The first beta test for Halo: Reach on PC will begin next week, Halo developer 343 Industries has confirmed. It’s not locked down, however, as plans could change. Still, next week is when the studio is looking to release the first beta test on PC.
“We’re starting more modestly because we’ve got quite a few levers to pull and we want to ensure our delivery pipeline runs smoothly, our communications are clear, and that participants can properly provide their feedback on the build,” 343 said in a blog post. “Since there are so many pieces and levers that need testing, verification, and appropriate approvals, we need to take our time to ensure we’re sending out a quality flight to our Halo Insiders.”
The development team is close to finalizing a version of Halo: Reach for PC for the beta, but it is still “going through the test process.”
“We’re still targeting to release next week and will be sharing the details with the public, so even if you aren’t selected for the flight, you’ll know what’s happening. Stay tuned for more details throughout!” 343 says.
Halo: Reach was playable at E3 2019 in Los Angeles this week, but this first beta will mark the first time the wider public will have a chance to check it out.
Reach is coming to PC as part of Microsoft’s plans to launch The Master Chief Collection on PC. The rest of the releases will follow in chronological order, spanning Halo 2, Halo 3, Halo 3: ODST, and Halo 4. Each game will be sold for $10 USD each, except for ODST which is $5 USD. The beta releases for each title are free.
Reach is also coming to Xbox One and it’ll release on consoles through a beta test as well, though a release date has not been announced.
The monetization of nostalgia is nothing new, but the process seems to have accelerated in this current generation of consoles. HD remasters and “built-from-the-ground-up” remakes litter store shelves, and we’re invariably delighted to lap up these colorful reminders of our gaming past. Occasionally, these are cynical ways to mine our memories for cash, but other times they give old gems the polish they need to shine once again. Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled is, happily, the latter, and thanks to modern updates in the right places it feels as good today as the original did 20 years ago.
There was a danger Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled would show its 1999 progenitor up to be a dated game best left in the past. Instead, developer Beenox has proved how impressive and durable Naughty Dog’s original work was while also tweaking it in the right ways. The original game’s list of 18 tracks has been expanded upon with 13 more from its sequel, Crash Nitro Kart, and these provide an extended list of topographically and visually distinct circuits, from underwater tunnels to ice caves to desert pyramids. Those visuals have of course also been given a facelift, and while no track looks bad, some look especially stunning. Coco Park has gorgeous pink flowers strewn across the road, for example, while Tiger Temple looks like it was taken directly from Uncharted 4 and Electron Avenue feels like racing through Blade Runner’s vision of Los Angeles.
The handling takes a bit of getting used to, mind you. For anyone who’s played any amount of Mario Kart, for example, over the past few years, Crash Team Racing’s power slides will feel decidedly alien, at times too sensitive and at others not sensitive enough–and this leads to quite a few missed crates or headlong collisions with stationary objects. However, once you reacquaint yourself with the mechanic–which requires you to hold one bumper down to drift and press the other bumper with the correct timing to gain a boost–it reveals itself to be of greater depth than comparable turning methods in other kart racers. You can chain these boosts for even faster acceleration (but at the risk of spinning out), so while it’s harder to get to grips with, Crash Team Racing’s power sliding nets bigger rewards for those willing to dance with the drifting devil.
Nitro-Fueled’s array of power-ups are the other obstacles in your path to the finish line. They are derivative of Mario Kart’s selection–Crash’s green beakers are Mario’s bananas, Crash’s Aku Aku and Uka Uka are Mario’s Super Star, and so on–but, again, Crash Team Racing provides an interesting twist. Collecting Wumpa Fruit both speeds you up and turbocharges your power-ups. Green beakers transform into the more deadly red beakers, TNTs–which can be shaken off–become the instantly detonating Nitros, and so on. When the power-ups, boost pads, and handling combine, Nitro-Fueled boasts an exhilarating sense of speed.
These power-ups do, however, occasionally become frustrating during CTR’s Adventure mode, which tasks you with coming first in every single race across the original game’s tracklist, in addition to some optional challenges like beating certain times or collecting a certain number of crystals. Winning on every track is certainly manageable, barring a couple of trickier races, until you reach the boss fights, which feel a little unfair as bosses are quicker than any playable character and boast unlimited power-ups. Over time, after yet another run ruined by yet another bomb, it’s enough to make you want to turn off Adventure–though perhaps just until you’re back to craving that triumphant adrenaline rush the boss battles admittedly conjure.
In a welcome attempt to modernize the mode, Beenox has added a Nitro-Fueled variant of Adventure. This allows you to switch characters between races and adjust the difficulty, which goes a long way to resolving the campaign’s more irritating moments. If you prefer the more punishing, “authentic” method of progressing, you can do that too. Mercifully, the game autosaves after every race, though those giant green screens are still around if you fancy saving there for old time’s sake. (Incidentally, this is an attitude Beenox has applied to the game’s soundtrack, which allows you to switch between the revamped version and the original PlayStation audio–a nice touch.) Nitro-Fueled mode solves many of Adventure’s problems and so allows the campaign’s challenges, relics, and crystals to supply lone players an incentive to keep coming back.
Outside of Adventure, there are of course the standard single races or cups, as well as an extensive Battle mode. Within this are varied game types such as Capture the Flag and a battle royale-style Last Kart Driving. These are fun, but the relative lack of players (a maximum of eight, including AI, in local play) limits the chaos somewhat, so matches can sometimes feel a little lifeless. [Editor’s note: At the time of writing, multiplayer servers were not populated enough to find a match. We will finalize our review once we’ve played the online multiplayer offering post-launch.]
As well as Adventure mode, character customization has also been modernized. As in the 1999 game, you can choose characters depending on your preference for higher top speed, quicker acceleration, or better handling. However, you can now also change your kart and character’s appearance, with a selection of skins, badges, paint jobs, outfits, and whole new karts and characters to choose from. These are unlocked through normal play, but can also be purchased with in-game currency via the store. While they are, mechanically speaking, meaningless, they add a nice bit of flavor–and some of the outfits are pretty cool. My favorites are Robo-Cortex and the adorable Fisherman Polar. Look at him! Look at him!
Simply put: This is a remaster done right. Nitro-Fueled maintains the spirit and rock-solid foundations of a childhood favorite while building on it and modernizing it where necessary–even if the handling might take a bit of getting used to. Adventure mode’s classic variant feels a little tough, but your first race on Roo’s Tubes or Sewer Speedway will bring a nostalgic grin to your face regardless. When the nostalgia fades, Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled remains fun and engaging enough to keep you racing on with a smile on your face for much longer yet. It’s good to have Crash back.
The monetization of nostalgia is nothing new, but the process seems to have accelerated in this current generation of consoles. HD remasters and “built-from-the-ground-up” remakes litter store shelves, and we’re invariably delighted to lap up these colorful reminders of our gaming past. Occasionally, these are cynical ways to mine our memories for cash, but other times they give old gems the polish they need to shine once again. Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled is, happily, the latter, and thanks to modern updates in the right places it feels as good today as the original did 20 years ago.
There was a danger Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled would show its 1999 progenitor up to be a dated game best left in the past. Instead, developer Beenox has proved how impressive and durable Naughty Dog’s original work was while also tweaking it in the right ways. The original game’s list of 18 tracks has been expanded upon with 13 more from its sequel, Crash Nitro Kart, and these provide an extended list of topographically and visually distinct circuits, from underwater tunnels to ice caves to desert pyramids. Those visuals have of course also been given a facelift, and while no track looks bad, some look especially stunning. Coco Park has gorgeous pink flowers strewn across the road, for example, while Tiger Temple looks like it was taken directly from Uncharted 4 and Electron Avenue feels like racing through Blade Runner’s vision of Los Angeles.
The handling takes a bit of getting used to, mind you. For anyone who’s played any amount of Mario Kart, for example, over the past few years, Crash Team Racing’s power slides will feel decidedly alien, at times too sensitive and at others not sensitive enough–and this leads to quite a few missed crates or headlong collisions with stationary objects. However, once you reacquaint yourself with the mechanic–which requires you to hold one bumper down to drift and press the other bumper with the correct timing to gain a boost–it reveals itself to be of greater depth than comparable turning methods in other kart racers. You can chain these boosts for even faster acceleration (but at the risk of spinning out), so while it’s harder to get to grips with, Crash Team Racing’s power sliding nets bigger rewards for those willing to dance with the drifting devil.
Nitro-Fueled’s array of power-ups are the other obstacles in your path to the finish line. They are derivative of Mario Kart’s selection–Crash’s green beakers are Mario’s bananas, Crash’s Aku Aku and Uka Uka are Mario’s Super Star, and so on–but, again, Crash Team Racing provides an interesting twist. Collecting Wumpa Fruit both speeds you up and turbocharges your power-ups. Green beakers transform into the more deadly red beakers, TNTs–which can be shaken off–become the instantly detonating Nitros, and so on. When the power-ups, boost pads, and handling combine, Nitro-Fueled boasts an exhilarating sense of speed.
These power-ups do, however, occasionally become frustrating during CTR’s Adventure mode, which tasks you with coming first in every single race across the original game’s tracklist, in addition to some optional challenges like beating certain times or collecting a certain number of crystals. Winning on every track is certainly manageable, barring a couple of trickier races, until you reach the boss fights, which feel a little unfair as bosses are quicker than any playable character and boast unlimited power-ups. Over time, after yet another run ruined by yet another bomb, it’s enough to make you want to turn off Adventure–though perhaps just until you’re back to craving that triumphant adrenaline rush the boss battles admittedly conjure.
In a welcome attempt to modernize the mode, Beenox has added a Nitro-Fueled variant of Adventure. This allows you to switch characters between races and adjust the difficulty, which goes a long way to resolving the campaign’s more irritating moments. If you prefer the more punishing, “authentic” method of progressing, you can do that too. Mercifully, the game autosaves after every race, though those giant green screens are still around if you fancy saving there for old time’s sake. (Incidentally, this is an attitude Beenox has applied to the game’s soundtrack, which allows you to switch between the revamped version and the original PlayStation audio–a nice touch.) Nitro-Fueled mode solves many of Adventure’s problems and so allows the campaign’s challenges, relics, and crystals to supply lone players an incentive to keep coming back.
Outside of Adventure, there are of course the standard single races or cups, as well as an extensive Battle mode. Within this are varied game types such as Capture the Flag and a battle royale-style Last Kart Driving. These are fun, but the relative lack of players (a maximum of eight, including AI, in local play) limits the chaos somewhat, so matches can sometimes feel a little lifeless. [Editor’s note: At the time of writing, multiplayer servers were not populated enough to find a match. We will finalize our review once we’ve played the online multiplayer offering post-launch.]
As well as Adventure mode, character customization has also been modernized. As in the 1999 game, you can choose characters depending on your preference for higher top speed, quicker acceleration, or better handling. However, you can now also change your kart and character’s appearance, with a selection of skins, badges, paint jobs, outfits, and whole new karts and characters to choose from. These are unlocked through normal play, but can also be purchased with in-game currency via the store. While they are, mechanically speaking, meaningless, they add a nice bit of flavor–and some of the outfits are pretty cool. My favorites are Robo-Cortex and the adorable Fisherman Polar. Look at him! Look at him!
Simply put: This is a remaster done right. Nitro-Fueled maintains the spirit and rock-solid foundations of a childhood favorite while building on it and modernizing it where necessary–even if the handling might take a bit of getting used to. Adventure mode’s classic variant feels a little tough, but your first race on Roo’s Tubes or Sewer Speedway will bring a nostalgic grin to your face regardless. When the nostalgia fades, Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled remains fun and engaging enough to keep you racing on with a smile on your face for much longer yet. It’s good to have Crash back.
The Americans star Keri Russell is one of the new cast members for this December’s Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, and now she’s revealed more details about the sci-fi film. Specifically, she told The Associated Press that the script made her emotional.
“When I read his script that [write-director JJ Abrams] wrote I cried,” she said. “I mean who knows what it will turn out to be and I hope it remains true to what he originally wanted.”
According to Russell, Abrams is the right person to direct Episode 9 because he “really respects what it is” and “he’s not trying to change it to be something else.”
Russell plays a new character named Zorri Bliss who wears a helmet. Russell was excited about that. “I was like, ‘That is my dream job. I can see everyone. No one can see me. Hello. Amazing!'”
The Rise of Skywalker hits theaters on December 20. It stars Daisy Ridley as Rey, Adam Driver as Kylo Ren, John Boyega as Finn, Oscar Isaac as Poe Dameron, Kelly Marie Tran as Rose Tico, Lupita Nyong’o as Maz Kanata, Domhnall Gleeson as General Hux, Mark Hamill as Luke, and Billy Dee Williams as Lando. For more, check out the movie’s first trailer and everything we know about Star Wars Episode IX.
The Rise of Skywalker is said to be the final entry in the Skywalker Saga that began all the way back in 1977 with the original movie, so it seems so momentous–and emotional–events might happen.
In addition to The Rise of Skywalker, a new live-action TV show The Mandalorian will be available on the streaming service Disney+ when it launches on November 12.
A big part of Harry Potter: Wizards Unite is battling against the dark creatures, oddities, and magic-users of the Wizarding World. Some of the best rewards and rarest Foundables in the game are locked inside Fortresses, which put you into cooperative battles with other players on your side. If you’re a player of Pokemon Go, some of this will be familiar to you–but Wizards Unite adds a lot of depth to its battle system, as well. We’ve got even more Harry Potter: Wizards Unite coverage on our hub page.
When you level up enough, you’ll unlock the ability to pick a Profession, which lets you upgrade yourself with perks and abilities that make you more effective in battle and useful to your teammates.
Choosing a Profession is a big part of the game, as is spending the items you earn as you play in order to level yourself up over time. But how to choose whether you should be an Auror like Harry Potter, a Magizoologist like Newt Scamander, or a Professor like Albus Dumbledore? There are a lot of factors that go into the decision, including what kind of wizard you want to be, what battle stats are important to you, and how you’ll best contribute to a team of players.
We’ve run down the basics of the Profession system below to help you make the right decision. Here’s everything you need to know about Wizard Unite’s class system, including each class’s specializations, and what the stats you’ll be upgrading with the game’s RPG elements mean and how they work.
Which Profession Is Right For You?
There are three different professions to choose from in Harry Potter: Wizards Unite, which become available when you hit Level 6. Each has different benefits and drawbacks. All the professions have different areas of combat they specialize in, and are tuned to defeat different kinds of enemies. Picking the job that matches your playstyle in battle is important, but having a balanced team in situations like multiplayer Wizarding Challenges in Fortresses is also essential to victory. The good news is, you can switch specializations at any time, so if your team is short on someone to specialize in dealing with Curiosities or Beasts, you can change roles to fill the gap. There are three jobs from which to choose, each with its own unique tree of skills and perks you can earn over time.
Auror
Under the mentorship of none other than Harry Potter, Aurors are the folks who specialize in magical combat against the Dark Arts. Their abilities tend to focus on combat strength and dealing direct damage to enemies, so think of them as the frontline fighters of the Wizarding World. Aurors have the lowest Stamina, or health, of the three classes, but the highest Power. They also get more critical hits, and do more damage with them, than other wizards. Aurors do extra damage to Dark Forces enemies but take extra damage from Beast enemies.
Magizoologist
Rubeus Hagrid serves as mentor to Magizoologists, whose abilities are more aligned with caring for creatures–and other humans. This is your defensive healer class of wizards, wielding spells that are more about helping out the team than damaging enemies directly. They also have the highest Stamina of the three classes. Magizoologists are strong against Beast enemies and weak against Curiosities.
Professor
With Minerva McGonagle heading their order, Professors are a more versatile class of wizard. Their spells focus generally on buffing their teammates and debuffing their enemies, making them the status manipulators of a squad. This is your middle-of-the-road class, balanced between the power of Aurors and the defensiveness of Magizoologists, but with a lot of good traits of both. Professors do extra damage to Curiosities and take additional damage from Dark Forces enemies.
Upgrading Your Skills
You’ll need to keep an eye on a new set of items you’ll find as you venture through Wizards Unite, once you’ve unlocked Professions: Scrolls and Spellbooks. You’ll spend these in the skill trees of your professions to unlock new spells and passive perks that make you more effective in combat, like gaining additional stamina or dealing more damage.
Scrolls come from the chests unlocked when you complete Traces and catalog Foundables in your Registry, so they’re fairly easy to come by. Especially in the early part of the skill trees, you’ll mostly be spending Scrolls to advance and unlock different abilities and perks. Tougher to get are Spell Books, which are found in the chests when you complete Wizarding Challenges in Fortresses. If you want to advance your wizard abilities, you’re going to need to engage in multiplayer battles with other players.
The Stats
When you reach the Profession screen, you’ll see a page that gauges a series of stats you’ll increase for your wizard as you unlock perks in the skill tree. Their meanings aren’t immediately clear, so here’s what each one does:
Stamina: Your health in battles.
Power: The strength of the spells you use against enemies.
Protego Power: The strength of your protection spell, used to defend against incoming attacks from enemies.
Precision: The likelihood of landing a Critical Hit, which does increased damage.
Critical Power: The boost in damage you get when you land a Critical Hit.
Proficiency Power: The bonus strength of your spells against enemies your class is especially strong against.
Deficiency Defense: Added protection against enemies that do bonus damage to your class.
Accuracy: How likely your spells are to hit their targets.
Obviously, increasing all these stats is important, but some stats are higher for certain classes than others. Aurors are geared toward Power and Precision, Magizoologists toward Stamina and Defense, and Professors toward Accuracy and Proficiency.
Important Stats: Proficiency Power, Deficiency Defense
There are lots of stats you can amp up in your skill tree as you progress through it, including the power of your offensive spells and the effectiveness of Protego, your magical defense. But when it comes to specializing in your particular Profession, you’re going to want to keep an eye on two stats: Proficiency Power and Deficiency Defense.
Proficiency Power denotes how much of a boost you get against enemies that are weak to your chosen Profession. If you’re an Auror, you’ll get a bonus against Dark Forces enemies such as Death Eaters, but Proficiency Power dictates how big a bonus you receive. Especially when you’re able to play with other specialized wizards on a team, boosting this stat will make you highly effective in your particular role.
Deficiency Defense is the other side of the coin. The higher the stat, the less of a hit you take against the enemies to whom you are weak–in the case of Aurors, that would be Beast enemies such as spiders. Regardless of your strategy, investing in Deficiency Defense will help you survive in battle no matter what kind of enemy you’re facing.
Coordinate With Friends And Teammates
It’s possible to change your Profession on the fly, but you’re going to access more perks and stronger abilities sooner if you specialize in one job instead of investing in all three skill trees. Therefore, if you mean to be a serious Wizards Unite player, you’re going to want to team up with other people in your area and coordinate your Profession choices with them. If you’ve got a strong team, you can spread out your Professions and capabilities, making you a much more effective unit in multiplayer. On the other hand, if you intend to play Wizards Unite more casually, any Profession will probably do the job.
Choose Carefully
The strongest upgrades are the “Lessons” toward the bottom of each skill tree. Every time you spend Scrolls or Spell Books to unlock a node, you gain access to the ones beneath it–but you don’t have to purchase something from every single node in order to progress down the tree. That means it’s beneficial to be discerning about what lessons you invest in as you upgrade your wizard; you don’t need to buy everything, and doing so will impede your progress toward your best skills and perks. Pick your way down the skill tree to try to get upgrades that feed into your playstyle, so you can get the best upgrades sooner. You can always go back and fill in with additional nodes if you find you’re lacking in a particular stat later on.
Russell Crowe is among the list of actors who turned down the role of Aragorn in Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings film series, and now he’s spoken about why he said no to what could have become a career-defining role. Crowe told Howard Stern that it was his impression that Jackson never really wanted him for the part, and he agreed that it was his understanding that the studio went after him because he was so popular at the time.
“I didn’t think Peter Jackson actually wanted me on the film; I think he was forced into talking to me. There was a moment in time where everybody wanted me in everything,” Crowe said. “And he’s a fellow New Zealander; so I can hear his voice. I’m talking to him on the phone. And it’s like, I don’t think he even knows what I’ve done. My instinct was that he had somebody else in mind, which turned out to be Viggo Mortensen. And he should be allowed to hire the actor that he wants.”
Other actors who reportedly said no to the role of Aragorn include Nicolas Cage and Daniel Day-Lewis. Stuart Townsend was ultimately cast as Aragorn. He spent months training and filmed multiple days on set before Jackson decided to recast the role with Mortensen.
According to Stern, Crowe missed out on $100 million by passing on The Lord of the Rings, but it might have actually been more. If Crowe was actually earning 10 percent of total box office grosses for the series, he would have made many, many millions more considering the series brought in more than $3 billion. Sean Connery, meanwhile, passed on the role of Gandalf. He was reportedly offered $10 million per movie in addition to 15 percent of the franchise box office, which would have amounted to $450 million or more, according to Syfy.
Also in the Howard Stern interview, Crowe talked about passing on another high-profile role: Wolverine. Hugh Jackman was eventually cast, and Crowe praised his performance. “Even if I had done the film, I wouldn’t have carried it through with the grace and the direction that Hugh gave it,” he said.
The latest Lord of the Rings movie is the biopic Tolkien that tells the story of author J.R.R. Tolkien’s life and the events leading up to his writing of the acclaimed series.
Hot on the heels of Fortnite‘s 9.30 patch, Week 7’s challenges have now arrived on PS4, Xbox One, PC, Nintendo Switch, and mobile. Not only will completing these tasks help level your Battle Pass up and unlock more of Season 9’s cosmetic rewards, an extra bonus awaits if you can clear all seven challenges from a given week: a special loading screen that points to a free item hidden somewhere around the map.
The loading screen is the reward for completing one of Season 9’s Utopia challenges, and the item they point to varies by the week. Each even-numbered Utopia challenge will lead you to a Fortbyte, a new kind of collectible to find in Season 9. Odd-numbered Utopia challenges, on the other hand, will guide you to a free Battle Star, which will level your Battle Pass up by one full tier once collected.
Complete seven weeks’ worth of Season 9 challenges and you’ll unlock the loading screen pictured below. This week’s screen is set in the Pressure Plant, the new facility located where Season 8’s volcano stood. The clue this time should be fairly easy to spot; look on the left side of the picture and you’ll see a Battle Star on the set of stairs. That’s where you’ll find it in the game.
Make your way to the Pressure Plant after you jump into a match and locate the stairs featured in the loading screen–the Battle Star will be floating in the air there, just as teased. Build your way up to it to collect it, then finish the match and you’ll level your Battle Pass up by one tier. If you need more help finding it, we’ve marked the Battle Star’s location on the map below. You can also see where we go to find it in the video at the top of this guide.
Unlike the aforementioned Fortbytes, which can be found by anyone who owns a Season 9 Battle Pass, the secret Battle Star will only appear if you’ve cleared its corresponding Utopia challenge and unlocked the above loading screen, so you can’t simply go to the right area and expect to find it if you haven’t done the necessary work. If you need helping finishing any of this season’s challenges, you can find tips for the trickier ones in our complete Fortnite Season 9 challenges guide.
Fortnite’s 9.30 update arrived on June 18 and added a new item to the game, the Chug Splash, which can be thrown to heal yourself and other players within the range of its explosion. With the update, Epic also vaulted three items–the Boom Bow, Dual Pistols, and Dynamite–and tweaked a handful of other ones. You can find the full patch notes for the update on Epic’s official website.
Towering above the E3 landscape is a 16-foot behemoth of an arcade cabinet. Arcade1up is known primarily for shrinking cabinets down, to a much more manageable 4-foot size, but with the enormous crowds moving about the floor of the LA Convention Center, an oversize arcade cabinet is a good way to bring attention to the ones you’ll be able to bring home this fall.
Arcade1up, who’ve previously taken such classics as Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat and made them easier to bring home, is showing off its new 4-player cabinets on the floor of E3 2019.
Coming out October 13, 4-player Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle and Marvel Super Heroes cabinets are playable now at E3. That doesn’t do you any good if you’re not at E3, so here are some nice photos to make up for it.
During Capcom’s E3 Monster Hunter World: Iceborne developer showcase, we learned about quite a few new features, including the Steamworks minigame, a view mode camera, and most importantly, dynamic difficulty settings. This brand new feature for the Monster Hunter series will be added to the base Monster Hunter World without requiring the Iceborne expansion.
This new dynamic difficulty setting includes two brand new features. For the first time ever, a third difficulty setting is introduced for two-player hunting parties. Not only that, but now if players leave or are disconnected during a hunt, Monster Hunter World will automatically scale the difficulty down to the appropriate level. No more dealing with a multiplayer-scaled monster if you get disconnected, and no worries if you can’t fill out a large party. Though three-player parties are still stuck in the broader multiplayer difficulty category, and palicos still won’t re-spawn, this is still great news.