While WWE's sports entertainment programming is totally predetermined, mixing athletic feats with storylines and choreography, there's just something interesting about hearing all the backstage rumors about each show. More often than not, these rumors are totally bunk, but most wrestling fans enjoy knowing more about what's going on backstage, even if the info isn't 100% accurate.
Things are sure to get chaotic when WWE's PPV Hell in a Cell comes to the WWE Network and PPV on Sunday, September 16. This year's event will be hosted by the AT&T Center in Dallas, Texas, and the show will begin at 7 PM ET / 4 PM PT with a Kickoff Show starting one hour prior. There will be multiple title matches and at least two confirmed Hell in a Cell matches at the show.
So far, there aren't any huge rumors leading into Hell in a Cell yet, but WWE programming still has to get through this week's episodes of Raw and Smackdown to push forward, which is usually when the rumor mill really starts moving. Below, you can see the latest rumors for the upcoming PPV. If you'd like to know more, check out the updated match card for the show.
As rumors get confirmed or debunked, we'll keep you updated.
Becky Lynch and Charlotte have been battling back and forth on Twitter, and Charlotte posed the idea that their match should be a Hell in a Cell match. As of this writing, that would make three of the event's matches contested inside the cage.
The AT&T Center has revealed some of the card for the PPV. One match has not been confirmed by WWE, and the card is always subject to change. The new addition is Rollins & Ambrose vs Ziggler and McIntyre for the Raw Tag Team Championships.
Shawn Michaels may be coming out of retirement for the next Saudi Arabia show on November second, according to Wrestling Observer. Apparently, he would be involved in a tag match.
Make sure to come back to GameSpot on Sunday for live coverage of Hell in a Cell.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 4's private Blackout beta is now live for some players. The beta has officially kicked off on PS4 today, September 10, giving those who've pre-ordered the title their first chance to go hands-on with the new battle royale-inspired mode before Black Ops 4 launches next month.
As previously detailed, the beta supports up to 80 players and can be played either solo, in duos, or in four-player teams called quads. As in Fortnite and PUBG, players skydive onto a large island at the start of a match and compete to be the last one remaining, seeking out and collecting weapons and other gear, battling other players, and avoiding environmental hazards like zombies while the battlefield gradually shrinks in size.
In keeping with the spirit of Black Ops, Blackout features numerous callbacks and elements from previous installments in the series. The island, which developer Treyarch claims is 1,500 times larger than Nuketown, is made up of many areas inspired by previous Black Ops maps, and players can play as a number of returning Black Ops characters, such as Reznov, Mason, Woods, Ajax, and Seraph. Players will also be able to find and use many weapons and pieces of equipment taken from past Black Ops games.
The Blackout beta will be open exclusively to PS4 players until 10 AM PT / 1 PM ET on September 14, at which time it will also open to Xbox One and PC players who've pre-ordered Black Ops 4. PC players who have a Battle.net account will be able to jump in to the beta beginning September 15. The beta concludes on all platforms at 10 AM PT / 1 PM ET on September 17. You can read more details about the Blackout beta here and watch us try it out in the video above.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 launches for PS4, Xbox One, and PC on October 12. Among other new features, the game introduces signature weapons--cosmetic gun variants you'll be able to unlock by completing challenges. Activision is releasing the title in multiple editions; you can learn more about each in our Black Ops 4 pre-order guide.
Since the beginning, the central conflict in the Assassin's Creed series has been freedom vs. control. For the most part, we've been placed on the side of freedom and fought to give others the right to choose how they want to live. Ironically, we haven't had much choice in how we go about it, and have repeatedly followed a controlled narrative in each entry that forced us to kill certain characters, spare others, and react to the world in a specific way.
Assassin's Creed Odyssey changes that and delivers an unprecedented level of freedom in its combat and dialogue. The game even allows you to choose your romantic partner, personal allegiance, and which people deserve to die--including normal civilians and several of the assassination targets.
In the opening eight to ten hours of Assassin's Creed Odyssey, our travels through ancient Greece introduced us to a large supporting cast of characters, gave us our first taste of Odyssey's naval combat, and allowed us to experience the effects of choosing certain dialogue responses over others. We got a pretty comprehensive idea of the differences in combat and how the introductory skills in Odyssey work too, as we played through the game's opening hours with Alexios as a powerful melee fighter and bow wielder, and then again with Kassandra as a speedy and stealthy assassin who relied on small daggers.
As we played through Odyssey's opening chapters, we noticed the game repeatedly go out of its way to give the player the ability to choose. Kassandra and Alexios may be its protagonists, but the next Assassin's Creed is all about you living your own odyssey. For the most part, it works, but some of the new innovations suffer from solely focusing on the player's needs and not those of the game's characters.
New Skills Are Unlocked Quickly And Make Fights More Fluid
You level up and unlock new skills fairly quickly at the start of Assassin's Creed Odyssey, giving you plenty of opportunities to experiment with new abilities. At the start, the only abilities available to you will be different types of archery shots, melee attacks, and stealth skills. The higher end abilities that sheath your blade in fire or perform other seemingly magical attacks are locked until you progress a certain ways through the story.
Like Assassin's Creed Origins, the use of these skills runs on an adrenaline meter. However, adrenaline fills a lot faster in Odyssey, so it's easier to chain together many skills in a row to pull off devastating combos in combat or stealthily slice your way through an enemy compound in mere moments.
Kassandra and Alexios do not use shields, so the shield bashing skills from Origins are gone. However, plenty of Bayek's other abilities make a return, including using a special vision to sense and tag enemies through walls or controlling the trajectory of an arrow after you've fired it into the air.
The new skills are way more fun, though. Spartan kick deals tons of damage and is a good way of putting some space between you and a powerful enemy. Ubisoft has even nicely stationed several foes alongside the edges of cliffs or towers in the early areas whose sole purpose seems to only be to stand there until they're sadisticly kicked into oblivion. Compared to Bayek, Kassandra and Alexios have a lot more creative stealth skills as well, including a particularly effective one that allows you to throw out a knife into a person's back and immediately appear behind them to finish them off before then throwing the knife into another target. It's like Kassandra/Alexios are teleporting from one enemy to the next, but the game describes it as them being so fast and sneaky that enemies can't keep track of them.
Instead of putting all your points into new skills, you can also spend them on upgrading your existing ones too. For example, the teleporting knife throwing skill only chains up to two targets at first, but you can use additional points to raise that number. And if you don't like the skills you've unlocked or upgraded, Odyssey lets you respec your protagonist at any time.
Romancing Someone Can Be A Little Creepy
In our time with the demo, we only found one person we could flirt and start a relationship with. Her name is Odessa and she's a direct descendent of the legendary Greek hero Odysseus, the protagonist of Homer's Odyssey. Odessa is attracted to both Kassandra and Alexios so you'll be able to romance her regardless of which character you choose.
Romance in Odyssey plays out a lot like the romantic storylines in Mass Effect: Andromeda. One of the dialogue choices for when you meet someone you can romance will have a little heart next to it. Clicking that choice causes Kassandra/Alexios to flirt with that person. Do it enough times and the game transitions into a scene where both characters are intimate. It's very straightforward and easy to do if you want to romance someone, and just as simple to avoid it if you don't want to.
The problem with romancing Odessa, is that you have to be a huge creep to "woo" her. If you choose to romance Odessa, you have to continue flirting with her and pushing for her to have sex with you while she's asking you to help her gather medicine for her dying father or pleading with you to save her life from some men who want her dead. And when you do help her and she finally agrees to have sex with you, you can ask if she wants to go again. She resists--saying she's tired from the sex you both had literally seconds prior--but she appreciate your advances and you can then offer for her to serve on your crew so she can find the meaning in her life she's been desperately seeking. She's then available to help you in boarding parties during naval combat.
Forging the relationship feels very formulaic and unnatural. There are cute moments--especially at the start--but the overall experience leaves a bad taste in your mouth. It's a moment where Odyssey's message of this being a journey for the player gets in the way of the gameplay. The Odessa romance is purposely built for you to have the girl if you want her, and dispose of her if you don't--you can literally leave her locked in a cage on an island. By the end, we didn't feel like we'd formed a loving connection with a special person; rather we'd chosen to recruit someone who felt indebted to us. Hopefully there are other romantic storylines in Odyssey that feel a bit more like actually falling in love.
Shaping The Protagonist's Words Can Create Amusing Consequences
Despite having the choice of choosing what Kassandra or Alexios can say to someone, the dialogue in the game has been structured to fit a specific archetype. Kassandra and Alexios are hot-headed, stubborn, and very opinionated so all of their dialogue choices reflect that. When an annoying woman is badgering the protagonists about finding her stolen wood, they can either ask her to be patient with a hint of annoyance in their voice or angrily yell at her and tell her to shut up while they go get her wood. Both answers are technically the same--in both instances Kassandra and Alexios are getting tired of being badgered about getting this woman's wood they already agreed to find--but the player decides whether or not the protagonist should keep their emotions under control.
There are a few moments where you'll be able to use dialogue to solve problems. For instance, you can help a praying woman by having the protagonists speak out and pretend to be the god Hermes. It's hilarious how easily the woman believes in the ruse, but it convinces her to return home to her family. You can continue the charade by following her home and leaving the gold she was praying for on her doorstep.
During the demo, we also got to see how our dialogue choices can affect the game's story. Not all of the choices in Odyssey lead to the result you think, and you'll have to be careful. A positive action does not always yield a positive response. Early on in the game, we learned about some plague victims. After investigating the situation, it seemed like the civilians in quarantine were clean, so we allowed them to return to their lives. It wasn't until much later--after we'd sailed away from the island--that we learned the plague had spread from those civilians and killed more people. Ubisoft informed us that had we allowed the guards to continue detaining the quarantined citizens against their will, the plague would have ended.
Another surprise was the lack of complete censorship in Odyssey's dialogue. Although a few words--like "mercenary" and "hello"--are spoken in the native tongue, the protagonist and the other characters they meet all freely swear without being censored by the Animus. We've never heard an Assassin's Creed protagonist drop so many f-bombs before. It's a little jarring at first but we quickly got used to it, and it occasionally makes Kassandra/Alexios' angry outbursts a little funnier.
Naval Travel Is Tedious
Naval travel is so slow in Assassin's Creed Odyssey. From a historical sense, it's understandable that Odyssey's protagonists wouldn't have access to the same technology seen in Assassin's Creed 3, 4: Black Flag, and Rogue, so their vessel would be slower than Ratohnhake:ton's Aquila, Edward's Jackdaw, and Shay's Morrigan. That doesn't change how annoying it is when it comes time to sail on a longer voyage, and it certainly doesn't help that the ocean lacks the same vibrant life and activity that made exploring so enjoyable in Black Flag. After playing the mandatory naval missions, we steered clear of the optional ones.
Naval combat is still pretty fun, although you'll often be ramming into and sinking ships in the beginning of the game instead of boarding them. If you do choose to only wound a vessel and leap aboard, an army will no longer follow after you. A few sailors might join you, but you'll mostly be on your own. If you want a boarding party, you'll have to recruit people for the job--in a similar style to Metal Gear Solid 5: Phantom Pain. You find someone you want to recruit, knock them out with a Spartan kick or melee takedown, and then abduct them. When they wake up, they can be assigned as an officer within your crew.
Officer recruitment is another unfortunate example where Odyssey's mission to cater to the player has a negative effect on the gameplay. It would have been nice to have specific missions devoted to acquiring officers--similar to Assassin's Creed 3's assassin recruit missions--so each member of your crew had a bit more personality. But again, your crew's story and their choices don't matter, it's yours that does. It's also a little weird that everyone you kidnap is just okay with serving under you, even if just prior to being knocked out you killed every one of their fellow soldiers. Apparently, no one you abduct has a family who misses them either.
Like the weapons and gear you find, each potential officer has a rarity level and extra attributes. For example, a common enemy archer we recruited increased the number of arrows our ship could fire by a tiny percent and he brought a small contingent of soldiers with him when he joined us while boarding an enemy ship. Meanwhile, Odessa--who's very skilled with both a bow and sword and considered a rare character--increases our ship's arrow barrage damage by a significant amount, remains by our side while on enemy ships, attracts a sizable boarding party, and can kill most sailors in just one to two hits. At the start, you can only assign one officer, but if you choose to upgrade the size of your ship then you'll be able to pick up to four.
Assassin's Creed Odyssey releases on October 5 for Xbox One, PS4, and PC. The game comes with certain in-game bonuses depending on where you pre-order it from and what edition you buy, of which there are quite a few.
One of the most enjoyable aspects of controlling Spider-Man in the new PS4 game is the steady flow of new skills, upgrades, and gadgets to incorporate into your superhero repertoire. Peter Parker is a capable combatant from the start but he can move faster, hit harder, and protect himself from harm more easily if you take the time to dress him for success. Understanding when and how to use your gadgets is a great first step in the right direction.
Let's breakdown each of Spider-Man's gadgets, and look at some examples of when you should put them into action.
The Web Shooter is the most important tool in your kit, and one that you will use most-often throughout the game--unlike other gadgets, an empty Web Shooter only needs a few seconds to recharge. At its most basic, a single web shot is an effective means of momentarily staggering an enemy. A few consecutive shots can also be used to ensnare a target and make them available as a weight to swing around and knock over other enemies, or, if an enemy is close to a wall, a few shots will attach them to it. You'll have fun if you tinker with Spider-Man's more advanced gadgets, but if you're alert enough, you could simply get by with the Web Shooters alone--they're that effective.
Impact Web
The next step up f is the Impact Web gadget. Think of this as a weapon that fires a condensed blast from your standard shooters, one powerful enough to instantly knock back and web up a bad guy. You can only hold a couple of shots until you upgrade the gadget, but even with those added rounds it's not something you can spam on a regular basis.
When fully upgraded, the Impact Web can deploy a blast that causes the initial target to spread Spidey's web to any other enemy they come into contact with. Consider facing a crowd of enemies and treating them like bowling pins just waiting to be knocked down. Do this, and follow-up with a ground-pound attack (unlocked in the skill tree) to add insult to injury. You can also grab hold of the impacted enemies and use them as a projectile to harm or momentarily disable any other nearby enemies.
Spider Drone
The Spider Drone is a handy little sidekick that can float nearby Spider-Man and stun enemies with a beam of electricity. It is a great tool to activate if you find yourself surrounded by enemies, either to open a window of time for an escape, or, to give you a fighting chance of taking on the entire group.
Electric Web
From a tactical standpoint, the Electric Web gadget is one of the most useful and simple-to-understand of the bunch, perhaps only second to the standard Web Shooters. Like the Spider Drone, the Electric Web can stun enemies, but you get to manually pick your target.
The best part? Any enemies standing nearby your initial target will become stunned as well. It's not the only gadget for the job, but if you see a crowd of enemies running at you or simply standing by while you move about unnoticed, the Electric Web is a handy way of gaining the upper hand before entering the fray. After a few upgrades, you'll be able to stock extra electric ammo and enjoy a shocking arc that jumps farther away from your initial target.
Web Bomb
Just like the Electric Web, your Web Bomb gadget is great for crown control (it explodes webs that trap enemies within a small area) though it has a couple of distinct advantages to keep in mind. Unlike the Electric Web, you don't need to fire a direct hit. Simply aim at the environment and the Web Bomb will detonate after a few seconds and entrap anyone that comes close.
More importantly, there are many skills that allow you to manipulate webbed enemies to your advantage, compared to enemies that are simply stunned. A well-placed Web Bomb gives you plenty of vulnerable bad guys to grab with your webbing and swing around to give yourself some breathing room.
Upgrades for the Web Bomb will grant you more ammo, and increase the size of the web explosion.
Trip Mine
If you know an enemy is patrolling a specific route and want to catch them at just the right location, Spider-Man's Trip Mine is the perfect solution. Essentially, when an enemy comes close enough, the mine will explode and ensnare them.
The logical place to put a mine is on the ground or a wall, but consider that they will also stick to enemies and your opportunities get a bit more interesting. An activated mine on an enemy will essentially grab the nearest person and slam them into the original target. It's how you unlock the 'Hug It Out' trophy, and it's worth a laugh the first few times you do it.
Concussive Blast
The Concussive Blast is a useful gadget that emits a powerful sonic wave, causing nearby enemies to tumble backwards. It's useful in a lot of scenarios, but none more so than when fighting on a rooftop. A flick of your wrist is all it takes to send enemies flying over the edge, instantly knocking them out of combat.
Suspension Matrix
One of the best parts of playing as Spider-Man is controlling his antics in mid-air, and that's precisely why the Suspension Matrix is not just a useful gadget, but a fun one to boot. An enemy off the ground is also a vulnerable enemy, and with the quick press of a button you can not only zip up to your next target, but also set yourself up for a new set of combos, such as a series of melee attacks and a final web-grab-and-toss motion that sends them careening into their buddies.
(Spoilers ahead for both the game and Avengers: Infinity War.) If you're still a little raw after the brutal ending of Avengers: Infinity War, then seeing this suit in action in the PS4-exclusive Spider-Man title may either make you very happy (yay this costume is great and I can pretend everything is OK with Peter Parker) or very, very sad (oh god it just reminds me of that last scene with Tony Stark MY FEELINGS). Either way, the Iron Spider suit stands as one of the most visually striking in the game, and it makes swinging through the skyscrapers of New York just that little bit cooler.
Unsurprisingly, this suit's power mimics the one seen in the movie, and sprouts four mechanical arms from Spidey's back when activated. Within the game, these arms add extra power to Spidey's attacks, allowing you to bust through even the strongest enemies' defenses (including shielded foes and those pesky brutes), as well as hit multiple enemies at once. When you're surrounded and need a quick way to land some hits regardless of the enemy types around you, this suit's Iron Arms power is a lifesaver.
The Iron Spider Suit unlocks about two-thirds of the way into the game, and when looking at the suits list, it's the 17th you'll have access to. The first thing you'll need to do to nab the Iron Spider is reach level 31. After that, you'll need to have four crime tokens accumulated, as well as three base tokens and three challenge ones. Once you have those, then Stark's hopefully-not-final creation for young Peter Parker is yours for the taking.
If you're not a fan of the white spider logo costume you've probably seen Spidey rock in most of the pre-release videos and images of Marvel's Spider-Man for PS4, then never fear. Not only does the game feature more than 20 alternate suits (check out our full list of suits coming soon), but it also features the webslinger's popular Tony Stark-created suit featured in recent big screen films like Captain America: Civil War and Spider-Man: Homecoming.
The Stark Suit--as it's referred to in the game--is actually one of the first ones you'll have access to. That's a huge plus, as not only is this suit one of the most aesthetically awesome costumes Spidey's worn in either the comics or in movies, it also unlocks what is probably one of the most useful powers in the game: Spider-Bro. Initiating Spider-Bro releases a small drone that flies around Spider-Man and zaps enemies with electricity, rendering them temporarily paralyzed and making them easy pickings. The effect lasts for a decent amount of time as well, meaning Spider-Bro can easily become your favorite crowd control move in the entire game.
Unlocking the Stark Suit is pretty straightforward. If you've just started the game and are looking at a mainly empty list of boxes in your suits menu, the Stark Suit is actually eighth on the list. You'll need to be level 10 to get the chance to unlock it, but once you're there, you'll also need a few of the tokens you've likely already been collecting around New York--specifically, one base token, one research token, and three crime tokens.
And the high tech Stark Suit isn't the only one from the Homecoming movie featured in the game. If you recall, the Peter Parker in that movie started his crime fighting wearing a simple red hoodie and blue pants, and that simple homemade suit can also eventually be unlocked and worn in this PS4 Spidey title. This suit doesn't have a specific power that it comes with, and will probably take you a while to achieve, as you'll need to find every backpack hidden throughout the game.
Marvel's Spider-Man is out exclusively for PlayStation 4. Check out of all of our recent coverage around the game, including:
While you've been swinging through the buildings of New York City in Insomniac's Spider-Man, what was supposed to be a love story for the ages has turned into one of the saddest easter eggs of all time.
Tyler Schultz reached out to Insomniac back in May, wanting to propose to his then-girlfriend in a "big way." Marvel's Bill Rosemann and Insomniac both replied to Schultz and made the proposal idea a reality. Right now, there's a marquis sign that reads "Maddie, will you marry me?" hiding in the corners of the city.
Unfortunately, according to Schultz, Madison did not wait. In a vlog, Schultz details how to find the easter egg and claims his girlfriend left him just weeks before he could pop the question.
"I'm actually kind of happy it's in this game," Schultz says in the vlog. "A lot of people, when I told them how I was going to propose to her, I don't think they understood that there was a literal piece of this game that anybody can go to."
Jacina Chew, Insomniac's art director for Spider-Man, offered Schultz her condolences in a reply to the sad tale. She's offered to change the sign in a future update.
Insomniac and Marvel's Spider-Man is filled to the brim with other Easter eggs too, so make sure to check out our favorites. For even more (hopefully less sad) Spidey news, head on over to our Spider-Man hub.
With Monster Hunter: World out now on PC, it's roster of monsters can finally grow. In the PC version's first update, the Deviljho has entered the fray.
Among a number of other bug fixes, this first update includes the first Deviljho mission. The update also includes the Deviljho weapons and Vangis α and β armor sets. It will start invading six and seven-star missions, as well as high-rank missions once "??? Rathian" has been completed.
This update also includes a few other goodies. A specialized tool called the Dragonproof Mantle and a new DLC Astera 3 Star Chef Coat outfit for the handler. The handler's outfit appears to be the only paid piece of this update.
For more details on this update about bugs and the rest of its fixes, head on over to the Steam page. For more on this monster-slaying title, check out our Monster Hunter: World hub.
The Conjuring series has become one of the most successful horror franchises of the past decade and it keeps getting bigger. The Nun is the fifth movie in the interconnected Conjuring universe and it has scored the biggest opening to date, comfortably taking the top slot on this weekend's box office chart.
The movie scored an estimated $53.5 million in its first three days in the US. As Box Office Mojo points out, this is even higher than The Conjuring's $41.8 million take in 2014 and is the second highest September opening of all time. Like all the movies in the series--which also includes Annabelle and its prequel--The Nun was made on a modest budget, in this case, a reported $22 million. With an estimated worldwide weekend take of $131 million, we can expect plenty more movies in the series.
The week's second highest new entry was the revenge thriller Peppermint, which marked Alias star Jennifer Garner's return to the action genre. Despite largely negative reviews, it debuted with a respectable $13.3 million weekend gross and entered the chart at No.3. The hugely popular romcom Crazy Rich Asians dropped to No.2, after spending three weeks at the top and boasting a US total of $136.2 to date.
Mission Impossible: Fallout remains strong at No.6 in its seventh week of release; with a worldwide gross $726.6 million, the movie is now the most successful in the entire series. Elsewhere, the shark thriller The Meg slipped to No.4 and the acclaimed thriller Searching moved to No.5, with Disney's Christopher Robin, Operation Finale, Alpha and BlacKkKlansman making up the rest of the Top 10.
You can see the full Top 10 list for the September 7-9 US box office below, as compiled by Box Office Mojo.
Destiny 2's Forsaken DLC expansion arrived this week, bringing with it a wealth of new content and changes. A number of adjustments went into effect with a patch released a week prior to Forsaken, but we're now getting to see exactly what Year 2 is going to be like for Destiny 2.
Whether you've already started Forsaken or are just beginning to dive in this weekend, there are some notable tweaks and tips you should be aware of. In typical Destiny fashion, things aren't always spelled-out in-game, and you can easily shoot yourself in the foot and waste time if you aren't completely familiar with all of the game's systems.
With that in mind, we've rounded up some key tips you'll want to be aware of, along with some other advice about how to approach the game and some notable issues the game is currently suffering from. No, it's not just you--the clan bounties are frustrating right now. Also be sure to check out our Gambit guide for some advice on how to excel in the cool new PvP/PvE hybrid mode, and our Forsaken review-in-progress for our thoughts on the game so far.
Dismantle Old, Unwanted Gear, Items, And Mods
When first diving in to Forsaken, there are a number of tasks you can take care of right away. Thanks to the introduction of new, more desirable gear and the introduction of an expanded Collection, you can feel free to dismantle your old gear and net yourself some Legendary Shards. The Collection allows you to peruse all weapons, armor, sparrows, shaders, and so on in the game. This lets you both see how to obtain things you don't have and pay to retrieve items you've previously gotten your hands on. The exception is Year 2 gear with randomized rolls; you'll need to earn those and hang on to them if you want to use them. But the bright side is you can now purchase an unlimited supply of shaders and dismantle things like ships and then get them back later.
As for mods, the system has been totally overhauled, and all of your existing mods have been deprecated. That means they're no longer usable and can be safely dismantled. While you might have some desire to hold on to old gear, the mods are something you have no reason to keep.
Grab Your Bounties Every Day
Another thing to do right away--and every day--is grabbing the appropriate bounties. Zavala and Shaxx at the Tower each offer five daily bounties for Strikes and Crucible, respectively, but you'll also want to hit up Hawthorne for clan bounties (some of which require you to do things in a fireteam with a clanmate), Tess for a weekly Eververse bounty (you'll also be able to periodically get additional bounties from her when you obtain an Eververse Bounty Note), and the Drifter for Gambit bounties. (The Drifter is found in the same area as Ikora, hiding in an alleyway to the right of the ramen shop--just crouch under the gate to get to him.) Each location's vendor, including the Tangled Shore's Spider, also has additional bounties specific to that area. Grab them as soon as you go somewhere to ensure you don't waste any effort.
Of course, bounties cost a small amount of glimmer to obtain. If you don't plan to play Gambit on a particular day, for instance, there's no sense in grabbing those bounties.
Check Your Challenges In The Director Regularly
Keeping an eye on the Director--that is, your map that lets you view the various locations and activities available to you--is critical for tracking desirable rewards. Raising your Power level to 500 is relatively easy in Forsaken; taking part in story missions, public events, and Crucible/Gambit can earn you Rare (blue) gear that can get you to that point. Getting past 500 is where the grind truly begins. One reliable way of increasing your Power level is by obtaining so-called Powerful gear, which will come with a Power level higher than your current overall number.
Powerful gear is rewarded for completing a number of different challenges. Unlike in the past, where these challenges could be seen by pulling up the "blade" on the left side of the Director, these are now primarily tied to specific locations and activity playlists. Jump into the Vanguard section of the Director, for instance, and you can hover over the Vanguard Strikes playlist to see what you have to do to earn a piece of Powerful gear. Be sure to check out everything in the Director that promises you a reward to ensure you're earning all of your Powerful gear rewards before the weekly reset, which happens each Tuesday. To make it easy, you'll see a yellow icon next to any area/playlist that has a challenge available.
Spend Glimmer At Spider
You'll inevitably hit the glimmer cap of 100,000 at some point; grinding out patrols and public events, in particular, will get you there fairly quickly. Rather than let your further earnings go to waste, be sure to spend that money. The first Tier upgrade on any piece of gear only costs glimmer, so that's one way to go about it. But with the removal of the old mod system, you no longer have Banshee-44 and his random mods to throw glimmer at.
The vendor you'll likely want to visit whenever your wallet is full is Spider, the new, Jabba the Hutt-esque NPC you encounter on the Tangled Shore early in Forsaken's campaign. Alongside the many bounties he offers, he also allows you to purchase a number of items, including planetary materials. While these are now quite easy to come across if you spend time doing patrols and public events, they do serve as the primary source of reputation gains with the respective location vendors and are now used in infusion. If you have no other use for your glimmer, grab a bunch of materials from Spider.
Considering Buying Masterwork Cores Daily
And while you're at Spider, you may want to buy yourself some Masterwork Cores. These are more valuable than ever; in addition to being a necessary aspect of upgrading an item past a certain point, they're also sometimes used for infusion, including doing so with Exotics. Obtaining Masterwork Cores can be done by breaking down a Masterwork item, but that of course requires one to drop for you in the first place.
Your alternative is to buy Masterwork Cores from Spider. Alongside the planetary materials mentioned above, glimmer, and Legendary Shards, he sells Masterwork Cores. They cost Legendary Shards, and each subsequent one you buy increases the cost. However, this price resets each day. Provided you have Shards to spare, it makes sense to buy at least one Masterwork Core per day to ensure you have some handy when you need them.
Understanding The New Infusion System
Bungie has overhauled the process of infusion, where you use the power of one item to increase that of another (destroying the more powerful one in the process). This change went into effect just prior to Forsaken, and the overriding point is that infusion is not something you'll blindly do for every item you get, as in the past. You'll need to be more thoughtful about what gets infused, as the price has increased, now requiring planetary materials and sometimes Masterwork Cores.
Unlike before, you no longer have to use a weapon or piece of armor from the same slot to infuse something. In other words, a pulse rifle can be infused using a hand cannon; it doesn't have to be another pulse rifle. But if you use a duplicate of an item, infusion merely costs glimmer. You'll of course want to be sure which version you want to keep, as the new random rolls system means two of the same weapon or armor can be significantly different (and you may actually want to keep duplicates due to their rolls). But if you're looking for a cheap way to infuse, using a dupe is the way to go.
Don't Miss Your New Subclass Trees
Among Forsaken's additions are new subclass trees. You get your first one through a milestone, New Powers (seen in the blade accessed through the Director), given to you early in the campaign. For this, you have to complete Visions of Light, which are items dropped by enemies with yellow health bars. Collect 100 and it'll unlock a mission on Io; a milestone notification will pop up when you do so, but it can be easy to miss, so be sure to keep a close eye on it. Complete the mission and you earn a Seed of Light, which is used to unlock your choice of a new subclass tree.
Be sure to think through your choice, because getting your other two subclass trees is not quite as easy or quick. Based on what players have reported, you'll earn additional Seeds of Light by completing the Blind Well activity, which is unlocked after finishing Forsaken's campaign. Manage to successfully finish the Blind Well, and a Seed will potentially drop.
Stop Deleting Shaders One By One
Among the many quality-of-life changes Destiny 2 has received recently is the ability to bulk delete shaders. Rather than getting rid of them one by one, you can now visit Rahool (the cryptarch who decrypts your engrams) to delete them five at a time. It truly is magical to see a bunch of awful-looking shaders go away in the blink of an eye. And, as noted above, don't forget you can now purchase the shaders you do like from the Collection.
Maybe Don't Get Excited About Xur
Ahead of Forsaken's release, Bungie made some changes to Xur, including where he shows up. You won't find him on the map, and he doesn't just go to whatever place has the current Flashpoint. For his first post-Forsaken appearance, his lineup of items is rather disappointing--two things are the same as the prior week, and none of them are Forsaken gear. He also doesn't have anything of note other than the standard lineup of one piece of Exotic armor for each class and one Exotic weapon; Three of Coins and the Fated engram are gone (the latter could return, but Three of Coins have been deprecated).
Whether things get better in future weeks remains to be seen; he could always show up for an exciting visit like when he offered Gjallarhorn or the current broken weapon du jour. But based on this first week, you may want to keep your expectations in check.
Known Issues To Be Aware Of
While the launch of Forsaken has been relatively smooth, some players on Xbox One and PS4 have had trouble purchasing a standalone version of the DLC, for instance. Those fortunate enough to be playing have also been experiencing issues, which Bungie keeps track of on its website.
On the less serious (but nonetheless annoying) side, the new clan bounties offered by Hawthorne have not been rotating as they should; instead, the same set has been available every day. Given these bounties are the new way to complete your weekly clan challenge (netting you a piece of Powerful gear), that's proven to be a hassle because of how many of them have to be done in Crucible.
Other issues of note include the Ace of Spades quest line. The step requiring Gambit kills requires you to kill an invader five times using a hand cannon. Additionally, Bungie is looking into an issue where you don't get your Oracle Offerings if your consumables inventory is full. To prevent that, Bungie says to ensure you have space in your consumables inventory.
Are you running out of things to watch on Amazon Prime? September is here to remedy that with a slew of new TV shows, movies, and Prime Originals for you to binge in your free time this week and beyond. Here is what you have to look forward to throughout this month.
For new movies coming to the service that you may have missed in theaters, September 29 marks the arrival of the horror movie Jigsaw, which is part of the gruesome Saw franchise. There is also Escape Plan 2--which wasn't in theaters--and while the movie's focus isn't on Sylvester Stallone as much as we'd thought it would be, it's still a solid action movie.
If you're looking something from the past, Amazon has a ton of movies you'll want to rewatch including Ghostbusters and Ghostbusters II, arriving on September 1. If you're getting ready a bit early for Halloween, there a few horror movies as well, including Pumpkinhead, Poltergeist II, the original The Amityville Horror, and the 1989 Adam Sandler movie Going Overboard, which may be the scariest of them all. Check out the complete list of everything coming to Amazon Prime in September below.
Everything Coming To Amazon Prime In September 2018
September 1
Asylum, Season 1
The Blue Rose, Season 1
The Broker's Man, Seasons 1-2
The Field of Blood, Seasons 1-2
Golden, Season 1
The Kevin Bishop Show, Season 2
London Irish, Season 1
The Palace, Season 1
Parents, Season 1
Rocket's Island, Seasons 1-3
Sam's Game, Season 1
Texas Rising, Season 1
The Triangle, Season 1
Trust, Season 1
Westside, Seasons 1-3
Wild at Heart, Seasons 1-8
1492: Conquest of Paradise (1992)
A Field in England (2013)
A Good Woman (2006)
A Love Song for Bobby Long (2004)
A Murder of Crows (1999)
A Turtle's Tale: Sammy's Adventures (2010)
A Turtle's Tale 2: Sammy's Escape from Paradise (2012)
All You Can Eat Buddha (2017)
Bandits (2001)
Beowulf (2007)
Big Top Pee-wee (1988)
Blow Out (1981)
Bolero (1984)
Can't Stand Losing You: Surviving the Police (2012)
In case you can't smell what Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson (Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, Rampage) is cooking, let him fill you in. He's currently working on a Fast & the Furious spin-off with Jason Statham (Spy, The Meg) titled Hobbs and Shaw, and the former wrestler-turned-actor has shared the film's first set photo.
Taking to Instagram, Johnson posted a photo of Statham--his "partner in heavy crime and fun"--and director David Leitch (Deadpool 2, John Wick) to the photo-sharing social media platform. There, Johnson called Leitch a "visionary" and a "badass director," stating he's "ready to evolve the franchise in exciting and fresh new ways." This comes as no surprise considering Leitch's recent comments about the film.
Leitch told Collider in an interview in May 2018 that he wants to have his own take on the Fast & the Furious franchise. "It will definitely have elements of the original DNA, but it is more drifting into Shaw's spy world and Dwayne's agent world and, obviously, we want to build on their relationship, their conflict, their banter," Leitch said. It seems the film will be more muscles than cars but don't worry: Johnson's Hobbs and Shaw set photo features a souped-up-looking car, potentially indicating that fast cars will still make an appearance, regardless of how furious Hobbs and/or Shaw get.
This Fast & the Furious spin-off stars Dwayne Johnson and Jason Statham reprising their roles from the core franchise as Luke Hobbs and Deckard Shaw. According to Screencruch, Hobbs and Shaw will see the duo get over themselves--and each other--to take down a common threat: Idris Elba (The Dark Tower, The Mountain Between Us), playing an undisclosed role. Vanessa Kirby (Jupiter Ascending, Mission: Impossible – Fallout) has also been cast in the film, but her role remains unspecified.
If you're in London in two weeks, maybe you can meet up with Hobbs--I mean, Statham for some "pancakes, tequila and ass kickin's." And, of course, all fanfare is on Johnson, and we can definitely smell what he's cooking.
Hobbs and Shaw is scheduled to hit in theaters on August 2, 2019.
Iron Fist Season 2 arrives today on Netflix. If you didn't give the first season a chance, you might want to check it out. If you did, and you're skeptical Iron Fist Season 2 could possibly redeem the series, read our review below. Then check out some info about the show's newest villain, Typhoid Mary, and make sure you're caught up on the latest in the Iron Fist and Defenders universe storyline.
The first season of Netflix and Marvel's Iron Fist was borderline unwatchable. Terrible writing, lame fight scenes, awful performances, an absurd magical story that didn't fit with sister shows like Daredevil and Luke Cage, and many more flaws made it the worst entry yet in Marvel's modern live-action universe. The presence of bland, unlikeable Danny Rand even weighed The Defenders down, too, despite the rest of the cast's strengths. Hopes are not high for Iron Fist Season 2, which arguably shouldn't even exist.
The surprising news, then, is that based on the first six episodes, it seems Iron Fist Season 2 is perfectly watchable. It falls short in some areas, while excelling in others. You'll like some characters, and despise some others. The story can meander at times, while occasionally grabbing your attention in a narrative kung fu grip. Many of Iron Fist Season 1's problems are still present in Season 2, not least of them Finn Jones' Danny Rand being pretty much insufferable. But in many other crucial ways, Iron Fist Season 2 is a massive improvement. It's now pretty much on par with the other Netflix/Marvel universe shows in terms of quality--for whatever that's worth.
In The Defenders, Danny Rand--AKA the Iron Fist--and several other heroes defeated The Hand, a secretive cabal of poorly developed villains who bogged down several seasons of multiple Netflix/Marvel shows. The Hand's end was the best thing to happen to these shows, and luckily, Iron Fist Season 2 isn't bringing them back--at least not in the first six episodes. The Hand's lingering influence is felt only in the shifting relationships among the characters, which is exactly how it should be.
Danny and Colleen (the very good Jessica Henwick) are living a relatively simple life, despite Rand's great wealth. She volunteers at a local community center and he works as a professional mover; they live in Colleen's former dojo, which they converted into a neat but down to earth living space following Colleen's discovery that she'd been unwittingly training recruits for The Hand. Ward Meachum (Tom Pelphrey) is in a 12 step recovery program, while his sister Joy (Jessica Stroup) is out for revenge against him and Danny for reasons you'll only vaguely understand, even if you powered through Iron Fist's first season. It doesn't especially matter; what's important is that she's teamed up with Davos (Sacha Dhawan), Danny's "brother" and rival while in training at the mystical K'un-Lun.
K'un-Lun plays a fairly big role in Season 2's early episodes, but the flashbacks there are nowhere near as tedious, repetitive, and pointless as the flashbacks from Season 1. They almost make K'un-Lun seem like an actual place, with small doses of intrigue as Davos's mother pressures him to defeat Danny and become the Iron Fist. It sure makes Davos's perspective--that Rand stole the mantle of the Iron Fist from its rightful recipient, then abandoned his duty and left K'un-Lun to the wolves--more understandable. You might even find yourself sympathizing with Davos more than you do with Danny, which is a thread that the rest of the season will hopefully continue to tug.
Iron Fist Season 2's leap in quality can most likely be attributed to a much needed change in showrunner, as Raven Metzner (Sleepy Hollow and Falling Skies, among other credits) replaced Scott Buck this season. Buck was also responsible for Marvel's disastrous Inhumans show, so it's probably safe to blame much of Iron Fist Season 1's failure on him as well. But Metzner isn't the only personnel upgrade behind the scenes; Iron Fist Season 2's massively improved action scenes have been designed by new fight choreographer Clayton Barber, whose previous credits include working with director Ryan Coogler on the phenomenal Creed and Black Panther. It's a no-brainer that the fight choreography is crucial to a martial arts show, so Barber's improvements are a welcome change.
Other happy additions come in the form of a couple of new--to this show, at least--characters. Simone Missick's Misty Knight, a Luke Cage series character who crops up in Iron Fist Season 2's first few episodes, appears like she'll have a significant presence throughout the season. Knight teams up with Colleen--arguably the other strongest character in the mix--while Danny is otherwise occupied, and his absence makes their dynamic even better. They aren't quite calling themselves the Daughters of the Dragon yet, but the seeds are there. And Alice Eve plays Mary Walker, a comics villain known as Typhoid Mary who makes her live action debut here. Mary's split personality--pure comic book camp--keeps the rest of the characters on their toes, though it remains to be seen just where her story is headed.
Blessedly, Iron Fist Season 2 is only ten episodes long (the 13-episode runs of all these shows up to this point were too long in every single case). In the first six chapters, a gang war is brewing in Danny Rand's corner of New York, while Joy plots to bring him low and Davos works to take back what he believes belongs to him. Even if you hate Iron Fist, it might be worth checking out Season 2 just to see Danny finally brought low--though no doubt he'll bounce back by the season's end. That is, of course, if you don't mind the generally slow burn of all of Marvel's Netflix universe shows. That lethargic pacing is one of the worst things you can say about Iron Fist Season 2--at least based on its first six episodes--and that alone should speak volumes as to how big an improvement it is.
We're officially in the midst of September--that wonderful (or perhaps not so great) month when so many of us begin our struggle of going back to school. On the bright side, Netflix is introducing a load of new movies, TV shows, and original series for when you have time for some weekend binge sessions. There's a lot of new stuff to look out for in the coming weeks, although we're losing quite a few movies and series as well. Here's the full rundown on what's new and leaving in September 2018.
The big addition in September is Black Panther, the Marvel superhero movie that took the world by storm this past February. If you happened to miss out on this celebration of African culture--which we described as "a top tier Marvel movie with all the humor, style, action, passion, and fun that the MCU has come to embody" in our Black Panther review--then now's your chance. Other film highlights coming in September are Groundhog Day, Scarface, Bruce Almighty, The Breakfast Club, Lilo & Stitch, The Emperor's New Groove, Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl and Netflix exclusive Next Gen.
The list of new TV shows isn't as impressively large, but there are a few stellar options being added. Both Bojack Horseman and Stranger Things are getting new seasons. If you like staying appraised of everything going on in the MCU, Iron Fist is also returning another season.
If animation is your thing, new anime series Dragon Pilot: Hisone and Masotan--about a rookie air force pilot who finds herself being chosen as the destined rider for an actual dragon--and animated series The Dragon Prince--which is created by the same folks behind Avatar: The Last Airbender--debut on Netflix this September.
Of the movies and TV shows being removed, Nolan's Batman Begins and The Dark Knight are the two noticeable standouts. They've unfortunately left the service already, but you can get a look at what you still have time to watch below.
Arriving in September
September 1
Unforgiven
10,000 B.C.
Another Cinderella Story
Assassins
August Rush
Bruce Almighty
Delirium
Fair Game
Groundhog Day
King Kong
La Catedral del Mar
Martian Child
Monkey Twins
Mr. Sunshine
Nacho Libre
Pearl Harbor
Scarface
Sisters
Spider-Man 3
Stephanie
Summer Catch
Sydney White
The Ant Bully
The Breakfast Club
The Cider House Rules
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
The Keeping Hours
The River Wild
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning
Two Weeks Notice
September 2
Lilo & Stitch
The Emperor's New Groove
Maynard
Quantico: Season 3
September 3
A Taiwanese Tale of Two Cities
September 4
Black Panther
September 5
Van Helsing: Season 2
Wentworth: Season 6
September 6
Once Upon a Time: Season 7
September 7
Atypical: Season 2
Cable Girls: Season 3
City of Joy
Click
First and Last
Iron Fist: Season 2
Next Gen
Sierra Burgess Is A Loser
Stretch Armstrong & the Flex Fighters: Season 2
The Most Assassinated Woman in the World
September 10
Call the Midwife: Series 7
September 11
Daniel Sloss: Live Shows
The Resistance Banker
September 12
Blacklist: Season 5
Life
On My Skin
September 14
American Vandal: Season 2
Bleach
Boca Juniors Confidential
BoJack Horseman: Season 5
Car Masters: Rust to Riches
Ingobernable: Season 2
Last Hope
Norm Macdonald has a Show
Super Monsters Monster Party: Songs
The Angel
The Dragon Prince
The Land of Steady Habits
The World's Most Extraordinary Homes: Season 2 Part A
September 15
Inside The Freemasons: Season 1
September 16
Role Models
Scott Pilgrim vs. the World
September 17
The VVitch
September 18
American Horror Story: Cult
D.L. Hughley: Contrarian
September 21
Battlefish
Dragon Pilot: Hisone and Masotan
Hilda
Maniac: Limited Series
Nappily Ever After
Quincy
The Good Cop
September 23
The Walking Dead: Season 8
September 25
A Wrinkle in Time
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
September 26
Norsemen: Season 2
The Hurricane Heist
September 28
Chef's Table: Volume 5
El Marginal: Season 2
Forest of Piano
Hold the Dark
Jack Whitehall: Travels with My Father: Season 2
Lessons From A School Shooting: Notes from Dunblane
The new challenges for Season 5, Week 9 of Fortnite are now available. You can see the complete list of them below, and we also have a guide to following the treasure map in Shifty Shafts. That's one of the tougher challenges in the free section, but over in the paid Battle Pass group, there's one challenge in particular that'll require a fair bit of legwork to get done. This one tells you to visit seven different Stone Heads around the map. Here are the locations of where to find them.
If you're a hardcore Fortnite player, you'll probably have a good idea of what to do and where to go, considering that the Stone Heads are always in the same position, and this kind of challenge has popped up previously. However, if you're new to the game and this challenge, we're here to lend a helping hand. Below you'll find a list of all the locations we've spotted the Stone Heads, so simply high tail it between these and you'll be done in no time. You can also watch the video above to see us do it, and follow along.
Fortnite Stone Head Locations
South east of Junk Junction
North of Tomato Temple
North west of Dusty Divot
East of Lonely Lodge
North east of Greasy Grove
South east of Shifty Shafts
West of Lucky Landing
Once you're done with this week's challenges, there's still more to do, as developer Epic Games also has rolled out Fortnite's 5.40 update. This introduces the High Stakes event, which is a new limited-time mode has its own set of challenges to complete. You can read about what the High Stakes challenges are and the rewards that you can earn by completing them. You can read the full Fortnite update 5.40 patch notes here.
If you're still working on challenges from previous weeks, head over to our full Fortnite Season 5 challenge guide to get help with every single challenge in the season thus far.
Fortnite Week 9, Season 5 Challenges
Free
Deal damage with Explosive Weapons to opponents (500) -- 5 Battle Stars
Get Trick Points in a Shopping Car or ATK (150,000) -- 5 Battle Stars
Hard: Follow the treasure map found in Shifty Shafts -- 10 Battle Stars
Battle Pass
(Stage 1) Search Chests in Pleasant Park (1) -- 5 Battle Stars
Season 5 of Fortnite: Battle Royale continues on PS4, Xbox One, PC, Nintendo Switch, iOS, and--most recently--Android. As with the previous seasons, this one brings with it a selection of fresh challenges to complete on a weekly basis, as well as a variety of Battle Pass rewards to unlock for your efforts. This time, however, Epic has made a few tweaks to the way certain Battle Pass challenges operate, including the introduction of free challenges for all players. Here's everything you need to know about the newest Season 5 challenges, details on all of the ones available so far through Week 9, and exactly 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
Reward: Legendary skin (Enforcer) and Back Bling (Subjugator)
Apple's much-anticipated iPhone event is coming on September 12, and based on the (rather convincing) rumors out there, it could be one of the biggest launches for the company's mobile offerings yet. Top of mind is, of course, the successor to the iPhone X, reportedly called the iPhone XS. The rumors indicate there will be at least two versions: the iPhone XS, which will be 6.1 inches and will be the more affordable model, and the iPhone XS Max, which will be a whopping 6.5 inches (the biggest iPhone yet).
GameSpot's sister website, CNET, will have full coverage of the event, featuring several longtime Apple watchers and coming to you live from the Steve Jobs Theater in Cupertino, California. The pre-show begins at 9AM PT / 12PM ET / 5PM BST, with the main event kicking off at 10AM PT / 1PM ET/ 6PM BST. You can watch the livestream of CNET's coverage here, where they'll also have a liveblog of all the big announcements.
Nothing has been confirmed by Apple, but 9to5Mac has shared tons of details about the new iPhones, including a new second-gen 5.8-inch model and rumors of an updated Face ID and improved rear camera. We may also learn about a new generation of Apple Watches, iPad Pros, and possibly get a first look at the successor to the Macbook Air. Here's what Apple is rumored to be announcing:
While they've arrived a day later than usual, thanks to a delay, the latest batch of Fortnite challenges--those for Week 9--are now available in the Battle Royale mode for PS4, Xbox One, PC, Nintendo Switch, and mobile, which means new Battle Stars to earn. You should know the drill by now, but if you're new to the game, we'll break down how this works. Challenges are split into two categories, with one selection of them available to all players and the other exclusively to those that have paid for a Battle Pass. All you've got to do is complete the objectives and, in return, you get Battle Stars that unlock new goodies. Here's how to do them, including where to find the Shifty Shafts treasure map.
The treasure map is the week's challenge likely to take the longest--that is, if you do it the hard way and actually find the treasure map, then follow it. The alternative way is to just follow our guide: Since you don't technically need to get the map to complete the challenge, you can skip going to Shifty Shafts and locating the map and instead head to the location it's ultimately pointing you toward. In this case, it's in the mountains just north of Salty Springs and south of Dusty Divot. Once there, you'll spot a little collection of stone pillars where you'll also see the Battle Star. We've put images of the treasure map and the precise location of the Battle Star in the gallery below; you can also watch the video above to see us do it.
Click image to view in full screen
This week's other challenges aren't too tricky. On the free side, you'll need to deal 500 damage with explosive weapons, use an ATK or a Shopping Cart to rack up 150,000 Trick points, and follow the aforementioned Shifty Shafts treasure map.
For those who have paid for the Season 5 Battle Pass side, there are four more challenges to complete. You'll need to search for one chest in Pleasant Park (this is the first stage of the challenge, at which point four further stages will unlock one by one). On top of that, you'll need to visit seven different Stone Heads, take out five players with an assault rifle, and also eliminate three enemies in Tomato Temple. Here's the complete list:
Fortnite Week 9, Season 5 Challenges
Free
Deal damage with Explosive Weapons to opponents (500) -- 5 Battle Stars
Get Trick Points in a Shopping Car or ATK (150,000) -- 5 Battle Stars
Hard: Follow the treasure map found in Shifty Shafts -- 10 Battle Stars
Battle Pass
(Stage 1) Search Chests in Pleasant Park (1) -- 5 Battle Stars
Developer Epic Games also has rolled out Fortnite's 5.40 update, which introduces the High Stakes event. This new limited-time mode has its own set of challenges to complete. Here's what the High Stakes challenges are and the rewards that you can earn by completing them. The update also adds the Grappler item in, which is used primarily to zip around the environment. You can read the full Fortnite update 5.40 patch notes here.
This week, players will have their first opportunity to try Call of Duty: Black Ops 4's new battle royale-style mode, Blackout, thanks to a private beta session Activision is hosting on PS4, Xbox One, and PC. Alongside the launch of the beta, the publisher has shared some new details about the mode, revealing more about its map, selection of playable characters, and the kinds of items and vehicles you'll encounter as you fight to be the last player or team remaining.
As previously confirmed, the Blackout beta will support up to 80 players--20 players fewer than Fortnite and PUBG, the two games that helped popularize the battle royale genre, support. However, developer Treyarch says the final player count is still subject to change and may be tweaked before launch based on the feedback it receives from players during the beta session.
The Blackout beta can be played either solo, in duos, or in four-player teams called quads, and it drops players on an island that's approximately 1,500 times larger than the classic Nuketown map. Players begin each match by gliding down to the island using a wingsuit, and in typical battle royale fashion, once they land they must scrounge for weapons and tools as the battle arena gradually shrinks in size.
Blackout features a selection of playable characters taken from the Black Ops series' history, including Reznov, Mason, Woods, Richtofen, Takeo, Ajax, Battery, Seraph, and more. The island is likewise comprised of areas based on previous Black Ops maps, such as the aforementioned Nuketown, Firing Range, Hyrdo, and more. On top of having to contend with other players, some areas of the map also feature hordes of zombies to make each match more unpredictable and challenging.
During a game of Blackout, you'll be able to find and wield an assortment of classic Black Ops weapons and equipment like the Cordite, MOG-12, and Vapr-XKG. Special weapons such as the War Machine grenade launcher and Annihilator pistol will also spawn on the map, as will an assortment of attachments, defensive equipment like the razor wire, and even scout equipment such as a remote-controlled recon car and the Sensor Dart, which can be fired at an area to reveal nearby players. Players will also be able to pilot various land, sea, and air vehicles.
The private Blackout beta kicks off first on PS4 on September 10; it then opens to Xbox One players on September 14. The console beta will only be open to those who've pre-ordered a copy of Black Ops 4. All PC players with a Battle.net account will be able to participate in the beta starting September 15, but those who've pre-ordered the title will get access to it 24 hours early.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 launches on PS4, Xbox One, and PC on October 12. On top of Blackout, the game features a variety or new and returning multiplayer modes, as well as an expanded Zombies experience. The game also introduces signature weapons--cosmetic gun variants you'll be able to unlock by completing challenges.
The Pokemon invasion of your Nintendo Switch has begun. The "free to start" RPG Pokemon Quest is already available, and a new core Pokemon game is heading our way in late 2019. But the lovable critters aren't done with Switch yet. Coming November 16, 2018 are Pokemon Let's Go Pikachu and Pokemon Let's Go Eevee, a pair of games designed for newcomers to the franchise and for players who got their start with the mobile game Pokemon Go.
Developed by Game Freak, the makers of the core Pokemon titles, these Let's Go games share some DNA with Pokemon Go. Instead of battling the monsters to catch them, you'll collect them by tossing Poke Balls at them. You can even transfer Pokemon from Go to Let's Go via Bluetooth. We also know that the first 150 Pokemon as well as their Alolan forms from Sun and Moon would appear in the Let's Go titles.
We have a lot more information about these games in our article Pokemon Let's Go Pikachu And Eevee: Everything We Know So Far, so check that out to satisfy your curiosity. But if you're ready to lock in your pre-order for one (or both) of these games, you'll probably want to know where to find them, how much they'll cost, and what--if any--extra goodies you can expect to come with them. We have you covered below.
Pre-Order Bonus
Currently, there's only one pre-order bonus available for Pokemon: Let's Go Pikachu and Eevee, and it's retailer-specific. If you buy the game from Pokemon Center (while supplies last), you'll get a plush keychain featuring the corresponding Pokemon.
This version of the game comes with a Poke Ball Plus accessory bundled in. Poke Ball Plus is basically a variation of a Joy-Con that has a wrist strap on one end and an analog stick on the other. It also contains a motion sensor, so you can "throw" it at Pokemon in the game world.
Season 3 of Daredevil isn't going to be all sunshine and lollipops. It seems like the titular character is in a very dark place right. Those who have already binged all 10 episodes of Season 2 of Iron Fist got a special surprise after the credits wrapped up in the season finale. A 30-second clip featuring Daredevil played--for those who didn't skip past the credits--which is undoubtedly a teaser for the upcoming third season of the Netflix series.
In the teaser, Matt Murdock--wearing the same mask he dawned in Season 1--is in a confessional, talking to a priest. "I once believed that justice could be found in a court of law, even in the light of day, but I was fooling myself," said Murdock. "Darkness only responds to darkness. And the truth is, I'd rather die as the devil then live as Matt Murdock."
Murdock hasn't had the easiest go of things in recent years. He's battled and defeated The Hand through the two seasons Daredevil and one of the Defenders, he's been beaten to a bloody pulp on multiple occasions, and he's been emotionally conflicted with being reunited--and then losing--the love of his life, Elektra. It seems this has taken its toll on the hero of Hell's Kitchen, but does this mean that his life as Murdock is no more?
Netflix has been extremely tight-lipped about the upcoming season. An air date has not been announced, but we do know Season 3 will drop this year. Back in January, a fan did see the new season in production and spotted Vincent D'Onofrio reprising his role as Kingpin. The picture posted online has since been taken down. And that's all we know right now; however, there is a Daredevil panel at October's New York Comic-Con, so surely we will learn more then.
Daredevil Season 3 should arrive sometime before the end of 2018.
The Pokemon Company has shared another trailer for Nintendo Switch's upcoming Pokemon RPGs, Let's Go, Pikachu and Let's Go, Eevee. This new video, which you can watch above, showcases some areas in the Kanto region we haven't seen yet, along with a couple of brand-new moves your partner Pokemon will be able to learn during the adventure.
The trailer begins with a look at Secret Techniques, new field moves that your starter Pikachu or Eevee can use to open up blocked pathways around Kanto. These techniques replace the HM moves you previously needed to teach Pokemon in order to fully explore the region in the original Yellow version; the Chop Down technique clears certain types of trees from the overworld, while Sea Skim allows you to hop on a surfboard and travel across the water.
Pikachu and Eevee will also be able to learn a handful of new, exclusive attacks that they can unleash during battle. Pikachu can hop on a surfboard to deliver a new Water-type move called Splishy Splash, which also has a chance of paralyzing your opponent. Eevee, meanwhile, can learn exclusive Water, Electric, and Fire attacks called Bouncy Bubble, Buzzy Buzz, and Sizzly Slide. Each deals damage and has a secondary effect; Bouncy Bubble restores HP, while the latter two are guaranteed to paralyze and burn the opposing Pokemon, respectively.
The new trailer also provides a brief tour of Celadon City, one of the largest areas in the Kanto region. Celadon is home to Erika, the fourth Gym Leader you'll encounter on your journey. She specializes in Grass-type Pokemon and battles using a Vileplume. Celadon also features a towering department store, as well as a Game Corner, which has been converted from a casino into an arcade. You can read more on the official Let's Go, Pikachu/Eevee website.
The Let's Go titles launch for Nintendo Switch on November 16. They're releasing alongside the Poke Ball Plus, a Poke Ball-shaped controller that can be used to play the game and carry a Pokemon around with you. The pair require a Nintendo Switch Online subscription in order to battle and trade against other players online, but the games won't support cloud saves, one of the other benefits of subscribing to the service.
If you don't already own a Switch, Nintendo is also releasing adorable Pikachu and Eevee-themed Switch consoles on November 16. Each bundle retails for $400 and includes a digital copy of either title, the aforementioned Poke Ball Plus, Pikachu and Eevee-themed Joy-Cons, and a Switch dock adorned with Pikachu and Eevee designs.
The Halloween series is one of the longest running and most successful franchises in horror. Nevertheless, it's been nearly a decade since the last movie--Rob Zombie's Halloween 2--and even longer since a movie that was well received by fans and critics. While Zombie's two remake/reboots attempted to do something different with the series, for many, it was 1998's Halloween: H20 that was last great Halloween movie.
Next month sees the release of a new film titled Halloween. This is a direct sequel to John Carpenter's 1978 original and ignores all the sequels, remakes, and reboots in-between. It's directed by acclaimed indie filmmaker David Gordon Green and co-written by comedian/actor Danny McBride, with Jamie Lee Curtis reprising her role as Laurie Strode from the first movie.
The film has already screened to critics at the Toronto International Film festival and the first reviews are in. So is this just another disappointing addition to the series, or have the filmmakers delivered something worthy of the title Halloween? Let's take a look at the reviews...
GameSpot -- no score
"Halloween doesn't reinvent the wheel or create a new subgenre of horror. What it does is take the best parts of all the films in the franchise, and deliver the ultimate companion piece to Carpenter's 1978 masterpiece. It's a film that not only has something to say about trauma and PTSD, but also delivers a bloody, fun time at the theater. Will Michael Myers return again? Who knows, but we sure as hell welcome him home." -- Rafael Motamayor [Full review]
Entertainment Weekly -- B+
"A big, funny, scary, squishy, super-meta sequel that brings it all back to John Carpenter's iconic 1978 original. The movie mostly works because it's so fundamental, and funny too: Michael still never speaks; his mask and his slow, deadly, deliberate walk say everything they need to. At 59, Curtis seems to have fully arrived in her role as a midnight-madness queen, and she has a great time in jeans and a grey fright wig, swinging her shotgun around and screaming at everyone to get in the safe room."--Leah Greenblatt [Full review]
Total Film -- 3/5
"This humour, and the repeated allusions to the first film (including a couple of particularly satisfying reversals) suggest a film that's intended to be whooped along to at midnight screenings, and the cracking final sequence ensures audiences will leave on a high. But given all that has been sacrificed to give this franchise a shot of redemption, the end result does feel flimsy and throwaway. The biggest disappointment in this belated sequel is how little new it does, feeling more like an homage than a narrative leap forward. There's enough ambiguity in the ending to suggest further sequels could be on the way here, but on this evidence there's not a lot left to be wrung from this well-worn franchise."--Matt Maytum [Full review]
The Hollywood Reporter -- no score
"Green has a good bit of fun with inside jokes and boundary-pushing kills (should we be laughing while that character we like is begging for her life?), and offers more than a couple of gleaming kitchen knives, before he starts pushing the action away from Haddonfield's civilians and toward the woman who's been planning for it. [This] kind of gig [was] hitherto reserved for J.J. Abrams and few others, it's one Green fairly leaps into, delivering both fan service and honest-to-god moviemaking of the sort rarely seen in horror spinoffs."-- John DeFore [Full review]
Screencrush -- 7/10
"Green serves up everything we love about the first Halloween, completely playing off our nostalgia for the slasher classic, and to me, that's not necessarily a bad thing. He doesn't try to mimic what Carpenter did with that movie--after all, no filmmaker can recreate the magic and brilliance of the first Halloween--but affectionately pays tribute to it with buckets of grisly violence, prickly tension, and snarky humor. Not all of it works--a lot of the scares are predictable, and there's one very idiotic third act twist the film could do without--but the suspenseful finale leaves you on a high."--E. Oliver Whitney [Full review]
Slant -- 1 .5/4
"For all of the film's attempts to get back to the sinisterly sidling Michael of the first Halloween, his stealth movements no longer terrify because his fixations are less unthinkingly instinctual, more compulsively mortal. It doesn't help that Green has no evident flair for horror. The latest entry in the Halloween series was probably always a fool's errand, yet its myriad failures are still shocking given the talent involved."--Keith Uhlich [Full review]
Nerdist -- 4/5
"Forty years after the original film's release, Green, McBride, co-writer Jeff Fradley, and most importantly, star and big beating heart of the franchise Jamie Lee Curtis, made a film that's a profoundly feminist re-examination of its psychology of trauma through its iconography. It's also a rip-roaring slasher flick that's hands down the best Halloween sequel ever. It's everything in a Halloween film that inspires us to return, again and again, but the reversal, reimagining and reinterpretation of these elements is what truly thrills in this new iteration."--Katie Walsh [Full review]
Indiewire -- B-
"There's no getting around some of the messy staging and clunky dialogue that keeps Halloween from reaching greater heights for the bulk of its running time. But Carpenter's own Halloween was itself a bumpy ride, made on the cheap and carried along by the director's firm grasp on his potent themes. The new one works overtime to keep them intact, while communing with the first instalment in every possible way--from that famously creepy synth score to the blocky orange credits that bookend the story. In an intriguing twist, Green has revisited this familiar turf less to exhume an old nightmare than to chart a path toward waking up from it."--Eric Kohn [Full review]
Nintendo has announced a new limited-edition version of its latest hardware. It's the Nintendo Switch Pikachu & Eevee edition, and it decks out the entire Switch, from Joy-Cons to dock, in imagery from Pokemon: Let's Go Pikachu/Eevee. The new edition is coming November 16 and will retail for $400.
The bundle includes a yellow Joy-Con and a brown one, matching the colors of the title characters. The rear of the Switch's screen is emblazoned with silhouettes of the characters as well as Poke Balls. Even the dock features color pictures of Pikachu and Eevee.
Also included is a pre-installed copy of the game and the Poke Ball Plus accessory. The game is inspired largely by Pokemon Yellow, but it borrows some aspects of the popular mobile game Pokemon Go. In fact, you can even transfer Pokemon from Go to the upcoming Switch game. Let's Go also brings back Mega Evolutions. Curiously, it looks like Pokemon: Let's Go Pikachu/Eevee will not support cloud saves.
Poke Ball Plus is basically a non-standard Joy-Con for the Switch. It's a spherical device with a wrist strap on one side and an analog stick on the other. It has motion sensors, so you can "throw" it to catch Pokemon. It also vibrates, lights up, and emits sound effects. You can even "store" Pokemon in it, which will result in in-game rewards for your creatures. In addition to working with the Switch, it can also replace the Pokemon Go Plus accessory for Pokemon Go.
The Nintendo Switch Pikachu & Eevee Edition will be released in limited quantities, so it may be tough to find in-stock. Keep an eye on our Let's Go Pikachu/Eevee pre-order guide to see when it goes up for pre-order.
SNK is developing a new entry in the Samurai Shodown fighting game series, and it will launch for PlayStation 4 in 2019. While details on game are scarce, it's being created on Epic's Unreal Engine and has a colourful visual style. As with previous entries in the series, combat is focused on weaponry, and iconic characters such as Haohmaru and Nakoruru make their return.
A trailer also sets up the story for the game, which takes place in 1787 in the 7th year of the Tenmei era. Matsudaira Sadanobu has been appointed counsel to the Shogun and given the task of ushering a new age of reform with the Kanei era. Fire, ruin, and famine still plague the lands, however, and a new evil threatens Japan.
The last entry in the series was Samurai Shodown: Sen, which released in 2009 for Xbox 360, so it has been almost 10 years since fans of the SNK fighting game series have had something to look forward to. Samurai Shodown, also known as Samurai Spirits, is revered by many fighting game enthusiasts, who place its importance as equal to the likes of Street Fighter and Tekken.
For fans of the genre, there's quite a lot to look forward to in the months ahead. Not just with new content for Street Fighter V and Tekken 7, but also because of Dragon Ball FighterZ, which has seemingly captured the attention of those looking for a fast, tag-based game akin to Marvel Vs. Capcom.
Another big fighting game on the horizon is SoulCalibur VI, which is launching for Xbox One, PS4, and PC on October 19. Classic characters such as Astaroth and Seong Mi-Na have been confirmed as returning for the newest entry in the series, but developer Bandai Namco has also created a new character for it called Azwel. In terms of a guest fighter, Geralt of Rivia from The Witcher series will be filling that spot.
The team behind the Yakuza series has revealed a new title called Judge Eyes, which is being developed for the PlayStation 4. The game was shown during the PlayStation Lineup Tour event, ahead of the start of Tokyo Game Show. The trailer, which you can watch below, shows that it is a narrative driven experience.
Judge Eyes seems to involve playing as a lawyer and investigating a series of murders and crimes. It is expected to launch in December in Japan, and a western release will follow in 2019, though an exact date has not been confirmed as of yet.
The Judge Eyes project was originally teased during a Sega livestream, where chief creative officer Toshihiro Nagoshi described it as "something completely different" from the studio. He also revealed that it has been in development for around three years.
A short gameplay video has also been released, and shows the investigative elements involved in the game. A character can be seen identifying a person of interest in the city, and then using stealth to tail the man. He eventually follows him into an alley and confronts the mark, which results in a chase. There are quick-time button presses to keep up with the target. In terms of combat, it seems very familiar to the Yakuza series, both in terms of having multiple enemies to engage in hand-to-hand combat and the ridiculous, over the top finishing moves.
Disguises are also a big part of the game, as the character is shown breaking into an office and taking pictures of clues. Snapping pictures can be done with a phone, but there's also a segment where a drone. You can see all that, as well as the more ridiculous scenarios that are typical of the Yakuza development team, in the video below.
The Yakuza team has been quite prolific of late, having released the excellent Yakuza 0 in 2017, to widespread critical acclaim. This brought the quirky open-world action series a much broader audience, which it has capitalized on by remastering the first two entries in the series and releasing them as Yakuza Kiwami and, most recently, Yakuza Kiwami 2.
The latter of the two received a glowing review from GameSpot's Edmond Tran, who said "the tale of Tokyo and Osaka, Kiryu and Sayama's partnership, and Kiryu and Goda's rivalry remains one of the Yakuza's best stories, and Kiwami 2's minor missteps don't affect the heart of that experience.
"The modernization of its presentation and its mechanics elevate it, making it absolutely worth revisiting or experiencing for the first time. Yakuza is an exemplary, if flawed series that does an incredible job of steeping you in contemporary Japanese-style crime drama, and establishing an evocative sense of place. Yakuza Kiwami 2 is an excellent example of the series at its best, coupling its most memorable stories and characters with its most sophisticated mechanics yet." Read our full Yakuza Kiwami 2 review for more on the game.
The Yakuza team is also currently working on Fist of the North Star: Lost Paradise, which is based on the classic Hokuto No Ken manga and anime series. This is expected for launch in western territories later this year. In the mean time, you can check out some brutal, over the top gameplay here.
Left Alive, the third-person shooter set in the Front Mission universe, has been given a new release date. The title was originally set to launch in 2018, but during the pre-Tokyo Game Show PlayStation Lineup Tour event a new February 28, 2019 release date was confirmed. This date, however, is just for the Japanese release and a western date has not been revealed yet.
A trailer shown at the event provided some new details on the game. It is set in the fictional city of Novo Slava and takes place in December 2127. Novo Slava looks to have been ravaged by an unexpected attack, and people are just trying to survive amidst the chaos. At one point in the video, a condemned criminal designated D105U is mentioned.
"Humanity has learned nothing from its mistakes," reads a bit of text. As previously mentioned, survival is a key part of the game, as is saving citizens, and a voice over stresses this while scenes of giant mechs tearing through the city play. The game will focus on multiple characters, all who have their own perspectives on the events of the game.
"In this struggle for survival, three lives are laid bare, each with their own stories, their own missions, and their own paths to salvation," the trailer says. These three characters are featured on the game's key artwork, which was created by Yoji Shinkawa, the artist known most for defining the look of the Metal Gear Solid franchise. Shinkawa is serving as character designer on Left Alive.
Shinji Hashimoto, meanwhile, is Left Alive's producer. He has worked on the Final Fantasy and Kingdom Hearts franchises. Joining Shinkawa and Hashimoto are Toshifumi Nabeshima, director of the Armored Core series, and Takayuki Yanase, mech designer on Ghost in the Shell: Arise, Mobile Suit Gundam 00, and Xenoblade Chronicles X.
Square Enix has announced it is remastering Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles for PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch, and it will launch in 2019. A short trailer for the game made its debut at the PlayStation Lineup Tour, a pre-Tokyo Game Show event, and teases the return of the multiplayer RPG.
Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles was originally release for Nintendo GameCube in 2004. The game tasks players with battling enemies and solving puzzles so that they can safely gather Myrrh, an energy source that sustains the crystals needed to protect the world from Miasma. In the original release, multiplayer was enabled by connecting Game Boy Advances using a link cable, however, the remaster will have internet connectivity.
In GameSpot's Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles review, Brad Shoemaker awarded it an 8/10, saying that it is "a fun action RPG with its own style and a fair amount of replay value."
He continued: "It doesn't exactly fit into the Final Fantasy series proper, aside from the involvement of crystals and a few familiar monsters and magic spells, but it's good enough to stand on its own without any famous franchise names attached to it. Crystal Chronicles plays specifically to those who will appreciate it, and it serves as a fitting return for Square to the Nintendo partnership that first brought the company to fame so long ago."
The PlayStation Lineup Tour has delivered a few other surprises too, including a new Kingdom Hearts 3 trailer that shows the Big Hero 6 world and characters. In it, Sora, Donald, and Goofy meet with Baymax and Hiro to defend San Fransokyo from the Heartless.
In addition to that, a new trailer for From Software's Sekiro: Shadow's Die Twice was also released. It shows off some of the things that differentiate it from the studio's other big games, Dark Souls and Bloodborne--most notably the traversal. Watch the new Sekiro TGS 2018 trailer here.
From Software has released a new trailer for Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice ahead of the start of Tokyo Game Show, which begins on September 20. The trailer is, as is typical for From Software titles such as Dark Souls and Bloodborne, moody and ominous. It shows a shinobi seeming lying dead on the floor, but quickly cuts to gameplay, with the lead characters acrobatically launching himself around the environment.
This kind of movement is the big distinction between Sekiro and the Dark Souls series. The main character has a grappling hook, and can quickly climb up walls, hide in the rafters, and generally engage in sneaky ninja behaviour to take out his enemy. Despite this, the combat still looks and feels very familiar to previous From Software games, though perhaps with the intensity turned up. In the trailer the main character is shown taking on towering, gruesome beasts in brutal combat. Kitao has also posted some pretty sweet artwork for the game on Twitter, which you can see below.
From Software previously discussed the interesting development history Sekiro has had, confirming that it originally began life as a new instalment in the classic Tenchu series. "When we originally set out to create something different from Dark Souls and our previous titles, we thought it would be interesting to make a Japanese themed game," explained community manager Yasuhiro Kitao. "So from that we started going in the direction of the shinobi and ninja, and of course Tenchu was an IP with that history; that was the original impetus for this project."
Activision immediately came on board, but over time the project changed into something else, which is why Sekiro is now launching as a new IP. "[A]s we developed and as we partnered with Activision, and started building it together, it started becoming its own thing. The game we wanted to make was no longer just Tenchu, so it really evolved into its own thing," Kitao said.
Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice introduces a resurrection mechanic, which is also a key difference from the Dark Souls series and Bloodborne. When you die in battle, you're able to use a limited number of life tokens to instantly revive, which creates interesting strategic considerations. Your protagonist also has a prosthetic arm that can be outfitted with a shuriken, axe, and other kinds of weapons akin to the Trick Weapons from Bloodborne.
Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice launches for PS4, Xbox One, and PC on March 22, 2019.
Square Enix has released a new trailer for Kingdom Hearts 3, showing off plenty of footage from the Big Hero 6 world and characters that will be featured in it. The trailer was shown at the PlayStation Lineup Tour, a pre-Tokyo Game Show event. The Kingdom Hearts 3 trailer is in Japanese but you can use YouTube's closed captions feature for English subtitles.
It opens with Sora, Donald, and Goofy in San Fransokyo battling Heartless on the Golden Gate Bridge. Baymax arrives and introduces himself, alongside Hiro, and the gang all team up to fight their enemies. There's also short segments from the Monsters Inc. and Tangled worlds, as well as some story teases, with Xehanort appearing briefly too. Check out the trailer above to see all this, plus some pretty cool combat and Gummi Ship sequences.
Kingdom Hearts 3 is set to be the closing chapter in the saga, which has been told primarily through the numbered, core entry in the series. As with previous entries, players will be taken on a ride through some of the most beloved Disney worlds, including Toy Story, and Hercules, in addition to those mentioned above. Kingdom Hearts 3 is set to release on January 29, 2019 on Xbox One and PS4.
At E3, GameSpot talked to one of the key creative forces behind the Kingdom Hearts series, Tetsuya Nomura. The interview covered a variety of topics, including how it felt to finally have a release date for the game, which has been 13 years in the making, the pressure of fan expectations, and working on Kingdom Hearts 3 at the same time as remaking Final Fantasy 7, among others. You can read the full Kingdom Hearts 3 interview with Tetsuya Nomura here.
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