With Fortnitemares challenges continuing to roll out, Fortnite: Battle Royale continues to get its standard weekly challenges as well. Season 6, Week 5's are now available, and while a handful of them are easy, the same can't be said for certain others. Specifically, you may need a map to know where to go, which is where we come in. To speed things up we've put together guides for these trickiest challenges, the first of which is to record a speed of 27 or more on different Radar Signs.
Driving fast and recording that speed isn't the difficult part, it's actually finding the locations of the Radar Signs. Again, we've done the legwork for you, so all you've got to do is take a look below, where you'll find their locations. That should make things quicker and easier for you.
Radar Signs Locations
Southwest of Paradise Palms
North of Paradise Palms
South of Tomato Temple
West of Lazy Links
South of Pleasant Park
Another tricky challenge this week involves jumping through flaming hoops (when you think about it, pretty much all the challenges do, right?). We've found all of the locations for these flaming hoops and put together a map and video guide.
If you've still got challenges from previous weeks left to complete, you can use our comprehensive Season 6 challenge guide to get those done. Keep in mind that there's also a unique set of Halloween-themed challenges to do this week too. The Fortnitemares event was introduced as part of update 6.20 and, as part of it, there's new cosmetics to unlock too. Check out all the Fortnitemares challenges to see what you need to do to get them.
Update 6.20 and the Fortnitemares event also introduce a PvE element to the game. "During Fortnitemares, you'll face off against Cube Monsters in a whole new way of playing Battle Royale," Epic explains. "There are new weapons to fight back against these creepy creatures, like the Six Shooter and Fiend Hunter Crossbow.
"Take out the Cube Fiends and Fragments to pick up loot, and survive against enemy players." Interestingly, Fortnitemares seems to blur the line between the Battle Royale mode and Save the World mode by giving players zombie-like enemies to fend off.
You can see the other changes, additions, and tweaks that have been made to Fortnite this week by reading the update 6.20 patch notes.
We've reached the halfway point of Fortnite: Battle Royale's Season 6. Week 5 of challenges is now available and consists of the standard mix of tasks for players to complete as they seek a Victory Royale. Three challenges are offered to all players for free, but four others are reserved for Battle Pass owners, including Flaming Hoops to jump through and Radar Signs to track down and speed past. Also ongoing are Fortnitemares challenges tied to the newest update's Halloween event. This will see new challenges rolled out routinely over the course of the event, separate from the standard weekly challenges. The second set is now available and includes dealing with ghost decorations, among other things.
Meanwhile, Fortnite: Battle Royale Season 6 rolls on, and new challenges continue to roll out on all platforms--PS4, Xbox One, PC, Nintendo Switch, iOS, and Android. Those feed into the latest Battle Pass, and as with previous seasons, you level that up by playing the game and completing challenges. Every week there will be a new set of tasks for players to complete that unlock Battle Stars and level up the Battle Pass to unlock goodies.
Like in Season 5, weekly challenges are split into two categories. The first is a free set, which are available to all Fortnite players, while the second is for Battle Pass owners. To get a Battle Pass you'll need to cough up 950 V-Bucks in game. If you haven't bought the Battle Pass, you'll be able to complete certain objectives and earn some rewards, but some of the coolest unlocks are locked behind the paid Battle Pass, so if you plan on sinking lots of time into Fortnite, we recommend picking that up.
Although you can pick up a Battle Pass later and go back to unlock any premium rewards you've earned based on the tier that you've already reached, there is one major advantage in doing it at the start of the season. Namely that you'll get bonus XP, which is dished out for just playing the game either alone or with buddies. This XP levels you up and translates to Battle Stars that also level up your pass, so it may be a good idea to get in early if you can.
Alongside the standard challenges, there are also Hunting Party challenges for those who buy the Battle Pass. These operate similarly to the Blockbuster and Road Trip objectives of past seasons, where each one tasks you with completing all challenges from a single week during the season. The reward for each is a loading screen that reveals the location of a hidden Battle Pass tier you can then obtain. Additionally, by completing seven of these, you'll earn a Legendary skin that will remain a mystery for now.
Each week we'll have guides on the trickiest challenges to make things quicker and easier for you. However, this article will serve as a hub for all our guides so, as the season goes on, you'll be able to keep coming back here to get the latest guides as well as ones for previous weeks. This will be especially helpful if you decided to pick up a Battle Pass part of the way into the season. If you're wondering if it's worth the effort, you can take a look at all of Fortnite Season 6's new skins, cosmetics, emotes, sprays, and other items to unlock in this gallery of Fortnite Season 6 Battle Pass rewards.
Fortnite: Battle Royale Season 6 Challenges
Week 1
Free
Pickup a Legendary Item in different matches (3) -- 5 Battle Stars
Regain health from a Cozy Campfire (15) -- 5 Battle Stars
Stage 1: Seach Chests (3) -- 3 Battle Stars
Battle Pass
Apply Shields (500) -- 5 Battle Stars
Stage 1: Land at Junk Junction (1) -- 1 Battle Star
Dance under different Streetlight Spotlights (7) -- 10 Battle Stars
Eliminate opponents in different Named Locations (5) -- 10 Battle Stars
Reward: 5K XP (after completing four challenges, only for Battle Pass owners)
Red Dead Redemption 2 for PS4 and Xbox One is out now, and it offers you a variety of weapons to get the job done. Whether it's hunting for survival, defending your honor in a duel, or robbing a moving train, players will have plenty of options at their disposal to suit their needs. However, the game also allows weapons to be customized so it not only performs exactly how it needs to, but also looks the way you want it to.
Before we explain the customization options available, we thought we'd offer a quick tip: try not to purchase guns early in the game. Money can be hard to come by in RDR 2, and firearms are quite expensive. Instead of coughing up your hard earned/robbed cash, focus on completing main missions, as they more often than not will outfit you with something new. The best weapons are found in the late game, so it's worth keeping that in mind too.
Customization is enabled through the Gunsmiths that are dotted around the world. By visiting them, you'll be able to clean your guns as well as run maintenance on them, alter components, change styles, and pick up ammo. Some components affect the states of a gun, so, for example, a longer barrel will improve bullet stability and thus accuracy. Scopes can also be added to sights for long-distance targets. However, other components don't change the stats. Stock, for example, lets you pick different grains for the wooden parts of your weapons, while wraps protect your weapons from wear and tear.
Style, meanwhile, will give your weapon a visual flourish. You can opt to swap out the metal type your gun is made of, the color of it, and even get it engraved with a design to give your outlawing an extra touch of class. You can choose to engrave the entire weapon or specifically the inlay metals, barrel, block, or frame. Shoulder stocks and buttstocks can also be carved into--usually with an image of an animal. Finally, you can also varnish the weapon and add some leather finishes to it.
Finally, ammunition comes in a number of variants, with some improving range stats while others impact damage. It's important to experiment with ammo types, especially since some can be extra useful for hunting more efficiently. Make sure to study animals when you're on the hunt and read their compendium entries, as sometimes you'll find information on what works best to bring them down.
GameSpot's Red Dead Redemption 2 review is live and in it Kallie Plagge says the game is "an excellent prequel, but it's also an emotional, thought-provoking story in its own right, and it's a world that is hard to leave when it's done."
For more on RDR 2, watch Quickdraw, our weekly video series. Episode 1 looks at other Rockstar games that have had an influence on the open-world western sequel. Episode 2, which you can watch in the video above, is a story recap of the original Red Dead Redemption.
Whether or not you're on board, Bethesda's decision to make the next entry in the Fallout franchise an online-only game is bold. But just because it's an online endeavor doesn't mean you're forced to play with others. Among all the questions I had about Fallout 76, the most important one that came to mind was: can the game work as a single-player experience? So, when the first beta launched, I played entirely as a one-man party. After about four hours of exploring, looting, and shooting, the foundation of Fallout seems readily apparent, albeit diluted. Of course, you'll be missing out on an important aspect of Fallout 76 by going it alone, but its features that require a bit more patience make themselves clear. As a result, lone wanderers are likely to be rewarded in ways full parties may end up glossing over.
From both past experience in other games and watching my colleagues play Fallout 76 as a group, I understand there's a tacit agreement to move at a rapid pace, going from one area or quest to another in search of action and high-level equipment. While that's not exactly what the Fallout series has traditionally been about, it comes part-and-parcel to this style of game. That doesn't leave much room for carefully listening to audio logs nor reading through notes left behind, let alone soaking in the environments in relation to those narrative pieces. Playing alone affords you the opportunity to do that.
One of the many notes you'll read throughout Fallout 76.
Environmental storytelling has become a bit of a cliche when describing how games embed a narrative in the actual game space. It's an indirect approach to story, and one that Fallout 76 has to rely on given the absence of NPCs and dialogue trees. Audio logs serve to paint the picture of how townships tried, and failed, to survive the harsh wasteland while simultaneously being a guide through the game's world and systems. Audio logs are also the crux of unraveling the mystery of Vault 76's overseer--the seemingly "main" questline. It's your avenue to understanding the past and present of West Virginia. Admittedly, these vary in quality in terms of how interesting they are, but they're critical to worldbuilding.
The wonder of discovering and rummaging through a new location, or taking in the scenic views after trudging through brutal swaths of the wasteland, has an intrinsically rewarding feel.
We've seen other games use these narrative techniques in the past. Much of the original Bioshock was built on the premise of listening to recordings from Rapture's citizens as you navigate the desolate underwater society. Some of the most impactful moments in The Last Of Us came from a series of handwritten notes that communicated the desperation and humanity in the face of a zombie outbreak. Fallout has used these elements in previous entries, but they matter now more than ever.
There's a lot to see in West Virginia with a variety of scenery.
While what's missing are the societies and factions that made previous games' roleplaying dynamic, it's thematically fitting given that the setting predates the lore established from past games. And it's strikingly lonely out there despite being an online game--only 24 players roam around West Virginia in the same instance. There's so much ground to cover that it's hard to see a collective of online players emerging from it; very rarely did I run into other parties. West Virginia is huge. It's been in headlines that Fallout 76 contains the largest map in all the franchise; about four times the size of Fallout 4's rendition of Boston. It sometimes feels too big for its own good, as there's a noticeable lack of density. However, like any other Fallout game, the world naturally instills a sense of curiosity to see what's just beyond in the next town.
The wonder of discovering and rummaging through a new location, or taking in the scenic views after trudging through brutal swaths of the wasteland, has an intrinsically rewarding feel. After getting a grip of the game in the areas near Vault 76, I wandered to the Northeast and stumbled upon Grafton--a snowy town populated by Super Mutants, Protectrons, and the high-level blob-like Grafton Monster. It was a definite highlight digging up the town's history and how it came to be run by Protectrons, and getting into tense firefights with enemies above my level. Unfortunately, I had to move on. Over the next northern range was an abandoned amusement park where I dabbled with the photo mode to take selfies with its alligator mascot on a broken rollercoaster. All the while, my radio is playing the undeniably catchy tunes of old-timey Americana (many of which are reprised from earlier games). These moments are, of course, available if you play in a group, but they make the single-player approach more meaningful.
Catastrophic events and inter-player tension very much seem to be integral to the end-game, so it's tough to speak on the sustainability of exclusively playing alone. So far, quest structure and public events haven't been much more than killing a certain target or finding an item in another town. And by virtue of axing traditional RPG interactions, combat becomes a bigger portion of what you do. Fallout 4's shooting mechanics are the basis here, and while it's more fluid than Fallout 3 or New Vegas, it doesn't stand with the best modern shooters (and VATS won't slow down time for targeted dice-roll shots)--it sometimes feels at odds with the type of game Bethesda's trying to create.
Fallout 76 is a little unceremonious in its early hours, but I'm willing to give new approaches to long-running franchises a chance. It still has that distinct charm, where both the delightful and disturbing aspects of a bygone era in American history are frozen in time amidst post-apocalyptic retrofuturism. As more beta windows open up, I'll be continuing to search for the game's story and trekking along to see what's beyond the wide forests and mountain ranges. Also, there are just as many questions left even after four hours. I can't say that the single-player experience will hold up entirely, and we shouldn't expect it to contend with the likes of New Vegas, but there are signs that it can work, and I'm hopeful. I'm also not sure where it's leading me, and that seems to be exactly what Fallout 76 is about.
Red Dead Redemption 2's release for PS4 and Xbox One has arrived, and as we expected, it's a massive game, both in terms of file size and sheer scope. You can take part in a wide variety of side activities at your leisure from hunting to fishing to old-fashion robbery, all of which can provide you with hours of playtime. But just how long does Red Dead 2 take to beat? Even if you plan to skip the game's more ancillary tasks and focus exclusively on the story, you're going to need to set a lot of time aside.
We've played through Rockstar's western for our Red Dead 2 review, and we now know how long its main campaign is. By our estimates, it takes approximately 45-50 hours to clear the story, if you focus primarily on completing story quests and largely ignore its side activities. Of course, individual playtimes will vary, so you can expect to sink considerably more time into the game if you plan on pursuing its many side missions.
Red Dead Redemption 2 casts players in the role of Arthur Morgan, one of the members of the Van der Linde gang, who are traveling across the American frontier to escape the law. During the journey, Arthur will encounter many new and familiar faces, including the protagonist of the first Red Dead Redemption, John Marston. He'll also be able to wield more than 50 weapons, each of which has a range of customization options that affect their performance and appearance.
On top of that, Arthur will be able to visit many of the same areas featured in the previous game; an image of RDR2's full map leaked ahead of the game's release, showing that the world encompasses a fair chunk of the original Red Dead Redemption's map. As a result, the game will require quite a bit of storage space on your console of choice, as it weighs in at approximately 100 GB.
Red Dead Redemption 2 is out now on PS4 and Xbox One. The game is available in several different editions, many of which come with various bonus items; you can learn more in our Red Dead Redemption 2 buying guide. Those who pick the game up on PS4 will also receive early access to some items 30 days before they arrive on Xbox One. The first batch of timed-exclusive content includes an outfit, horse, and gun.
Rockstar's latest release, Red Dead Redemption 2 on PS4 and Xbox One, is a game where you'll want to spend a great deal of time uncovering all of its secrets and details. You can spend 50-plus hours just completing the main story, slowing accumulating wealth and honor. But if you're someone looking for a shortcut--who wants to find a quick path to success while living the life of an outlaw in the last days of the wild west--we've got you covered. Much like the original game and GTA V, Red Dead 2 features an assortment of cheat codes that unlock additional resources, with some injecting odd gimmicks and quirks into your game.
To find the Cheats menu, press the pause button and select the Settings option. In this menu, press Triangle or Y (on PS4 and Xbox One, respectively) to pull up the Cheats menu. From here, you'll find a long list of locked cheats. Initially, you won't know what any of these do or how to unlock them. Many of these codes can be activated by putting in the correct phrase, but others will require some extra time and effort.
Throughout the game you'll find newspapers for sale in towns, and some of these offer clues as to how to unlock these extra fun options. While many of these cheats introduce some mostly benign bits of fun--such as keeping your character, Arthur Morgan, perpetually drunk--activating these codes at any time will have some consequences for your save game. Once you activate these codes, all Trophies and Achievements will be deactivated on this particular file. As a result, before trying any of these codes, be sure to make a separate file for your main save.
With over 30 codes to unlock, some of which have some specific requirements, we've collected a list of cheats that we've uncovered thus far. We also have a separate feature discussing some of the most entertaining and best cheats in Red Dead Redemption 2. Be sure to check back with GameSpot as we update this page with new codes, and how to find them.
Cheat Code
Name
Description
How To Unlock
Abundance is the dullest desire
Infinite Ammo
Unlimited ammunition for all weapons.
Unlocked by purchasing the New Hanover Gazette No. 27 in Valentine. Can be done after journeying to Horseshoe Overlook in Chapter 2.
A fool on command
Drunk
Always stay drunk (can be turned off in cheat menu)
No requirements
Better than my dog
Increase Horse Whistle Range
Activating will allow your Horse to find you regardless of distance.
No requirements
Greed is American Virtue
Heavy Weapons
Grants you instant access to the Bold-action Rifle, Mauser Pistol, Pump Action Shotgun, and Semi-Automatic Pistol.
Unlocked by purchasing Saint Denis Times No. 46 newspaper in Chapter 3, after completing the mission Advertising, the New American Art.
I shall be better
Set Dead Eye To Level 3
Activating this cheat will upgrade your Deadeye skill. Level 3 is the initial level, but more will be added as it is unlocked.
No requirements
I seek and I shall find.
Set Dead Eye To Level 5
Activating this cheat will upgrade your Deadeye skill. Note this is tied to the "I shall be better" cheat.
No requirements
Keep your dreams simple
Create Wagon
Activating this cheat will spawn a wagon, and along with another horse.
No requirements
Run! Run! Run!
Create Race Horse
Activating this cheat will instantly spawn a Race Horse for use.
No requirements
You flourish before you die
Set Health, Stamina, and Dead Eye Bars to Full
Restores all health, stamina, and Dead Eye energy to full.
No requirements
Red Dead 2 is now available on PS4 and Xbox One. If you want to hear more of our thoughts on Rockstar's expansive open-world western, check out our full Red Dead 2 review. We've got much more in store for the game in the coming weeks, which includes our new recurring series QuickDraw. For now, take a look at our round-up of fascinating and interesting facts the game doesn't outright tell players, and along with other useful tips you should know.
The new Honor system in Red Dead Redemption 2 works differently than that of its predecessor; it's far more sophisticated. A large number of your actions impact the world, and you'll have to deal with a variety of consequences that can unfold based on what you do, even if it's something as simple as drawing your gun. Based on our experiences with the game, we've rounded up some thoughts and important things to know to help you on your way. It's worth noting that Arthur is a remorseless outlaw who skews toward the morally dubious side given his place in the Van Der Linde gang. But he does have some redeeming qualities, and he isn't totally stone-hearted. In this piece we break down all the key components of the game's honor and morality system.
Performing actions as simple as greeting people will boost his honor, which is represented in the game through a slider that is white and red, and a hat moves up and down. The white hat icon pops up on screen for good deeds, while a red hat emerges when you've done bad things. You can check your honor status at any time by pressing down on the D-pad.
Some of the other ways you can improve your honor are by throwing back fish that are too small to keep, offering to help people you meet on the side of the road, and sparing people when you have the choice in key situations. You can also pet dogs to boost your honor. Basically, if your deed gives you a warm, fuzzy feeling, you can bet Arthur's honor will improve.
Things that negatively impact Arthur's honor include any number of actions that run from running someone over with your horse to blasting their head clear off with a shotgun. On the other hand, you may become a worse person in the eyes of Red Dead Redemption 2 include assaulting innocent people, looting innocent people's corpses (even if you didn't kill them), murdering people for no reason, mugging people, and running them down with your horse. Keeping fish that are too small also hurts your honor, while failing to mercy kill an animal after you miss a clean kill shot also incurs an honor hit (as it should!).
There are benefits for being nice and honorable, and consequences when you're a jerk. For example, you may come across a man wailing in pain on the side of the road who informs you he's been bit by a poisonous snake. You can suck the poison out and save his life or leave him to die. Upon saving the man, he gushes praise for you selfless and courageous act, but then you just go on your way, presuming to never seen him again. But you later see this man in Strawberry (or another town in the world), and he thanks you again and rewards you by paying for any gun you want from the gunsmith. If you chose to leave the man to die, this most likely never would have happened.
You might accidentally run someone over with your horse or click the shoot button when you meant to simply talk. Thankfully, the honor and morality system is flexible and fluid. So even if you gun down a group of innocents, you can swing back your honor pendulum by making an effort to do more good in the world. Or you can re-load a past save. It's also a good idea to be careful when you're on the extreme edges of the morality meter, as a single action in the opposite direction can knock your rating up or down significantly. For example, editor Edmond Tran accidentally knocked someone over with a horse and saw his honor meter drop by about one eighth, which is a lot.
In my playthrough, I tried to be an absolute monster who constantly engaged in dishonorable actions. I was able to get my morality meter almost completely on the dishonorable side--and I never bathed or contributed to camp--and ended up experiencing a number of adverse effects. Due to my criminal behavior, some missions were listed as temporarily unavailable due to my "Wanted" level, and it can take awhile for these to become available again. This can happen even if you're playing as a more honorable Arthur, so that's something to be aware of.
What's more, when you accidentally mow someone over with your horse in town, you may not be able to defuse the situation and convince a witness to decide not to report as you could if you were more of a nice guy. I was unable to pay off a witness or threaten them to stop, presumably due to how much of a scumbag I'd been in the past. Not only is it more difficult to persuade witnesses to not report your crime when you're a degenerate, but once they do, you'll encounter heavy patrols of well-armed law enforcement coming after you. On top of that, Bad Arthur racks up bounties individually by region, so you'll always have to be vigilant when traveling around. You can pay your bounty at any post office in the game, but doing so won't instantly make you a white knight.
Your honor level in Red Dead Redemption 2 affects the game in ways you may not immediately notice. For example, the music changes depending on your status, while the journal entries that Arthur records reflect the decisions he's made in the story. What's more, the killcams become more gruesome when you're a detestable jerk who only looks out for number one. If you're playing as Nice Guy Arthur, you'll enjoy benefits like store discounts, among other things.
Rockstar Games has teased that honorable and dishonorable activities will have consequences that you might not see or notice for a very long time, so it will be intriguing to see how some key choices play out in the long run as we continue playing.
What do you think about the honor system in Red Dead Redemption 2? Let us know in the comments below.
As part of Fortnite's 6.20 update, developer Epic Games rolled out a spooky new event for Halloween. Fortnitemare sees the floating cube affectionately known as Kevin turning a little malicious and spawning Cube Monsters, which are essentially zombies. There's also a few new cosmetics to unlock and, of course, you'll need to do challenges to get many of these. Challenges are being split over multiple parts, and you can find details on it here. Day 2 is now available, and you can read about them below.
For Part 2 you'll need to kill 150 Cube Fiends, do 5,000 points of damage to them using Shotguns or SMGs. On top of those, you also have to kill three enemies in Corrupted Areas and destroy a Ghost Decoration in seven different named locations. Complete those four challenges and you'll unlock a new spray.
Fortnitemare Part 2 Challenges
Destroy Cube Fiends (150) — 500 XP
Deal damage with Shotguns or SMGs to Cube Monsters (5,000) — 500 XP
Eliminate opponents in Corrupted Areas (3) — 500 XP
Destroy a Ghost Decoration in different named location (7) — 500 XP
Completing these will also get you one step closer to getting the Dark Engine Glider. You'll need to complete all four parts of the Fortnitemare challenge set to get this. If you're looking for a more immediate Halloween-themed unlock you can get the Deadfire skin in the in-game store now. This is a new kind of outfit that changes as you progress in a match. This, Epic says, will let players "show off [their] skills in style."
The skins change depending on the damage you deal to your enemies and also how long you're able to stay alive. The skin also comes with the Shackled Stone Back Bling and the Dark Shard pickaxe is also available in the store. These are also reactive cosmetics.
Epic Games has also detailed the contents of Fortnite update 6.20 which, along with giving players Fortnitemares, adds the new Six Shooter weapon to the game. It also gives players the ability to redeploy Gliders after they've landed on the Island. This feature is something Epic is testing, so it's available in all Battle Royale game modes
Eighteen million copies of Football Manager have been sold over the last decade. Of the 1 million-plus people who bought Football Manager 2018, 46% were still playing it in September this year, 10 months after the game first launched. Of all those who bought it--including people who picked it up on the cheap in a Steam tsale--the average play time was 285hours.
Whichever metric you want to use, Football Manager's numbers qualify it as a success--especially given it's frequently called a glorified spreadsheet by those who fail to understand either the game or the sport it masterfully simulates. But Football Manager's impact transcends sales figures: This is, let's face it, a niche title, and a tough one to sell to those not already obsessive over soccer. Yet it arguably has a similar level of cultural relevance to FIFA, which sells many times more copies every year and no doubt has a budget many times larger. Sports Interactive's long-running series--previously known as Championship Manager before a new partnership with Sega was finalized in 2004--is referenced as much on games forums as it is on the terraces around the world, and even has comedy routines based around stories of players dressing up in suits after taking Wycombe Wanderers to the FA Cup Final.
People have even gotten jobs off the back of their FM prowess: Matt Neil landed a role with Plymouth Argyle's analyst team after researching the club for years on behalf of Sports Interactive and playing its game religiously. Vugar Huseynzade, meanwhile, was appointed head coach of Azerbaijan Premier League club FC Baku off the back of his successes inside SI's management sim. Lincoln City's Cowley brothers, who hit the headlines last year when their National League side beat Premier League Burnley to get to the FA Cup quarter-final, called playing Championship Manager as children their "homework" that helped them train for the real thing. One suspects their collective tongue was planted firmly in cheek, but there are clearly real-world professional coaches out there who got a taste for management from the PC game.
"I find the whole thing absolutely bonkers," series director and Sports Interactive head Miles Jacobson told me in a recent visit to the company's London studio. "When someone sends me a tweet saying, 'Your game helped me through a really, really bad time in my life,' whether that be someone being in hospital, whether it be depression--which is obviously something that lots of people suffer from now--whether it be someone with anxiety. The fact that it's helped so many people through that is bonkers."
It's not just people that Football Manager helps: the series' extensive database of real-world players--and 1000-strong army of researchers--goes mostly unmatched in the world of football. For many professional clubs, it pays to simply license SI's data rather than attempt to build a directory of their own.
"[In some situations a club will] see a video from a player and think, 'Wow, they're very good,'" Jacobson says. "But, they live in Bolivia. They'll call up and ask us, 'What does your Bolivian researcher think?' so they can decide to go and watch them or not. Some of them are doing due diligence on players, such as wanting injury histories. Some of them have the complete database and get it regularly updated and use it as part of their scouting system.
"There's one massive, massive club who are looking to do their own data project, and they licensed our database to be the starting point for their data project. They wanted to know what attributes we look for and have based it pretty much identically on what we've done. There are other clubs who have their own data projects who've come to us and said, 'We only look at these four indices. Can you weight it like this and then work that out for us on all the players, and then let us know which five players we can sign to replace this center-back, who has very similar stats, but [rather than being 29 like him] we need to know who's going to be like them in three years' time.' And we do that as well. It works in very different ways with different clubs."
Football is heading further and further down a data analysis path, and in this respect many professional clubs are playing catch-up to what SI has been doing for years. In an Inception-like move, Football Manager now lets you hire data analysts within the game to research other clubs' players and analyze your own team's movement and possession, among other variables.
It's here that the impact of Football Manager among younger fans can be felt: With such detail in its simulation, the series is educating a generation of soccer supporters to a level even professional coaches couldn't imagine 30 years ago. Fans now have knowledge of tactics, transfer regulations, and detailed administrative processes in football that they would previously have never known existed. Jacobson says the educated football fan likely owes their knowledge to a number of sources, but there's no doubt Football Manager is the most detailed game of its kind around. Even if you don't play FM, you may well have heard a friend boast how their inverted winger 4-2-4 system had helped them win the Champions League with Grimsby Town. Whether the football industry sees this increase in knowledge as a positive is another matter, however.
"There's certainly some managers who have a problem with the fact that supporters have more knowledge about football now than they did back then--whether that's from our game, whether it's from FIFA, or WhoScored, or any of the stat websites out there," says Jacobson. "There was a point where you had a lot of old-school managers meeting new-school fans and the new-school fans were saying, 'Why aren't you looking at this player who plays in the Belarusian second division?' They'd say, 'How do you know that player?' 'Oh, he becomes brilliant in Football Manager.' There are some people who see that as a negative."
Aware of the effect his series can have on people and the football industry, Jacobson says there are two things Sports Interactive deliberately gets wrong in Football Manager. The first, injury frequency, is simply to make the game less frustrating for players. The second, the likelihood that a manager is sacked, is decreased with the knowledge that real-life football coaches face an increasingly hostile culture of being fired as soon as things start to go wrong on the pitch. If Football Manager had a higher rate of sacking than what we see in real life, it potentially wouldn't be long until the real world followed suit.
I find the whole thing absolutely bonkers
Miles Jacobson
More recently the series has begun to actively use its influence to elicit change in the real world. Football Manager 2017 contained a number of differing scenarios regarding Brexit, and whether the UK would vote to leave or remain in the European Union in the then-upcoming referendum. The different scenarios, which also included a "soft" or "hard" Brexit, affected variables such as the likelihood of gaining work permits for foreign players, as well as simulating the increased controls on immigration the UK is likely to see post-Brexit. "We completely non-politically showed all the different scenarios that could happen around the UK leaving and how it would affect football, and it opened up a lot of people's eyes," Jacobson says.
The following year, some Football Manager 2018 saves contained computer-generated players who could, in some instances, come out as gay--a move no active professional football player has yet made. In 2014, German international Thomas Hitzlsperger became the first player to have played in the Premier League to come out, while United States midfielder Robbie Rogers announced he was gay a year earlier. Both men only felt they could come out after they had retired, though Rogers later returned to soccer with LA Galaxy.
"It was trying to show the football world that it's completely normal," Jacobson says of Sports Interactive's decision to include the feature. "We took influence and encouragement from other sports, by people that have come out. You've had people come out in rugby. There's a small merchandise boost and then everyone forgot about it."
And if anyone disagrees with Sports Interactive changing the game in an attempt to change the footballing world for good? "Honestly, if anyone has a problem with players coming out in a game, I don't want them playing the game," Jacobson declares.
"We've worked with [anti-discrimination organisation] Kick It Out for 22 years, kicking racism, homophobia, Islamophobia, and antisemitism out of football. We've worked with them because there's no place for that rubbish in society. We are a multicultural dev team, we are a multi-gender dev team, and we are a multi-sexuality dev team. Everyone is exactly the same. We're all humans. I don't see why the football world has to be different to that."
Red Dead Redemption 2 is finally here. Rockstar's new open-world western game is now available on both PS4 and Xbox One, and it presents players with a massive, deep open world to explore. The main story alone will take you in the neighborhood of 50 hours to complete, and that's before engaging in much of its side content--and all of this is to be followed by Red Dead Online in November, the game's online multiplayer component.
To help you make the most of the experience, we've put together numerous guides and tips, tackling both specific aspects of the game and a broader array of things you should be aware of before starting. Rockstar has opted not to hold your hand with many features in the game, leaving it to you to either discover them or find them hidden away in menus. We'll also be taking a look at some of these examples to ensure you're aware of everything the game has to offer.
We've got plenty of other guides and tips on the way, and we'll continue to update the list below with all of them. While you wait to actually get your hands on the game, be sure to check out our RDR 2 review.
Cheats
One potentially big aspect of the new game is cheat codes. Like GTA V before it, RDR 2 allows you to use cheats and even has an entire menu available for the feature. However, at this early stage, we don't actually know what all of them are; at least some are cleverly hidden in newspapers in-game. We'll be doing our best to hunt these down and will report back as they are uncovered--you can see those we've been able to confirm in our list of all the Red Dead 2 cheats. If GTA V is anything to go by, you may have the opportunity to get unlimited money, raise/lower your wanted level, and spawn horses at any time, though there's no guarantee Rockstar's approach to cheats hasn't changed in the intervening years. In the meantime, we've also got a rundown on the best RDR2 cheats that are worth a try.
Do You Need To Play Red Dead Redemption First?
Red Dead Redemption 2 is the third game in the Red Dead series, though it's only closely connected to its direct predecessor. However, RDR 2 is a prequel, taking place years before the events of the first RDR. If you've played the previous game, you'll recognize the names and faces of many of its characters, including RDR protagonist John Marston. We dive into whether you should play RDR first in our feature, but whatever choice you make, you should give our Red Dead Redemption story recap a look to refresh your memory--or fill in the holes for the first time.
Tips To Know Before Starting
As with any game, it can be useful to start with certain knowledge in hand. That's certainly true of RDR 2, which is a dense game full of various systems that interact with each other. With that in mind, we've put together a list of key tips you should know before booting up the game for the first time. We've kept spoilers to a minimum, but you'll want to be aware, for instance, that side missions can expire if you don't get to them quickly enough.
How To Make Money Fast
As an outlaw, you're after money, but not necessarily out of sheer greed. Whether your motivation is the betterment of your gang and its members or because you simply want a new gun and horse, you're going to want to get your hands on as much money as possible. With that in mind, we've put together a guide on how to make money quickly.
Outfits And Climates
Among the ways Red Dead 2 tries to immerse you in its world is with its climates. You'll have to account for temperatures if you want to maximize your performance, wearing appropriate clothing depending on where in the world you are. We've rounded up all of the outfits we've come across so far to give you an idea of what you can find.
Things The Game Doesn't Tell You
As you play and share stories with friends, you may come to realize there are any number of things the game doesn't tell you. There are various interesting details and tidbits you could miss because Rockstar isn't throwing them in your face, so we've done our best to round up a number of these so you don't miss out on some opportunities during the course of your adventures.
How Do Morality And Honor Work?
Among the many systems you'll find in Red Dead 2 is honor. Arthur Morgan may be a criminal no matter what choices you make, but there are degrees to which he is a bad guy. That comes into play with morality and honor, as your actions will either boost or lower your honor. Pressing down on the D-pad allows you to see this at any time, and something as simple as greeting a passerby will allow you to build it up. Aside from how people react to you, it's worth being aware of the implications of your honor--Good Guy Arthur will get discounts at stores, which is one way to save some cash.
Some Side Missions Can Expire
If you're a completionist, the thought of optional missions disappearing is downright awful. But whatever your approach to playing games like Red Dead 2, you should absolutely engage with some of the optional content involving your gang. These sequences feature some of the best character moment in the game, but if you advance far enough in the story, some of these missions will go away whether or not you've done them. You can find out more about how this works in our PSA on side missions expiring.
How Do I Fast Travel?
Fast travel does exist in RDR2, although it's not something you'll do by selecting a point on your map and warping there. The means for quickly moving around involve using actual modes of transportation, such as stagecoaches. Provided you have the patience, you're much better off running or taking your horse, because you'll encounter some of the game's most interesting content that way. But if speed is of the essence, consult our explanation of how fast travel works.
All The Guns
As noted above, money is at a premium, so you don't necessarily want to buy every weapon you lay your eyes on. You may want to plan ahead, so we've rounded up all of the guns we've discovered so far in order to give you a sense of what awaits.
Health, Stamina, Dead Eye, And Horse Cores And Bars Explained
One of the many new wrinkles in Red Dead 2 is the Core system, which dictates a variety of aspects of your character. It can be a bit complex to wrap your head around, with Cores influencing bars but bars being used before Cores, among other thing. Do yourself a favor and get a good grasp on this key system by checking out our guide to how Cores work.
Fishing Tips
Early in the game, you'll gain the ability to fish, which can be a fun mini-game to kill some time with. You can get by without much strategy, but if you're interested in getting the biggest, legendary fish that existing in Red Dead's world, you should consult our fishing guide for tips and legendary fish locations.
How To Find The Legendary Animals And Pelts
During Chapter 2, you'll encounter your first Legendary Animal--an enormous Grizzly Bear. From here, you'll be able to track and hunt the game's rarest animals, some of which will require added firepower. If you want to know the location of every single elusive animal in Red Dead 2's world, go check out our Legendary animal sand pets guide for guidance on how to find them, and what to do with that legendary bear pelt.
Perks Guide: Trinkets, Talismans, And The Crafting Components You Need
Perks offer improvements to Arthur's overall abilities that are unlocked by obtaining Talismans and Trinkets, which are primarily crafted at Fences. You'll need parts from Legendary Animals to craft them. Others are rewarded to you by completing specific missions under special conditions. Check out our Perks guide offering a detailed run down all of the Talismans we've found so far, what they do, and what you need to unlock them.
In Red Dead Redemption 2, hunting can be a key part of exploration and survival in the vast open world. In addition to finding food and other necessary supplies, you'll be able to use materials taken from fallen prey to craft outfits and talismans, which unlock special perks that amplify Arthur's main attributes. As you travel, you may even stumble upon an elusive animal that other explorers have rarely seen. Your first encounter with such a beast will be the Legendary Grizzly Bear, which can offer up a legendary bear pelt if you're able take ti down.
These Legendary Animals can be found across the many regions of the map and take some extra effort to hunt. While some of these are small in stature, there are many that tower in size over Arthur and are quite dangerous in a fight. But if you're able to take them out, you'll acquire the means to craft some of the game's most valuable accessories and outfits. These particular animals offer the rarest pelts and materials you can find, which can be turned in to the local Trappers and Fences--those shady, black market dealers offering up some of the rarest goods. But rest assured, any materials that can't fit in your bags will be sent straight to the respective merchants.
In this feature, we're giving you all the details you need in order to track and hunt each of the game's Legendary Animals. If you want some extra tips for general survival and even fishing--which has its own set of Legendary Fish--be sure to check out our guides and features relating to each of Red Dead 2's most involved gameplay systems. Furthermore, be sure to check out our new weekly series QuickDraw, which focuses on the game's numerous gameplay features and along with a broader look on the impact of the Red Dead series.
Location: During the Chapter 2 story mission Exit Pursued By A Bruised Ego, you'll encounter your first Legendary Animal. While it's possible to take down the bear at this time, you can return later if you want better firepower. You can find it in Grizzlies East, north of the lake O'creah's Run.
Legendary Beaver
Location: This rare beaver is known to wander southwest of Butcher Creek, which is directly to the west of Van Horn Trading Post.
Legendary Bighorn Ram
Location: Living up to its name, this unusual ram can be found at Cattail Pond, just west of Valentine--the first town you come across in Chapter 2.
Legendary Boar
Location: The rare boar can be found in Bluewater Marsh, north of Lagras in the Lemoyne region.
Legendary Buck
Location: In the mountains northwest of Strawberry, you'll encounter this large buck.
Legendary Bullgator
Location: First, you'll need to complete the Chapter 4 story mission Country Pursuits, which introduces you to the beast while showing you why it's so dangerous. Afterwards, you'll be able to encounter the massive gator in Bayou Nwa, west of Lakay--which is north of Saint Denis.
Legendary Cougar
Location: This fearsome feline can be found in Gaptooth Ridge, west of Tumbleweed.
Legendary Coyote
Location: The hunting grounds for this dangerous coyote can be found in Scarlett Meadows, northwest of Northwest of Rhodes and Southeast of the Old Mill.
Legendary Elk
Location: You can find this animal east of Bacchus Station in the Ambarino region--the northern section of the map.
Legendary Fox
Location: The fox can be found near Mattock Pond, just north of Rhodes in the Lemoyne region.
Legendary Giaguaro Panther
Location: To encounter this incredibly dangerous animal, you'll first need to prove yourself as hunter by reaching the rank 9 challenge for Master Hunter. Afterwards, you'll find it roaming west of Shady Belle in Lemoyne. This is directly east of Braithwaite Manor.
Legendary Moose
Location: This massive moose can be seen in the area of Roanoke Ridge, which is near the northeastern corner of the map. Legendary Pronghorn Location: This rare antelope is found wandering in Rio Del Lobo Rock, just east of Fort Mercer in New Austin.
Legendary Tatanka Bison
Location: In New Austin, you can find this rare bison just southeast of the MacFarlane ranch at Hennigan's Stead.
Legendary White Bison
Location: You can find another rare bison at Lake Isabella, just north of Mount Hagen in Grizzlies West.
Legendary Wolf
Location: This elusive wolf can be found in Cotorra Springs, west of Bacchus Bridge in Ambarino.
Red Dead Redemption 2 lets you fish, and it's a robust, enjoyable, and rewarding pursuit that's a perfect for the game at large. It's also somewhat involved, so we've put together a guide to help you learn the basics, so you can quickly start to catch fish and have a fun time. This guide also goes into depth on the different types of fish in the game and where to find them, while we've also provided a the map to help you find all 13 of the game's Legendary fish.
Starting off, fishing in Red Dead Redemption 2 is unlocked by playing the Chapter 2 story mission "A Fisher Of Men," in which you teach young Jack Marston to fish. You take little Jack down to the river for a fishing lesson, and this serves as your introduction to the system.
How To Fish:
The first step is to select your Fishing Rod from the Items menu. Next, you must attach bait to it, and this is divided into two categories: Bobber and Lure (more on that later).
Hold LT/L2 to grip the rod and then RT/R2 to cast. How long you hold down RT/R2 will determine how far the cast goes. It might take you a few times to get a feel for it, but it's rewarding to land a cast precisely where you want it. Once you've cast your line out, what happens next depends on the bait you used. With a bobber, all of you have to do is sit and wait to get a bite You can tap RT/R2 to attract a nearby fish (if you're standing close enough to shore you might even see the fish in the water), but do it too much and you'll spook them. With a lure, you have to reel in until you feel a bite. If you see a fish, cast beyond it and reel in the lure so the fish sees it coming by. Be sure to wait until you feel a strong bite before "striking"--with a bobber or a lure--as fish will often nibble a few times before biting down the hook. Once you've landed a fish, the real work begins.
The fish will immediately pull back, and you'll feel your line get tight, with your rod bending in reaction to the tugging. Wait until the fish becomes tired before reeling in; trying to reel as a fish is tugging will cause your line to break. With a fish on the line, push the left stick in the opposite direction the fishing is moving to tire it out faster. You can also click in the right stick and push it in any direction to prevent the fish from taking more line out. However, you must be careful with this approach as you can snap your line very easily. You will also snap your line if a fish pulls away and gets behind a rock or other object.
You reel in by rotating the right stick counter clockwise. You'll want to reel in as fast as possible when the fish grows tired, while also being mindful of how much line you have out, how taut the line is, and where the fish is in the water. Pushing the left stick down as you reel in speeds up the process because it brings the fish directly in towards you. I found it was helpful, if not a little embarrassing, to use my thumb and index finger at the same time to reel in even faster.
The amount of fight a fish puts in is directly related to its size and type. You'll be able to reel in smaller fish such as bluegills, rock bass, and smallmouth bass with relative ease. But catching larger fish, like Sturgeon and Sockeye Salmon, can entail fights that take multiple minutes to complete. If you snap your line, you'll lose your bait or your lure, but don't get discouraged as they are plenty of fish available in Red Dead Redemption 2's numerous lakes, rivers, and swamps.
Bait Types:
Just like in real life, selecting the right bait is critically important if you want to reel in a big one. You can purchase basic bait types like bread, corn, and cheese, or spend more money on worms and crayfish that help you land bigger fish. There are also lures specific to rivers, lakes, and swamps, as well as "special" lures that you'll need to catch the biggest fish and the Legendary ones. Here is a rundown of the bait types we've come across so far.
Bobber:
Bread: good for smaller fish
Corn: good for smaller fish.
Cheese: good for smaller fish.
Worms: excellent for medium sized lake fish.
Crayfish: good for larger size fish in deeper parts of rivers and lakes.
Crickets: excellent for attracting medium-sized river fish.
Lure:
River lure: attracts all small and medium size fish in rivers.
Lake lure: attracts larger lake dwelling fish.
Swamp lure: attracts swamp dwelling medium and large size fish
Special River lure: increases your chances of catching medium to large river fish.
Special Lake lure: increases your chances of catching medium to large lake fish.
Special Swamp lure: increases your chances of catching medium to large swap fish.
Bait And Tackle Shops:
The Bait And Tackle shop in Lagras sells everything you need for fishing, including live worms, crayfish, and all lure types. It's the only Bait And Tackle shop we've found so far in the game.
Types Of Fish And What To Use To Catch Them
There are many different types of fish that can be found in Red Dead Redemption 2's lakes, ponds, rivers, and swamps. Here are the ones we've caught so far, as well as the bait type that provided the highest likelihood of reeling them in successfully.
Bluegill -- Cheese
Chain Pickerel -- Corn
Redfin Pickerel -- Bread
Rock Bass -- Cheese or other natural baits
Smallmouth Bass -- Any type of natural bait
Bullhead Catfish -- Cheese or corn
Perch -- Bread
Lake Sturgeon -- Lake lure
Largemouth Bass -- Crayfish
Steelhead Trout -- Worms
Muskie -- Lake lure
Sockeye Salmon -- river lure
When To Fish
The time of day matters if you want to have the best success fishing. Early morning and afternoon are when fish bite the most, due to bugs flying close to the surface. You should also try to fish when it's raining, because the drops on the water make fish believe bugs are around.
Where To Fish And Specific Conditions
To find the fish you're after, you'll have to fish in the right spot. Here's a rundown of the locations where we've found the following fish.
Bluegill -- All lakes and rivers; most active during rain.
Chain Pickerel -- Lakes, rivers, and swamps; most active in sunny weather.
Redfin Pickerel -- Rivers in the south; most active on warm, sunny days.
Rock Bass -- All clear water in the country; most active on sunny days.
Smallmouth Bass -- Northern rivers; most active during rain.
Bullhead Catfish -- Swamps; most active during rain.
Perch -- Rivers and lakes across the country; most active during sunny weather.
Lake Sturgeon -- Southern lakes and swamps; most active during overcast weather.
Largemouth Bass -- All waters in the south; most active during rainy weather.
Steelhead Trout -- Lakes, mostly in the south; most active during rainy weather.
Muskie -- Northern lakes; most active during overcast days.
Sockeye Salmon -- Rivers in the north; most active during overcast weather.
One further note is that fish, particularly bigger ones, loooovvvvve to hang out at the mouths of waterfalls, as the water there is more oxygenated than other areas. Try there if you're struggling.
Legendary Fish:
Head to the shore of Flat Iron Lake in the Heartlands to a place called Gill Landing. Here, you'll meet a stranger named...Gill, who is a world-renowned fisherman, or at least that's what he wants you to believe. He'll hand you a map with the locations of 13 epic-sized fish you'll find throughout the game. Snag them all and report back to Gill for your prize. These are indeed mighty fish, so expect the toughest fishing battles the game has to offer. You will need to use the "special" lures mentioned above to bag these big ones. The best advice I can give is to try to catch them when they're already close to shore, so as to cut down on your reeling time significantly and improve the odds of landing the fish. Here's the map:
Watch Out For Goats
There are unpenned billy goats throughout Lagras that can cause problems while fishing. On multiple occasions, I was fishing near the swamp and a goat smacked me in the rear, breaking my fishing line while I was reeling in. It was frustrating, and I thought it might have been a bug. But it happened three times, so the lesson here is to watch out for goats while fishing in Lagras.
Boats
At a certain point a few hours into the game, you will steal a boat and bring it to camp. At this point you can use it to head further into a lake to go after the bigger fish that tend to live in deeper water. You can also steal boats you find on your journey to fish anywhere you'd like.
No Ice Fishing
Red Dead Redemption 2 has snowy, cold locations with frozen lakes and ponds, and one of the Legendary fish is located in a lake that is partially frozen over. However, there doesn't appear to be any true ice fishing where you drill through the ice and drop a line in. Here's to hoping Red Dead Redemption 2 gets the guaranteed-seller "Ice Fishing Expansion" down the road…
Season 6, Week 5 of Fortnite has officially begun, meaning the next batch of challenges is now live, ready and waiting for you to complete them. This, it turns out, is easier said than done as there's a couple of tricky challenges among them. The first of these involves finding five flaming hoops and jumping through them using a Shopping Cart or ATK. You might remember this one from previous seasons, as it has been used before. However, the exact locations of the flaming hoops have changed, so you'll still need to dart around the map looking for them.
Or, alternatively, you could use our handy dandy guide here. We've found the flaming hoops and launched ourselves through them. Below you'll find a list of the exact locations of the hoops, along with a map that offers a visual representation of their locations. All you have to do is head to the points and do your best Evel Knievel impression. Just remember to grab an ATK or Shopping Cart along the way. You can also watch the video above to see us do it. Here's where to go:
Fortnite Season 6, Week 5 Flaming Hoops Locations
East of Retail Row on Car Sculpture
East of Paradise Palms
Northeast of Lucky Landing
North side of Dusty Divot
Between Risky Reels and Wailing Woods
Alongside the weekly challenges, Fortnite developer Epic Games has also kicked off Fortnitemares, a Halloween event with its own unique selection of challenges. The event is quite different from anything Fortnite's battle royale mode has done before, as it includes an element of PvE.
"During Fortnitemares, you'll face off against Cube Monsters in a whole new way of playing Battle Royale," Epic explains. "There are new weapons to fight back against these creepy creatures, like the Six Shooter and Fiend Hunter Crossbow. Take out the Cube Fiends and Fragments to pick up loot, and survive against enemy players."
The reward for completing the Fortnitemare challenges is cool new cosmetics, including a special skin. The Deadfire Outfit is described as a "new type of reactive outfit" that, as you progress in a match, will change. The shift in visual style is dependent on the damage you deal to your enemies and also how long you're able to stay alive. The skin also comes with the Shackled Stone Back Bling, and the Dark Shard pickaxe is also available in the store. These are also reactive cosmetics.
All this was rolled out as part of the latest patch. Take a look at the full Fortnite update 6.20 patch notes for more on everything that has been changed, tweaked, added, or removed.
Microsoft has plans to expand the Game Pass subscription service from Xbox One to PC. CEO Satya Nadella reportedly mentioned during an earnings call that bringing Game Pass to PC will help increase the strength of the Xbox brand.
Ars Technica reports that Nadella didn't give any indication of when to expect the subscription to expand, or if it would be included within the same all-you-can-eat price as the Xbox version. It would make some sense for the service to be all-encompassing, given that its current "Play Anywhere" initiative has made PC and Xbox versions of games available across both platforms regardless of where you bought it.
On the Xbox One, though, Game Pass has an isolated marketplace for such a service, competing only somewhat with the more niche EA Access. A PC subscription service would face competition from other similar monthly services at various price tiers. An Xbox One Game Pass subscription currently costs $10 a month. Expanding that pass to include PC games could come through an optional extra fee without paying for an entirely separate subscription.
Microsoft made a bold play for Game Pass by announcing early this year that it would feature all first-party games, on the day of release. That has included big names like Sea of Thieves and Forza Horizon 4. The company also works with publishers to introduce a new slate of third-party Game Pass games every month, and the list is growing pretty large. It also made Game Pass part of its All Access plan, which bundles the console, Game Pass, and Xbox Live Gold together.
Meanwhile, Sony appears to be keen on competing with Microsoft, changing its PlayStation Now service to allow players to download games. PlayStation Now had been a strictly streaming service, which Microsoft will be exploring in more depth next year with Project xCloud.
Fortnite is one of the biggest games in operation right now, and its constantly rotating cast of characters and skins gives lots of material to be immortalized by Funko. The company behind the little collectible figurines has announced a whole new spate of Funkos on the way in addition to the ones already announced.
Five-Star figures include Omega, Zoey with bandages, Moonwalker with Slurp Juice, Love Ranger, and Tomato Head. The Pint Size Heroes two-packs will bring Pathfinder with Highrise Assault Trooper, Ranger with Zoey, Funk Ops with Tomato Head, Omega with Valor, Raptor with Elite Agent, Black Knight with Red Knight, Rex with Tricera Ops, Cuddle Team Leader with Ghoul Trooper, and Moonwalker with Burnout.
New Vnyl figurines include a Cuddle Team Leader and Love Ranger two-pack, along with a Rex and Tricera Ops two-pack. The company also announced a bunch of new Pocket Pop keychains: Pocket Pop! Dark Voyager, Moonwalker, Highrise Assault Trooper, Tower Recon Specialist, Skull Trooper, Black Knight, Omega in full armor, Raptor, Brite Bomber, and Rex.
Finally, two more Pop figurines are coming: Rex and Dark Voyager. You can view the full spate of new figures below. Release dates weren't given for the new Pops and other assorted figurines.
Currently Fortnite is celebrating its new Fortnitemares event with some special loot, and more spooky skins appear to be on the way soon.
Red Dead Redemption 2 offers a bounty of goodies for pre-orders and its two special editions, but you'll have to wait before claiming many of them. The game's first chapter sets up many of the mechanics and story information you'll need, so you'll have to progress past at least that point before you can start to access your extras.
Keep in mind that in each of these cases, you'll also need to enter a code to enable the bonuses. Those codes can be found on slips included with your game disc. Even after entering the codes, though, the bonuses won't necessarily be accessible immediately. In case you're wondering where to find your loot, we've compiled a list of the goodies below.
War Horse -- The War Horse bonus is included with all pre-orders of Red Dead Redemption 2. It's accessible once you've progressed through the story mode enough to browse the available horses in the Stables.
Dappled Black Thoroughbred -- This special horse is included in Special and Ultimate editions. Like the War Horse, it's accessible once you can browse the Stables.
Eagle Talon Talisman and Iguana Scale Trinket -- Both of these bonuses are included in all Special and Ultimate editions, and they can be equipped at the start of Chapter 2. The Eagle Talon Talisman can be found in the Wardrobe and the Iguana Scale Trinket is in the Satchel under the Kit tab.
Nuevo Paraiso Gunslinger Outfit -- This outfit is included in Special and Ultimate editions. You can access it through your Wardrobe after completing Chapter 1.
Volcanic Pistol, Pump Action Shotgun, and Lancaster Varmint Rifle -- These specialty guns are included with Special and Ultimate Editions. They can be picked up for free at any Gunsmith after completing Chapter 1.
Bank Robbery Mission and Gang Hideout -- These are both available for Special and Ultimate editions. The Del Lobos gang hideout can be found in the world during story progression. The Bank Robbery Mission will also be available through story progression, and the game will notify you when it becomes available. If you miss the opportunity, you can find it in the Story menu to replay it.
Red Dead Redemption 2 has released, and along with it comes the mobile companion app. The app links up with your copy of the game and helps you keep track of your location with an interactive map, along with a handful of other features so you can take the Old West with you around in your pocket.
The map lets you set waypoints and track your position in real-time. Aside from that handy widget, you can also view the game journal, shop for clothing, check your game progress, and read the game manual. It also links up with Rockstar's Social Club. The app itself is free on both iOS and Android, but both versions offer a $10 in-app purchase of the official strategy guide. The social club integration may be a boon to your gang of outlaws when Red Dead Online launches next month.
If you're a no-good scoundrel in need of more creative methods of getting ahead in the world, check out our full list of known cheats. And keep in mind some of those side missions have a time limit and can expire if you don't get to them quickly enough.
To get started on the right foot, check out our list of essential tips for beginners, and refresh yourself on the story from the first game. Red Dead Redemption 2 is a massive and ambitious game, and as noted in our review, it stands on its own even without knowing the details of John Marston's story.
"While Red Dead Redemption was mostly focused on John Marston's story, Red Dead 2 is about the entire Van der Linde gang--as a community, as an idea, and as the death rattle of the Wild West. It is about Arthur, too, but as the lens through which you view the gang, his very personal, very messy story supports a larger tale," wrote critic Kallie Plagge. "Some frustrating systems and a predictable mission structure end up serving that story well, though it does take patience to get through them and understand why. Red Dead Redemption 2 is an excellent prequel, but it's also an emotional, thought-provoking story in its own right, and it's a world that is hard to leave when it's done."
The new 6.20 patch for Fortnite adds Fortnitemares, this year's holiday event. But as usual, the update also tucked away a few surprise cosmetics in its nooks and crannies that have been uncovered by data miners. Some are pieces we've seen before in one form or another, while many are brand new.
Fortnite Intel reports that the cosmetics include the Summit Striker, Dante, Rosa, and Frostbite skins--the last of which is part of the Deep Freeze bundle announced for PS4, Xbox One, and Switch. Dante and Rosa appear to pay homage to the Mexican holiday Day of the Dead, which traditionally takes place just after Halloween.
New back bling includes the Summit Striker's Top Notch and Frostbite's Freezing Point, plus a Spirit Cape, Galactic Disc, and Calavera. New gliders include Discovery and Spirit, while the new pickaxes are Chill Axe, Stellar Axe, Longhorn, and Six String Striker. The update also included a few new emotes: Busy, Criss Cross, Headbanger, and Jugglin'.
Image Credit: Fortnite Intel
The big new addition, of course, was Fortnitemares. The spooky new themed mode allows you to earn special new items, including a new type of skin that responds to how you play. Check out our challenge guide for details on how to earn yourself some sweet special loot. Fortnitemares challenges are planned to roll over every few days all the way through November 26.
Red Dead Redemption 2 is a big, big game, both in terms of its scope and file size on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. With its release date officially here and the game now out on both systems, it turns out that file size has made it one of the few modern games to span multiple discs--two, to be exact.
Our own physical copies at the GameSpot offices show just how it works. The first disc is a "Data Disc" to install necessary files before playing. The other is the "Play Disc" that you'll have in your PlayStation 4 or Xbox One system while actually playing. That could make for some hefty install times, so be prepared to wait if you pick up a physical copy.
Dual-layer Blu-ray discs tend to cap at 50 GB of storage space. Given that the file size of Red Dead 2 is roughly 100 GB, it's not too surprising that Rockstar Games would have to split it up in this way. On top of that, the game has a day-one patch that's recommended for last-minute bug fixes.
As long as you're preparing yourself for the game, you can read up on some beginner's tips along with tips and cheats. Or if you're still on the proverbial fence, you can read our Red Dead Redemption 2 review to find out why you shouldn't be.
After suffering a slight dip over the last couple of weeks, the stock for Take-Two Interactive--the parent company of Red Dead Redemption 2 publisher Rockstar Games--is on the rise after positive critical reception for open-world western for PS4 and Xbox One. This puts the company's stock near its all-time high.
As of the time of writing, the stock is at roughly $120 USD, a gain of about 9% from yesterday's market close. For comparison that's almost four times the increase of the overall NASDAQ average gain today, of which Take-Two is a part. That doesn't quite recover to its high point of $138 in late September, but it's close considering the stock only steadily entered the triple-digits over the last year.
The most precipitous fall came in mid-October, just after an interview with Dan Houser kicked off criticism about Rockstar's development culture and crunch. He later clarified that he was only referring to the long hours of himself and a few other senior writers, but the criticism persisted. The company allowed developers to speak openly and at least one studio called a meeting to explicitly tell employees that overtime isn't mandatory. Just yesterday Kotaku published an in-depth investigative piece regarding crunch at the studio.
Positive reviews appear to be serving as a shot in the arm for the company stock. The game has scored an aggregate score of 97 on GameSpot sister site Metacritic, earning it a "Must Play" designation. In GameSpot's Red Dead Redemption 2 review, critic Kallie Plagge said that despite being a prequel, Red Dead 2 stands on its own.
"Red Dead Redemption 2 is an excellent prequel, but it's also an emotional, thought-provoking story in its own right, and it's a world that is hard to leave when it's done," she said.
Jump Force, the fighting game featuring a variety of characters from the popular Japanese manga anthology Shonen Jump, now has a release date. Bandai Namco has announced that it will release on February 15 for PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.
The date was revealed as part of Paris Games Week, and appropriately enough, the game also debuted a new Paris stage. The new trailer shows a fight between Ryo from City Hunter and Kenshiro from Fist of the North Star battling it out in the famous city, complete with some of its most iconic landmarks.
Jump Force is a who's who of popular anime and manga characters. The newly revealed box art features Goku, Naruto, and Luffy. Some characters, like those from Death Note, are presented to further the story but not playable. The game appears similar to Dragon Ball FighterZ from Bandai Namco, which focused strictly on Dragon Ball characters.
Dragon Ball FighterZ was a smash success for Bandai Namco, as well as a critical standout. Part of that is the distinct visual style that captured the heart of the anime, but it's also a solid competitive fighting game in its own right. In GameSpot's review, critic Peter Brown said it was much more than a nostalgia trip.
"Where past games attempted to get there through huge character rosters and deliberately predictable trips down memory lane, FighterZ has bottled the essence of what makes the series' characters, animation, and sense of humor so beloved and reconfigured it into something new: a Dragon Ball fighting game that can go toe-to-toe with the best of the genre," he said.
Red Dead Redemption 2 is finally here, and those who haven't bought one of its different versions yet may still be wondering which platform to play it on. To that end, tech specialists have completed their analysis and concluded that, pound for pound, Xbox One X delivers the most picturesque version of the Old West. This is hardly surprising given that the enhanced Xbox One is the most powerful console around.
According to the Digital Foundry analysis, the Xbox One X runs natively at 4K while the PlayStation 4 Pro uses a reconstruction technique to output in 4K. If you don't own either of those high-end machines, though, the PlayStation 4 runs at standard 1080p, versus 864p for the Xbox One S. The lower-end Xbox is the worst performing console in the test, with textures that are said to be blurry and grainy.
The frame-rate for Red Dead 2 also stands out on Xbox One, with a locked 30 FPS that outpaces the occasional dropped frames in busy areas like towns. Both of the base consoles are said to hit the low 20s at times when visiting high-density cities. In this respect a base PlayStation 4 performs slightly worse than Xbox One. The two more powerful consoles deliver higher quality textures on characters and clothing, and there doesn't appear to be a difference in terms of foliage and landscapes. On the whole the analysis concludes that the Xbox One X wins by a "considerable margin."
PlayStation 4 has been front-and-center for Red Dead Redemption 2 marketing, given the exclusive PS4 Pro console bundle and timed exclusive content. It seems that Xbox One X actually edges it out.
Meanwhile, RDR2 reviews have rolled into town. GameSpot's Kallie Plagge praised the prequel as surprising all on its own. "Red Dead Redemption 2 is an excellent prequel, but it's also an emotional, thought-provoking story in its own right, and it's a world that is hard to leave when it's done," she wrote.
Sony is finally allowing PlayStation Network users to change their names soon, but it appears the feature may come with a few more caveats than expected. Sony previously warned of some game and app compatibility issues in the initial announcement. According to users in the beta, though, an attached disclaimer warns that players are warned they could lose lots of information associated with their account, including DLC purchases and saved games.
The disclaimer was leaked by beta members on the ResetEra forum. It notes that not all games and applications support the online ID change feature, so players who use it may lose access to content including virtual currency, game progress like saved game data, leaderboard data, and Trophy progress. It also notes that some games might not function properly, even offline, and your prior ID could remain visible to other players in some situations. If you run into issues with the change, according to the users, you can revert back to your original username at no additional fee. But that may not resolve all of the problems.
It's difficult to tell from the disclaimer how widespread these bugs could be, or even if Sony is simply covering its bases by warning of possible complications. Still, if you've been looking forward to changing your name you may want to wait for more information on how common these problems are.
If you're in the beta, or once the feature launches in full, you can change your name once for free. After that it will be $10 USD/CAD / €9.99 / £7.99 for subsequent changes, or half those prices for PlayStation Plus members.
The preview program will last until the end of November, and then the full feature will roll out to all users in early 2019. All games published after April 1, 2018 will be compatible, and Sony will issue a full list of compatible games published before that date when the feature goes live for everyone. Once it's live, you'll make the change through the Settings menu or the Profile page. You can also choose to display your old PSN ID next to the new one so that friends will recognize you, but once you make that decision you can't change it.
Fortnite's Halloween event this year has kicked off in style with "Fortnitemares," an ongoing world event that offers special challenges and spooky cosmetic items. With the release of today's new update, the event is live across both the Battle Royale and Save the World modes, so no matter which flavor of Fortnite you prefer you can find something to do. Here's everything you need to know about the new event.
What Is It?
Fortnitemares is an ongoing event lasting from October 23-November 26, introduced in the patch update 6.20. It offers exclusive cosmetic items and special world events with new enemies, including lots to do across its two modes.
In a special playlist in the the PvP mode Battle Royale, you'll face off against cube monsters that operate very similarly to the Save the World zombie-like creatures. The mysterious Cube spawned this legion of AI cube monsters, which will attack you if you get too close. Defeating them can get you some random loot and shield power. This is notably the first time the PvP mode has been invaded by AI enemies. Completing special challenges, some of which focus on defeating these AI enemies, can earn you a whole new type of cosmetic items and some special gear. There's also a limited-time weapon you can use; you can read about all of this in the patch notes.
Separately, in the PvE Save the World mode, Hexsylvania returns with new story quests. Just logging onto Save the World during the Fortnitemares event will earn you some skins. Save the World isn't going free-to-play this year as previously planned, but founder's packs are currently half-priced.
Fortnitemares Battle Royale Challenges
Fortnitemare challenges are set to alternate every few days through the end of the event period, so you'll have to check back often to maximize your rewards. Currently the first set of challenges is live. Many are self-explanatory, but click below for more detailed guides on more complex challenges.
Destroy Cube Monsters (200) -- 500 XP
Deal damage with Assault Rifles or Pistols to Cube Monsters (5,000) -- 500 XP
Visit a Corrupted Area in different matches (7) -- 500 XP
The biggest new addition to Fortnitemares are the permanent rewards, including a whole new type of cosmetic. The centerpiece is the new Deadfire skin, a "reactive skin" that changes based upon your play in a given match that will cost you 2,000 V-Bucks. It's joined by the Shackled Stone Back Bling and Dark Shard pickaxe (1,200 V-Bucks), which are both "reactive cosmetics."
Alongside this skin, Epic has also introduced the Shackled Stone Back Bling to go along with it, and the Dark Shard pickaxe can also be found in the in-game store. Both of these items are called "reactive cosmetics." The Deadfire skin is available for 2,000 V-Bucks, while the Dark Shard harvesting tool costs 1,200 V-Bucks.
The 6.20 update also added a new Six Shooter weapon, and the ability to redeploy Gliders.
Overwatch is one of Blizzard's ongoing live games, but the company wants to manage expectations ahead of next month's BlizzCon event. In a developer update, game director Jeff Kaplan noted that fans shouldn't expect a new map to be announced at the fan celebration.
He said that given that fans may be expecting this year's announcement to be similar to those of previous years, which would include a new map. For that reason, he wanted to be "explicitly clear" that no new map is coming this time around. He said that new maps announced at BlizzCon have gotten "a little lost in the shuffle" and "didn't have as big of an impact as we wanted."
That said, he did note that the company is working on new map content in general. It sounds as if it simply wants to strategically time it so that it doesn't get overshadowed by a lot of the other happenings around the event. Plus he promised Overwatch announcements for the event without specifying what those might be. Finally, he announced buffs in the works for several characters, which we're currently seeing on the public test realm.
One pre-BlizzCon announcement detailed in the developer update is a new feature called the World Cup Viewer. A beta version will go up before the event through the Battle.net client for PC players. It will let you watch matches live in the spectator point-of-view, with full control over camera movement or even watch in first-person through the eyes of a player.
Blizzard similarly did some pre-event expectation-setting for Diablo. To see all that the event has in store this year, you can enter to win some free virtual tickets. BlizzCon kicks off on November 2.
The battle royale mode for Battlefield V will come next March, DICE has announced. A post on the official site detailed the post-launch roadmap, and announced that the "Firestorm" Battle Royale mode will come in March 2019.
That's the third chapter of its planned content, to follow Chapter 1 (Overture) and Chapter 2 (Lightning Strikes). Overture will bring the tank-focused Panzerstorm map, a new War Story called The Last Tiger, and new vehicle customization features. It's coming roughly two weeks after launch. Then sometime between January and March, Lightning Strikes will add Combined Arms and Squad Conquest.
Firestorm will support up to 64 players, divided into teams of four. It gets its name from a ring of fire that will close throughout the match, as players scrounge for weapons and fight to be the last team remaining. It's being developed by Criterion rather than DICE. We still don't know much about Firestorm on the whole, considering it wasn't part of the beta.
Battle royale modes are popping up in more games recently. Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, Battlefield's chief competitor in the military shooter genre, launched with its own battle royale mode called Blackout.
Two more Xbox 360 games have joined the Xbox One backwards compatibility lineup. These new additions include a family-friendly Star Wars game and a satirical sim.
Lego Star Wars 2: The Original Trilogy was one of the earliest Lego-branded takes on a popular franchise, after the first Lego Star Wars hit it big by immortalizing the prequel trilogy in plastic bricks. As the name implies, it's a take on the three classic films A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back, and Return of the Jedi.
Tropico 4 is one of five entries in the long-running simulation series that makes you dictator of a small island nation. As "El Presidente" you're tasked with keeping citizens happy or quelling rebellions to retain power and stave off the ever-present threat of being overthrown.
Both Lego Star Wars 2 and Tropico 4 received positive GameSpot reviews. As always, if you own these games digitally you can download them from your library, or insert the disc if you own the physical copies. They're on sale in the Xbox Store for $15 (Lego Star Wars) and $10 (Tropico).
Microsoft has been regularly adding new backwards compatibility features since introducing the initiative in November 2015. The full list of backwards compatible games is getting pretty sizable at this point. If you need some recommendations on which ones are worth your time, check out our gallery of the best Xbox One backwards compatible games.
Fallout 76's beta is beginning today on Xbox One, and Bethesda has released a whole new batch of screenshots to mark the occasion. These images put an emphasis on the lovely vistas of West Virginia, albeit a slightly more irradiated version than you may have seen in the state's tourism ads. [Update: The first beta test has wrapped up, and you can watch us trying it out in the video above.]
To prepare for launch, the company also released a letter to its fans thanking them for their support and cautioning that this is a very different kind of Fallout game. It stressed that the studio cares about these worlds and wants to do right by them, and that as an online and live game the launch of Fallout 76 would be just the beginning. The studio is looking ahead to a long period of bug fixes and other support.
"Given what we're doing with 76, we know we're opening everyone up to all new spectacular issues none of us have encountered," Bethesda wrote. "Some we're aware of, such as areas where performance needs to improve with lots of players."
The beta is coming first to Xbox One, with PC and PS4 to follow on October 30. Pre-ordering will grant you access to the beta but you may not get in right away. Instead, Bethesda will be giving out codes for the beta itself as it invites in more players to stress test. For that same reason, the tests themselves will take place in concentrated chunks of a few hours at a time to force players together.
The beta is said to be the the full game and your progress will carry over to the full game. The full game launches on November 14.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 recently opened its Black Market cosmetic shop on PlayStation 4, quickly followed by a special Halloween stream of items. These debuted on PS4 already and will be available on PC and Xbox One on October 27. This first event likely gives us an idea of what to expect from these holiday-themed streams in the future.
The limited-time event stream is a supplement to the general Contraband stream, which offers a series of free cosmetic items that are unlocked through game progression. They'll rotate roughly every two months. The initial one, called Operation First Strike, offers new Blackout characters, signature weapons, Specialist outfits, tags, and gestures.
The Contraband and events streams will be joined by a paid tier of items joining the shop in November. So far Activision and Treyarch have not detailed what we can expect for the pricing of those items.
Meanwhile, Treyarch is working to improve crashing and stability bugs, most recently with a patch that fixed several crashes across Zombies and Multiplayer modes. The studio also says it will be prioritizing network performance over the next few weeks.
This first round of Halloween cosmetics includes some ghastly war paints and playful gestures, along with a jack-o-lantern spray. Check them out below.
2017's Wonder Woman was a breakout critical success for the often uneven DC cinematic universe. Its sequel is set decades later, in the 1980s--hence the title Wonder Woman 1984--and will take the character into the Cold War. But its debut has been delayed, and it'll no longer hit theaters next year. Warner Bros. has announced a seven-month delay, pushing the the return of Princess Diana to mid-2020.
Star Gal Gadot, who plays the title character, first shared news of the delay via Twitter. Rather than its planned November 1, 2019 date, it will now release on June 5, 2020. Gadot calls this date its "rightful home," presumably a reference to its placement among tent-pole summer movies rather than a fall release. The first movie was released in May 2017.
The news was subsequently confirmed in a statement WB shared with GameSpot. "We had tremendous success releasing the first Wonder Woman film during the summer so when we saw an opportunity to take advantage of the changing competitive landscape, we did," said Jeff Goldstein, Warner Bros. president of domestic distribution. "This move lands the film exactly where it belongs."
Super excited to announce that, thanks to the changing landscape, we are able to put Wonder Woman back to its rightful home. June 5, 2020. Be there or be square!!! ✨🙅♀️✨ pic.twitter.com/Wj8ORUQLdg
No other reason was given for the delay other than the "changing landscape" Gadot mentioned. That could mean that next fall is simply getting too crowded or that space has opened up in the following summer. DC has scheduled its Joker movie for October 2019, so keeping Wonder Woman 1984 in the November slot could have overlapped with it. The gap left behind by the movie has already been filled by two other films, with the upcoming Charlie's Angels and Terminator 6 now set for November 1, 2019.
So far we haven't seen a trailer for WW84, so details are still scarce. Patty Jenkins is returning to direct, and Chris Pine is coming back in some capacity as Steve Trevor. We also know that Kristen Wiig has been cast as one of Wonder Woman's most iconic nemeses, Cheetah.
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