Binge along with us as we review Marvel’s Jessica Jones Season 2! Here’s a hub for all of our reviews, updating as we watch.
Month: March 2018
State of Decay 2 Is Bigger, Better, and More RPG-y
My car was abandoned in the middle of the road somewhere behind me. I couldn’t go back for it even though I desperately wished I could. I had to bail out of it – while it was moving, mind you – because it was the dead of night and I didn’t see the Bloater standing in my path until he exploded on the front bumper, filling the cabin with noxious gas. I was left to limp up and around a mountain, as a straight-line path back to my community’s base just wasn’t possible. My health was critical. My stamina was exhausted because I hadn’t slept in two days and simply couldn’t run more than a few paces anymore. I figured my odds of surviving – and thus not losing valuable geocacher/masseuse Fulgencio Arellano permanently – were barely north of zero. Between my body, my mind, and my situation, I really was in a state of decay.
Nintendo Celebrates National Mario Day with Google Maps
In celebration of Mario Day (March 10), Google has collaborated with Nintendo to bring the iconic video game mascot to Google Maps.
Starting today and running until March 17, Google Maps users around the world can replace the app’s navigation arrow with Mario.
Mario in Google Maps
Updating the app through Google Play or the App Store is required to enable the feature. Once the update has been downloaded, all you need to do is click the yellow “? Block” icon located on the bottom right of the app and the regular navigation arrow will be replaced by Mario driving a kart.
Super Smash Bros. Fans Went Absolutely Wild At The Nintendo Store After Switch Reveal
For a 30-minute presentation, March 2018’s Nintendo Direct was jam-packed with presentations. Nintendo reeled off announcement after announcement, with the bulk of that time spent either highlighting details about previously announced Switch games or revealing new ones. Nintendo then teased that the show was over, only to sneak in one last announcement–Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo Switch.
If you were on social media at the time (or in an office like GameSpot’s), you likely saw a great deal of excitement over the news, even though a Super Smash Bros. game was inevitably going to make it to Switch. There may not have been a more intense reaction anywhere than at the Nintendo World Store in New York City, as the video below from YouTube channel EmpireArcadia shows. You can also see the crowd itself here.
Despite all the excitement, we don’t actually know a whole lot about the new Super Smash Bros. at this point–like, for instance, whether it is indeed a new Smash. Nintendo’s announcement is relatively ambiguous, leaving us to wonder whether this is a brand-new game or a Mario Kart 8 Deluxe-style enhanced re-release of Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. At the very least, we know that Splatoon‘s inklings will be part of the roster given their prominent place in the reveal trailer. Mario and Link (wearing his Breath of the Wild outfit) are also spotted along with silhouettes for a variety of other characters, giving fans an image to dissect until Nintendo confirms who will be on the roster.
Super Smash Bros. for Switch releases sometime in 2018. For a look at everything else that was just announced, check out our roundup of all the news and games from March 2018’s Nintendo Direct.
The Division’s 2018 Road Map Detailed for the Months Ahead
Ubisoft has shared its plans for The Division over the coming year with the game’s 2018 road map.
While some of this was covered after the announcement of The Division 2, Ubisoft has now released a full schedule, outlining the upcoming content and patches planned between now and September.
Two years and 20 million players later, a number of global events have been planned to celebrate and the road map has given us an idea of when we can expect them to roll out. we’ll also see 4K support for the Xbox One with April’s 1.8.1 update.
Wonder Woman 2: Kristen Wiig Confirmed as Villain Cheetah
Director Patty Jenkins has confirmed Kristen Wiig will play the villain Cheetah in Wonder Woman 2.
“So incredibly lucky to welcome the sensationally talented Kristen Wiig to our Wonder Woman family,” Jenkins wrote on Twitter. “Can’t wait to finally work with one of my favorites. And SO excited by what we have planned. #Cheetah!!!”
Wiig in Bridesmaids
Prior to today’s confirmation, Wiig was said to be “in talks” to play the villain, who was first introduced to comic readers over 70 years ago in Wonder Woman’s sixth issue.
PS4 Exclusive Days Gone Has Been Delayed
Sony’s upcoming PS4 zombie game Days Gone has been delayed. Having originally been scheduled for this year, the survival game will now launch in 2019. “We can confirm that Days Gone will now be releasing in 2019 and we will keep you updated on the launch date,” Sony told GameSpot. The company did not mention why the game has been delayed.
Sony Worldwide Studio president Shuhei Yoshida had previously stated the game would launch at some point in 2018, though it was not clear–and still isn’t–at what point in the year that would be. Not much of the game has been shown off so far; audiences have simply seen a glimpse of the same section played during the day and at night.
Days Gone was first announced at E3 2016. It’s in development at the Sony-owned Bend Studio, which previously made Uncharted: Golden Abyss on PS Vita and the Syphon Filter series. We still don’t know exactly when it will launch, but we did recently learn when we’ll get to play another PS4 exclusive; Detroit: Become Human’s release date has been confirmed as May 25.
In other PS4 news, there’s a new system update out now and March’s PS Plus games are now available. They include Bloodborne and Ratchet & Clank–check out the full PS Plus lineup for March here.
Bethesda Announces a New Studio in Austin
Bethesda will be expanding with a third office in Austin, Texas.
Bethesda Game Studios and ZeniMax Media announced that BattleCry Studios will be welcomed into the fold, to become Bethesda Game Studios Austin.
“As the vision, scale and ambitions for our games continue to grow, so does Bethesda Game Studios,” said Todd Howard, Game Director and Executive Producer at Bethesda Game Studios. “We’ve had the pleasure to know the talented developers at BattleCry, and knew we could do great things together.”
BattleCry Studios was established in 2012. Development of the studio’s first title, BattleCry, was halted in 2015 amidst news of layoffs, but it went on to assist id Software with the development of 2016’s Doom.
IGN UK Podcast #425: Super Smashing Boys
Nintendo Direct took a big old dump of awesome games on us this week so Rory, Krupa & Gav go absolutely mad on Dark Souls Amiibo, Rory’s Smash Bros. skills and there’s a lovely embarrassing story about Priyanka Chopra and another definitely story about Nicolas Cage going nuts in his new film Mom & Dad.
We’ve also got some awesome feedback and an absolutely epic round of Keyword Countdown.
IGN UK Podcast #425: Super Smashing Boys
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Pokemon: Giant Lapras Plush on Sale (and Immediately Sold Out) in Japan
Bandai Namco has begun preorders for a massive Lapras cushion on its official online store in Japan, the second in a series of giant Pokemon cushions following Snorlax.
Despite its pricing at a whopping ¥79,000 (about $740, tax included), the cushion sold out immediately. It just goes to show that Lapras’ round eyes and large size has captured the hearts of Pokémon Trainers around the country.
While you might have a hard time fitting one of these massive cushions somewhere, that didn’t stop Trainers from buying them up.
The outside is soft to the touch, while the inside is a combination of cotton material and air cushioning, and is built to withstand the weight of an average adult (though you’ll probably fall off if you try to jump on it).