Nintendo Beats Profit Estimates Thanks To Switch Lite

Nintendo has beaten analyst profit estimations for the second quarter thanks to increased software sales provided by Nintendo Switch Lite users.

Boomberg reports that analysts predicted a 50.5 billion yen operating income for Nintendo, but the company has now revealed that it generated 66.8 billion yen ($615 million). Sales generated 271.9 billion yen, exceeding predictions of 250.8 billion.

Nintendo has set itself profit projections for the whole year, ending March 2020, that are notably below analyst estimates: 260 billion yen is forecast, despite analyst predictions of 308.1 billion yen and a series of strong upcoming games such as Pokemon Sword and Shield. The strong second quarter report has not caused Nintendo to increase that forecast.

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Fortnite Locations: Where Are Boat Launch, Coral Cove, And Flopper Pond (Challenge Guide)

The Fortnitemares Halloween event is now live in Fortnite Chapter 2, but that hasn’t stopped the fourth week of Battle Pass challenges from appearing. The latest mission set is called Dockyard Deal and introduces a nautical theme to the battle royale shooter, revolving around boats, the new Dirty Docks location, and the increased amount of water on Chapter 2’s map. One of the challenges tasks you with visiting three landmarks: Boat Launch, Coral Cove, and Flopper Pond. Landmarks aren’t displayed on the in-game map, but we’re here to help if you’re not sure where to go.

Where Are Boat Launch, Coral Cove, And Flopper Pond?

Like last week, the three landmarks you need to visit are spread out across the map, with one in the north, one in the south, and one near the centre of the map.

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Boat Launch is found southeast of Misty Meadows, near the snowy mountaintop with the cabin and zipline. You can find it in the E8 square on Fortnite’s map grid.

Head north from here to find Flopper Pond just north of Weeping Woods and south of Sweaty Sands. It’s sandwiched between Holly Hedges and Salty Springs, at a pond surrounded by trees and a house with a dock. It’s located at C4 on the map grid.

The final landmark is Coral Cove, which is located in the northwest part of the island, just past Sweaty Sands. You’ll find it at the end of the beach, signified by the huge coral laying around the area. It’s at B2 on the map.

How To Complete The Challenge

This one’s simple enough; you don’t even need to do anything at each landmark, just visit them one by one and you’ll complete the challenge. You can try to visit all three in a single match or just land at each location in separate matches. Completing this challenge will now net you a whopping 52,000 season XP and unlock another Dockyard Deal challenge.

Chapter 2, Season 1 runs until December 12, according to the official Fortnite website. You can see the full list of Chapter 2 challenges here, along with our guides on how to complete the trickiest ones. For more, be sure to check out our other Fortnite Chapter 2 coverage below.

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Pokemon Sword & Shield Now Available To Pre-Load On Switch

Pokemon Sword and Shield are only two weeks away. The Gen 8 Pokemon games arrive on Nintendo Switch on November 15, but if you’re eager to start your Galar journey as soon as possible, you can now pre-load the titles ahead of their launch.

If you purchase the titles digitally from the Switch Eshop, you are now able to download them so that they’ll be available to play the moment they go live on November 15. According to the Eshop, each game weighs in at 9.5 GB, and you’ll need 19 GB of free space if you decide to spring for both versions.

Pokemon Sword and Shield are both eligible for the Switch Voucher program, so if you’re a Nintendo Switch Online subscriber and have been holding onto some vouchers, you can use one to download either title. While vouchers are no longer available to purchase, you can redeem any that you still have up to a full year after you bought them. You can see the full list of voucher compatible games on Nintendo’s website.

If you purchase Sword or Shield digitally, you’ll receive 12 free Quick Balls within the games as a bonus. These have a high chance of catching a Pokemon if used immediately after the encounter begins. Meanwhile, everyone who purchases a copy–either physically or digitally–by January 15, 2020 will receive a Meowth that’s capable of Gigantmaxing.

Those aren’t the only freebies you can get. Players who have save data of either Let’s Go Pikachu or Eevee on their consoles will also receive a Gigantamax-capable Pikachu or Eevee. You can see all the free Pokemon for Sword and Shield here. For more on the upcoming Gen 8 games, be sure to check out our Pokemon Sword and Shield pre-order guide.

Now Playing: Pokemon Sword & Shield Devs Talk National Pokedex Controversy – GS News Update

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Snag These 2 Free PC Games Just In Time For Halloween

The products discussed here were independently chosen by our editors. GameSpot may get a share of the revenue if you buy anything featured on our site.

The Epic Games Store has continued its weekly practice of giving out free games this month, and the list has included quite a few horror games to keep up with the spooky vibes of October, including Observer, Alan Wake’s American Nightmare, and Layers of Fear: Masterpiece Edition. So it’s no surprise this week’s free games are continuing the pattern. As of October 31, you can claim underwater sci-fi horror game Soma and adorable Halloween adventure Costume Quest for free. All you need is a free Epic Games Store account to add them to, and they’ll be yours to keep forever.

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Soma is an acclaimed survival horror game from the creators of Amnesia: The Dark Descent, and it’s set on a mysterious underwater research facility where machines have begun to take on human characteristics. You’ll play as Simon Jarrett, who wakes up at the facility after a car accident in 2015 and discovers he’s now in the year 2104. As Simon begins to explore the facility, he must put together clues, solve puzzles, and avoid monsters as he discovers more about the facility and his own fate.

The game earned an impressive 9/10 in GameSpot’s Soma review, where Richard Wakeling praised its engaging and thought-provoking story, excellent writing, chilling sound design, and overall tension-building. “While Soma may have been dubbed a spiritual successor to the terrifying Amnesia: The Dark Descent, it would be reductive to simply call it a ‘science-fiction Amnesia’. For all its foreboding dread and ghastly creatures that go bump in the night, Soma is driven more by an enigmatic narrative than any chilling moments of bloodcurdling terror,” he wrote.

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Costume Quest, on the other hand, isn’t spooky at all, but this simple RPG has a charming nostalgia to it that still makes it worth your time. This adorable adventure takes place on Halloween and follows two twins, Reynold and Wren, as they prepare to go trick-or-treating in their new neighborhood. When one of the twins gets kidnapped by a monster, the remaining sibling must brave the night alone as they gather candy (the in-game currency), pick up costume parts, complete side quests for hints to the missing twin’s location, and fight monsters in turn-based battles.

In GameSpot’s Costume Quest review, the game earned a 7/10 for its great visual design, clever and humorous writing, and strategic battles, although critic Giancarlo Varanini noted the game’s slow start and cluttered display information. “Without question, the art and overall premise serve as Costume Quest’s biggest hook, and these things are ultimately what drive the game and turn it into something much more than a superficial RPG,” he wrote. “Still, whether or not you can overlook and overcome its initial shortcomings is tied directly to how much you buy into its premise on a nostalgic and comedic level. That said, when Costume Quest picks up steam and truly reveals all it has to offer from a gameplay perspective, it relies less on that premise and simply delivers an all-around satisfying gaming experience.”

Soma and Costume Quest are free to claim now through November 7, when they’ll be replaced by the next round of free games, Nuclear Throne and Ruiner.

See Soma and Costume Quest at Epic

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Netflix’s The Witcher Series Gets Release Date And New Trailer

Recently, The Witcher Twitter account announced a teaser for a new trailer, and while the pre-hype-hype for the upcoming Netflix series seemed a bit much, the new trailer for the December original show lives up to all of it.

On Thursday morning, the new trailer–which you can see below–arrived globally, and it finally announced the release date for Netflix original, based on the best-selling novels: December 20. And the two-minute long trailer also features Geralt talking to someone while an orgy takes place in the background, so you may not want to watch this at work. But rest assured, the iconic tub scene is included.

There has been a good amount of secrecy surrounding the Witcher TV show, but the trailer does give some tidbits of info away. A girl is searching for Geralt, as she needs his help. Additionally, there is a war happening that will surely complicate things. As you’d expect from The Witcher, there is magic, monsters, and Geralt taking a bath.

Netflix’s The Witcher stars Henry Cavill as Geralt of Rivia, Anya Chalotra as Yennefer, and Freya Allan as Ciri. We’re still about two months away from the series landing on Netflix so why not play Witcher 3 again, on Switch? In his review of the Nintendo port, Jacob Dekker gave The Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt an 9/10 (while the PC, Xbox One, and PS4 versions received a 10/10), and in the review, Dekker said, “Although the Nintendo Switch might not be the best platform to play The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, it’s still a fantastic experience that shouldn’t be missed. If you are looking to replay The Witcher 3 and bask in its detail and beauty, the Switch port may not quite scratch that itch. However, what makes this game excellent isn’t its graphics, but the powerful stories it tells, and those are as vivid as ever on Switch.”

The Witcher comes to Netflix on December 20.

Second Trailer for Netflix’s The Witcher Shows Off Geralt in Combat

The second trailer for Netflix’s The Witcher series released Thursday morning, and with it comes a brand new glimpse into the world of monster hunters like Geralt of Rivia, and an actual release date. All eight episodes of The Witcher will debut on Netflix on December 20, 2019.

The trailer gives us a greater look at actor Henry Cavill’s interpretation of Geralt than previous teasers have. We see Geralt being questioned by a number of characters, all of whom appear to be dissecting the legend of the White Wolf in their own way. When one character insinuates that Geralt should have the marking of a monster, Geralt responds as dryly as only a witcher can, joking that he’s had his fangs and horns filed down.

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Netflix’s The Witcher Release Date and New Trailer Revealed

Netflix has revealed the release date and a new trailer for The Witcher.

The trailer reveals that The Witcher will be released worldwide on Netflix on Friday, December 20, meaning all eight episodes of The Witcher will finally be available to binge before the end of the year. Henry Cavill stars as the titular Geralt of Rivia, Freya Allen is portraying the Cintran Princess Ciri, and Anya Chalotra is the sorceress Yennefer. Watch the trailer below:

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