Month: June 2018

Mark Darrah, executive producer of Anthem, has been busy on Twitter answering players’ questions about BioWare’s upcoming RPG. Many of the questions are answered with information we already learned about the game during E3 2018, but there are a few new tidbits of information hidden in the horde of tweets.

Lots of players wanted to know about loadouts, and Darrah had plenty of information to share. Players will have the option to save multiple custom Javelin loadouts. They won’t be able to switch between them during combat, like players could in Mass Effect: Andromeda, but at least they won’t have to reallocate weapons and equipment between each mission. Once you find a certain loadout that works, you’ll be able to save it before trying something else.

Speaking of the weapons, equipment, and other rewards that players will find while exploring, Darrah offered further insight into how item acquisition would work. The level of dropped gear will be based on Freelancer level so you’ll be able to switch up Javelins easily throughout the game. That loot will bias towards whichever Javelin you’re wearing at the time, but players will find rewards for every Javelin while playing. Not all rewards are unlocked via combat or mission completion either. Some are found through exploration. Darrah even hinted that some might be located underwater. There won’t be item trading between players at launch though.

Here’s a few other details that stood out to us:

• Even if you’re not in a group with them, other players can still interact with you. Strangers will even be able to revive you if they happen to run across you after you’ve fallen in combat.
• There will be no aerial fights against rival Javelins in Anthem. Sadly, you’ll have to abandon your dreams of power suit dog fights.
• No friendly fire. For now anyway. The team might change their mind by launch.
• The Scars aren’t technically alien, but they’re not exactly human either.
• You’ll be able to upgrade Javelin’s flight time if you want to explore further and faster.
• You can’t change your Javelin mid-mission. We imagine this means that if you run out of charge on the Javelin you’ve chosen for a particular mission, you’ll fail.
• Javelins cannot be permanently destroyed. Whew.
• No post-launch plans yet, but Darrah isn’t opposed to the possibility of a melee-based Javelin or implementing interchangeable melee weapons for the four current Javelins.
• Anthem will feature a color-blind mode.
• You can respec your Freelancer’s skills.
• No plans for cross-play between console and PC at launch.
• Missions are specifically designed for four players, even if Anthem can be played one to four.
• There is fall damage so be careful when landing.
• All Javelins have the same movement speed outside of combat.
• Each Javelin is unlocked by doing a mission; players can choose the order.

Darrah and his team are continuing to answer questions about Anthem up to the game’s release. They won’t answer anything that might spoil the game, so feel free to ask away if you have any nagging questions. Anthem will launch on February 22 for Xbox One, PS4, and PC.

Like clockwork, summer has begun, so Valve has officially kicked off Steam’s annual summer sale, which this year is dubbed the Steam Intergalactic Summer Sale. As always, 2018’s sale brings discounts on a huge number of games; Valve says more than 10,000 are on sale. That’s far too many for anyone to hope to parse through, but that’s where we come in.

Rather than wade through countless pages of discounted titles, we’ve rounded up a selection of worthwhile games that you should consider buying before the sale ends. The specific amount you’ll save varies greatly, but we’ve asked GameSpot’s staff for their favorite deals, and we’ve come up with a selection that runs the gamut from big-name, triple-A games to lesser-known (but nonetheless excellent) titles. Whether you’re looking for shooters, RPGs, strategy games, or something else, we’ve got you covered.

The Steam Intergalactic Summer Sale, like recent sales on the platform, is relatively straightforward. Valve has done away with the daily and flash deals, as well as voting; you don’t have to check in every eight hours to avoid missing out on what you’re looking for. That might have done away with some of the excitement of past Steam sales, but it does make shopping much easier, as you can rest assured that anything you buy now isn’t going to be discounted more heavily later in the sale.

This sale does feature one wrinkle, which is where the “intergalactic” aspect comes in. Steam’s homepage allows you to jump into what’s called the Summer Saliens game, which sees you head to planets and save various games that have been abducted by aliens. You’ll earn XP and unlock new abilities, RPG-style, although it’s all rather simplistic. While perhaps not worth playing for long on the strength of its gameplay, you may want to dive in anyway, as doing so can earn you Steam trading cards. More notably, defending certain planets enters you to win a corresponding game, with your odds increasing as your Salien stays on the same planet for longer.

The Steam Summer Sale runs from now until July 5, and a variety of anime is also on sale. Be sure to let us know your picks for worthwhile deals, as well as what you plan to pick up, in the comments below.

Since it first debuted back in 2013, Grand Theft Auto V has received a regular stream of updates and ongoing support from Rockstar. The developer gave fans a glimpse at the next new feature coming soon to the game’s GTA Online mode: nightclubs.

Following their introduction sometime next month, players will be able to own and operate their own nightclub in GTA Online. Rockstar hasn’t explained the particulars of how players will run their club, but it will involve designing, staffing, and promoting it. The developer has also revealed that the nightclubs will feature new music from the electronic artists Solomun, Tale Of Us, Dixon, and The Black Madonna.

“Nightclubs are the perfect cover for any other operation you might have going, so get in on the ground level as a business partner to open up a brand new establishment, and help the DJs make their shows the best ever,” Rockstar says. “Run your nightclub business from setup, design, staffing and promotion; the more popular the club, the faster your secure wall safe will fill up.”

In the meantime, players will be able to join the “guest list” by logging in to GTA Online from now to July 2. Those who do so will then earn GTA$300,000 and an exclusive Orange Wireframe Bodysuit when they log in between July 3-9. On top of that, players on the guest list will get other weekly login bonuses later in July. Some of the bonuses Rockstar outlined on its blog include:

• Bonus cash each week ranging between GTA$100,000 to GTA$350,000
• Exclusive discounts on forthcoming vehicles like the powerful MTL Pounder Custom–a highly customizable asset for your lucrative business deliveries
• Exclusive liveries on new vehicles like the Ocelot Swinger classic sports car
• New nightclub themed t-shirts

Rockstar first teased that some sort of music-related content was on the way to GTA 5 last month, when it posted a cryptic tweet that simply listed the four aforementioned electronic artists. The company says it will share more details about the forthcoming nightclub update and other Guest List perks closer to their launch.