your jam, there's also an endless mode complete with leaderboards.
You can wag your money at Russian Subway Dogs right now via Steam on PC and Mac for $15. During its launch week, you can snag a small bonus treat in the form of 10 percent off.
FIFA 19's release date is fast approaching, and publisher EA has finally unveiled more of the game's new features. Possibly the most intriguing change is an overhaul of Kick Off, which was hitherto a standard exhibition mode. In addition, FUT 19, or Ultimate Team, has replaced Online Seasons with a new sub-mode named Division Rivals.
FIFA 19's Kick Off brings more options than any pervious version of the mode. You can still play what's now called a Classic Match if you don't like change, or you can utilize any number of new options. You can specifically choose to make your match Champions League-themed, which will rebrand it with the official logos and replace commentators Martin Tyler and Alan Smith with Derek Rae and Lee Dixon; alternatively, you can do the same but for the Europa League.
You can also decide to play a two-legged match, where you play with the same two teams with each side playing at home once and away once (with the away goals rule active in the event of a draw). Similarly, you can set up a Best Of series, where you play a three- or five-match series against a friend or the AI.
The most interesting aspect of the overhauled Kick Off, however, is the ability to set House Rules. This is something many FIFA players have been doing themselves for years while playing against friends, but now EA will allow you to input special laws into your match. For example, you can prevent short-range goals from counting towards the scoreline, or force your mates to score from headers and volleys only.
Ultimate Team won't be overhauled in quite the same way, but it still comes boasting a couple of new features. Online Seasons is no more; Offline Seasons will still be available but the online equivalent is to be replaced by Division Rivals. These are weekly competitions against those of a similar skill level to you, all with dynamically updated objectives. EA says it wants to reduce the amount of grinding required in FIFA's online modes, so this year you can obtain Champion Points to gain access to the weekend's Champions competitions. FUT is also adding a Champions Channel, where you can view previous Champions matches and analyze how players performed in those games. Confirmed Icons for FIFA 19 include Rivaldo, Johan Cruyff, Frank Lampard, Steven Gerrard, Eusebio, Clarence Seedorf, Claude Makelele, and Raul.
Outside of FUT and Kick Off, we know FIFA 19 will conclude Alex Hunter's story in The Journey, while we can expect improvements to Career Mode and Pro Clubs. For more information on those and more on FIFA 19, keep an eye on GameSpot.
FIFA 19 launches worldwide on September 28 for PS4, Xbox One, PC, Nintendo Switch, PS3, and Xbox 360. That's around a month after its closest rival, PES 2019, which also has a demo out very soon. For more on EA's sporting behemoth, check out our big feature on the 19 best new FIFA 19 features you might have missed.
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