One of the biggest new features in Super Mario Maker 2 is the addition of multiplayer. Not only can you build courses with a nearby friend simply by passing them a second controller, you can play any of the stages uploaded to the online Course World hub with up to three other players around the world. However, it appears the online multiplayer options will be limited strictly to strangers.
Super Mario Maker 2 offers two online multiplayer modes: Versus and Co-Op. As their names suggest, Versus is a competitive race to reach the goal first, while Co-Op has players working together to clear the level. You can play both modes with friends if they're gathered in the same room, but according to Nintendo Life, the modes will only match you up with random players when you're playing online.
There are also some hurdles to overcome if you want to play locally. While all four players can play Co-Op mode on the same console, if you want to face off with your friends in a Versus match, each player will need their own Nintendo Switch console and a copy of Super Mario Maker 2, and the player who hosts the group will need to have a persistent internet connection to connect to Course World.
In addition to multiplayer, Super Mario Maker 2 introduces a number of other new features, including a Story mode. The game also expands the course editor with a load of new tools, customization options, and enemies, including the angry sun from Super Mario 3 (although it looks weirder than ever in certain game styles). Unlike the original Super Mario Maker, you won't need to wait to unlock course parts; almost all of the game's tools will be available from the start.
Super Mario Maker 2 launches for Switch on June 28. We had a chance to go hands-on with the game recently and came away impressed by its range of tools and options. You'll need to have a Nintendo Switch Online subscription in order to play and share levels online, but Nintendo is offering a bundle that includes a 12-month membership with the game for $70. You can read more in our Super Mario Maker 2 pre-order guide.
Bungie is picking up speed in releasing new details about Penumbra, its next annual pass content drop for Destiny 2. A new trailer provides the first look at Penumbra's corresponding content season, the Season of Opulence, and the new activities and loot it'll bring to the game on June 4.
The season returns players to the Leviathan, the huge Cabal ship that was the site of the Destiny 2's original raid (also called Leviathan), as well as its first two smaller "raid lairs." It seems the season will pick up the story of Calus, the exiled Cabal emperor, who showed up in the solar system after players defeated Ghaul, the big bad of Destiny 2's original story campaign. The Leviathan raid was a sort of gladiator sport to get you in Calus's good graces, and the raid lairs that followed had players helping the emperor out with some tough situations on the ship. So far, Calus has been something of a frenemy for Guardians, so it'll be interesting to see how the Season of Opulence continues the story of the character and his big gold ship.
You can watch the trailer below.
We already knew the season would come with a new six-player endgame raid, called Crown of Sorrows, which takes place on the Leviathan. The trailer also shows off a new six-player matchmade activity called the Menagerie, which takes place in a new area of the Leviathan. The description on Bungie's Season of Opulence website says you'll "carve your way through ever-changing paths and enemies" in the Menagerie, and it sounds like you'll be navigating your way through a maze composed from the Leviathan's treasure vaults. The site also says you'll be able to choose what loot you chase when you play through the new activity, instead of relying on random drops to allow you to complete your collection of the new season's gear.
Chasing loot requires the Chalice of Opulence, which sounds like the season's big new play mechanic. Bungie's site says the season will start with Calus sending players to build their chalice from pieces scattered around the solar system. That sounds like the opening quest line Bungie teased in its last blog post, which is necessary to unlock the new raid and which will automatically boost lower-level players up to 690 Power, just 10 points lower than the current max of 700. That max will rise again with the release of the Season of Opulence to 750.
Like previous seasons, the Season of Opulence will also include powerful new Pinnacle weapons for top-level Guardians to earn by playing a bunch of Gambit, the Crucible, and Vanguard Strikes. Gambit brings a new bow called Hush that gives major speed bonuses when you land precision kills when firing from the hip; the Crucible gets Revoker, a sniper rifle that regenerates missed shots after a short period; and Strikes add the Wendigo GL3 grenade launcher, which gets a boost to its blast radius and damage when you pick up Orbs of Light.
There's one last thing teased for Season of Opulence: a new Exotic hand cannon. It appears at the bottom of Bungie's website for the season, in the same place where last season's big Exotic weapon, Thorn, was teased. This one looks like Rose, a gun players have never wielded before but which has been discussed quite a bit in Destiny lore. It's Thorn before that gun was corrupted by Hive magic and Darkness, turning it into a spooky artifact called a Weapon of Sorrow, and contributing to the deaths of a whole bunch of people in Destiny's backstory.
If past seasons are any indication, earning Rose will come with a lengthy series of quests and missions to complete, and probably a lot of story and lore to go with it.
It's an exciting time to be a Pokemon fan. The Pokemon Company has announced a special Pokemon Press Conference for today, Tuesday May 28. This is actually the first of two planned Pokemon events over the next week, as Nintendo has also announced a special Nintendo Direct presentation focusing on the upcoming Pokemon Sword and Shield. Between two presentations and the fast-approaching E3 2019, our pockets will be full of monsters for the foreseeable future.
What Time Does The Pokemon Press Conference Start?
The event takes place in Tokyo, Japan, which can sometimes mean late nights or early mornings for those in the West if they want to watch live. This time, however, it begins at a perfectly reasonable 6 PM PT on May 28, letting you relax in the evening with some Pokemon announcements.
6 PM PT
9 PM ET
2 AM BST (May 29)
11 AM AEST (May 29)
Where To Watch
You can watch the event live right here at GameSpot. Just bookmark this page and check out the embedded stream below, or watch it through Twitch.
What To Expect
In the statement announcing the press conference, the Pokemon Company said it would "cover a number of topics of interest to Pokemon fans." That's noticeably vague, but it does appear to suggest a variety of different announcements incoming.
The possibilities are wide-ranging. We could see the first details of DeNA's new Pokemon mobile game, news regarding anime or movies, the ongoing live events in Pokemon Go, or even other new spinoffs entirely. Pokemon is a multimedia empire, so this broad press conference could cover any or all of its many facets.
One game that is almost certainly off the table, however, is Pokemon Sword and Shield. As previously mentioned, it has its own Nintendo Direct coming on June 5. It's unlikely that The Pokemon Company would make redundant announcements between the two, but it could tease reveals planned for next week. Nintendo's E3 2019 presentation will follow on June 11, but given that it will have just given two Pokemon presentations, it's hard to say how much that will focus on Pokemon.
French studio Quantic Dream announced back in March that three of its critically acclaimed titles--Beyond: Two Souls, Detroit: Become Human, and Heavy Rain--will launch on PC thanks to an exclusive deal with the Epic Games Store. And ahead of each game's release, free demos would be made available as appetizers for the full experience. The first Quantic Dream title to receive its PC appetizer demo, Heavy Rain, is available now.
According to the company's official website, the free Heavy Rain demo gives you access to the first act. The demo will span two chapters as you embody two separate characters--FBI profiler Norman Jayden and private investigator Scott Shelby--and will take about 45 minutes to finish. Like the full game when it launches next month, the demo will run at 4K, 60 FPS with widescreen capabilities.
You can check out Heavy Rain's demo trailer below.
— QUANTIC DREAM #DetroitBecomeHuman (@Quantic_Dream) May 24, 2019
In an interview with GamesBeat, Quantic Dream boss Guillaume de Foundaumiere said that the studio wants to branch out of its exclusive relationship with Sony. "We will continue to work on PlayStation, which is a platform we love and that we know very well, but we will also consider other platforms as we want to make our creations accessible to as many gamers as possible worldwide, regardless of the platform," Foundaumiere said. "This is definitely a shift for us after 12 years developing exclusively for PlayStation. We are confident we can make a smooth transition [to multi-platform development] while keeping the high level of quality that we target for our games."
In our Heavy Rain review, we said, "No matter how your adventure plays out, Heavy Rain is a profoundly personal experience that should not be missed."
Heavy Rain releases on the Epic Games Store on June 24, 2019.
Everyone wants to know more about Cyberpunk 2077. It's pretty safe to say that CD Projekt Red's follow up to the beloved The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt has been one of the most anticipated titles of the past decade, due in part to its elusiveness. Based on the Cyberpunk 2020 pen-and-paper game, Cyberpunk 2077 was announced in 2012 and followed by a CGI teaser trailer almost a year later, but there was essentially no new information about the game for five whole years. That is, until a new CGI trailer at the Xbox press conference and a live, media-only gameplay demo debuted at E3 2018.
And boy, what a demo. We learned about the story, combat, RPG systems, character customization, seamless open world, factions, branching choices, and so much more, including the surprise that it would be a first-person game. Footage of it was released publicly a few months later at Gamescom 2018, showing off a near hour-long tour of the game, which was definitely well-received.
It's now almost E3 2019, and it's been almost another year since we got any solid new information about Cyberpunk 2077. We know CD Projekt are going to be at the show, and we know they're going to show off some new gameplay. But to help get you up to speed, here's a rundown of almost everything we know so far, and what we would love to see.
What We Know So Far
Well, a lot. Even though CD Projekt Red emphasized that the 2018 demo for Cyberpunk 2077 was most definitely still a work in progress, it still gave us a great idea about what we can generally expect about the game in relation to its narrative setup, its broad gameplay systems, and the overarching goals the studio is trying to achieve with the game's design.
We know it's going to be a non-linear open-world game played from a first-person perspective. But even though there's a big focus on gunplay--aiming down sight, real-time movement, taking cover, and shooting through thin walls have all been emphasized--the studio has said that it is first and foremost an RPG. However, the specifics of how the character attributes of the protagonist, V, factor into your combat abilities is yet to be seen in great detail. We know enemies will have discrete power levels and guns will have their own rarity and attributes. The 2018 demo showed off a handful of weapons and their upgrades, including cybernetic mantis (arm) blades that could be used for melee attacks and traversal abilities, a shotgun that could charge shots and penetrate cover, an upgraded machine pistol that could ricochet bullets around corners, and a "smart" rifle whose bullets tracked enemies in a certain area. It also showed off cybernetic augmentations that let you slow down time, identify weak points, double jump, and other superhuman techniques; an action-packed boss battle featured liberal use of these abilities.
We also know that like any proper RPG, the clothes you wear act as armor, not only increasing resistances, but also social standing--a jacket in the demo gave you additional 'Street Cred', a secondary point system that increased your access to vendors and additional missions. There's extensive character customization, too, and in addition to common cosmetic variables and initial statistics, you're able to select from a few predetermined backstory options that situate your character's place in the world. These will, supposedly, have some kind of effect when it comes to interacting with other characters and the world.
The dense, dystopian metropolis of Night City is the setting for the game, and is populated with competing corporations and street gangs--the Maelstrom Gang, Militech, and the Scavengers are some of the names we know. The world also takes a lot of direct inspiration from the pen-and-paper game on which it's based--musician Johnny Silverhand and the band Samurai were a few examples present in the demo. You'll be able to walk, drive vehicles like cars and bikes seamlessly and without any loading screens between interior and exterior locations. Sophisticated crowds and AI will populate the streets and businesses, with some NPCs having their own regular routines throughout the days and nights.
Outside of routines, random encounters will occur in the open-world, and these will, in some respect, be informed by the decisions you make throughout the game. Decide to provoke a faction as part of a story mission, for example, and they'll seek to provoke you back when you least expect it. Branching paths and ambiguous moral decisions were a significant aspect of The Witcher 3, and Cyberpunk 2077 is the same. Outside of the social aspects, you'll be able to take different lethal and non-lethal approaches to complete missions.
Of course, being a cyberpunk-themed game, hacking is a big part of those choices. You'll be able to hack into enemies and locations in order to glean information and manipulate things, but because of the game's emphasis on personal, cybernetic body modifications, you can also be hacked yourself. In the 2018 demo, we saw the protagonist getting hacked by a character who wanted to obtain information. The player decided to lie in a dialogue choice, which the hacker detected, and it set off a chain of events that could have gone much differently.
Outside of the demo, we recently learned that studio Digital Scapes is partnering with CD Projekt Red on the game, a partnership that takes advantage of their abilities in "AAA multiplayer console and PC game development, development tool creation, asset production, and cloud computing." Back in 2013, we learned that Cyberpunk 2077 would have unspecified "multiplayer features", so it's easy to speculate that Digital Scapes is assisting with that in some way. Last year, we also learned that the game will have a photo mode.
CEO of CD Projekt, Adam Kiciński also said in a blog post that this year's show is "shaping up to be the most important fair in CD Projekt's history" and they "want to be even more prominent in Los Angeles than we were last year."
What We Hope to See At E3
One of Cyberpunk 2077's level designers, Miles Tost, was recently quoted as saying that the reason why the studio doesn't show much of the game is that, "video game development is such an iterative process… What we have now might not be there tomorrow." That statement, coupled with the idea that the studio is going to have a more prominent showing this year, suggests that we'll hear about and see many new things at E3 2019.
While we can only speculate about what will actually be shown, any new information in regards to the game's mechanics would definitely be of interest. Cyberpunk 2077 appears to be an incredibly deep and open-ended game, and learning more about how the game's RPG systems affect how you're able to interact with the world would help paint a clearer picture of its scope. A closer look at how the game handles its breadth of cybernetic abilities and hacking would help us compare how it's making use of its cyberpunk setting against other intricate pen-and-paper-inspired cyberpunk-themed RPGs, like the Shadowrun series. And a closer look at open-world traversal, especially driving and flying, would be another welcome glimpse at the size and density of the game's playable area.
We're also hoping for more secrets--CD Projekt Red has always hidden secret messages in its trailers, and we're looking forward to seeing what they have to say this time around.
Finally, we absolutely would love to learn about a release date. We currently have no idea when Cyberpunk 2077 is going to be available to play, and having an end point in sight would definitely be exciting information to learn. My money's on sometime in 2020, as a nod the Cyberpunk 2020 pen-and-paper game. Prove me right, CD Projekt!
Are you excited for Cyberpunk 2077? Let us know what you want to see from the game in the comments below, and stay tuned for lots more E3 coverage.
Jessica Jones is the last of Netflix's Marvel shows, and the final season is nearly here. Following the streaming service's recent tease that Season 3 will be with us next month, we now have a confirmed release date.
Netflix has announced that Jessica Jones Season 3 will hit the service on Friday, June 4. The news comes via a short teaser. The promo doesn't reveal anything about the plot of new season, but it sets a dark mood. The camera moves ominously towards the door of Jessica's Alias detective agency, while a voiceover says that Jessica is "a fraud and a cheater." Check it out above.
Jessica Jones Season 3 stars Krysten Ritter as troubled private detective Jessica, plus Rachael Taylor (as Trish), Eka Darville (as Malcolm Ducasse), and Carrie-Anne Moss (as Jeri Hogarth).
Jessica Jones was the second Marvel Netflix show, following Daredevil, and Season 1 was released in November 2015. Iron Fist, Luke Cage, The Punisher, and The Defenders followed over the next couple of years, but all have now been cancelled. Disney launches its own streaming platform, Disney+, in the Fall and has a host of its own Marvel shows in development for the new service.
The Spyro Reignited Trilogy appears to be bound for another platform soon. Though the remaster hasn't been officially announced, a leak has already suggested an imminent release on PC and even shed light on the studio behind the port.
The Taiwanese ratings board (via Twitter user Nibel) listed the game. The box art shows a logo from Iron Galaxy, the studio behind the recent Killer Instinct and the Nintendo Switch port of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim.
The leak didn't share more details, but it seems an announcement of the port is probably coming soon. Activision is currently preparing for E3 2019, including a tease for a impending Call of Duty announcement. The publisher doesn't hold its own press conference, but it does tend to show trailers for its games at other stage events. We may see the Spyro PC port announcement soon, possibly at the PC Gaming Show.
"The Reignited Trilogy is the best kind of collection that not only brings a beloved series up to current visual standards but also proves just how well-built the original titles were," Justin Clark wrote in GameSpot's Spyro Reignited eview. "Granted, the originals were done by a little studio called Insomniac, and it's not exactly surprising something that team did is a fine example of the genre. But the Reignited Trilogy's developer, Toys for Bob, deserves major kudos for bringing Insomniac's vision to life in the way we could've only dreamed in 1998."
The final trailer for the upcoming DC show Swamp Thing has been released. This is the latest series from the streaming platform DC Universe, and it hits the service this Friday, May 31.
The final trailer lays out the story and gives us a good idea of what to expect from this horror-themed show. Crystal Reed plays CDC investigator Abby Arcane who is called back to her Louisiana hometown to investigate a mysterious contagion that has affected the whole community. There she meets up with biologist Alec Holland (Andy Bean), and they start to investigate the illness. But there's something else lurking out there in the swamps, and this trailer shows that the series is set to deliver on the scares. Check it out above.
Swamp Thing also stars Virginia Madsen (Candyman), Jennifer Beals (Flashdance), and Will Patton (Halloween). Derek Mears, who is best known for portraying the iconic killer Jason Voorhees in the 2009 reboot of Friday the 13th, plays the creature. The Conjuring director James Wan is the show's executive producer.
In his review of Swamp Thing Episode 1 for GameSpot, Mat Elfring stated that it exceeded expectations and described the show as "something completely different from [other DC] shows and from anything else DC has put out to date."
The first season of Swamp Thing was originally intended to be 13 episodes. However, it was reported last month that production was abruptly halted and the season will now run for 10 episodes.
In related news, it was was recently reported that Game of Thrones star Iain Glen has been cast as Bruce Wayne in the second season of the DC Universe series Titans, which is scheduled for a fall 2019 release.
Pokemon Go's Extraordinary Raid Week event may be coming to an end, but Niantic is giving players another incentive to participate in Raid Battles. Over the next few weeks, the developer is bringing three Legendary Pokemon back to the game, beginning with the Psychic-type Cresselia.
From now until June 18, the Lunar Pokemon will appear around the world again in five-star Raids. Not only is this a good opportunity to capture one if you missed it the first time it was available last December, you'll also have a chance of encountering its Shiny form. Cresselia is a pure Psychic-type, so you'll want to bring along Dark, Bug, and Ghost Pokemon like Tyranitar, Scizor, and Giratina to battle it.
Following Cresselia's departure, the Legendary Water Pokemon Kyogre will return to five-star Raids from June 18 to June 27. After that, you'll have another chance to capture its counterpart, Groudon, which will appear from June 27 to July 10. As is the case with Cresselia, you'll also have a chance of encountering Shiny versions of Kyogre and Groudon when they return to Raids. You can read more details on the Pokemon Go website.
Beyond the returning Legendaries, Pokemon Go players have the game's next Community Day to look forward to soon. Next month's event will take place on Saturday, June 8, and the featured Pokemon this time will be Slakoth. If you manage to evolve one into its final form, Slaking, by the end of the Community Day, it'll learn an event-exclusive move. As an added bonus, Pokemon Eggs will hatch at a quarter of their normal distance during the Community Day.
Bethesda has been relatively tight-lipped about its upcoming E3 2019 press conference. However, the one game we do know is at the show is none other than Id Software's Doom Eternal. This sequel to the critically acclaimed Doom reboot is firmly placed upon lists of many's much-anticipated games.
At E3 2019, there's bound to be a ton of new details about the game and footage displaying all manner of over-the-top demon-slaying. But until then, here's what we know about Doom Eternal right now, and what we're hoping to see.
What We Know So Far
The last we saw of Doom Eternal was some new gameplay at a GDC panel following Google's Stadia reveal this past April. Before that, we learned a substantial amount about the game at QuakeCon 2018.
Doom Eternal continues directly after the events of the first game. The forces of Hell have invaded Earth, and the Doom Slayer must stop them by any means necessary. While you'll be spending most of your time on Earth, it appears the game will briefly take place in space on Phobos, the innermost moon of Mars.
As the Doom Slayer this time around, you're equipped with quite a few new mobility options, which includes a dodge maneuver and the ability to swing on poles in the environment. The new suit is decked out with built-in weapons, like a retractable arm-blade and a shoulder mounted launcher. You also have access to what the game calls a Meat Hook, a glorified grappling hook that can latch onto enemies and clear gaps. Power-ups are returning, and it looks like they can enhance your characteristics in a variety of ways--either temporarily or permanently.
New weapons will appear, but we've not seen them much yet. So far, the only guns that have been shown have been from the previous Doom, such as the Combat Shotgun, Super Shotgun, Heavy Cannon, Rocket Launcher, and more. A few of the older guns are returning albeit with some subtle changes. The Plasma Rifle is back and it can now shoot orbs that electrify enemies. On the other hand, some old weapons have been revamped, like the Ballista, which is a new version of the Gauss Cannon that can fire electric bolts.
Classic demons from the franchise's past are getting reintroduced to the reboot continuity. So far we've seen Arch-Viles, Arachnotrons, Imps, Cacodemons, Barons of Hell, and Pain Elementals. To make encounters with these treacherous monstrosities more flashy and exciting, Id Software is implementing new tech to make demon bodies progressively deteriorate in combat as they suffer damage.
Lastly, a surprise addition to Doom Eternal is a new mode called Invasion where other players can jump into your campaign as demons and hunt you down. Though, if you'd play alone, you can turn off the feature.
What's Confirmed At E3
Bethesda has confirmed that Doom Eternal will make an appearance at its E3 2019 press conference. Though, the specifics as to what it will show remains unclear. We'll have to wait and see what sort of heavy-metal-tined demon shooting the company has in store for us this coming June.
What We Hope To See At E3
A lot of the Doom Eternal gameplay has shown off combat either in the fleshy landscapes of Hell on Earth or Phobos. Honestly, we'd love to see what the other locations on Earth look like, like the intriguing demonic temples or sterile underground chambers that point to an even more extensive Doom universe lore this time around.
We'd also love to see gameplay demonstrating how much the new maneuverability options impact combat. We're curious about the new enemy types they're introducing that take advantage of your expanded toolset, as well as the obstacles presented that will break up the flow of battle. In addition, we'd like to see how maneuverability impacts the PvP antics of the Invasion mode.
As a bonus, it would be cool to see how Doom Eternal runs on Switch. Seeing how great the original Doom ran on the hybrid handheld console, we're excited to see how this latest iteration of the series' fast-paced shooting fairs under the humble power of the Nintendo's hardware.
While more gameplay is always a plus, we're mostly hoping that Bethesda caps off its Doom Eternal showcase by finally announcing a release date. For a while, Doom Eternal has been loosely confirmed to launch sometime in 2019, so knowing when we'll get to play it exactly would be fantastic.
Activision appears to be preparing to reveal the next Call of Duty, as it has changed its social media accounts to reflect the impending announcement. The franchise says it is "going dark" and has changed its logo icon on its official Twitter account.
That all seems to suggest an announcement is imminent, likely sometime before or during E3 2019. Activision usually announces its annual Call of Duty installments before E3. Though Activision doesn't hold its own press conference for the event, a Call of Duty trailer is often featured at the press briefings for Microsoft, Sony, or both. This year Sony is bowing out of E3, but Microsoft could still show it off.
Rumor has it that the next Call of Duty will be a reboot of Modern Warfare, dropping the numbers and simply calling itself Call of Duty: Modern Warfare. This would be the fourth Modern Warfare game, following up on last year's Black Ops 4.
Black Ops 4 dropped the longstanding tradition of story campaign modes in Call of Duty games, instead focusing on its competitive multiplayer, Zombies, and new Blackout modes. This year's installment will bring back the campaign--which would make sense for rebooting a story-focused series like Modern Warfare--and we know that it's already playable.
The 2019 reboot of Hellboy has been one the year's most notable failures in Hollywood, generating only $40 million at the worldwide box office and receiving mostly negative reviews. There were reports last month that the movie suffered from a number of behind-the-scenes problems, including fights between producers and director Neil Marshall, and star David Harbour not being cooperative. Now Harbour has commented on its disappointing performance.
In an interview with Digital Spy, Harbour explained that much of the film's issues were out of his control. "We did our best, but there's so many voices that go into these things and they're not always going to work out," he said. "I did what I could do and I feel proud of what I did, but ultimately I'm not in control of a lot of those things."
Harbour went on describe the problem that all comic book movies have when compared to Marvel's output--and in doing so came up with the concept of the "the chocolate spectrum."
"The problem that I have with comic book movies nowadays is that I think, and it's a result of the power of Marvel stuff, it's like chocolate, it's a flavour," he said. "And I sort of want a world where there's more flavours than just comparisons to chocolate. So in that way when Hellboy is viewed on the chocolate spectrum, it does very poorly. That being said, it also has major problems.
"I think as a rental or as a movie that you see on an aeroplane, I think you'd be like, 'Oh that was fun' because it's a fun movie, and I think it was unfairly bludgeoned as a result of these comparisons."
Hellboy also starred Milla Jovovich, Ian McShane, Daniel Dae Kim, Sasha Lane, and Thomas Haden Church. It followed two Hellboy movies directed by Guillermo Del Toro in the 2000s.
In related news, Harbour is set to reprise his role as cop Jim Hopper in Stranger Things Season 3, which hits Netflix in July. Check out the first clip from the new season, which was released last week.
Google will be shutting down the YouTube Gaming app as of May 30, ending its short stint of a dedicated standalone app for gamers. Instead, YouTube Gaming viewers are encouraged to visit a YouTube hub page that will serve a similar purpose. The browser destination is being similarly relocated.
In an FAQ, the company recommends merging your subscriptions to retain most of your streaming preferences. Still, some things will change for YouTube Gaming fans. There is no way to set the new hub page as your default YouTube experience, though Google notes that you can simply bookmark that page. It also says you'll lose your saved games as the company explores "better ways to organize your game interests on YouTube."
YouTube Gaming launched in 2015 as an all-in-one hub for gaming live streams. It also functioned as a testing ground for new YouTube features. But the separate app is said to have created confusion among viewers. Of course, nothing is happening to your favorite streamers. They'll still be operating as normal, so if you just like to watch YouTube's livestreams, essentially nothing will change for you.
Google is currently in the process of introducing gamers to another new bit of tech, the Stadia streaming platform. The debut event promised integration with YouTube, including the ability to jump directly into game at the same point you were just watching on a stream, or for streamers to play with their viewers live. Google recently promised we'll be seeing a few key details about Stadia soon, including price, game announcements, and launch info.
One of the most fun aspects of Super Mario Maker is seeing how the game reimagines certain enemies and items in styles they never originally appeared in, such as seeing airship levels in Super Mario Bros. or Hammer Bros. in Super Mario World. That holds just as true for Super Mario Maker 2, which introduces a new assortment of original and classic items to the toolset, including Super Mario 3's angry sun. Naturally, we just had to see how the iconic enemy looked in other Mario styles, and we were a little horrified by the result.
We recently had a chance to go hands-on with Super Mario Maker 2 at a demo event in New York, where we got to tinker around with the game's course builder. We chose Super Mario World as the style for our level, and of course, the first enemy we placed in it was the angry sun, which behaves just as you remember, swooping down to singe you every few seconds. You can take a look at our creation in the video above.
While the angry sun looks as you'd expect it to in the Super Mario Bros. and Super Mario World styles, the enemy takes on a different appearance in the New Super Mario Bros. U style. As you can see in the screenshot below, the sun's angry grimace becomes a dead-eyed stare, which somehow makes it even more unsettling as it torments you throughout the stage.
The angry sun is only one of a myriad of new customization options available in Super Mario Maker 2. Nintendo gave us a closer look at a handful of other new enemies and items during this month's Mario Maker 2 Direct. And unlike the original Super Mario Maker, you won't need to wait to unlock them; almost all of the game's tools will be available from the start, so you'll be able to jump in and play around with them right away. The game also features a story mode and online multiplayer, the latter of which is a first for a Super Mario platformer.
Super Mario Maker 2 launches for Switch on June 28. The game requires a Nintendo Switch Online subscription in order to play and share levels online. An individual 12-month membership typically costs $20, but Nintendo is bundling a year's subscription with a copy of Super Mario Maker 2 for $70, which amounts to a $10 savings. You can read more details about the bundle in our Super Mario Maker 2 pre-order guide.
One of the more divisive aspects of the original Super Mario Maker is that it gated its tools behind a waiting period, forcing players to gradually unlock them over the course of several days. While the reasoning behind this decision was to ease players into the game's wealth of customization options, it put up a hurdle in front of those hoping to use specific enemies or items in their levels. Fortunately, Super Mario Maker 2 does away with this restriction.
GameSpot recently went hands-on with Super Mario Maker 2 at a demo event, where we asked a Nintendo representative if the game features a similar waiting period before players could access the entire tool palette. The Nintendo rep confirmed that "almost all" of the game's tools will be available from the start, so you'll be able to jump in and tinker around with most of Super Mario Maker 2's new toys right from the outset.
One option that you will need to unlock is the nighttime theme. Super Mario Maker 2 allows you to change each type of level into a nighttime version, which will not only give it a starry backdrop, but also change some of the course's properties; nighttime snow stages, for example, are more slippery than their daytime counterparts, while nighttime sky levels have lower gravity. Fortunately, unlocking the theme is very simple; all you need to do is place Super Mario 3's angry sun enemy in the level and change it into a moon. Once you've unlocked the nighttime theme, you'll no longer need to place the moon in a level to access it.
Super Mario Maker 2 makes a few other welcome quality-of-life improvements. In the original game, you needed to shake certain enemies or combine items in order to change their form; for instance, shaking a green Koopa Troopa would transform it into a red one, while combining it with a Super Mushroom would supersize it. This time, however, you'll be able to choose these different variants simply by tapping on the object and selecting them from the menu. The game also automatically populates the top toolbar with the items you most frequently use, and you have the option to pin certain tools there for easy access.
Super Mario Maker 2 launches for Nintendo Switch on June 28. The game features a load of new elements, including a story mode and online multiplayer. To play and share levels online, however, you'll need to have a Nintendo Switch Online subscription, but Nintendo is bundling an individual 12-month membership for the service along with a copy of the game for $70--a $10 savings off the typical price of a 12-month subscription. If you already subscribe to the service and spring for this bundle, the 12 months will be stacked on top of your current subscription. You can learn more in our Super Mario Maker 2 pre-order guide.
Much of the allure of the original Super Mario Maker stemmed from the seemingly endless possibilities it afforded, even if that didn't turn out to be quite true. Robust as that game's course editor may have been, it didn't allow players to create certain basic Mario elements, such as sloped terrain, and some of the series' most iconic enemies were notably missing from its toolbox. Even so, the title proved to be a critical and commercial success, and for its Switch follow-up, Super Mario Maker 2, Nintendo has taken the foundation laid down by the original and embellished it in nearly every conceivable way.
We recently had a chance to attend a Super Mario Maker 2 demo event, where we were able to go hands-on with the game and sample some of the new features Nintendo has introduced. Like its predecessor, the centerpiece of Super Mario Maker 2 is the course editor, which features a wealth of tools with which to build your own Mario levels. Along with the full suite of course parts from the original game, Super Mario Maker 2 offers a variety of new customization options, from new course themes and stage hazards to a greater array of enemies and items. All of the features so conspicuously missing from the first title are present and accounted for here, along with a plethora of other tools you may not have even thought of but which now seem indispensable, such as the ability to customize the trajectory of autoscrolling levels.
One of the most profound new features in Super Mario Maker 2 is the option to impose clear conditions--goals that players must meet before they can complete the level. These can run the gamut from collecting a certain number of coins to more specific objectives, such as defeating a particular enemy or reaching the flagpole without taking damage. The game offers a staggering number of clear conditions to choose from, opening up a whole new dimension of design possibilities; you can, for instance, build a course that must be cleared without jumping, completely upending the traditional rules of the series.
As in the original Super Mario Maker, you can design your stages in the style of several different Mario games: the original Super Mario Bros., Super Mario Bros. 3, Super Mario World, New Super Mario Bros. U, and the newly added Super Mario 3D World. The latter boasts its own unique assortment of enemies and tools that makes it distinct from the other game styles, and switching to it from one of the other options while in the course editor will cause the entire level to reset. Between all of the different themes, items, and clear conditions, there's a mind-reeling array of customization options at your disposal in Super Mario Maker 2, but the process of building stages is remarkably intuitive, thanks to the ease with which you can lay down course parts and immediately test out your creation.
As with the first game, you can edit your stages using either a controller or the Switch's touch screen. However, whereas the Wii U GamePad's built-in display allowed you to use the latter method whether you played on the television or in Off-TV mode, you can only use the Switch's touch screen when playing the console undocked. If you play the game on a television, you'll have no choice but to build levels using Joy-Cons or a Switch Pro controller, neither of which feels well-suited. Placing terrain and objects with the control stick is much more cumbersome than doing so by tapping on the touch screen, so if you're interested in Super Mario Maker 2, you'll want to pick up a Switch-compatible stylus to have the best experience.
Fortunately, Nintendo has implemented a handful of quality-of-life improvements to the course editor that somewhat help mitigate the control issues. This time around, you no longer need to shake enemies or combine them with certain items in order to change their forms; you can simply tap on them and select their different permutations from the menu. As fun as it was to manually discover all of the possible item and enemy combinations in the first game, this change helps streamline the building process. Moreover, tools are now grouped into categories that you navigate using radial menus. The top toolbar is also automatically populated with the tools you most frequently use, and you can pin specific parts to the bar for easy access.
Beyond all of the new toys in the course editor, another significant addition in Super Mario Maker 2 is Story mode, which boasts more than 100 pre-made levels fashioned by Nintendo's designers. Unlike a traditional Mario platformer, Story mode doesn't whisk you through eight themed worlds on a quest to rescue Princess Peach; rather, it tasks you with rebuilding the princess's castle, which involves amassing coins by taking on "jobs" from bulletin boards and other characters. Each of these jobs comes in the form of a different level, and completing them rewards you with the coinage necessary to fund the reconstruction process. It's not a proper Mario adventure, but it does offer a more structured way to experience the game's pre-made levels than the original Mario Maker did, and the courses we've sampled are as clever as you'd expect from Nintendo.
Rounding out the new features is multiplayer. Whereas the original Super Mario Maker was a decidedly solitary experience (unless you passed the controller around to others gathered in the same room), Super Mario Maker 2 gives you the option not only to build courses with a nearby player, but to play any of the game's stages in Co-Op or Versus modes, either locally or online. As in New Super Mario Bros. U, up to four players can tackle a course simultaneously, which quickly devolves into a chaotic fight for survival as each person vies to avoid stage hazards and accidentally--or intentionally--knocks each other into pits and enemies. That you can play any stage in multiplayer adds yet another dimension to the experience, making Super Mario Maker 2 as much a party game as it is a level editor.
How well the multiplayer experience holds up online remains to be seen, but between all of the new features and tools Nintendo has introduced, Super Mario Maker 2 certainly has the potential to be, if not quite endless, then certainly one of the most compelling time sinks in the Switch's library. The game launches on June 28, and as with other online-enabled titles for the console, you'll need to have a Nintendo Switch Online subscription to take advantage of its online features. However, Nintendo is offering a bundle that includes a 12-month membership with a copy of the game for $70, saving you $10 over the regular cost of an individual 12-month subscription. You can read more details about the bundle in our Super Mario Maker 2 pre-order guide.
The next Zelda game, officially titled Cadence of Hyrule: Crypt of the NecroDancer Featuring the Legend of Zelda, will seemingly launch this week for Nintendo Switch. On the surface, Nintendo of America's website simply states the game will be released this "spring," which lines up with the release window provided when the game was first revealed in a Nintendo Direct earlier this year. However, inspecting the site's source code reveals a line that reads, "Release date: May 30, 2019."
If correct, that would have the game launch toward the end of spring. It seems a plausible date, especially since Nintendo reportedly included the game in a newsletter promoting Switch games coming out this May (thanks, NintendoLife).
Cadence of Hyrule was announced in March. It's a crossover between Nintendo's famous Zelda series and indie rhythm hit Crypt of the NecroDancer, which first launched in 2015.
The new game is being developed by the same team behind the original, Brace Yourself. Its art style has been revamped since then, however, to match that of past Zelda games such as Minish Cap. You can watch Cadence of Hyrule's reveal trailer above.
There's plenty for Nintendo fans to look forward to, as the company's E3 press conference--which will again come in the form of a Nintendo Direct--has been scheduled for next month.
Team Sonic Racing has stormed into first place in the UK physical games chart, according to sales monitor Chart-Track. Sega's new PS4, Xbox One, PC, and Nintendo Switch racer finishes at No.1 in its debut week as Days Gone and FIFA 19 continue to chart well in No.2 and No.3, respectively.
Last week's No.1, Rage 2, drops to No.4 for the week ending May 25, as Red Dead Redemption 2 rounds out the top five by maintaining its No.5 position. Aside from Team Sonic Racing, new releases this week include Everybody's Golf VR, which debuts at No.22, and Total War: Three Kingdoms on PC. The latter fails to reach the top 40, though the chart doesn't account for digital sales. Finally, Assassin's Creed 3: Remastered's new Switch port helps the game climb back into the top 40 at No.15.
Team Sonic Racing is the first game starring the blue hedgehog to finish at No.1 since 2008's Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games. We enjoyed the racer here at GameSpot, with critic James Swinbanks awarding it a 7/10 in our Team Sonic Racing review.
"The essence of Team Sonic Racing is good," he wrote. "Its handling feels tight and smooth, drifting has a good flow to it, and the items are fun to use, as are the tracks to race on. It doesn't bring much new to the genre, but it delivers where it counts. The racing is fast and fun, and the team aspects offer enough of a change to the formula to make Team Sonic Racing the endearing arcade racer it is."
You can read the full top 10 sales chart for this week below, courtesy of UKIE and GfK Chart-Track. Note this table does not include digital sales data, and so should not be considered representative of all UK game sales.
Massively multiplayer games have become more prominent on consoles over the years, but that has not yet proven to be the case on Nintendo Switch. But at least one is on the way, as free-to-play MMO DC Universe Online is coming t Switch. The game is launching this summer, it was announced on the game's website recently.
The Switch version will have its own server dedicated to Nintendo Switch. There is no cross-play with the game's existing PS4, Xbox One, and PC versions, but a FAQ on the game's website states that the studio "look[s] forward to exploring cross-play options in the future." The PC and PS4 editions of DC Universe Online support cross-play.
You can check out a brief teaser trailer for DCUO below.
There are also no account transfers, so players who already have accounts on a different platform will have to start over with a new character if they want to play on Switch. You connect to DC Universe Online through your Nintendo Account.
DC Universe Online launched back in 2011 for PC and PS3, before coming to PS4 in 2013 and Xbox One in 2016. The PS3 edition has been discontinued.
In the game you create a hero or villain and you fight alongside iconic characters from the DC Universe such as Batman, The Joker, Wonder Woman, and Superman. It doesn't mark the first MMO ever on Switch, as Dragon Quest X was ported to the platform--but only in Japan.
The next patch for Nintendo's mascot fighting game Super Smash Bros. Ultimate will arrive this week, the company has announced. The update brings the game to Version 3.1.0.
The full patch notes do not appear to be available at this stage, but Nintendo says players can expect things like unspecified "fighter adjustments." It's unknown what changes are coming but Nintendo did confirm that the update will make previous version replay data incompatible. Nintendo advises that players convert their replays to video by visiting the Vault and selecting Replays then Replay Date and the Convert to Video prior to updating.
Ver 3.1.0 of Super #SmashBrosUltimate is coming this week! This update will include fighter adjustments, meaning replay data from previous versions will be incompatible. Convert your replays by going to Vault -> Replays -> Replay Data -> Convert to Video, before updating. pic.twitter.com/3IUqibNCD3
To mark the 10th anniversary of Sucker Punch's action game Infamous, the studio shared a number of fascinating behind-the-scenes secrets and insight from the game's development.
In a Twitter thread, Sucker Punch revealed all manner of things, including how the game at one point had motorcycle parkour (see in action in the GIF below), that it had the working title True Hero, and that the team wasn't sure if they would legally be allowed to call it Infamous so they created a second trailer with a different title for E3 2007 where the game was officially unveiled for the first time.
8) At one point, the hero could do vehicle stunts including motorcycle parkour. pic.twitter.com/r0qeCSyotZ
Sucker Punch also shared that, earlier on in development you could change into civilian clothing in phone booths throughout the city and that a feature where the player could use super-powers to create new types of shops in the city to keep inhabitants happy.
Sucker Punch also toyed with the idea of adding "light" character customizatin to allow players to change things like clothing and hair and considered adding the ability to basically become super-Tony Hawk and skate through the city by riding an invisible energy field.
These are just some of the cool takeaways from the Twitter thread--you can see them all here.
Game development is an iterative process; things change all the time, and it's fascinating to see how Infamous changed over the course of its development. This information is only just coming out now, 10+ years after the game's release, and that might be due in part to the industry's culture of secrecy.
Sucker Punch's new game is the samurai action game Ghosts of Tsushima. The title is in development for PlayStation 4 but no release date has been announced.
A listing for what could be a new Ubisoft streaming service has emerged online ahead of E3 2019 next month. Members of the Resetera forum (via VG247) spotted a placeholder listing for something called "Ubisoft Pass."
The listing has since been removed, but VG247 reports that the Ubisoft Store also had a page dedicated to subscription services that has also since been taken down. That is curious since Ubisoft does not currently operate any subscription services.
The original placeholder image was for a "Premium" version of the Ubisoft Pass. This wording suggests that the service, if it is real, may be available in different tiers.
Ubisoft's CEO, Yves Guillemot, is a big believer in streaming as a technology that will be a huge deal for gaming going forward.
"With time, I think streaming will become more accessible to many players and make it not necessary to have big hardware at home. There will be one more console generation and then after that, we will be streaming, all of us," Guillemot told Variety in 2018.
For a streaming service to have success, you need content. As one of the biggest publishers in gaming, Ubisoft is not lacking in games, as its back catalog is deep and rich with major franchises such as Assassin's Creed, Far Cry, Splinter Cell, Rabbids, Watch Dogs, and many others.
Ubisoft worked with Google on that company's streaming platform, Stadia, and it wouldn't be surprising to see Ubisoft be announced as one of Stadia's third-party partners this summer.
We've contacted Ubisoft to see if the company has any comment on the Ubisoft Pass listing.
If not a streaming service, it's possible that Ubisoft Pass could be an EA Access-style offering where people can pay a monthly fee to get access to a variety of titles. This is only speculation, however. For now, you should take all of this with a grain of salt, as Ubisoft has made no announcements.
Ubisoft's E3 2019 briefing takes place Monday, June 10, beginning at 1 PM PT. GameSpot will have all the big news from Ubisoft's E3 briefing and all the other ones, so keep checking back for more.
Battlefield V is adding a new map very soon, and now DICE has released a trailer for it. The new map, Mercury, is coming to Battlefield V on May 30 through a free update.
As you can see, Mercury is set in Greece in the Mediterranean. The map is part of Battlefield V's Chapter 3: Trial By Fire Update. "Based on the events of Operation Mercury in 1941, this map lets you deploy on the coast of Crete where the British take on the invading German forces," reads a line from the map's official description.
In a blog post, DICE said the gameplay for Mercury is focused on "verticality, all-out war, and asymmetrical vehicle forces." The British side have tanks and only a small number of plans, with the German side commanding the skies with more planes.
DICE says Mercury has been designed for a number of different playstyles, and the map itself borrows characteristics from maps like Guadalcanal (Battlefield 1942), Altai Range (Battlefield 4), and Monte Grappa (Battlefield 1).
"Due to the size and verticality of the map, tempo will vary. Find holes in the defense to flank or engage in a hot firefight around one of the flags," DICE said. "There';s a place in the map for SMGs to clash with shotguns, while Recon players can snipe at Support players, who in turn suppress enemies with their LMGs."
DICE has steadily supported Battlefield V with numerous free updates adding a variety of things like new maps and modes, including the uber-popular battle royale mode Firestorm.
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