A new sale is underway in the Microsoft Store. From now through January 28, Xbox One and Xbox 360 owners can find some steep discounts on a variety of games for each console, with some particularly good deals available across the wide-ranging Tom Clancy series.
On the Xbox One side, players can pick up the popular tactical shooters Rainbow Six Siege and Ghost Recon Wildlands for $15 each. If you're looking for even more Wildlands content, the game's season pass is also on sale for $26, while its Year 2 pass is $22.49. If you're interested in trying out The Division before its sequel arrives this March, the first game is available for $10, and its various DLC packs are also discounted.
Beyond the Tom Clancy sale, a number of other recent and popular games are also discounted as part of this week's Deals with Gold. Xbox Live Gold members can grab the Xbox One versions of Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 for $39, NHL 19 for $19.80, Hitman 2 for $42, and Grand Theft Auto V for $15. On the Xbox 360, each entry in the Dead Space trilogy is on sale, as are Dante's Inferno and Alice: Madness Returns, among other titles.
This week's sale will run until 3 AM PT / 6 AM ET on January 29. We've rounded up some other notable deals below; the full list of discounted titles can be found on Major Nelson's blog. Xbox Live Gold members also still have a few more days to grab the remainder of this month's Games with Gold, which will remain free through the end of the month.
The huge success of the first Deadpool in 2016 took many surprise--the modestly budgeted X-Men spin-off was not only the most successful R-rated movie of all time, it made more money than most of the "regular" movies in the franchise. Last year's Deadpool 2 was also a huge hit, and inevitably a third movie is in the works. Star Ryan Reynolds has now hinted about what fans can expect from Deadpool 3.
In a recent interview with Variety, Reynolds revealed that development on Deadpool 3 had already started. Unsurprisingly he didn't give many details away, but he did suggest that the film won't be what is usually expected from the third part of a successful franchise. "[We're] looking to go in a completely different direction," he said. "Often, they reboot or change a character maybe like four movies too late."
It had previously been reported that Deadpool might appear in an X-Force movie ahead of Deadpool 3, with Bad Times at the El Royale's Drew Goddard directing. However, earlier this month, Deadpool creator Rob Liefeld revealed that X-Force had now been cancelled, due to the impending merger between Fox and Disney. Fox currently own the rights to all X-Men characters.
As for Deadpool 3, the film does not have a release date and it hasn't been confirmed if director David Leitch will return. Leitch joined the production of the second movie after the exit of director Tim Miler, who helmed the first film but left Deadpool 2 due to reported clashes with Reynolds.
In related news, there are two X-Men movies set for release in 2019. All the main X-Men cast return for Dark Phoenix, which releases in June--check out the latest trailer. This will be followed by the much-delayed New Mutants, which is currently set to arrive in August.
With the weekly refresh of Destiny 2, another Ascendant Challenge is now available to help you climb toward the Power level cap of 650 that came with the game's latest expansion, The Black Armory. This week's Ascendant Challenge returns from the third week of Forsaken. Here's where its portal is located and what to do inside.
If you've done an Ascendant Challenge (or several at this point) before, you'll have an idea of how this goes. Start out by buying the appropriate bounty from Petra in the Dreaming City. Alongside that, you'll need a Tincture of Queensfoil. Once you consume that, you get the Ascendance buff that allows you to see the Taken portal--after you've found it.
This particular portal is located in the Spire of Keres; you can see its location in the video above. Go through it to visit the Shattered Ruins in the Ascendant Plane, where are tasked with climbing a tower made of rocks without dying. Enemies will try to snipe you, and Taken rifts will try to boop you off the tower to your death. Be careful with where you move as you go toward the top; once you're there, kill the boss to complete the Ascendant Challenge.
Your reward is a chest that may not have anything special inside, but you'll also complete the bounty you picked up from Petra. This offers a piece of Powerful gear, making it a task worth tackling. With the recently released Black Armory expansion, the Power cap for characters has been raised to 650, so it's definitely worth revisiting the Ascendant Challenge as you grind up to those new heights.
As noted above, the prerequisite for doing an Ascendant Challenge--aside from access to the Dreaming City, which only comes after finishing the Forsaken campaign--is a Tincture of Queensfoil. These can be obtained through chests and Public Events in the Dreaming City, but that's not the only means.
The video above details a location you can go to trade 50 Baryon Boughs, the planetary material you earn in the Dreaming City, for a Tincture of Queensfoil. If you're desperate to get your hands on one to try the Ascendant Challenge, follow our video guide to help you find your way to the spot where you can trade with Huginn.
Destiny's next big event is The Draw, which drops with the next weekly reset on Jan. 29. It's an Exotic weapon quest that's expected to bring the Destiny 1 hand cannon, The Last Word, into Destiny 2. It should also be accompanied by more story about the mysterious Drifter, the guy who runs the Gambit matches introduced with Destiny 2's Forsaken expansion.
Resident Evil 2 is considered a classic, and one of the best games in Capcom's genre-defining survival horror series. Following the success of a remake for the original Resident Evil, the company has released another fresh take on the classic with the Resident Evil 2 remake. This version retells the story of Leon S. Kennedy and Claire Redfield attempting to survive the infested Raccoon City.
The critical consensus has been largely positive, with most critics agreeing that Capcom has modernized the classic with enhancements that make it look and feel both fresh and respectful to the original. The gruesome horror game also includes some callbacks to secrets from the original, and Capcom is planning a free post-launch DLC mode to give it more longevity.
Check out our and story recap and pre-order guide for everything you need to know before you get started. Read below for a sampling of reviews, and check out GameSpot sister site Metacritic for more impressions from around the industry.
Game: Resident Evil 2
Developer / Publisher: Capcom
Platform: PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
Release date: January 25
Price: US $60 / £40 / AU $77
GameSpot -- 9/10
"Resident Evil 2 is not only a stellar remake of the original, but it's also simply a strong horror game that delivers anxiety-inducing and grotesque situations, topping some of the series' finest entries. But above all, the remake is an impressive game for the fact that it goes all-in on the pure survival horror experience, confidently embracing its horrifying tone and rarely letting up until the story's conclusion. Though Resident Evil 2 has its roots firmly in the past, it reworks the familiar horrors into something that feels brand new and all its own." -- Alessandro Fillari [Full review]
CNet -- No Score
"Despite a few niggles, the Resident Evil 2 remake drags the 1998 classic into 2019 wonderfully and represents the pinnacle of the survival horror genre. If you're looking for a tough, old school adventure with plenty of scares, come and explore in the Raccoon City Police Department." -- Sean Keane [Full review]
The Guardian -- 5/5
"For veterans who remember the original (and I reviewed it at the time), it is an unmissable nostalgic treat. For those who don't know their T-Viruses from their Code Veronicas, the experience is easily vivid and entertaining enough to stand on its own merits. This is horror game design as true craft." -- Keith Stuart [Full review]
Game Informer -- 9.5/10
"Over the years, Capcom has experimented with several different approaches to Resident Evil, but this is one approach I hope gets revisited. Resident Evil 2 not only looks great, it plays well, and it forces you into a series of dark encounters that are a total rush. Resident Evil is finally running on all cylinders." -- Ben Reeves [Full review]
EGM -- 9.5/10
"In the end, however, that--and the other minor complaints I had here and there--did nothing to lessen the unadulterated joy and emotional attachment I felt during my entire playthrough of Resident Evil 2. More than just a new chapter in Capcom's legendary franchise, this is the culmination of said franchise's 22 years of existence, and the near-perfect combination of retaining everything we once loved about Resident Evil while trying to figure out how to move those things into the future." -- Mollie L Patterson [Full review]
US Gamer -- 4.5/5
"The sense of fear and terror when playing Resident Evil 2 never leaves you. It's unlike anything else I've encountered in a Resident Evil game previously. I'm just going to go ahead and call it: Resident Evil 2 is the best Resident Evil game in the franchise and represents a series and developer at its peak. Don't be distracted by the pretty graphics and gore, Resident Evil 2 is straight-up dangerous." -- Matt Kim [Full review]
Destructoid -- 9/10
"My complaints about the Resident Evil 2 remaster are minimal. An argument could be made that Capcom could have done more, but the spirit of the original has been preserved and in many cases, enhanced. I hope every legacy game in the series gets this loving treatment, as I'll probably be playing them for the rest of my life." -- Chris Carter [Full review]
Games Radar -- 4/5
"A beautifully made and reverent take on the original game that works both as a remake and a completely new game." -- Leon Hurley [Full review]
As it often does, Epic has followed up the recent big Fortnite patch (and subsequent Ice Storm event) with a content update. This one, content update 7.20, makes some adjustments to various items and also introduces a new one, the Sneaky Snowman, vaults several weapons, and adds a limited-time mode. Here are the patch notes detailing what's new and different.
The very brief video below sums it up fairly well, but in short, the Sneaky Snowman is a wearable disguise not unlike the bush. It's a Common rarity item and can be found as floor loot or in chests and supply llamas. They drop in stacks of five (you can hold up to 10), and the reason for that is you can opt to wear it (by pressing Secondary Fire) or you can throw it (with Primary Fire) to create a destructible snowman. This way, your opponents will never be sure if a snowman they come across is an actual player or just a decoy.
Of course, enemies can destroy these snowmen by shooting them, but they have 100 health, so dispatching them won't be as simple as shooting them once. When worn, they function as a shield but are destroyed if the wearer switches to another item or goes into building mode. You can, however, still move around as usual.
Alongside this, the new patch vaults several items, meaning they've been temporarily removed from standard Battle Royale game modes. Those include the quad rocket launcher, port-a-fortress, and grappler. And while they haven't been pulled entirely, several other items and vehicles are also now less likely to be found, and two types of potions have had their drop rates swapped. As detailed in the patch notes:
Altered Spawn Rates
Reduced the drop chance of Gliders.
Reduced drop chance from Chests from 11.89% to 4.43%.
Reduced the drop chance of Balloons.
Reduced drop chance from Chests from 7.58% to 3.24%.
Reduced the spawn chance of Quad Crashers from 100% to 50%.
Reduced the spawn chance of X-4 Stormwings from 80% to 50%.
Swapped the drop chance of Shield Potions and Small Shield Potions.
Shield Potion
Reduced drop chance from Floor Loot from 16.53% to 13.22%.
Reduced drop chance from Chests from 14.26% to 9.51%.
Small Shield Potion
Increased drop chance from Floor Loot from 13.22% to 16.53%.
Increased drop chance from Chests from 9.51% to 14.26%.
A new but returning limited-time mode has also arrived: Sniper Shootout. All weapons in this mode have scopes, floor loot is less common, and there is no reviving teammates in duos/squads versions. Since the last time this LTM was available, the suppressed sniper rifle has been added, and supply drops can now include the Legendary scoped pistol.
At The Block, you'll find Omega Pyramid, a new creation by player Directingpete. You can see it in the image below.
You can read on for the full patch notes, courtesy of Epic. Fortnite Creative sees a few additions, while Week 4 of the Cold Chaos event kicks off in Fortnite: Save the World. Elsewhere in the game, a new Ice Storm event began over the weekend, complete with new challenges.
Fortnite 7.20 Content Update Patch Notes
Battle Royale
LIMITED TIME MODE: SNIPER SHOOTOUT
Summary
In this limited time mode, players will do battle using scoped weapons only. May the best aim win!
What's New?
Suppressed Sniper Rifles have been added.
Legendary Scoped Pistols have been added to Supply Drops.
Mode Details
Floor Loot spawners reduced by 50%
Reviving "Down But Not Out" teammates in Duos & Squads is deactivated - be careful peeking!
Profile Stats (K/D & Wins) are tracked in this mode
WEAPONS + ITEMS
Sneaky Snowman
Use Primary Fire to throw a projectile that creates a destructible snowman.
Use Secondary Fire to wear the Sneaky Snowman.
Sneaky Snowman has 100 Health and acts as a shield when worn by a player.
Sneaky Snowman is destroyed when its Health reaches zero or when the player wearing the snowman swaps to a different item or building mode.
This means that a player wearing a Sneaky Snowman cannot build or use other items. Movement of all types is allowed.
Available in Common variant.
Can be found from Floor Loot, Chests, and Supply Llamas.
Drops in stacks of 5.
Max stack size of 10.
Swapped the drop chance of Shield Potions and Small Shield Potions.
Shield Potion
Reduced drop chance from Floor Loot from 16.53% to 13.22%.
Reduced drop chance from Chests from 14.26% to 9.51%.
Small Shield Potion
Increased drop chance from Floor Loot from 13.22% to 16.53%.
Increased drop chance from Chests from 9.51% to 14.26%.
Vaulted the following items:
Quad Rocket Launcher
Port-A-fortress
Grappler
Reduced the drop chance of Gliders.
Reduced drop chance from Chests from 11.89% to 4.43%.
Reduced the drop chance of Balloons.
Reduced drop chance from Chests from 7.58% to 3.24%.
Reduced the spawn chance of Quad Crashers from 100% to 50%.
Reduced the spawn chance of X-4 Stormwings from 80% to 50%.
PERFORMANCE
Fixed an issue where building would cause a major drop in FPS.
EVENTS
Added additional dates for Explorer Pop-Up Cup.
Updated additional materials gained on elimination to now drop with the eliminated player, rather than being granted immediately.
Creative
WHAT'S NEW?
This is an early release so you may experience client crashes, loss of progress, or other unexpected errors.
WEAPONS + ITEMS
Sneaky Snowman
Use Primary Fire to throw a projectile that creates a destructible snowman.
Use Secondary Fire to wear the Sneaky Snowman.
Sneaky Snowman has 100 Health and acts as a shield when worn by a player.
Sneaky Snowman is destroyed when its Health reaches zero or when the player wearing the snowman swaps to a different item or building mode.
This means that a player wearing a Sneaky Snowman cannot build or use other items. Movement of all types is allowed.
Available in Common variant.
Can be found from Floor Loot, Chests, and Supply Llamas.
Drops in stacks of 5.
Max stack size of 10.
Added to Creative
Light Machine Gun
Suppressed Sub-Machine Gun
Revolver
Semi-Auto Sniper Rifle
Smoke Grenade
Remote Explosives
Save the World
WHAT'S NEW?
Frostnite Weekly Challenge 4 - Cold Chaos
Focus your fire! Enemies gain modifiers when attacked, so work as a team and defeat the threat to unlock the banner and the Guardian's Will Sword.
Lynx Kassandra
A new Hero arrives! Fast on her feet with catlike reflexes, unlock her in the Event Store for a limited time.
MISSIONS + SYSTEMS
Weekly Frostnite Challenge 4: Cold Chaos
Enemies gain modifiers when damaged. Focus your attacks for maximum efficiency.
Enemies receive a certain combination of mutators per wave: Quickened, Enraged, Exploding Deathburst, Frenzied Deathburst, and Smoke Screens.
Survive for 30 minutes (three times) to collect the Week 4 Challenge Banner.
Survive for 30 minutes to collect the Medieval Sword.
Available on January 23 at 7 PM ET.
HEROES
Lynx Kassandra
Mythic variant of the Fleetfoot subclass.
Available on the Event Store from January 23 at 7 PM ET.
Note: Lynx Kassandra will be unique when the new Hero Loadout launches.
WEAPONS + ITEMS
Guardian's Will Sword
Rewarded for completing the week 4 Frostnite Weekly Challenge.
A large sword with high damage and moderate impact.
Leap Attack
A Heavy attack that jumps to the targeted foe and damages nearby enemies.
AUDIO
Improved Low Health state audio mix so that gameplay sounds aren't ducked as severely.
Celeste may be a super-challenging game, but the music is pleasing and serene. A new Celeste music album goes further still, transforming the tunes into lovely piano adaptations.
The Celeste Piano Collections is part of Materia Collective's Piano Collections series, which sees performers adapt popular video game albums in piano fashion. For the Celeste album, Trevor Alan Gomes arranged and performed the new takes on Celeste's music, which was originally written by Lena Raine. GameSpot is excited to be able to announce the album today and premiere a track, "Scattered And Lost," which you can listen to in the video embed above.
"Lena has a way of brilliantly hyper-saturating the music with rhythmic ideas, counterpoint, and even multiple lead lines, so taking those full-to-the-brim tracks and transforming them into equally complete piano solos was my greatest challenge to date," Gomes said in a statement.
"My favorite track on the album, 'Confronting Myself,' was a puzzle to arrange for solo piano. I wanted to somehow capture the 'glitched' sound, so I translated that sensation to time signature and harmonic changes. 'Exhale' was also a joy to arrange for the super talented violinist Michaela Nachtigall, aka 'Otama-Mama.' Having just one track with an additional instrument feels like the strawberry on top that completes the album and gives it a lovely roundness."
Materia Collective is also launching the Celeste Piano Collections on vinyl, and the artwork is stunning. Click through the images in the gallery above to get a closer look.
Jett Galindo (Sony/The Bakery) did the mastering, while Rozen handled the layout and design. The illustrations were created by David Rene Christensen. There are 13 tracks in all, and you can see a listing of them below.
The Celeste Piano Collections album arrives on January 25. You can buy/stream it at all the places you'd expect, including Spotify, iTunes, and Bandcamp. On Bandcamp, you can choose from MP3, FLACC, and other high-quality formats. You can also order the album on vinyl through Bandcamp, where you can also get the album's sheet music.
This is not the first time Celeste's music has been remixed for a new album. Last year, a lullaby/jazz album for the game's music was released.
Capcom has announced a new mode coming to Resident Evil 2 after launch, which aims to add some longevity with repeatable missions and random elements. The "Ghost Survivors" mode will be free for all players, and it will be released in multiple volumes.
A post on ResetEra details the announcement from Capcom's launch event stream. Ghost Survivors will release across three volumes. The first volume will include the mayor's daughter Katherine and a USS member named Robert Kendo as playable characters. The mode is also said to include at least one new enemy type that doesn't appear in the main campaign. To keep the mode fresh, it will introduce random elements and an in-game shop that lets you purchase upgrades based on good performance in the challenges.
The RE2 remake will also sport the bonus 4th Survivor and Tofu modes from the original, giving you a little more to do after you've completed the main campaign. 4th Survivor puts you into the shoes of special agent HUNK, while Tofu lets you explore the zombie-infested city as a big block of substitute soy meat.
If you need to catch up on Resident Evil before the game drops, check out our story recap to refresh yourself on the world of survival horror. Plus you can read up on our pre-order guide to check out the bonus items available, and why Akuma should make a guest appearance.
This year's Oscar nominations have been announced. Roma and The Favourite leads the pack, with 10 nominations each, and there was also a strong showing from Black Panther, Bohemian Rhapsody, and BlacKkKlansman.
Best Picture nominees were Black Panther, BlacKkKlansman, Bohemian Rhapsody, The Favourite, Green Book, Roma, A Star Is Born, and Vice. Black Panther is the first superhero movie to be nominate for Best Picture.
Best Actress nods went to Yalitza Aparicio (Roma), Glenn Close (The Wife), Olivia Colman (The Favourite), Lady Gaga (A Star Is Born), and Melissa McCarthy (Can You Ever Forgive Me?). Best Actor nominees this year include Christian Bale (Vice), Bradley Cooper (A Star Is Born), Willem Dafoe (At Eternity's Gate), Rami Malek (Bohemian Rhapsody), and Viggo Mortensen (Green Book).
You can see a rundown of categories and nominees below. You can also find a full breakdown off all the 2019 Oscar nominees at Variety. The 91st Academy Awards will take place on Sunday, February 24.
Best Picture
Black Panther
BlacKkKlansman
Bohemian Rhapsody
The Favourite
Green Book
Roma
A Star Is Born
Vice
Lead Actor
Christian Bale, Vice
Bradley Cooper, A Star Is Born
Willem Dafoe, At Eternity's Gate
Rami Malek, Bohemian Rhapsody
Viggo Mortensen, Green Book
Lead Actress
Yalitza Aparicio, Roma
Glenn Close, The Wife
Olivia Colman, The Favourite
Lady Gaga, A Star Is Born
Melissa McCarthy, Can You Ever Forgive Me?
Supporting Actor
Mahershala Ali, Green Book
Adam Driver, BlacKkKlansman
Sam Elliott, A Star Is Born
Richard E. Grant, Can You Ever Forgive Me?
Sam Rockwell, Vice
Supporting Actress
Amy Adams, Vice
Marina de Tavira, Roma
Regina King, If Beale Street Could Talk
Emma Stone, The Favourite
Rachel Weisz, The Favourite
Director
Spike Lee, BlacKkKlansman
Pawel Pawlikowski, Cold War
Yorgos Lanthimos, The Favourite
Alfonso Cuarón, Roma
Adam McKay, Vice
Animated Feature
Incredibles 2, Brad Bird
Isle of Dogs, Wes Anderson
Mirai, Mamoru Hosoda
Ralph Breaks the Internet, Rich Moore, Phil Johnston
Spider-Man Into the Spider-Verse, Bob Persichetti, Peter Ramsey, Rodney Rothman
Animated Short
Animal Behaviour, Alison Snowden, David Fine
Bao, Domee Shi
Late Afternoon, Louise Bagnall
One Small Step, Andrew Chesworth, Bobby Pontillas
Weekends, Trevor Jimenez
Adapted Screenplay
The Ballad of Buster Scruggs, Joel Coen , Ethan Coen
BlacKkKlansman, Charlie Wachtel, David Rabinowitz, Kevin Willmott, Spike Lee
Can You Ever Forgive Me?, Nicole Holofcener and Jeff Whitty
If Beale Street Could Talk, Barry Jenkins
A Star Is Born, Eric Roth, Bradley Cooper, Will Fetters
Original Screenplay
The Favourite, Deborah Davis, Tony McNamara
First Reformed, Paul Schrader
Green Book, Nick Vallelonga, Brian Currie, Peter Farrelly
Roma, Alfonso Cuarón
Vice, Adam McKay
Cinematography
Cold War, Lukasz Zal
The Favourite, Robbie Ryan
Never Look Away, Caleb Deschanel
Roma, Alfonso Cuarón
A Star Is Born, Matthew Libatique
Best Documentary Feature
Free Solo, Jimmy Chin, Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi
Hale County This Morning, This Evening, RaMell Ross
Minding the Gap, Bing Liu
Of Fathers and Sons, Talal Derki
RBG, Betsy West, Julie Cohen
Best Documentary Short Subject
Black Sheep, Ed Perkins
End Game, Rob Epstein, Jeffrey Friedman
Lifeboat, Skye Fitzgerald
A Night at the Garden, Marshall Curry
Period. End of Sentence., Rayka Zehtabchi
Best Live Action Short Film
Detainment, Vincent Lambe
Fauve, Jeremy Comte
Marguerite, Marianne Farley
Mother, Rodrigo Sorogoyen
Skin, Guy Nattiv
Best Foreign Language Film
Capernaum (Lebanon)
Cold War (Poland)
Never Look Away (Germany)
Roma (Mexico)
Shoplifters (Japan)
Film Editing
BlacKkKlansman, Barry Alexander Brown
Bohemian Rhapsody, John Ottman
Green Book, Patrick J. Don Vito
The Favourite, Yorgos Mavropsaridis
Vice, Hank Corwin
Sound Editing
Black Panther, Benjamin A. Burtt, Steve Boeddeker
Bohemian Rhapsody, John Warhurst
First Man, Ai-Ling Lee, Mildred Iatrou Morgan
A Quiet Place, Ethan Van der Ryn, Erik Aadahl
Roma, Sergio Diaz, Skip Lievsay
Sound Mixing
Black Panther
Bohemian Rhapsody
First Man
Roma
A Star Is Born
Production Design
Black Panther, Hannah Beachler
First Man, Nathan Crowley, Kathy Lucas
The Favourite, Fiona Crombie, Alice Felton
Mary Poppins Returns, John Myhre, Gordon Sim
Roma, Eugenio Caballero, Bárbara Enrı́quez
Original Score
BlacKkKlansman, Terence Blanchard
Black Panther, Ludwig Goransson
If Beale Street Could Talk, Nicholas Britell
Isle of Dogs, Alexandre Desplat
Mary Poppins Returns, Marc Shaiman, Scott Wittman
Original Song
All The Stars from Black Panther by Kendrick Lamar, SZA
I'll Fight from RBG by Diane Warren, Jennifer Hudson
The Place Where Lost Things Go from Mary Poppins Returns by Marc Shaiman, Scott Wittman
Shallow from A Star Is Born by Lady Gaga, Mark Ronson, Anthony Rossomando, Andrew Wyatt and Benjamin Rice
When A Cowboy Trades His Spurs For Wings from The Ballad of Buster Scruggs by David Rawlings and Gillian Welch
If you're having trouble waiting until Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge opens at Disneyland this summer to find out exactly what a Star Wars land will be like, this should be some very good news. Marvel is releasing a comic book based on the land that will be available in April, giving fans their first taste at the mythology behind Black Spire Outpost, the trading post located on the planet Batuu that serves as the setting of Galaxy's Edge.
According to The Marvel.com, the five-issue miniseries will be set on the planet of Batuu and will introduce Dok-Ondar, a "collector of rare antiquities" that will appear in the theme park. The character was first mentioned in Solo: A Star Wars Story. According to Ethan Sacks, who's writing the comic, readers will get to know the character quite a bit.
"There's a reason Dok-Ondar's name ripples far and wide in the Star Wars universe," he told Marvel.com in an interview. "He's a mysterious Ithorian who is the proprietor of the most notorious antiquities shop in the galaxy. And every item has a story behind it. Some more dangerous to listen to than others."
To create the world of Batuu and keep the Black Spire Outpost as close as possible to what fans will be available to visit as possible, Sacks said he and illustrator Will Sliney were given plenty of concept art from the theme park expansion to make sure it's accurate. "Armed with top-secret sketches and information from Walt Disney Imagineering and Lucasfilm, we are keeping this authentic to the spirit of this rich new setting," he said.
The first issue of Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge will be released in April. Galaxy's Edge is expected to open at the Disneyland Resort in the summer, with Walt Disney World's version following in the fall.
Studio MDHR released one of 2017's best games in Cuphead, and there is an expansion coming in 2019, but what'll the studio make after that? The outfit has yet to officially announce its next project, but now producer and artist Maja Moldenhauer has offered a cryptic tease.
She said in a new Red Bull video feature, "I'm just really loving what we do. And the ideas we have for the next game are pretty epic." The entire feature is fantastic, and it offers a nice look behind the scenes of how Cuphead came to be and the studio culture surrounding it.
Back in June, Moldenhauer told Gamereactor that Studio MDHR's next game will likely retain Cuphead's hand-drawn, 2D-style, but "the genre, the era, [and] the gameplay" may change. Cuphead is known for being very difficult, but Moldenhauer acknowledged that Studio MDHR's next title might be "different and refreshing" as it relates to difficulty.
Cuphead's expansion, The Delicious Last Course, is set to arrive sometime in 2019. It introduces a new character, Ms. Chalice, as well as more weapons and bosses. You can watch the announcement trailer in the video embed above.
Studio MDHR apparently started work on Cuphead in 2013, and it wasn't until a while later that Microsoft announced it would be involved as a publishing partner. Whether or not Microsoft continues its relationship with Studio MDHR going forward remains to be seen.
What would you like to see Studio MDHR make next? Let us know in the comments below!
Last week the surprise news emerged that there is a new Ghostbusters movie on the way, which will be released in 2020. The film will be directed by Jason Reitman, son of Ivan Reitman, who helmed the 1984 original. The first teaser was also revealed. However, there's one star connected with the Ghostbusters franchise who is not happy with this news.
Leslie Jones, who starred in the 2016 Ghostbusters reboot, took to Twitter to express her displeasure over the new movie. Jones appeared alongside Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, and Kate McKinnon in the reboot, which was directed by Bridesmaid's Paul Feig. However, it was a commercial disappointment and plans for a sequel were cancelled.
In her tweet, Jones made it quite clear that she was not happy with the decision not to continue with an all-female Ghostbusters crew. She also described it as "like something Trump would do." Check it out below:
So insulting. Like fuck us. We dint count. It's like something trump would do. (Trump voice)"Gonna redo ghostbusteeeeers, better with men, will be huge. Those women ain't ghostbusteeeeers" ugh so annoying. Such a dick move. And I don't give fuck I'm saying something!!
No official announcement has been made about the cast of the new movie. However, according to The Hollywood Reporter, Reitman is looking to cast four teens in the lead, specifically two boys and two girls. The site also states that the young stars will team up with the remaining members of the original cast--Dan Akyroyd, Bill Murray, and Ernie Hudson. All three actors also had cameos in the 2016 reboot.
There were initially plans to make a sequel to the reboot. However, the movie ultimately lost money, and within a few months of release Feig admitted that he would be "very surprised" if another movie with that cast happened.
Nevertheless, Reitman was supportive of the reboot when the new one was announced. He told Entertainment Weekly that he would "love to see more stories from [the 2016 cast]," even though his new film "will follow the trajectory of the original film."
Festivals are all the rage with this generation: millennials. From Cochella to Burning Man to Lollapalooza, it's a time to get away from all their troubles, which sure does help a lot. When new festivals pop up, asking this demographic, "Wouldn't you like to get away?," thousands of young adults flock to the desert or into the middle of a city to hang among their peers and dance the night away. However, not all of these festivals go smoothly.
In 2017, entrepreneur Billy McFarland attempted to put on a fantastical music festival in the Bahamas called the Fyre Festival. This elitist and very expensive event ended up being a total disaster. Now, both Netflix and Hulu have competing documentaries about this moment in history, but which one should you watch?
Both of these movies pretty much come to the same conclusion, that event coordinator Billy McFarland is a functioning sociopath, compulsive liar, and a modern-day snake oil salesman. However, how both these films come to that conclusion is very different.
Netflix's Fyre and Hulu's Fyre Fraud recount the events leading up to the Fyre Festival and how it all came together, which was way too quickly and without any experienced leader running it all. From having to switch the island where it was going to be held, to FEMA tents being used instead of villas, to the bands dropping out the last minute, it is the story of someone who desperately wants to be something he is ultimately not, a tech billionaire.
Fyre, Netflix's documentary about the event, has a bit more of a mature take on the events and presents them as seriously as possible. This is one of director Chris Smith's best documentaries, which is saying quite a lot as he also directed 2017's Jim and Andy: The Great Beyond for Netflix and 1999's cult classic American Movie. The story is delivered as more of a mystery, asking the audience, "What went wrong?" It's apparent, from the get-go, that the problem was lack of planning and trying to rush out a product--which rests squarely on the shoulders of Billy McFarland.
The subjects being interviewed for the piece are those who worked on the festival, from the ones who set up the stages and "sleeping" areas to those involved in the planning of the event. As the movie progresses, it becomes clear that it's nothing short of a "clusterf***," with McFarland's response to most problems being something along the lines of, "think positive and it will all work out." It doesn't.
Fyre feels like a smashing success as it is a wonderfully engrossing movie from start to finish. It is essentially a rollercoaster ride of a story, for those who are only semi-familiar with what happened at the event.
Over at Hulu, Fyre Fraud almost has a comedic bent to the entire piece, especially with the musical cues transitioning between each scene, which is hard to take in when the thesis for the film is that Fyre Media founder Billy McFarland was knowingly defrauding everyone around him. Fyre Fraud lets the audience know that everything about this festival was a part of the malicious intent that McFarland had. It's clearly a leap away from what Netflix's Fyre.
It feels as though Fyre Fraud is geared much more to a younger audience, yet at the same time, a chunk of an early portion of the movie focuses heavily on what "celebrity influencers" and "social media" are, so choices like that are a bit bizarre. Additionally, the movie jumps around quite a bit in the Fyre Festival timeline.
Fyre Fraud is much more about a Cliffsnotes version behind-the-scenes before and after the event--including from people that attended the event--but the one thing Hulu's documentary has over Netflix's is interviews with Billy McFarland. However, it's not as in-depth as you may hope for. There are even portions left in the movie where McFarland states he refuses to answer questions or simply says, "I don't know." However, the McFarland interviews alone make it worth your while to watch Fyre Fraud. Additionally, the Hulu documentary makes it a point mention that Jerry Media produced the Netflix documentary, and Jerry Media who were behind the social media marketing for Fyre Fest, and needless to say, Fyre Fraud is not kind to Jerry Media, while Netflix's documentary tends to paint them in a much better light.
So if you can only watch one of these movies, which one do you choose? Even knowing the fact that Jerry Media had a hand in it, Netflix's Fyre is the way to go. It's not as malicious right off the bat when it comes to the way it represents its subjects--or millenials as a whole--and Smith finds probably the best way to tell this story without getting too in-depth with McFarland's life. However, both movies present different sides of the same story. Fyre Fraud gives the audience more insight into McFarland's life, which the Netflix doc doesn't. So make sure to check out both of the movies, but make sure to watch Netflix's first, as it's the better one.
One of The Division's most notable achievements in 2016 was its rather unorthodox approach to PvP gameplay. Within the center of post-outbreak Manhattan was the Dark Zone, an isolated, untamed space where you could engage in timed events, small skirmishes, and even backstabbing temporary allies. With The Division 2, Ubisoft has some interesting plans for expanding the Dark Zone concept, most of which will have you rethinking how you'll tackle the infamous no man's land.
We recently played several hours of the upgraded multiplayer mode, designed by original Rainbow Six developer Red Storm Entertainment. In the first game, the Dark Zone incorporated competitive multiplayer gameplay into the core systems and mechanics of the online world, allowing the agents to seamlessly transition between engagements against AI and other players in the volatile region. The developers refer to this gameplay loop as PvPvE: player-versus-player-versus-environment. While inside the zone, there are many opportunities to acquire powerful loot, but with significantly greater risk tied to it, thanks to tougher enemies and the threat of shady players looking for a chance to steal your loot.
Though clever in its design, and offering some fun encounters, the Dark Zone in the original game--even after several updates--was largely dominated by the hardcore playerbase. This gave the setting a reputation for being uninviting for those that weren't used to the steep learning curve and sink-or-swim setup. With this in mind, The Division 2 places a larger emphasis on making the Dark Zones more worthwhile for all players, offering more reasons to stay and explore the new systems at work. Furthermore, the sequel will feature not one, but three separate zones across Washington D.C.--DZ East surrounding Capitol Station, DZ South encompassing the waterfront, and DZ West within Georgetown.
Over the course of the campaign, your agent will be tasked to investigate the Dark Zones, allowing you to get your feet wet before things kick off. During our session, we opened the massive door leading into Dark Zone East and established various safe houses throughout the region. The on-boarding process for each Dark Zone also offers up some interesting narrative details, revealing what went wrong in the area and which faction of enemies has taken over. After completing the zone's introductory missions, the core content in the region will unlock, letting you enter skirmishes against AI and other players, or team up with others to secure loot.
In another promising change, Dark Zone loot has been significantly overhauled. In the first Division, anything you found in the Dark Zone had to be "extracted" before it could be used. Extractions required you to make a last stand in a certain area to get gear airlifted out while enemies and other players swarmed in to stop you and steal the loot. For the most part, loot found in the zones in The Division 2 won't require extraction and will be free to use upon pickup. However, you'll still find contaminated weapons that will require extraction, but they're now for rarer types of gear. This is big improvement because it not only rewards those who can only invest so much time in the zones, but it also lessens the frustrations found from getting easily sniped by opportunistic players upon extraction.
The sequel also does more to balance the initial power dynamics within the zones, normalizing all players' stats to ensure they're on an even playing field. The developers described this change as "fair, but intense," with the expressed purpose of allowing players of varying skill levels to see what they can find in the untamed areas. While this may bother some of the hardcore players, this change makes exploration of the Dark Zones more viable during the initial grind. However, you'll still come across players possessing unique loadouts and skill levels, ensuring most encounters will be unpredictable.
One of the more devious aspects of the original Dark Zone was its Rogue gameplay system. At any point, players could choose to turn on one another and steal their loot before it reached extraction. While this was intended to be a strategic choice within the first game, it more often than not resulted in severe griefing from high-level players. In The Division 2, the Rogue system has gone through an overhaul, redesigning the general loop to offer more options outside of the strictly PvP design from the last game.
To put it simply, Rogue status activates when you decide to get greedy. Throughout the zones are loot caches and special events that tie into the Rogue loop. If you decide to break into a locked loot chest, as opposed to using a Dark Zone key, then you'll immediately become Rogue for a limited time, momentarily placing you on the map for others to see. Even looting dead players will briefly turn you Rogue. While you may want to keep a low profile and wait for things to die down, special events will open up for Rogue players, allowing you rack up credits and resources, which can be turned in to unique vendors hiding out in the Dark Zone.
Potentially, you could reach the upper Rogue tiers without engaging in combat. The more Rogue actions and events you take on, the better the rewards and the higher your status will become. If enough time passes, you'll eventually become a main target for others, opening up a manhunt within the zone. In our session, some of the most intense moments came from when we were Rogue, which meant we were constantly looking over our shoulders to make sure we weren't being followed by other players looking to take us down. With more incentive to enter Rogue status outside of general PvP hijinks, there could be some potentially challenging scenarios for players to tackle--especially for those who aim to stealth through the Dark Zone.
With that said, getting a handle on the new Rogue mechanics sometimes resulted in cumbersome and awkward moments. While it's easy to go Rogue, simply by engaging in nefarious actions or simply activating it with the press of a button, the system itself can feel a bit too nebulous. A big issue we came across was that it was difficult, trying to get a sense of when you could actually target other players, or if they could target you. Likely intended as a safe-guard against griefing, you can only fire upon other players if they share Rogue status. So if you see another Rogue player in the wild, and you're not of similar status, you'll need to enable it to engage.
As it stands, this approach can create a minor disconnect from the overall pacing and dynamic systems in the Dark Zone. In one case during a Rogue mission, we found ourselves trading bullets with another group, only for the fight to abruptly come to an end once we found out another player turned in a quest--which immediately disabled the Rogue status for all of us in mid-fight. Having said that, the developers are still tweaking aspects of the design, so the final game may see a change.
At first glance, many of these changes seem to lessen the risk and ensuing dread that was synonymous with the Dark Zone. While that's certainly true to an extent, it also serves as a sampling for what's to come during the end-game. After the campaign's completion, one zone will become a contested area, and this will switch to a different location each week. Essentially a hardcore version of the Dark Zone, level and gear balancing will be disabled, player status is neutral by default, and friendly fire will be active at all times. With these changes, the contested Dark Zones could become some of the most chaotic and unpredictable areas the series has seen yet.
While the Dark Zone is still the main attraction for The Division 2's competitive gameplay, the developers have also added in an additional layer that exists outside of the PvPvE loop. Picking up from the previous game's 1.8 update that brought in 4v4 PvP, The Division 2 will also have traditional competitive multiplayer modes. Known as Conflict, this organized form of PvP will allow players to take part in standard team deathmatch and domination game types against others--with all their levels normalized. Conflict will also feature unique stat-tracking and rewards exclusive to the mode, including new cosmetics. However, at launch there will only be three maps and two game types, which quickly became repetitive during our hands-on. The developers were clear in stating that more competitive offerings will come during post-launch, which they aim to keep supporting for the long term.
The Division 2 felt very familiar to the original game, and that's OK. As it stands, the original game had a pretty spectacular post-launch period, and seeing that the sequel aims to keep that second wind going is reassuring. While some of the new innovations and changes in the sequel still need some work, it is interesting to see that its developers are trying to rethink the various elements of the competitive multiplayer, and how it can all coalesce within the online world. If you want to get some hands-on time with The Division 2 yourself, Ubisoft recently revealed plans for the upcoming private beta, which you can register for now on their site.
No comments:
Post a Comment