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Showing posts from August, 2019

Best PAX West 2019 Cosplay -- War Frame, Borderlands, Overwatch, More (Day 1)

PAX West is underway and fandoms from all corners of pop culture are coming together to celebrate their love of their hobbies and passions. Whether it’s video games, movies, TV shows, or comic books, its bound to be represented in some way at the show. One or the main draws of PAX is the impressive array of cosplayers that flock to the show. These cosplayers are some of the most creative fans out there, putting together outfits that are elaborate and detailed, or simply thoughtful and charming. We’ve been scouring the halls of PAX and taking pictures of our favourite cosplays and have put together a showcase. In the following images you’ll see cool costumes for the likes of Overwatch, Borderlands, Big Hero 6, Sailor Moon, and more. PAX has deliverer whole lot of news so far, so make sure to head over to our PAX West 2019 hub to stay on top of it. If you’re excited for Cyberpunk 2077, make sure to catch up on all the new Cyberpunk 2077 gameplay information we learned from the rec

Three Fantastic PC Games You Missed This Month

August had Fire Emblem: Three Houses , Control and Astral Chain . All great games that can suck your life away. But as the year ticks along, plenty of great, smaller games with stellar ideas and executions come out, especially on PC, and they won't eat up dozens of hours if you're looking for something fresh. But they're easy to miss. There are a lot of games out there, and we sure do play a lot of them. We've picked three standout games from August that which really sparked our interest and really captured our attention. They're games that might usually fly under most people's radar, but still great experiences in their own right, so if any of them sound up your alley, know that they have our hearty recommendation. A Short Hike (PC) If A Short Hike has a central theme, it’s that kindness is rewarded. In other words, be nice to those you meet and nice things will also come your way. It’s a lovely little game that will either make you feel better about t

Cyberpunk 2077: All The New Gameplay Information We Learned

From side-quests to character creation, the nitty-gritty on Cyberpunk 2077 is all here. The next-generation may be on the horizon but the current crop of hardware still has a lot of life left in it and some exciting upcoming games to look forward to. Chief among them is Cyberpunk 2077 , an ambitious open-world RPG developed by CD Projekt Red, the studio behind The Witcher 3. The game's existence has been known for some time now, but details about its intricacies are rare, and gameplay videos are even rarer. However, on August 30, CD Projekt Red showed off the game publicly. The demo it debuted to viewers was very similar to the one shown at Gamescom and E3, behind-closed-doors, but it was still valuable to those that weren't able to attend the show and get time with it. More valuable, however, was the extended conversation the game's developers had following the gameplay demo. During this, CD Projekt Red's developers discussed everything from the design of Night Cit

Bulletstorm: Duke Of Switch Edition Is Out Now

The Nintendo Switch has suddenly gotten a little more M-rated with the surprise-release of Bulletstorm. The Bulletstorm: Duke of Switch Edition , previously announced for the summer , is now available on the eshop for $30. As you may expect from the name, this version of Bulletstorm includes all the remastered “Full Clip” update from 2017, including the ability to play as Duke Nukem. The game was known for its crass humor and let’s say creative use of profanity, so Duke fit right in. Bulletstorm’s gameplay hook was a tether mechanic, which allowed you to bounce enemies back and forth like yo-yos as you dealt damage and racked up score bonuses. GameSpot’s Bulletstorm: Full Clip Edition review , awarded the remaster an 8/10. "The experience absolutely holds up: the skillshot system remains wildly fun and inventive, the weapons are still a gruesome joy, and the writing...well, it's as distinctive as ever,” Scott Butterworth wrote. “If you missed Bulletstorm when it originally

Cyberpunk 2077's Weapon Customization Is Surprisingly Deep

Like CD Projekt Red's previous games, there are tons of ways to customize your character in Cyberpunk 2077 to suit your liking. This level of personalization even stretches into the game's various gun types, which come in three unique flavors . When it comes to customizing guns, there are two significant ways to do so. First, you can change your gun's appearance by applying different skins or paint jobs. In contrast, the most meaningful way to customize your gun is by applying attachments and modifications, such as silencers and scopes. You can also specifically boost a gun's specific individual statistics. Aside from customization, it's worth noting as your proficiency with specific guns increases, your reloading and shooting animations change. For example, your crosshair might become smaller, indicating that your accuracy is improving, or your reloading animation becomes faster. According to senior level designer Miles Tost, this was implemented to better feed

Homeworld Mobile Announced At PAX

The Gearbox panel at PAX West announced Homeworld 3 , but that’s not the only return for the real-time strategy franchise. The company also teased Homeworld Mobile, complete with a brief teaser-trailer showing off the spacefaring ships in flight. The spin-off is being developed by mobile studio Straosphere. Gearbox noted that the title isn’t finalized, because like Homeworld 3, it’s still in the early stages. If you back Homeworld 3’s crowd-funding campaign on Fig , you’ll get priority access to Homeworld Mobile. Homeworld has been relatively quiet since the release of Homeworld 2 in 2003. It received a Remastered Collection in 2015, which was well-received by critics, including in GameSpot’s Homeworld Remastered review . “The Homeworld series' legacy, however, has always lain within its story-focused campaigns, whose excellent action and inherent beauty endure and excel, even in light of the 16 years that have passed since the original's arrival,” wrote Kevin VanOrd. “It i

Homeworld 3 Announced

The classic real-time strategy series Homeworld is coming back. The dormant series has been quiet for more than 15 years, aside from the Remastered Collection in 2015. But an official sequel, Homeworld 3, has been announced at PAX West. Development is being handled by Blackbird Interactive, which has some experience with the franchise having remastered previous Homeworld games. Fans can look forward to having the story pick up from where it left off, however, it may be some time before they can experience the new chapter. "Homeworld returns with the next chapter of the story. Homeworld 3 is the true sequel to the legendary space-faring RTS. Blackbird Interactive, founded by original Homeworld art director Rob Cunningham takes the helm on development, returning the series to its roots with a gripping continuation of the story, fully 3D combat, and the classic RTS elements you expect," its developer states. "Further supported by the veterans of Homeworld Remastered Col

Sony Outlines Its Tokyo Game Show Plans, And There Won't Be A Press Conference

Sony Interactive Entertainment Japan Asia has outlined its plans for the Tokyo Game Show 2019, which runs from September 12 to 15 at the Makuhari Messe in Chiba, Japan. Sony will be showcasing numerous games at the PlayStation booth on the show floor, but unlike previous years this is yet another event that won't feature a Sony press conference. The company opted to skip E3 entirely earlier this year, marking the first time it has done so since entering the video game industry in the mid-90s. "PlayStation fans mean the world to us and we always want to innovate, think differently and experiment with new ways to delight gamers. As a result, we have decided not to participate in E3 in 2019," a PlayStation representative said at the time. Sony also decided not to host its annual PlayStation Experience , so TGS is just the latest event in the 2019 calendar year to feel the absence of a usual Sony press conference. Sony recently shared some of the first details about its n

Gears 5 Has More Expansive Levels, But It Isn't Trying To Be Red Dead Or Far Cry

Gears 5 represents something of a change for the shooter series in that its campaign mode features levels that are "more open and expansive." That's according to The Coalition boss Rod Fergusson, who explained to GameSpot that while Gears 5's levels will be larger, the studio isn't aiming for a true open-world experience that's similar to what you might find in the Red Dead and Far Cry franchises. Some people who worked on Gears 5 previously developed open-world games in the Assassin's Creed and Far Cry franchises. They've taken those learnings to Gears 5, but the game is doing something different. "We just knew that we weren't trying to be another Red Dead or Far Cry or Ghost Recon," Fergusson said. "We were just saying, 'How can we take Gears and make it feel more open and expansive without trying to go toe-to-toe with Ubisoft?' Because that's not really what this game is. We just wanted to take inspiration from genr

How Gears 5 Was Inspired By Bioshock: Infinite

The Gears of War series is known for a specific pace of combat. The cover-based mechanics helped revolutionize shooters, but Gears 5 is taking a very different approach inspired more by open-world shooters. In an interview with GameSpot , studio head Rod Fergusson explained how the studio took notes from another game he worked on, BioShock Infinite . "We were saying we want to challenge expectations of player choice," Fergusson said. "What are ways that we can give the player more choice? And so one way is player-initiated combat. I learned that lesson from Bioshock Infinite. And so, the idea that there are battles that the swarm are just kind of meandering around and whatever, and you get to look around and see that there's a weapon over there or there's a flank point there or a sniper over there, and then what are the tools I have in Jack that I can sort of use to overcome the situation? We wanted to allow you that moment to take it in and decide how you want

Gears 5: Dev Says Microsoft Had No Creative Input "At All"

Gears 5 makes a number of big changes to the series with its new hero, Kait, along with bigger levels and some RPG elements . These ideas came from developer The Coalition, but how did Microsoft feel about these changes? "They actually don't have any creative input at all," The Coalition boss Rod Fergusson told GameSpot in a recent interview. According to Fergusson, Xbox Game Studios boss Matt Booty and overall Xbox boss Phil Spencer put a lot of trust in their studio heads to manage their own projects. "It's really about trusting the studio heads and the teams there to recognize what's the best way to leverage whatever it is they're building," he said. "Matt has a great line around just building great games. It's just the notion of don't worry about business models, don't worry about subscriptions, don't worry about changing things to adopt to a particular strategy. If you make an awesome game, then we can take that awesome g

The One Thing Gears of War Dev Rod Fergusson Pulled Rank To Make Happen

Studio head Rod Fergusson has discussed the one time he chose to pull rank and put his foot down on a creative decision. Surprisingly, it was to ensure the survival of protagonist Kait Diaz's hat in Gears of War 4 . In an interview with GameSpot , Fergusson and franchise narrative lead Bonnie Jean Mah revealed that they were the lone hat advocates at the studio. And he used the hat to illustrate a related point, about how skeptical the studio was of the Skiff vehicle segment. "It was a battle," Fergusson said. "It was literally a battle, much like Kait's hat. So in Gears 4, we had the beret on Kait, and almost everybody hated it." " I liked the hat," Jean Mah interjected. "I mean, you and I liked the hat," he continued. "We essentially had to fight really hard to keep Kait's hat. It was one of those things where I was like, 'Look, I don't pull rank very often, but we're keeping the hat.'" He went on to e

Joker Movie Director Had To Campaign For His R-Rated Vision

The upcoming Joker movie starring Joaquin Phoenix carries an R rating, and director Todd Phillips apparently had to work hard to convince Warner Bros. to allow him to make his more mature vision. He told The Los Angeles Times that it was a lengthy process to get the R rating for Joker. Some people within Warner Bros. were apparently concerned about merchandising, among other things related to the content. "There were emails about: 'You realize we sell Joker pajamas at Target.' There were a zillion hurdles, and you just sort of had to navigate those one at a time," Phillips said. "At the time I would curse them in my head every day. But then I have to put it in perspective and go, 'They're pretty bold that they did this.'" Producer Emma Tillinger Koskoff said in the interview that it was difficult to get the green light for Phillips' version of Joker, due in part to "concerns about some of the content." However, after Warner Bros.

New Terminator: Dark Fate Trailer Teases A New Apocalypse

In 1991, Terminator 2: Judgment Day told us when the world would end. August 29, 1997 was designated as Judgment Day, when the machines would rise up against the humans. Clearly, that didn't happen, thanks to any number of movie sequels and timeline changes. However, the day still holds significance for Terminator fans, and Paramount Studios has chosen to celebrate it with a new trailer for Terminator: Dark Fate , the next film in the series. The trailer explains what's going on in this latest sequel. Although Sarah Connor successfully helped change the future in T2 back in 1991, she didn't change humanity's fate--which, based on the movie's name, we're guessing is pretty dark. There's also an iconic Terminator line at the trailer's end, so it's worth watching all the way through. While Arnold Schwarzenegger's return for this movie shouldn't come as much of a surprise--he's yet to miss an installment--Dark Fate does see the return of

Astral Chain Guide: The Tips And Advice You Need To Get Started

Anime Police Academy The latest from developer Platinum Games (best known for the Bayonetta series) is the Nintendo Switch exclusive Astral Chain. It shares a lot of similarities to its stylish-action relatives, but Astral Chain separates itself with a unique, thrilling combat system--you control a player-character and a Legion simultaneously. This makes for some incredible fights, and it'll take some time to wrap your head around all its intricacies. There are systems layered on top of the tandem chaos, like Ability Codes and a skill tree to upgrade for new attacks, and we'll point out some key things to pay attention to. While we'll help you with some basics to keep in mind during battle, there's a lot more to the game than combat. Within segmented story chapters, you'll explore semi-open hub areas side missions, investigations, and other optional content. Primary objectives are fairly straight-forward, but to get the most out of Astral Chain, you'll need t