Author: Trafficblast

Battle royale games are steadily evolving, moving past the genre’s humble beginnings as mods for large-scale survival games, like ARMA 2 and Minecraft, and into new territory. You can already see it rapidly growing thanks to the massive successes of PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds and Fortnite. This year alone is packed with a slew of new battle royale games that aim to push the genre even further. To keep you informed of all the latest games in the genre, we’ve compiled 10 of the biggest ones releasing in 2018.

As you’ll see in this feature, many of the latest battle royale games are expanding upon its most long held tenets and adding new mechanics into the mix. Some games add in spectator elements and dynamic environmental effects, while others are taking the experience to VR.

Others battle royale games this year are opting for a more traditional approach. Games like Europa and Mavericks: Proving Grounds are sticking to the last person standing approach but across different scales and with additional mechanics, like dynamic environmental effects and higher player counts.

Regardless of what you prefer, it’s safe to say that there is likely a new battle royale game for you. But which one are you looking forward to the most? Let us know in the comments below. And be sure to check back often as we update this feature with even more new battle royale games as they get announced.

It feels just like yesterday, but PS4 launched over four years ago, and a ton of games have come out in that time. As such, it can be tough to sort through all of them and decide what to play. Luckily, we at GameSpot have played tons of PS4 over the years and have more than a few recommendations to start you off with–whether you’re a new PS4 owner or have had the console and are just looking for something you might’ve missed.

In this feature, we’ve collected the best PS4 games so far. This includes many of the games that have received an 8 or higher on GameSpot, and we’ve prioritized games that were nominated for our end-of-year Best PS4 Game lists. Check out our choices for the best games released on the PS4. And with the console’s library continuing to expand, make sure to check back often as we update this feature over the coming weeks and months.

For more PS4 games on a budget, see our roundups of the best cheap games on PS4, and make sure to check out our gallery of the PS4 exclusive games confirmed for 2018 as well as the biggest PS4 games of 2018 for everything coming to the console.

Overwatch‘s next event may be turning back time for its former self Blackwatch, but not all of them are turning to the dark side. Hanzo is one of the few taking a more cleaned up and formal approach with his event-exclusive skin.

Clad in a black and blue pinstripe suit and rolled up sleeves, the Scion Hanzo skin is more than just its dapper and domineering appearance. Scion refers to a descendant of a notable family–and the Shimada clan, to which both Hanzo and Genji belong, is just that.

This year’s spring event is similar to last year’s Uprising event, but instead of looking into Tracer’s first mission, this year’s Retribution mission travels eight years into the past as Blackwatch attempts to secure a member of the Talon organization in Venice. Check out all the lore details we know of as this year’s Archives event will feature a big story moment.

The Archives event will begin this coming Tuesday, April 10. While Scion Hanzo is the second skin to be revealed after Moira’s Blackwatch skin, we expect more to be revealed soon, as 60 new items have been confirmed. You can snag the new skins and cosmetics from this event, and last year’s Uprising event, until April 30.

It’s pretty well established at this point that Fortnite is popular–like, ridiculously popular. So popular that schools are having to ban it from class, and hip-hop artists and professional athletes are talking about it and playing it. But the hours and hours of gametime that some players are logging is creating a bit of a backlash to the game–and some people have banded together to try and resist it.

Frustrated with how engrossed their loved ones have become with Fortnite, hundreds of people have signed a petition simply titled, “Get rid of Fortnite.” Its mission is to ban the game so that significant others’ free time can be reclaimed.

As reported by the Washington Post (which, it should be said, is itself evident of Fortnite’s popularity), the Change.org petition has accumulated about 730 signatures at the time of this writing. Most express frustration that their loved ones are neglecting them in favor of the game; as Chloe DePalma wrote, “It’s taking over our boyfriends lives and brainwashing them.”

This petition is obviously meant in jest; Fortnite will in no way be banned, and it’s likely that the majority of petitioners know that. But it’s a testament to the Fortnite phenomenon that this petition has resonated with many people across social media. As for the anonymous creator of the petition, they updated the change.org site with an explanation that it was started as a joke–and, recently, they’ve begun playing Fortnite and actually enjoy it.

Final Fantasy XV got DLC last year consisting of a multiplayer mode, called Comrades, that allows players to team up and take on enemies together. At the moment, Comrades is only available as an expansion to FFXV. But later this year, Comrades will get a standalone release alongside an update that adds raid bosses and battle challenges.

Square Enix announced the news today at its PAX East panel, explaining that players will soon no longer need to purchase the full game to play its multiplayer mode. Comrades allows people to team up to complete quests, defeat enemies, and take on monster-hunting contracts, and this summer it’ll get a bunch of new content with the addition of raid bosses and other challenges.

There’s no word yet on a price for the standalone Comrades; it currently costs $20 as DLC for FFXV. Square also hasn’t announced when it’ll be released.

This is one part of what appears to be a big new wave of post-release support for the game. In addition to the Comrades standalone release, Square has also revealed that a Shadow of the Tomb Raider/FFXV crossover is in the works, and four more episodes will be added in 2019.

Far Cry 5 has gotten accolades for its appearance, and for good reason. Its graphical fidelity is fantastic, and it features everything from gorgeous vistas to detailed homes and villages. But here at GameSpot, we think that it’s possible to make any game look awful.

This week on Potato Mode, we take a hatchet to Far Cry 5’s visuals and make it look like a cross between a horror movie and a PlayStation 1 game. Joey and Nick first turn down or off every visual option in the menus, showing what it’d look like if you wanted to run it on, say, a low-end laptop.

However, they’re not satisfied with that. Delving into its game files, they thoroughly wreck its graphics, turning it into a glitchy mess full of detextured polygons, dead eyes, and broken shadows. It’s a glorious disaster, and you can watch the whole video in the embed above.

You can watch a new episode of Potato Mode every Friday; last week featured Joey and Nick taking Sea of Thieves and turning it into a neon-green nightmare. Also be sure to check out our Far Cry 5 hub for tips, guides, and more on the different modes in the game.