Dragon Quest Builders 2 Coming To Xbox Game Pass On May 4

Dragon Quest Builders 2 is officially headed to Xbox for the first time and will be available on console, PC, and Xbox Cloud Gaming on May 4. The Dragon Quest spin-off sequel from publisher Square Enix originally launched in December 2019 for the Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4, arriving on PC a few months later.

Microsoft confirmed the news after store pages for the game began appearing online and leaking the existence of the game. If you’re not currently a member of Xbox Game Pass or Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, you’ll be able to purchase Dragon Quest Builders 2 for $50.

In our Dragon Quest Builders 2 review, critic Heidi Kemps praised the game for building on the strong foundation that its predecessor had established.

“Dragon Quest Builders 2 is a great game, combining exploration, sandbox-building, questing, and town-management into a delightful package that will gladly suck up your time and put a big smile on your face,” Kemps said. “It’s the sort of game that you’ll intend to play for a little while, only to find that hours have flown by once you manage to actually put it down.”

In other Square Enix news, the publisher has joined the growing roster of E3 2021, alongside other recent publisher additions such as Capcom, Bandai Namco, and Sega. With a busy year ahead of it that includes the newly-released NieR Replicant ver.1.22474487139 and the upcoming Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade, the company has no shortage of content to show off and is currently inalizing its reveal line-up.

Now Playing: Dragon Quest Builders 2 – First 26 Minutes Gameplay

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Roku Is Warning Customers YouTube TV App Might Disappear

Roku users may soon have issues finding YouTube TV on their devices. In an email sent to its YouTube TV users, Roku is now warning that the app may go dark. This is due to recent negotiations in which Google allegedly wants conspicuous placement for YouTube in all search results and to block results from other providers. News of the brewing standoff was first reported by Axios, which has also published the email alerting customers.

“Recent negotiations with Google to carry YouTube TV have broken down because Roku cannot accept Google’s unfair terms as we believe they could harm our users,” reads the email. “While we are deeply disappointed in Google’s decision to use their monopoly power to try and force terms… we remain committed to reaching an agreement with Google that preserves your access.”

Roku is also indicating that in these negotiations, according to Yahoo News, Google has allegedly “threatened to set chipset and memory requirements for devices that would raise hardware prices.” Such a move would therefore, potentially, give Google’s Chromecast device an unfair competitive advantage, which a Roku spokesperson argued would be “predatory.”

Google, which has a long history of skirting antitrust issues, has not yet responded publicly. Neither Roku nor Google are strangers to these types of disputes. Last year, it took months and months for NBCUniversal and Roku to broker an agreement that would allow the Peacock streaming platform to be made available on Roku-enabled devices, and the same was true of HBO Max.

Earlier this year, Roku released estimated data from 2020 indicating that it closed out the year with a total of 51.2 million active accounts. During the pandemic, the company says it created approximately 14 million accounts, and that in the fourth quarter of 2020 alone, its viewers watched a total of 58.7 billion hours.

Last Of Us TV Show Adds New Directors Who Have Released Celebrated Films

HBO’s The Last of Us TV show has added two new directors, both of whom have released highly regarded films. The new directors are Jasmila Žbanić and Ali Abbasi, according to a report from Variety.

Žbanić recently released Quo Vadis, Aida, which was nominated for Best International Film at the Oscars. It didn’t win, but getting a nomination is a big deal. It did win the Film Independent Spirit Award for best international film this year.

Abbasi, meanwhile, won the Un Certain Regard award at the Cannes Film Festival for his 2018 movie Border, which is also known as Gräns.

Johan Renck, who directed HBO’s Chernobyl, was originally attached to direct the pilot for The Last of Us, but he would later drop out. Kantemir Balagov (Beanpole) came in to replace him.

It is not immediately clear how many episodes are in Season 1 for The Last of Us, and the Variety report didn’t have any word on the breakdown between Žbanić and Abbasi as it related to which episodes they will direct.

Craig Mazin, who wrote Chernobyl, is attached as a writer for The Last of Us TV show alongside the writer-director of the game, Neil Druckmann.

Bella Ramsey (Game of Thrones) and Pedro Pascal (Game of Thrones, The Mandalorian) have signed on to play Ellie and Joel, respectively. Gabriel Luna (Agents of Shield) has been brought on to play Tommy. A recent report said cameras would start rolling on The Last of Us TV show in Canada this July.

Recently, Druckmann spoke about how the Last of Us TV show will deviate significantly from the games. “Some of my favorite episodes so far have deviated greatly from the story, and I can’t wait for people to see them,” he said.

As for the game series, Naughty Dog might make The Last of Us 3, or potentially a new IP, as its next game. On the more immediate horizon, Naughty Dog is developing a standalone Last of Us multiplayer game. In other news, a recent report said Naughty Dog is also working on a Last of Us remake for PS5.

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Gears Pop Officially Shuts Down Today

The mobile Gears of War spin-off Gears Pop has officially shut down. The real-time strategy mobile game inspired by hits like Clash Royale first launched in 2019.

Developer Mediatonic announced the closure date last October. In its original shutdown notice, it stated that it was “no longer feasible” to keep developing more content, provide support, and address bugs. The studio also issued refunds for any purchases made within 90 days before the announcement, from July 30, 2020 through October 28, 2020.

As the game was winding down, Mediatonic gave remaining players a leg-up by reducing purchase costs and giving out freebies like a guaranteed legendary character.

In March, Mediatonic was bought by Epic Games, seemingly driven by the standout success of Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout. That game is a battle royale platformer, and Epic Games is very well-known these days as the studio behind the similarly massive hit battle royale shooter Fortnite. The decision to shut down Gears Pop was made before this acquisition, though.

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Animal Crossing: New Horizons Update Launches April 28, “New Wrinkles” Teased For Upcoming Events

The next update for Animal Crossing New Horizons has been announced by Nintendo for April 28, bringing a trio of returning holidays to celebrate across May and June. Curiously the official tweet from Animal Crossing about the update mentions “new wrinkles” involving these events, but no new details are specified in the announcement.

First up is the May Day celebration, starting April 29 and ending May 7. Players will receive a May Day ticket that gives them one-time access to a “rather interesting island.” The announcement from Nintendo UK confirms this year’s island will not be the same as last year’s May Day Maze, but Rover, the train-riding cat from the original Animal Crossing, will return.

Next is the International Museum Day event taking place May 18 to May 31. Upon visiting the museum and talking to Blathers, players can receive a stamp card that can be filled out by viewing exhibits. All four wings of the museum–insects, fish, fossils and art–will contain unique stamps to collect throughout the event.

Finally is Wedding Season June 1 to June 30, and Cyrus and Reese from Animal Crossing New Leaf will return to Harvey’s island for their first anniversary. Players can meet with the happy couple, decorate the photo studio, and take special wedding photos with them throughout the month of June. New wedding-themed clothing and furniture options will be available all month long in both Nook’s Cranny and the Able Sisters’ shop. The update will also make new seasonal items available throughout May and June, including items themed around Japan’s Children’s Day (April 28 to May 5), Mother’s Day (all of May), the UK’s Cheese Rolling event (May 22 to May 31), Father’s Day (all of June) and more.

The previous update for Animal Crossing: New Horizons brought prom season to the island with special clothing options as well as April Fools’ Day activities. The game continues to sell well a year after its launch, ranking eighth on the March NPD sales list, so more updates can be expected throughout the summer and beyond.

Now Playing: Animal Crossing: New Horizons – “Your Island In April” Update Trailer

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PlayStation’s Next State Of Play Coming April 29: Here’s How To Watch

Sony’s next State of Play event is coming up very soon. The company announced on Monday that the next State of Play will debut this Thursday, April 29. It will focus on Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart, but it remains to be seen what other games might show up.

Sony State Of Play Livestream Start Time (April 29)

  • 2 PM PT
  • 5 PM ET
  • 10 PM BST
  • 7 AM AET (April 30)

What We Know Will Be There

Insomniac’s Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart is the “focus” of the State of Play broadcast. The studio will showcase more than 15 minutes of new gameplay for the title that arrives on June 11. This will be in addition to the brand-new Rift Apart gameplay that Sony just released, which revealed a new protagonist, Rivet.

The YouTube description for the State of Play says the event will have 15+ minutes of new Rift Apart footage and a new look at two indie games. “This Thursday, feast your eyes on more than 15 minutes of new Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart footage, plus a quick look at a pair of upcoming indie titles,” the description says.

For what it’s worth, Sony did not give the April 29 State of Play much fanfare. There was no PlayStation Blog post dedicated to announcing the State of Play; instead, the announcement came at the bottom of the blog post about Rift Apart’s new trailer.

The last State of Play before this was held in February. The 30-minute broadcast included news and updates on 10 games for PS4 and PS5, including Deathloop, Returnal, and more.

How To Watch

The April 29 State of Play will be broadcast through the official PlayStation Twitch and YouTube channels. Given that, we should be able to embed the presentation so you can watch right here on GameSpot.

Keep checking back with GameSpot for more as we learn more about this Thursday’s State of Play and what to expect from it.

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Titanfall 2 Players Rise By 750% On Steam After Apex Legends Tie-In And Steep Discount

Respawn Entertainment’s 2016 shooter Titanfall 2 has seen a big increase in concurrent users lately on Steam. Having recently been discounted by 75%, player numbers surged upwards by more than 750%, with the game breaking its all-time record player count according to SteamDB. At 16,974 players recorded at its peak so far, Titanfall 2 has smashed its previous record of 13,603 concurrent players since it first arrived on Steam last summer.

The increase in players could also be partly attributed to the upcoming ninth season of Apex Legends, which includes more direct references to the Titanfall universe and its story. As seen in the latest trailer, Kairi “Valkyrie” Imahara is the newest playable character and is the daughter of Viper, one of the Apex Predator Pilots that players faced off against in Titanfall 2.

Viper piloted an aerial combat Northstar Titan frame in that game, and thanks to some tinkering from Rampart, Valkyrie can use the flight core of her father’s old Titan as a jetpack.

Ever since the launch of Apex Legends, Respawn has confirmed that plans for a new Titanfall game have been put on the back burner so that the studio can focus on growing its successful battle royale title. Titanfall 2 was also infamously sandwiched between Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare and Battlefield 1 when it launched in 2016, leading to poor sales at the time.

Respawn hasn’t written the franchise off entirely, but between Apex Legends, starting a second studio in Vancouver, and hiring for a new original game it has in development, it’ll likely be a while before Titanfall 3 ever sees the light of day.

Now Playing: Apex Legends & Titanfall Timeline Explained

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Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story Gets Visually Stunning First Trailer

The first trailer for Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story has been released. The new version of the classic musical hits theaters on December 10.

The trailer is very much a first teaser–it contains no dialogue or shots of the actors singing. But it is visually stunning, with striking shots of New York in the 1950s and of the gang members assembling in the streets, ready to fight (and sing) it out. Lead actors Rachel Zegler and Ansel Elgort play conflicted lovers Maria and Tony, and it’s likely to be one of the big movies of the Holiday season when it arrives. Check the trailer out below:

West Side Story’s supporting cast is drawn from the world of theater, and it also includes Ariana DeBose (Hamilton, The Prom), David Alvarez (Billy Elliot the Musical), and Mike Faist (Dear Evan Hansen). Rita Moreno, who won an Oscar for playing Maria in the 1961 movie version, also has a supporting role and worked as executive producer.

The movie’s screenplay was written by Tony Kushner, who previously worked with Spielberg on Lincoln and Munich. It’s adapted from Arthur Laurents, Leonard Bernstein, and Stephen Sondheim’s 1957 Broadway hit, which was itself a loose adaptation of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet.

While the earlier film used white actors in make-up to play Puerto Rican characters, Spielberg’s movie is far more representative in its casting. In an interview with Vanity Fair, the director explained that it was important to cast actors from the Latinx community this time round.

“They brought an authenticity,” he said. “They brought themselves, and everything they believe and everything about them–they brought that to the work. And there was so much interaction between the cast wanting to be able to commit to the Puerto Rican experience. They all represent, I think, a diversity, both within the Puerto Rican, Nuyorican community as well as the broader Latinx community. And they took that seriously.”

Neymar Jr Joins Fortnite This Week as the First Playable Athlete

Brazilian soccer star Neymar Jr, when he arrives on April 27, will be the first professional athlete to become playable in Fortnite.

Neymar Jr, who is currently a forward for Paris Saint-Germain F.C. and the Brazil National Football Team, will be available as part of a special Quest line for all who own the Chapter 2 Season 6 Battle Pass.

Completing these quests will unlock Neymar’s outfit, the Soccer Ball Emote Toy, the Matador Loading Screen, the Joia Trophy Back Bling, the Jaguar Strike Pickaxe, and the Shhh. Emote.

This Shhh. Emote is special because it will awaken one of his primal forms that more-or-less turns Neymar Jr into a power ranger-esque super hero.

More items can be unlocked by completing all of these Quests, including the I’m Ready! Spray, Stealth Shot Emoticon, Hang Loose Celebration Emote, Aerial Acrobat Glider, and the Exhibition Style of the Neymar Jr Outfit, Jaguar Strike Pickaxe, and Aerial Acrobat Glider.

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There will also be a special Paris-themed Welcome Hub in Fortnite Creative to explore, a “Go Crazy Arena” playlist, a Neymar Jr Cup that will allow players to win a custom-designed soccer boot, and much more.

As previously mentioned, while Fortnite has offered an Emote honoring Pele and outfits inspired by some of the biggest Soccer clubs in the world and the NFL, this is the first time a professional athelete has been created as a playable outfit in the game.

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Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.